ILTRMB challenge - find me a bicycle!

ID THINK IF YOU WERE GOING CARBON, MOST GEOMETRY WOULD BE PRETTY AGGRESSIVE...AR EU GOING TO RACE?

Does it have to be carbon? I'd avoid it unless I was actually racing.

i think bikesdirect.com has carbon frames?

you may be able to get some campy record under $2k....

not sure about intl. shipping but seriously the $ is so worthless at this point in history.

Unfortunately the customs duty/VAT would wipe out the benefits, and the UK customs have got really strict about it.

As for carbon... No, I'm not going to race (probably), but I want a bike of sufficient quality that I don't get the itch to upgrade too quickly.

Assuming I didn't, what would you recommend? Titanium? Feel free to tell me which bits of the bike I should prioritise - I'm just looking for ideas right now.

I would go for high end steel, maybe titanium. With that budget you couldn't afford the best steel. I would say buy a frame that will last for a long time, spend less on components, even bring them across from the trek and maybe upgrade the wheels in 6 months and the group next year.

http://www.ifbikes.com/frames2/steelclubracer.shtml

condor Classico, Probably get a Chorus build for £1699 and Centaur for £1499

http://www.tjcycles.co.uk/special.htm

chorus build prob £1899

For that kind of money I'd def. go in Ed's direction rather than BikesDirect or whatever.

Colnago Master

Actually answering your question:

http://www.cyclesurgery.com/ProductDetails/mcs/productID/1025898/groupID/7/categoryID/107/v/3c1934da-7495-427f-beca-1235d10bb74e

for credit card touring id forego steel for something lighter. if the bike will be boxtrucked or handled roughly, id go for lower level ti or high end al/carbon.

can you even find a real horizontal tt on carbon anymore?

Wilier are almost flat tube but they looks so bulky and heavy. Guerciotti Khaybar is flat top tube:

http://www.guerciotti.it/images/khaybar_08p.jpg

A bit out of Mark's price range though:

http://www.bellatisport.com/shop/category/107/product/612/Guerciotti_Khaybar.html

OK, the Alan 303 Carbon is $1495 which is getting closer and it is very very pretty:

http://www.alanaustralia.com/images/frames/303carbon.gif

Thanks Ed. I just think a horizontal top tube looks better, but I doubt it's a deal breaker. I'd like to know why carbon isn't a good idea - I'm not going to be abusing the bike but equally I don't want one I need to treat like cut glass, either.

I'd be interested in exploring titanium, but I don't really know *why* people rate it, especially since it's about the same price as carbon in any case.

Ed, you do realise that bike is called "Alan", don't you? Would you ride a bike called "Keith"? Or "Nigel"?

Hmm, Fixie Inc Pure Blood cx bike with SRAM Force groupset for £1995....

I should mention that article I am linking below is by a guy who a lot of people think is a crackpot.

http://www.rivbike.com/article/bicycle_making/frame_materials

Failure mode is one of those "more important factors." It is how suddenly failure occurs after the first crack, hole, or gouge. Materials that fail fast are said to fail "catastrophically." Of all materials used in bikes, none fails more catastrophically than carbon fiber, and none fails more slowly than steel. You want your bike stuff to respond to trauma by bending and denting, not shattering and snapping. Metals tend to do that. And once that's covered, you want plenty of time and lots of warning between the onset of failure (a crank, for instance) and total material separation.

Thanks Alex. That guy really likes steel, huh. My problem is I want a bike that's significantly lighter than my alloy Trek 1200 (23.5lbs loaded up with all my gear, lights, bell, lock, pump etc etc.). I have steel bike, a big, heavy Holdsworth from the mid-late 80s. It's not what I want any more.

Mark, I'm afraid the problem is that all that gear will weigh ANY bike down. How much does all that gear weigh by itself?

