Shopping for a road bike. Help!

If there is a Kona dealer near by check them out. My LBS has several models (Jake, Paddy Wagon). Been awhile since I bought a complete road bike, but the Kona's are some good looking bikes for the price.

 

Sherry at Switchback was recommending the Felt Z100 road bike when I was looking. It's similar to what I have now and seems to be a solid entry level bike....not a racer
http://www.feltracing.com/08/product.asp?catid=1504,1515&pid=8682

Good luck!:beer:

 

+1.....I have a Giant OCR, which was replaced by the Defy. It is an awsome bike.

 

As someone here previously suggested I'd recommend the Specialized Allez. Good bike to slowly upgrade over time too, when your budget allows.

Rock and Road cyclery in OC is having a sale this time of year. Not sure if this model is part of the sale but you may want to give them a call or stop by.

 

One more afterthought - Not sure if the other bikes suggested here offer the same, but you can get the Specialized Allez with a triple ring crank up front. While unusual for a road bike, it will give you a similar gearing feel as with a mountain bike, so your off-season training and riding keeps you within the same mindset.

 

Specialized, Crosstrail.

 

I never thought I would enjoy riding a SS or fixed gear but I'm loving riding my Paddywagon fixed!

 

So after playing up the Kona's being a good option for the price, I admit I would probably save just a little longer and select something from the Felt line with a little bit better componentry. And I would have matching road and mountain bikes - in the end what's more important than that. All fun aside, if their road bikes ride as good as their mt bikes, a Felt would be worth the extra price.

 

Alum

How does Alum feel on the road compared to steel?

I kinda like the steel Kona

 

I had a full carbon Roubaix, and aluminum GT with carbon fork, and a steel Kona Paddy Wagon. the carbon felt the most comfy over long rides but on hard grinds I felt like it was kind of flexy for a 200lb rider. the GT felt great i felt solid and although not as smooth over bumps as the full carbon i felt very controlled. the Kona was a nice ride for what it was but the steel simply stinks over potholes and such in the road. its a vibration magnet. i am now back on an aluminum frame Spec Allez road bike with carbon fork and carbon rear, time will tell if i like this one as much as the previous one.

 

my last roadie before the Kona was an alum Klien, it was a lot rougher ride. I like the steel

 

Get an old Peugot(sp?) or Bianchi, hell, maybe a Schwinn Paramount. Find an SS buddy, strip the bike down to frame, fork, and flop and chop the bar to make bull horns. Don't go "fixed" get a free-wheel and brakes. Shouldn't cost you more than 300 including new wheels.

 

Come to think of it, my dad may have an old Peugeot bike stashed in the attic...

 

Thanks

 

I've had 5 steel road frames and 1 aluminum, and to be honest I never really attributed differences to the materials, I think sizing has been a more important factor. Of course all those frames were bought when I raced and handling was the most important consideration, not comfort. As a whole the steel frames with comparable dimensions seem to handle better than the aluminum.

 

I borrowed a steel frame bike from a friend for several months, did a century on it, and had kinda decided to get a steel frame road bike. I also, tried an Alum frame bike and hated it. It had a very rough ride and I did not think it was any stiffer than the steel frame. Keep in mind I am a Clyde. So, just for fun, I tried a Carbon frame bike. I was hooked........Stiff, light and a really good ride. Carbon is the way to go.....Steel if you are on a budget.....my $.02

 

Here's the advice I give a lot of people... Some of it is specifically aimed at the original person asking so ignore that stuff.

Go to a local shop, test ride a few bikes your size. Note frame size, 50-64cm on avg..

FRAMES

56cm can be good for someone 5'10" to 6'0" on most frames. I'm 6'0" and can ride most 56 or 58s comfortably.

That said in your test rides try a mix of frame styles, compact to relaxed geometry. Try different frame materials, all Aluminum vs all carbon or a mix.

Aluminum = Light, stiff, inexpensive to manufacture. Not very good for absorbing road vibrations, not an issue on short rides but as you start riding 40+miles you'll want comfort.

