Evening ladies and gentlemen,
The time has come to sell my old merckx and get into something more modern, so i’m looking for a bit of advice on what to get. Here’s the brief:
Budget $3000 (3.5K at an unlikely pinch)
Frame: Ideally something carbonne
New/Used: Preferably new
Group: Nothing lower than Ultegra/Force
*Must look wickedcool too
Is this possible?
Current top contender is a 2013 cervelo R3 with ultegra, but they retail for $3900.
Hit me.
Felt 2012 F3 [ TDF SALE ] - $3,495.95 : Online Bike Store | TBSM The Bike Shed Mortdale
and
Focus 2012 Cayo Evo 3.0 (SRAM FORCE) - $2,889.00 : Online Bike Store | TBSM The Bike Shed Mortdale
OR build something up yourself?
Fuck me that Felt is a good deal.
give this thread a lil perusal too, just to put a cat all up in them pigeons
Malvern Star C6. C7’s on runout about $3.5k.
For 3 grand I’d like a Canyon Ultimate CF with Chorus. Why the hell don’t they sell them in Australia?
Which city are you in?
I was in Atelier de Velo in Sydney today and they have some very good deals on Focus roadies, similar to TBSM (where I got my Focus from).
For a complete new bike, I’d recommend going to proper shop as opposed to online. That way when the carbon fails (like mine did) they can get you a replacement for next to nothing (like TBSM did for me).
Also, do some research on the geometry of the frame/fork.
Heaps of bike reviews talk about the handling of a bike, but don’t mention the frame size they tested. A lot of brands sell the same 43mm rake fork with every size frame, yet because the head tube varies from 71 degrees on a small frame to 74 on a big one, the handling completely changes between bikes. Not a big deal if you ride a 55cm, but worth considering.
E.g. my 54cm roadie has 61mm of trail, and steers quite heavily, whereas the same bike in a larger size has 56mm of trail, which is reasonably twitchy.
I use this website to compare trail geometries: Bicycle Steering Geometry
(a 23c road wheel has a 68cm diameter.)
Cannondale supersix with rival or ultegra? That would be in the budget perhaps. Didn’t supersix just win best road bike for the second time at interbike?
Thanks guys. I’m in Melbs. The focus bikes seem pretty good value (haven’t ridden one yet mind you) but I’m not sold on the look of them (was trying to steer away from the white/red/black theme everyone seems to be using these days).
Anyone know much about the canyons? Just checked them out and they look half decent. Has anyone here actually managed to bring one out by a shipping company etc…? And would it be a nightmare if something went wrong down the track?
Edit: just did some research on this. Apparently they charge about $600 to send it to NZ, and then you have to pay someone in NZ another $150ish to get it sent to Australia. Don’t really seem such a bargain anymore…
Canyon frames sound pretty good. I think I saw alexb618 post his one on here.
Here’s some frame testing data from 2010 - the Canyon rated highly for -cough- lateral stiffness vs vertical compliance…
Cycling deal have a jamis with di2 ultegra for $2499.
Spend the extra $500 upgrading wheels and sell the ones on it.
Or Specialized tarmac or the super six, Biggest problem is finding one, Most places are low on cannondale and Specialized stock at the moment.
you cant get canyons via NZ
to get one in your hands will cost $1000-$1200 more than the list price, if you are genuine i can help you out getting it here
My friend just bought a Canyon last week. Had to get it shipped to a friend in Germany who put it together and rode it once, then re-boxed it (so that it wasnt brand new for tax reasons). Then he had another friend pick it up when he was on holidays.
Many things had to fall into place for him for it all to work out, but now he has an awesome bike, and given the euro exchange rate, and the tax back coming out of Europe, it was pretty cheap for him. Probably 1/2 the price of an equivalent bike in Australia with Dura-Ace Di2, and Cosmic Carbone wheelset.
Regarding the Canyon- great bikes but too much of a pain in the arse to get them to Aussieland. And what about warranty etc? Just get a Cannondale
In before Spirito…
2012 BMC SL01 - $2500-$3000 with ultegra
yeah just looked at one of those this morning (BMC)… what are people’s thoughts on the cervelo R3? any good/bad experiences?
They look awesome. And i’d buy one for that reason alone.
Was passed by a guy on Mt Pleasant rd that was riding one of those.
It was actually not that impressive given my climbing abilities though.