Via the cycle scheme and using Pauls Cycles...I know its better to use local shops but they're crap around here and have attitudes. Went for a Giant Defy Composite 3 in the end, looked at the Ribble/Planet X (Think they have gone bust) and Cube. But the Giant came in under 900 quid...ok it's the 2012 model but its still boxed and new.

Link for those that are interested:
http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/m7b4s6p4494/GIANT-DEFY-COMPOSITE-3-2012

I've brought this mostly for posing outside of Waitrose

Anyway I need some pedals, I want non-clip-my-shoe type?

I've got a set of pedals that are non clip type, but have the plastic toe clips on them. Refer to photo (and another excuse to post a photo of my bike )



You're more than welcome to them, as I now have SPD's

Nice chillis too...

Planet X are fine, just bought some shoes from them. And they have a full Shimano Ultegra and carbon frame for under £1k

Nice bike - we're talking about adopting the cycle scheme at my work and I am tempted to get myself a new bike.

At the moment I've got a Giant CRS 2.5, which is about 5 or 6 years old and is quite good for family cycle rides (little one in a seat on the back, speeds rarely into double figures, mix of quiet roads, paved cycle paths and good quality trails), but I was thinking of getting something a little more road-orientated for commuting.

I'd like to stick with Giant, but a bit torn between the Escape (which I think is just the new version of the CRS, the Escape RX (which seems like a more road-orientated version and the more expensive one without the trick disc brakes, but presumably with more lovely stuff

Quiet honestly I've no idea what I'm looking at, and as I'm 35 stone, with a top speed of 8mph and a maximum range of 350 yards I'm not sure it makes a lot of difference.

You sure you don't want to go clipless? They do take some getting used to and you'll probably have at least one comedy moment with them, but they really do make things much more efficient. Depends on your bike usage I suppose.

Very kind offer of the pedals and nice bike, but I'll hold off as I just seen a lovely pair of pedals (USS Enterprise shaped but clip type) that would look the nuts...only thing is I keep watching youtube fail videos regarding clip pedals...not sure i'd get up if I fell over

I need a bit more than pedals for my new bike....



Go clipless

Mmmmm....love the Scott Foils. That's the Team Issue HMX replica yes? Did you get it via Westbrook Cycles with Di2?

It sounds like you're describing Speedplay pedals which are excellent. They're also easier to use for clipless virgins as they're double-sided and you just stamp on them to clip in, instead of having to 'flip and clip' like you do with others.

Don't worry about falling over. Slack off the tension, then practice with them lots in your house and ride them up and down your street or a deserted carpark to get used to clipping in and out first before venturing onto the roads. Do lots of practice clipping out with one leg and coming to a stop. I always clip out with my left as it's safer (you don't fall into traffic if the worse comes to the worst).

<Cycle idiot>So when you're saying 'clips' are you talking about clips for cleats on the pedals?

If so, I use clips when I do any distance and find them much better for hill-climbs than being unclipped and I've only had one comedy falling off moment.

That's the one. It's very very nice. Hope to have it built up by the end of the week (my LBS are doing some of it because the BB needs removing to run the internal Di2, I hate wrapping bars, and their labour rates are stupidly cheap). Can't wait to give it a try though - so different in character to my Volagi Liscio...

Since we've got a new bike thread... here's what I got after mine was stolen.

You are a very sick man Kenno

Very cool.

While we're in bike showing mode, my 2 road bikes -

That Willier always catches my eye. Are the two bikes very different to ride, bezzer?

One of the reasons I went of the Foil is that I wanted something entirely different from my Volagi (a bike that's designed for double centuries)

In the dry the Merckx feels a more 'planted' bike and is better for longer rides (60+). The geometry is different to the Wilier which makes it a more comfortable ride. The head tube is longer than the Wilier so makes it easier on the neck and shoulders. However when the roads a bit wet the back end can get a bit 'twitchy'.