Carbon comes in several levels of quality just like tires. Inexpensive carbon will likely not be stiff, nor very light. HOwever it will be comfortable. Carbon absorbs road vibration very very well. High end carbon will be stiff, with little flex especially on the bottom bracket, and yet it will still dampen road vibrations very well. As you can imagine it's also very expensive.

At your price range you won't find a high end all carbon frame bike short of used and possibly stolen. What you will likely want to look for are multi-material bikes. That is a bike with the majority of the frame built out of Aluminum, but carbon on the fork and the rear seat stays. This is a best of both worlds with cost in mind situation. You'll get the dampening effect of carbon on the fork/seat stay to absorb jolts, but the lower cost manufacturing of aluminum. Weight's are usually reasonable as well.

There are other exotic materials out there such as Magnesium, Titanium, Bamboo (yes you heard me). ALl will be out of your price range for a completed bike.

So on the ride you want to make sure that you feel comfortable on the bike on the hoods (top part of the bars by the shifters), and in the drops. When you buy a bike from a local bike store they will usually do a fitment. They will adjust the saddle position (height, length fore/aft) and stem length, height for free. This is to maximize efficiency for you and to ensure that you're not going to be hurting from a poor fitting bike.

COMPONENTS

That said next thing to look for is componentry. There are 3 major manufacturers for bike components (drivetrain). They are Shimano, SRAM, Campagnolo.

Think of it as the chip battles for audi/vw, giac/apr/neuspeed.

SHIMANO, big players, they've been around for a long time. Their components are as follows

Sora - Entry level enthusiast (9spd not crap, but not good)

Tiagra - Entry level enthusiast (newer 10spd offering, not crap but keep looking)

105 - This is the first level of components you should be looking for for a 1k bike. Quality comoponents that will last hundreds of miles. Key areas to focus on are brifters (brake/shift levers), front and rear derailleurs.

Ultegra - Race level components, shifting will be smoother, crisper, and require less effort than 105. More expensive, but lighter, more precise.

Dura-Ace - Race level component from Shimano, their flagship line. Precise, effortless shifting. Very light but very $$$.

SRAM - Sram offers 3 levels of components, all of which are very high quality.

Rival - SRAMs entry level offering, they use a unique double-tap shifting system that uses only 1 lever to shift unlike Campy/Shimano. Rival is very nice and can be found even on 1500-2000 road bikes.

Force - Race level component, light-weight, precise, smooth.

RED - If money is no object, this grouppo weighs < 2000g complete. Cost ~1600-1800 for just the components. Debuted in the 2007 Tour de France

<b>Campagnolo</b> - Oldest of the component manufacturers. Made in Italy and the price reflects it. Only cocky riders use Campy (like me, I'm cocky but I'm slow, but that's ok in the world of cycling ).

Xenon - Skip
Mirage - Skip
Centaur - First level of campy components that you should consider. Quality, smooth shifts, reasonably light.

Chorus - Race ready component. LIght weight, expensive, shiny.

Record - If money is no object or you just like to brag and say you have the best this is what you want. You wont' find this on any mass produced bike made in the US or Taiwan (generally speaking). Most high end european manufacturers run Campy.

So why do I list all 3? Shimano will be the least expensive (most common) and to that note, they have the most distinct hood shape. When you ride on the hoods you'll notice the shimano hoods curve A LOT more than SRAM or Campy. I prefer Campy because of the flat top hood design, SRAM is the same for the most part. Reach on the levers in the drops are important as well. SRAM's double tap setup have the shortest reach out there, so if you have small hands you may want to consider them.

SADDLE
Saddle... stock saddles usually suck, expect to buy one soon. It's really a personal decision so take your time. Good shops will let you buy/try and return if you don't like it for another one.

Other things to look for...

Crankset

Double
Double Compact
Triple

They're referencing the front gearing on the crank.

Double is the standard gearing most riders use. 39/53 teeth.

Compact doubles can be 34/50 and easier gearing for climbing hills, but offers a lower top end speed.

