In the market for a road bike

[MOwrt]

As the title says, I'm looking for a road bike. Unfortunately I have limited cash to spend and thus would probably need to buy 2nd hand. This does however open up room for a bit more variety. Newer bike with a lower end groupset or older bike with higher end groupset. What I'd like to know is what the big fuss with groupsets are. Could anyone assist. Is there really a massive difference between say an entry level Sora GS vs Tiagra VS 105. I'd mainly be using the bike for commuting, the odd Sunday ride and The Argus although nothing competitive. Just fun. Any help will be appreciated

 

[satanboy]

Go to a good bicycle shop and have a chat there. Those guys are always willing to share their professional knowledge and they know that if they treat you well you will be visiting their shop for years to come.

From past experience I will say that you are going to score an amazing bike for a good price as 2nd hand bikes lose (half) their value the moment you walk out the door.

 

[WesleyR]

Group sets definitely do make a difference. The higher end stuff does shift smoother, feels better quality etc, BUT the higher end sets do require a bit more maintenance to keep them in good condition.

Also remember there are 3 different manufacturers of group sets namely Shimano, Campagnola and SRAM. I've used Shimano and SRAM stuff and prefer the SRAM group set, but that is just personal preference.

There are 3 routes you can take, you can either get a cheapish frame with decent components and then upgrade the frame at a later stage, you could get a decent frame with cheaper components and upgrade the components 1 at a time later on, or you could get an average frame with average components. Guess it all depends on how serious you want to get into the sport further down the line.

Anyway, that's just my 2c, perhaps go to your local bike shop and have a chat to them

One last thing, if you looking for decent 2nd hand bikes, parts etc, take a look at http://www.thehub.co.za, you are bound to find something you want there.

 

[MOwrt]

Thanks. Also what are your views on Raleigh bikes. They seem to be decent and most have mid to higher end groupsets but the bikes mostly cost less than other brands. Also not much info on them on the web.

 

[web]

Try get the best frame you can for your money and then update the components as required or when you got cash. Your front and rear cassettes will wear out any way. So when you replace them you can put on better quality if you want.

 

[WesleyR]

Raleigh frames aren't too bad at all, especially some of their higher end carbon fibre frames. Like I said, all depends how serious you want to get and how big your budget is.

 

[AnibugZA]

I haven't been in the cycling game for years, but when I needed to get a racing bike I didn't stress too much about the frame. These days it's more complicated, weight and materials etc make a difference.. but I just bought a cheap 2nd-hand midrange Peugot Le Mans frame from Cash Converters or one of those places, it was about R500 back in 2002. I was in high school, budget was tight! Then I took more time and money in choosing the seat, tyres, gear set etc. A good seat and gears go a long way to a smooth ride.

I bought a second-hand Shimano Sora gearset that had barely been used (back then it was quite high-end). I was gifted a set of very fancy kevlar racing wheels from a friend who competed professionally. They would buy tyres, ride on them for a few weeks and then ditch them for new ones. Old ones were still fine and of no use to them so I scored big-time. Sadly I only raced for about 2 years before poor health forced me to stop.

My poor bike has been standing in my garage for over 5 years now, unused. Before that it was in a shed for 3 years. Chain is totally rusted and I can't remember the combination for the lock that holds it down. Frame is still good though, but it aint no modern carbon fibre

I miss cycling. When I first opened this thread I thought you were talking about a motorbike and was going to recommend the Honda NC700X... I say buy a mid-range frame that you can afford, and focus more on higher-end accessories. Tyres are expensive business, sheesh.

 

[Rocket-Boy]

I built my bike specifically for what I wanted but one thing I would not be willing to do on the cheap is the groupset.
It can mean the difference between pleasant cycling and horrible cycling.
I have a mix of dura-ace and ultegra.
When I compare it to my wife's tiagra/105 mix its not even close to mine.
No amount of servicing or tweaking can get her gears as smooth as mine and I seldom have to do more than clean them.
Dont worry about the image related to frames, a good aluminium frame is as light and responsive as a decent carbon frame.
Wheels and group, those are the things to be fussy about.

 

[Rouxenator]

I got a 2003 Giant OCR3 two years ago and 3500km later it is still running like a dream. It's pretty much a standard Sora setup with Tektro brakes. Only had to replace three tubes, two tyres and one BB on it so far. When I got it I could see it was hardly used and for a bike that cost me R4000 I am very happy with it.

There is nothing wrong with Sora, so if you are on a budget you can get a decent bike.