Planet X, value or shite?

My hunch is that most of the people who waffle on about how terrible cheap open mold Chinese frames are don't know what they're banging on about. It's a bicycle, not a Stradivarius.

I got a carbon RT58 with cheap Khamsin wheels and (mostly) Ultegra 6800 for £799 when they were replacing them for a new frame. It's been brilliant. This may be because I'm not as 'discerning' and therefore content with less, or it may be that I'm not as easily swayed by marketing guff. Delete as applicable.

I was absolutely delighted when I hired 2 bikes in Mallorca (Giant TCR Advanced and Trek Domane S5), and found very little to recommend them over my cheap PX. The Trek was terrible not because it was a worse bike but because it was set up badly and I'm a crap fettler (can't index gears without making them worse not better).

I'm sure one day I'll spend silly money on a dream steed, although also a safe bet that 2 weeks later I'll wrap it round a tree trunk.

Planet X has poor customer service rating which that alone would prevent me from buying anything from them, however their fenders are actually quite nice.  But everything that Planet X sells with their brand name on it is cheap low quality stuff made in China.  They use to make a very nice fender though, but they stopped selling it.  Anyway due to their poor customer service record they are not on my radar to buy stuff from.

Been buying from them for about three or four years now, and never had an issue with quality or customer service (replaced a pair of Thicky Merino Socks which had a hole in them without quibble).

I've been a fan of their Commuter 365 Bib Shorts since I bought my first pair over 3 years ago, and they're still being used and only now starting to show any real wear'n'tear.  They're a complete contrast to the DHB bib shorts I used to buy from Wiggle, which had stitching which would be coming undone in under a month and holes developing around the areas of saddle contact within 3 or 4 months.

The Planet X 3/4 ProLine 365x 3/4-lenth bibs are also superb quality & far superior to anything Wiggle offer at a comparable price.

I've recently bought a couple of {Pro 365x sleeveless base layers and 365 Race Gloves in their sale, and they too have been exceptionally good for the price.

Smed, I purchased the Peugeot style cap for our ride up Vntoux, meant i could get the 3 of us one and one to leave for Mr Simpson cheaper than the average cap. Not sure I agree with your summary, it's not as good as my £15 wiggins cap or Ritch Mitch legends but £1 versus £15...

That d-locks a steal

I love my flanders socks but better when paired with their flanders jersey

May look for that headspacer bell

Had some Selle Italia saddles for £8, again so cheap I bought the same saddle for each road bike which helps, also things like bar tape are good!

Your post got me thinking so I logged on to the PlanetX website to review what purchases I have made over the last year. They are listed in the attached image with purchase price and comment.

Overall I am very happy with the items I have had from them, the price is amazing and I've not had any issue with service. Particular stand outs to me are:
The Vittoria Hyper tyres (which are great but at thieir price point amazing). 
The spacer bell is a great innovation though I do get through a few due to catching it often but I'll live with that for the extra space on the handlebars and ease of "dinging" with either hand.
The Merino Arm warmers are an essential for cold, dry weather but don't expect them to last too long (but I don't mind at that price).

Would I buy a bike from them? Maybe not, but I am not sure I would buy any bike purely online so it's nothing against them personally.

Hope that helps (though I get the impression that the post may have been more of a rant than an actual question)

Simboid, also worth noting that as his business has grown massively he's made staff redundant and employed people on zero hour contracts. Even if you forget the cheap import bulk buy element, this lovely Sheffield based company ain't how it portrays itself...

another vote for their cheap socks - liked the socks so much i bought a frame - bish bash bosh - and the finish is very good and it rides brilliantly - over the years bought various bargain bits - ignoring those where the description doesn't seem to fit the goods - probably could buy the same stuff direct from china but I'd rather not - that's a different level of risk - over the years done some pretty good stuff - but failed to address service and seem to lack focus and direction big time - pity as the good stuff is very good - not met the owner but heard similar - so I won't save enough to buy a Range Rover but  while your business model delivers some quality goods at excellent prices I'll pick and choose but will never be a loyal customer or suggest that anyone buys without weighing up that it might be a bad experience 

Simboid is it just you ?