Triples: 3 rings instead of 1, smallest ring affectionately called granny gear. It's so small you could use it to pedal up mt everest... ok maybe not but it gives casual riders the gear they need to keep going up the steeper hills.

What's right for you? Well that's dependent on your terrain and your abilities. If you're in an area with a lot of hills and you're out of shape, the double will most likely kill you. A compact double may be enough to get you up the local hills. If you're a really casual rider and want to take it easy on the hills get a triple.

DO NOT settle for a new bike with only 9 gear rear cassette. All bikes since 2005 should run a 10 gear rear cassette and offer double or triple fronts.

Brakes

What else... Brakes. Brakes made by Tektro are not bad. They're the manufacturer for Shimano. If the brakes suck, replace the pads with Kool Stop.

Pedals: If you're going to learn clipless my suggestion is to get a pedal from the look Keo series. Keo Classics can be had online for ~60 bucks. They're big enough so that if you miss a clip-in on a push off from a light you can get your shoe on it and pedal forward and keep moving. Smaller pedals may not offer enough surface area to do that. Over time it becomes natural. FLOAT, is an important component of selecting pedals. Float is the term used to describe the twist capability of a pedal/cleat combination. Some people like 0* float which means your feet cannot twist in the pedal. This is fine if you want to maximize power transfer but can be brutal on your knees if they naturally want your feet to twist as you go through the stroke or if they're not setup correctly. My pedals are look Keo Sprints and I run the 4* cleats. They're offered in 8 or 9* as well as 0*. Speedplay offers the highest degree of float but that may be too much.

Other things to get...

Helmet: All helmets sold in the US are for the most part safe. They all have to meet a minimum standard. That said, some of the cheaper helmets offer more protection less transfered G's on impact. Just look for a helmet that fits correctly. The rest is just aesthetics and cooling.

Accessories
Shorts: SPEND MONEY ON good shorts. $50+ minimum.

Jerseys: Eh, whatever your preference is.

Shoes: Good shoes should fit nicely. When you go to try on cycling shoes, bring/wear thin socks. I like shoes that use velcro straps for the front/mid and a ratcheting strap for the top area. Spend good money on shoes. They need to be comfortable.

Cyclo-computer: Get a computer, cat-eye are popular with cadence. Cadence will help you in the beginning train your legs to spin. Computers are motivaters as well. So get one. Strada are nice, small, and the mount system works on the bars or stem.

get water bottle cages (2x and nice bottles. I prefer specialized bottles).

Tool kit for riding.
Small multi-tool
2 tubes or 1 tube + patch kit
Inflator CO2 or hand pump if you have the hand strength
Tire irons (2x)

I use a saddle bag to carry the tools, and my key/phone when needed.

Get yourself a GOOD floor pump, spend 30 bucks on a nice one with a good gauge. Check tire pressure by feel every ride and inflate as necessary.

When you wear cycling shorts, nothing goes between the shorts and you... get used to it, feels like a diaper (with the padding) but you'll be glad it's there.

If you ride at night, get a light and a blinky (red rear blinking LED/reflector)

Umm not sure what else to tell you other than to spin spin spin, mashing is bad for your knees. When you first start keep your cadence at 80-90rpm. If you can't, shift.


Bottom line:

If your total budget is 1k for bike and gear, your bike budget is really closer to 700. At that price range look at Specialized Allez, Trek 1.2. Sadly neither will come with 105 components, but tiagra. Not horrible but you'll want better.

Also look to buy an 08 close-out bike. Clearance prices are always good there.

If you don't care for name brand go FUJI. I rock a Fuji and the value is incredible.

 

Look into the ($800) 2009 Kona Dew Drop (aluminum frame) if you're looking for a commuter/ride-around-on-the-road with no intentions of hauling arse with a road bike look. :bang:

 

Viva La Craigslist

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/bik/943869244.html
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/bik/943772618.html
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/bik/943668648.html

One more from down here.

http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/bik/941411805.html

 

Talk with Tani or Brian at The Path. I was given a good quote for the Specialized Allez Comp. Great entry bike. Also bikesdirect does have great deals.