Having said that, for my regular training rides I prefer the Wilier. It's very responsive and having got rid of the horrible tyres it came with it's great in all weathers. I also prefer Campag over the EMX's Ultegra. I bought it mainly to do Sportifs.

And of course in the Petacchi colours, it looks gorgeous

As Bezzer has mentioned them...what are he best all weather tyres, I had intended to fit the Giant all weather ones but they are essentially slicks with short diagonal cuts?

http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-gb/gear...tyre/590/50075/

forget the tyre size bit for the mo, the link shows the tyre and pattern and I have no idea if it would fit.

There is no reason for tread on road tyres, it does nothing. I would recommend the Michelin Pro Race 4 Endurance as an excellent robust winter tyre.

+1

And usually available on Wiggle at a decent price.

I swear by folding Vittoria Rubino Pros at around £17 a pop. Fast with great puncture resistance - for day-to-day riding, I've seen no reason to buy anything else.

Jumping in here... I jut got one if these babies - used to cycle a lot then rheumatoid arthritis took care of that
Hope to start again slowly

Bikey

Latest machine nearly finished

MRS that looks stunning

I'm after some advice myself so might as well jump in on this thread. I bought a mountain bike 2 years ago on the cycle to work scheme and have used it pretty much every day since. I've really surprised myself how much I've enjoyed it and I'm doing longer & longer rides now.

Anyway, I'm now thinking of taking the plunge and getting a road bike and in particular starting to take part in a few sportives.

At the moment I've got these bikes on my shortlist...

Trek Domane 4.5

Giant Defy Composite 1

Specialized Roubaix Comp

This also looks good but is a bit more expensive...

Cannondale Synapse Carbon Ultegra

Ideally I'm looking to get a carbon framed, Ultegra equipped bike for under £2K. Looking at 2013 bikes as there's some good deals on at the moment.

Any advice on the above would be welcome or any other bikes which I should be looking at?

Can you find a Cannondale Supersix Ultegra within your budget (they're normally just over £2k)? They're meant to be very good.
Take a look at Westbrook Cycles - they've had some great deals on Scott frames (where my Foil came from)

Westbrook cycles looks good and they're not too far down the road from me.

Scott Foil 20 reduced from £2899 to £2099 looks rather nice & a pretty good deal. Are these more of a race than endurance geometry? Will I really notice the difference over 100 mile runs?

Also, Evans have an Eddy Merckx EMX-1 Ultegra 2013 reduced from £2300 to £1670 but I don't know anything about this brand.

The Foil is quite focused - there are plenty of ways of making the geo more relaxed though with shorter (& flipped) stem, shallower bars, endurance saddle, 25c tyres. Only trouble is that it costs a bit more money. It's one of the reasons I bought my Foil as a frameset - no money is wasted. I wanted it as an out-and-out attack machine as I have the Volagi for the epic rides. Maybe Westbook have a machine you can try

Bezzer rides a Merckx so he can tell you. I bought a Merckx seatpost for Charlie's Scott CR1 and it looked great quality - I don't think you'll find that an issue.

Why not get the Planet X full carbon and Ultegra bike for £999. It's 10speed but still a fantastic bargain.

Let's face it, 10 speed Ultegra is quite plenty (and still gives more options on cassettes)

I'd suggest you budget for wheels /tyres /tubes and spend what's left out of your budget on the bike.
Most £1k bikes come with a basic set weighing about 18-1900g.
Get that down to sub-1500g and it gives you most of the performance of a far more expensive bike.
I have a set of Spinergy Xaeros which are 1535g and the performance difference from the stock (but actually really good) RS10s was very noticeable. RS80s are a better option if you're buying new.

Or you could go second hand and get something really special. A friend spent £2500 on a second hand Scott Addict R1 with Zipp 404 wheels. It weighs 6.5 kg and the aero performance of the wheels definitely gives him more on the flats. Bike retailed at £5599, wheels at >£1500.

That's why I bought the Foil frameset

I got the Foil HMX frame
Ultegra Di2
Ritchey WCS carbon bars and stem
RS80 wheels
Toupe Saddle
Vittoria Pave tyres
All-in-all about £3k and very good spec

That seems an amazing deal. Did you get everything in that list for £3k or did you already have some of it?