Nobody has that much bad luck or keeps buying after a brand has let them down.

PX wouldn't be in business if your experience was the norm.

So anyway, I reckon planet x socks are pretty good.

We need another comedy pairing like Rapha and Behind.

Singlespeed, do you talk to people like this in real life or do you save it for your online interactions? It's absolutely fascinating.

@Simboid, you don't know what you're talking about. I've got no end of stuff from Planet X. Most good, some excellent, my Model B wheels especially brilliant. I've never been 'shafted'.

Did you really want an answer to your question or did you just want a moan?

Saddlebags at dawn!

Zwift off!

I've had my XLS bike for a little over a year now and I've completed a full season of cyclocross on it plus the 3 Peaks a fortnight ago, as someone commented earlier, the groupset alone ,SRAM Force cx1, retails for much the same price as I paid for the whole bike !. I also had a minor issue with the frame, which it transpired was caused by a wheel hub ceasing, result was a new frame and wheelset, all very efficiently sorted with minimum delay. Was also offered a deal on a discounted pair of carbon wheels for the inconvenience, but they were tubs only, and I couldn't justify it, guess with hindsight I should have taken them for the price and then just sold them on. Absolutely no complaints from me.

Ahh but if he set his stall out a bit early in the email "I'd rather not send it back" then as the retailer you may go in with a cheap offer. There was no suggestion they wouldn't have swapped it out if pushed. 

As for "kicked around the warehouse", are you sure that no bike has ever received a bump in transit?

PlanetX is great for stuff that you really need, but don't want to waste money on. I.e. socks, clamps, bolts etc.

I also got a VERY good deal on an FSA carbon seatpost (1/2 price of the cheapest retailer), ended up selling it for more than I bought it for (after a couple years use!).

Would I buy a carbon bike from planetx with Ultegra because they are fantastic value? No, not as my pride and joy anyway.​

Have a disc equipped London Road from them which I use as a winter bike, it's just about to go into it's 3rd winter and I've had no problems with it at all.

Had a Dirty Disco built up with SRAM Force, cracking bike for the money. Would definitely get one of their carbon frames if I was in the market for a fast road n+1 to go alongside my tourer

As has been mentioned, their lower range stuff is probably no better than Aliexpress stuff. I bought a bib and jersey set from China that's going strong after 2 years of 2-3 days use a week. Cost £17.

Some of the Planet X build it yourself deals this year have been tempting though. Carbon frame with Ultegra for £1000. Still kicking myself for not buying it. Waiting for a deal on a Full Monty as my commuting bike.

Had my road bike(Planet X RT58 alloy) for nearly 3 years now and it’s superb. Came setup perfectly and didn’t even need to touch the indexing until I changed the cables. Done over 10,000 miles and still look like new. 

Agree the on one bib shorts are great. Had some branded saddles with 80% off and generally bought stuff for a bargain that has usually over delivered for the price. No major components or electricals purchased though...

Phaser Dark Star aluminium front light, has been reliable but beam pattern is more torch than bike light! Slightly annoying metal contact for the batteries that moves if you don't hold it in place from other side when put batteries in, but it was very cheap.
Rear light that came with it kept switching off whenever I hit a decent bump in road, tracked down to dodgy contact, took a bit of fettling. Been reliable since, and pretty bright.
Merino socks were good until wore through, a bit too quickly. But they were quite cheap.
On-One SS top has been spot on. Had it quite a few years and has yet to fray anywhere or lose any stitching. Was less than a tenner.
Neoprene overshoes are a classic, if you like ugly but functional! They do work and keep your feet toasty, barring downpours.
Merino arm warmers are proving a bit tricky to prevent shrinkage...
A mixed bag really, but there is nothing that I have felt the need to send back.