[CJ64]

Hi everyone

I hope asking this question is ok; if not then apologies

I would like to buy a road bike (last one was a Peugeot racer back in 1989!)

My budget was initially £1000 but my local bike shop suggested a Tifosi Scalare Caliper Tiagra so that’s now £1275

However, I like having disc brakes on my current bike and also it seems that 105 is a good jump from Tiagra

Just the 105 and Caliper jumps the price to £1550

As I’m new to this I was wondering if anyone could suggest the best option for a budget of £1500-£1600?

Also, the Tifosi comes with 25cm wheels But allows space for 28cm

Many thanks

Topic

[David9694]

This? https://www

This? 
https://www.leisurelakesbikes.com/310183/products/trek-emonda-sl-6-road-bike-2020-rage-redonyx-carbon.aspx

Love the flambouyant red! Tubeless ready wheels won’t hurt.  You’ve got only a 28t at the back, so less of a gear range if your route is hilly. Tiagra is fine, the only thing I don’t like is the non-cartridge brake pads, I change them out.
 

The modern brifter levers pretty much universal on new bikes, pretty much cement you in to that number of gears:  11 is an odd number, that’s all I’m saying. Don’t get me wrong about discs brakes – in the rare event that they’re working properly (sorry, there I go), they’ll stop you on a sixpence even in wet conditions and won’t over time wear out your rims. 

most cycling folk have a utility bike and a best bike – the Trek is in Best territory. I’d look at something a bit more restrained, like an Audax bike for the commute.  That would be better at accommodating mudguards, 28 tyres and proper lights. Proper means several sets including dynohub, once the nights draw in. Chapeau! to you if you can manage your 19 miles a couple of times a week. 

The description makes the Trek sound quite racey. if you look at the frame angles: (https://www.trekbikes.com/gb/en_GB/bikes/road-bikes/performance-road-bikes/émonda/émonda-sl/émonda-sl-6/p/24012/)

74 degrees for seat tube or head tube is racey, 73 normal, 72 MTB and touring – this one mixes both.  I’ve just built up one 74 degrees parallel (I,e, seat and head tubes) in 531 steel and it’s quite twitchey for me, steering-wise. 

Sadly, you need to be sure about security for the bike at work, particularly with the Trek. 

[CJ64]

Is upgrading to 105 over

Is upgrading to 105 over Tiagra better than Caliper to Disc? 
 

I’ve now seen a Trek Emonda SL 6 for £1700 (down from £2000) Ultegra rim brakes and with Shimano Ultegra 11-speed drivetrain. It has a tubeless Ready wheels? 
 

so many things to think about 

[CJ64]

My intention is to hopefully

My intention is to hopefully ride regularly through the week and lose enough weight so I can look at joining a local club and go out cycling with them. I will still cycle on the Hybrid and go out with my wife and friend on roads/tracks. However, I want to use this renewed bug from the 80s as a positive health change. Cycling to work maybe twice a week though initially part of the journey will be by car as the distance of 19 miles there and back might be too much for my heart!

[CJ64]

Seems our company has the £1

Seems our company has the £1,000 limit in place so may have to be without it. I’m trying to contact the right person to ask if they can up the limit

[David9694]

Sounds like Mr Bike Shop is

Sounds like Mr Bike Shop is succeeding at up-selling you – I agree with him, although for different reasons. Nice bikes, Tifosi, but not the cheapest way into it if you are price conscious.

The general picture is that there’s a lot of demand for bikes under £1,000, so make sure whatever you get interested in can actually be supplied in a reasonable time. 
Your shop will also have asked you what you want to use it for, where it will be parked, when/where you plan to ride it (Peaks, Fens; rain – mudguards) what if anything do you need or want to carry on it.

I don’t run any disc brakes and never have on a road bike. Your main enemies as a bike buyer are complexity, weight and expense – in my view discs give you all three, with little benefit unless you’re fully laden in the hills in the rain. It’s not obvious if it can take proper mudguards. 

I’m not sure if the Tifosi I can see linked below runs any of the new-fangled bottom bracket bearings: traditional threaded aren’t perfect, but the new standards aren’t  providing any fresh benefits.  I don’t know how well the FSA cranks perform, but This is a compromise – I’d recommend sticking to an all-Shimano spec. 

https://www.fawkes-cycles.co.uk/2498028/products/tifosi-scalare-disc-tiagra-mechanical-bike-2020-black-red.aspx

I can’t see any pedals offered here – just to note for budget purposes. If you go for carbon, treat it with respect. Your money will go further with an alu or steel frame. The model above offers a decent range of gears, which I’d expect at entry level.
 

good luck! 

[Anonymous]

You don’t have to budget

You don’t have to budget £1500 for a new bike, but under the present C19 conditions and that you’ve started your search at your local bike shop, which I think is commendable by the way, you do limit yourself to what they have in stock. The boom in bike buying during the pandemic has certainly limited the choice, so if you are happy meeting that price point the Tifosi is well reviewed and if the bike is actually available then even better. 

If I was looking for other bikes in that price bracket I’d personally look at the Ribble CGR AL or a Canyon Endurace AL, both of which are aluminium framed rather than carbon and are online sales rather than direct from a shop.

Perhaps the biggest question that you don’t answer is your intentions for the bike. Is it going to be a commuter? Something to do a couple of longer rides a week etc. It’s very easy to get carried away witha new purchase without actually considering the practicalities of why and what you intend to do on the bike.

£1500 is a cracking price point and the vast majority of bikes you’ll find available at that price bracekt will meet your needs, but having the option of mudguard mounts or the ability to fix a rack to the frame increase it’s potential to be more than just a summer bike.

These are the questions I’d be asking myself when trying to decide what I wanted.

[SimonAY]

Are you doing it via the

Are you doing it via the cycle to work scheme or self funding?

[Author]

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