My next upgrade will be handlebars.
I want them narrower, lighter, and further forward. Did you consider one piece handlebar / stem setups when you built this? There are some FSA from China full carbon jobs that look like good value.



You can get 120mm stem / 40cm width as an option.
It might seem like I was born yesterday but I'm wondering if they aren't genuine how they get away with counterfeiting in public like this?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Road-bike-full...=item2a2fe0dc07

I think it all squeaked under £3k - everything was discounted by between 30-50%. I re-used nothing.

I looked at the one-piece jobs but they were both very expensive and I wanted a bit of flexibility with stem adjustment (on a new frame). If you know exactly what you need, they might be a good option.

They're fake, trust me. Counterfeit Chinese carbon goods are rife. Some are good, some are pretty bad and I've heard some dodgy things about the fake carbon FSA stuff. Some of the Chinese carbon wheels and open mould frames are excellent though.

If you ask me, carbon stems are pointless. Compared to a decent alloy stem, they cost more than double for a 10g saving. Carbon bars are worthwhile if you can afford them.

What a lovely Supersix Evo Red.

It all just that bit less harsh than aluminium. I'd never pay anything like full price for one though.

Lovely build. Crying out for some deep carbon rims though . I looked at a yellow 2012 Foil 30 before buying my Cayo Evo as the geometry is very similar, but the Cayo for me rode that little more forgiving while not sacrificing stiffness under power. I think the Foil looks nicer though with its aero profiles.

I recently made a few changes to my bike - swapped the SLR XP saddle for a black Prologo Nago Evo, changed to black bar tape and UD carbon steerer spacers and fitted some lovely Vittoria Evo CX tyres. I was trying to avoid going down the 'stealth' look, but it's inexorably ended up that way.



As for durable winter tyres, I'd recommend Continental 4 Season.

That Cayo's very nice, Dennis. Amazing how the red accents show up so clearly. Very "slammed" up front. I have what I guess is a 2010 Cayo (before the new numbering and Evo nomenclature) which I like and lives down in England.

I don't think I (or anyone else) would be able to tell any difference blindfolded. Carbon bars and seatposts make a difference, but stems are too short and wide in diameter for carbon to make any appreciable difference in ride quality IMO. They look bling though!

Cheers mate. I have the stem very nearly slammed right down, but I have a 5mm spacer underneath. I tried it without the spacer, but just that small difference made the handling too nervous and affected my comfort quite a lot. Focus make some great bikes.

I was very tempted by the cheap Scott CR1 SL frames Westbrook were knocking out a month ago and build it up into a sportive bike, but common sense prevailed in the end.

It all helps. You'll never feel any of that immediately but you will notice the differences after the hours/days in the saddle. And there are worse things you can spend the extra £30 on. And, you're right, it does complete "the look" - though I'm the last person to worry about that.

Yeah, I suppose every little helps. When do you pick your bike up?

That's it (in the earlier pic) I'm my garage - just finished building it last night. Just waiting for my lunch to settle before I take it out for a shake down. I wanted to get out this morning but it was tipping down. Doesn't normally bother me but not great for a first ride when it might need some fettling.

The finished article

Bet you can't wait! Be interested on your thoughts of Di2.

I've had Di2 on my Volagi for the last 18 months. I love it. Totally unnecessary but, once you've had it, mechanical shifting seems very clunky. It's pretty much totally fit-and-forget (charge the battery every 1000 miles) and shifting is almost subliminal.

"What sort of bike is yours, Neil?"
"A red one..."

I've had a play with Di2 in the showroom and it seemed pretty slick, but not ridden it. I don't think I should either, or it will just be another thing to lust after.

How was the maiden ride on the Foil?

Yes - it really isn't necessary but, once you've tried it, it's hard to go back.