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2122/2215172959_44972d0ce5_b.jpg

Steve OTM.

i have a al lugged carbon mtb frame in some indeterminate stage of failure (visible crazing of the finish weave around bb, chipped out areas of tt from handlbar strikes, "mended" w/ nailpolish clearcoat). the problem, for me, with carbon, is that if you crash or damage it, its hard to know what yr dealing with. they're not, to my knowledge, fragile or failure prone generally tho. they are probly more fragile than ti or steel.

but a ti frame, even a basic 3/2 one, is bomber and quite light- a full pound less than a steel frame (usually ~3.3 lbs compared to ~4.3 lbs). they last a loooong time, and ride beautifully. if you dont paint it, you can throw it in trucks and worry minimally.

if you want really light, like 2-2.5 pound frame, carbon or scandium are the deal. you can have a 16 pound bike. but then i wouldn't spoil that by carrying anything but: one tube, one CO2 set, armwarmers or a jacket, a credit card, mobile, and a clif bar. if youre putting a bell, lights, and a pump on there (not to mention leaden objects like "etc"s), i say yr wasting carbon.

ha xpost you guys beat me to it

Incidentally Reynold 953 steel tubing has a better strength to weight ratio than their Ti or Al tubing. 853 comes close.

http://www.reynoldscycles.co.uk/downloads/MATERIALCOMPWEB.PDF

Not the be all and end all but worth noting.

My advice is to not be a weight weenie and get a beautiful steel framed bike.

And that seems like too high of a budget. Considering the law of diminishing returns and all that, you should aim to spend about half or 2/3 of what you indicate as your budget. That's my take anyway.

These?

http://www.jamisbikes.com/usa/bikes/08_bikes/08auroraelite.html

http://www.konaworld.com/08_kapu_w.htm

Very nice, thanks SC.

The more I think about it the more I think you should go for a progressive upgrade starting with the rotating components.

Drop some serious cash on a new pair of wheels, generally the weakest part on a manufactured bike. Doing that serious improved my tired Merckx. Then do Chainset, BB and Cassette. Then transfer across to a new Frame and maybe do the mechs then.

I guess I'm feeling down on my bike because it's getting a lot of knocks, 4 punctures in 2 weeks (and I've barely been riding!), both wheels either warped or misaligned, clipless pedal unreliability, brake troubles, handlebar annoyances, a bottom bracket which sounds like a maraca, etc. etc. I am sure a full service will sort out a lot of the above (and will point out what, if anything, needs to be replaced), but I am already psyched about treating myself to something new pre-Paris.

I am liking the thought of Titanium right now.

Or you could just overhaul/replace the bottom bracket hardware, have the wheels trued, and generally get the maintenance done. It won't make the bike new, but it would solve a lot of the problems you mention for about $80 or so.

I mean that's like seven quid, right?

Haha! Yes, it's 7 quid. Though it'd be a lot more expensive here I suspect. And (and I know I just come across a spoiled child) I wanna shiny new bike :)

Definitely better to spend several thousand pounds, then.

dude wants some bling.

No worries. Bikes are disposable, right?

I hear what you're saying.

Wtf with the sarcasm? I have been saving up for a new bike, I probably won't spend nearly as much as the max above, and I'll get the current bike serviced (whether I keep it or sell it) whatever happens. Lay off.

sheldon brown would want us to be excellent to each other and so do i :)

I didn't mean to sound sarcastic. I'm all for a new bike. Hell, I just put down a deposit on a new bike two days ago. Sorry if my tone sounded more snide than intended.

http://www.litespeed.com/bikes/2008/sportive.aspx

functionally, i think thats pretty good- tall head tube so you dont need lots of spacers, room for fenders, eyelets, but otherwise normal road geometry. that tt youd have to come to terms with.

and that its fugly not conventionally beautiful.

The cheapest Enigma?

Looks nice, never heard of them before but does look nicely put together for bottom end titatium, or at least the welds look neat. I do like the look of their tourer.

http://www.planet-x-bikes.com/road/images/pagemaster/slprocarbon500_1.jpg

with an Ultegra 10spd set up = £1499

Chris that looks REALLY tempting - I might have to do some research to try and discover the inevitable catch...

forgotten about them, made in doncaster,heard some good things about them

If I wanted to buy a road bike at the lower end of the market could I do much better or worse than a Specialized Allez?

Much better? Not really. Better? Maybe. Bianchi Brava's are about the same price and are probably slightly better. No idea about the Raleigh and Trek budget lines. That said I would test ride a couple of bikes before you buy anything as even on the low end there are minor differences in fit/geometry that might make one more comfortable than another.

The Kona road bikes look worth a look.

My Trek 1200, which is either £500 or £600 new now, ain't a great bike but it's SO comfortable. You can buy it off me if you like :)