The Foil felt great. Only did a very short ride as it was raining. Had to diagnose a noise which was a loose Di2 battery. All sorted. Felt really planted through the corners. It's due to be dry and sunny tomorrow so I'll take it for a better ride and do the commute on it on Monday.

Using a Foil Team Issue as a commuter - nice!

It's hardly your average commute, though

Thanks.
No point replacing something that will last for ever with something that's going to break.

And the last thing you want breaking while riding your bike are the stem or bars!

Found some good deals the on Scott CR1 Pro. Any advice on this, the spec looks pretty good as far as I can tell.

Charlie has the Scott CR1 SL which is very very nice. Westbrook were selling Pro framesets for around £499 IIRC

Click here.

Well it looks like a drive down to Westbrook Cycles today...

Thanks for all the advice guys, I finally went for the Scott CR1 Pro in the end.

Bought it online through Tredz with a good discount and also 3 years interest free credit and was very impressed with their service.

The bike arrived a couple of weeks ago and I'm very pleased with it. Took it for it's first proper run out on the "Durham Beast", (probably could have picked something a little easier to start with ), but it performed perfectly across some pretty brutal climbs.

I've done a few hundred miles on it now over the last two weeks and can't fault it and even my backside is now finally starting to get used to seat compared to the nice soft one on the mountain bike!

It's quite addictive mind this cycling...

Well done, Pag!

You won't need to upgrade that for a while
Must also be nice to live in a fantastic part of the country for cycling. We did a Coast to Coast in the summer. Proper hills, awesome views etc.

Well I got mine, lovely looking bike but far to big for me...driving up to Dereham tomorrow to swap it for a smaller frame.

Did you get it swapped for a smaller frame ok? When I was looking for mine Evans tried to tell me I needed a large frame when I clearly didn't!

Skinflint you're right, there's some fabulous roads to ride round here, but you're never too far from a big hill! I'm on the C2C quite regularly, use part of it for my commute to work.

Just started cycling again and seriously thinking about upgrading already. I bought a year old but unused so as new voodo agya hybrid and am already covering about 15 miles a day...I really fancy a proper road bike but am worried at 20st one wouldn't be strong enough for me..really enjoying cycling again and reaping the benefits fitness wise already, though my weight seems to be 20 st 4lb regardless of what I do or what I eat!!...

Biggbn, I was advised against a road bike, I am 17 and a half, I was told the max weight should be 16, maybe 16 and a half, as otherwise you'd be forever repairing punctures and stressing the components too much. I don't know the truth behind this, but it sounds reasonable enough!

So I am just about to buy a cyclocross, virtually the same as a road bike, carbon forks, drop bars, quick and light, with thicker tyres and slightly robuster frame. I am looking at a Cannondale Tiagra Caadx, which I can put road tyres on in time, if I want.

My hybrid is easy to ride to be fair, it just seems to need constant adjustment of the numerous gears. Mate is a bike mechanic and he says this should disappear after it's run in and the cables are all stretched to where they will stay...seems to have a ridiculous amount of gears for what is, ostensibly, a road useage big. I really like it, I just like going fast!

What a load of tosh. I am way over 20stone and been riding for years, not always at that weight but fluctuating between 17 and 21. Can't remember the last time anything broke through anything other than wearing out. I don't suffer with punctures until the tyre start to wear out or if they are running at less than 100psi. No difference in strength between cyclocross and road bikes it's just geometry and clearances for mud plus canti or disk brakes fixings.

Bike frames and components have to suffer massive forces not due to rider weight but leg power. The forces some of the more powerful pro riders will put through the frame, bottom bracket and crankset will make even the heaviest weekend riders efforts look meagre.

My current set of Campagnolo Eurus wheels have done well over 10,000 miles and are still as straight as a die. The only thing i do get through quicker than more nimble riders is quality summer tyres but it is hardly an issue.

My advice is to get out there on a decent road bike, it is so much faster, smoother, and potentially more comfortable at speed all of which makes riding so much more enjoyable.

As a way of losing weight I would forget exercise. The only way to lose weight is to eat less, believe me i ride on average over 2000 miles a year and it makes no difference at all, you find yourself subconsciously rewarding yourself for doing the exercise which of course negates any benefit. It takes 6hrs of riding to burn the equivalent of 1lb of fat, which is over 90 miles. Of course eating less and cycling will help but it is hard to do that.

Get a road bike and enjoy the riding, it is a great way to relieve stress too.

My current steed

Yup, just done a little research...most frames are safe to well over 300lb weight and only mod recommend for heavier riders is to get wheels with more spokes...I worry about the force thing as I am 20 st weightlifter and only problems iv had with components before has been crank sets and gears...I Can leg press 400 kg plus for reps and dead lift 260 kg for reps with no belt or straps, so can generate a fair amount of torque through the pedals..

Also, I am trying to eat less and cycle more...ja eight dropped right off last time but difference this time is I want to maintain strength too, so it's a juggling act...

For wheels i would recommend Campagnolo/Fulcrum factory wheels for their strength. Don't worry about spoke count, for heavier riders the rim profile adds more strength. I had 36spoke handmade wheels in the 90s and was always tweaking them to keep then straight. Then got a set of Eurus and Zondas and they have been good for years, although the zondas were stolen with my two bikes two years ago.

As for losing weight and maintaining strength, i agree it is very difficult, better to concentrate on the weight loss and then resume the strength stuff afterwards IMHO.

I did say I didn't know the truth behind it

I know Jim, I was referring to whoever told you the info Good to see you round these parts again

Hi Pag, yes changed it no hassle to a medium (not Doris Stokes ). The only problem with Pauls Cycles is it's f'ing miles away!

Moving swiftly on...can I ask how folks protect their cycles, I've seen the Tile and tbh it looks a bit big to hide? The next option is a cycle tag, the guys in Evans suggested this but they do sell them.

A couple of very heavy D Locks, one being an Abus Granit X

John, what size cassette do you have on that?

I recently swapped my 12-25 for a 13-29 and it's made the climbs so much easier!

13-29? Wow - a dose of MTFU needed here!

I used 11-28 for L2E as I knew the hills were all after mile 300 but 11-25 is my usual cassette on the Volagi. The Foil has a 12-23 on it with a standard 39-53 Double up front.

Bezzer, I have a 12-29 (11spd). Need it to get my bulk up the Surrey Hills and Chilterns, they may not be long but they are steep. The front is a 53-39, sometimes I wished i had gone for a compact, certainly when going up Ditchling Beacon.

I could also do with a 11 cog as i spin out the 12 when I hit around 45mph. No point climbing hills if you can't then bomb down the other side.

Shifty regarding locking your bike:-
Had mbikes stolen 2 years ago now. Insurance paid out but now they won't insure my bike unless using one of therse locks and chains:-

Cost me over £100 and the chain cannot be left draped on the floor so it is looped over a concrete beam, weighs a tonne too so you have to be careful when locking up.
http://securityforbikes.com/proddetail.php?prod=P16-x.x-SS65

If I am out and about I used a couple of different D locks and park in full public view. Having two types of lock will often put of a thief. All bike locks are easy to open if you have the right tools. If not then Carbon frames can just be sawn in half!! Make sure you get as much of the bike in the lock as possible, Crank, seat tube and rear wheel should fit in a good d lock. The aim is to make your bike look harder to steal than the one next to it. For my best bike i just don't leave it anywhere, if we stop for tea (and cake ) then someone stays with the bikes. Once at home it gets locked up immediately. A cheap garage alarm helps too, just remember to disarm it on early Sunday morning rides

I did The Beast too - brutal! I was happy to finish just under 3hr 20min. Did you get your picture taken?

I'd totally forgotton about the pictures Dennis, will have to take a look on the Facebook page. I had my picture taken a couple of times along the route, no smiiles for the camera though, just gritted teeth! Especially on the climb up through Iveston village.

3hr 22min for me, was really pleased with that for a first time out. I'm thinking about doing the Richmond ride at the start of November next.