Cycling UK Forum

Hi, I have a Dawes Galaxy which I use for commuting. I like it, but I find it a bit heavy and would like to try something light for commuting and short 20-30 mile strips. Can anyone recommend a make and model of bike. My budget would be upto about £500.
Thanks,
Alastair

At that sort of budget, Id be tempted to stay with the Galaxy and spend your money on updating that, better tyres a lighter wheel set. etc
If not then in order to get something lighter and of a similar quality to Galaxy, Would second hand be option for you ?

You can get some new bikes around this price but, you will fail to improve on your Galaxy for that price.

having said all that there are one or two bikes that might fit your requirements Specialized Allez or dawes Giro maybe Raliegh Airlight, Carrera do road bikes which are fairly respectable.

I recently bought a B'Twin Triban 3 from Decathlon for £300 - aluminium frame and carbon fork. I believe it is the outgoing model (all red). The latest version is white with a steel fork. I am extremely please with it, especially given the price. I have ridden upto 35 miles on it and will be riding it for a 66 mile charity event this weekend. Will take a rack too and possibly mudguards.

Search the internet for reviews - seems well liked by most owners and you would probably need to spend twice the amount on a big brand name for the same quality / features. Only thing I needed to change was the tyres (already had), saddle (already had) and pedals (already had). Also weighs in at around 10kg I think.

Thank you Nuke,

I would consider 2nd hand.

I wouldn't have thought changing the wheels and tyres on my galaxy would give an overall better performance than a £500 road bike - but prepared to be convinced.

Spa Cycles:
Chrina rims, 105 hubs, 8 speed cassette, with 25mm tyres complete.
Front 3lb.3ozs.(1434gms). Rear 4lb.6ozs.(2003gms). The Rigida Chrina has a recommended max' tyre of 28.

My Galaxy tyres (shwalbe marathon 600g) and wheels:
Front wheel complete(includes tyre, tube and wheel) = 775g + 1.06kg = 1.78kg
Rearwheel complete(includes tyre, tube and wheel, cassette) = 775g + 1.69kg = 2.46kg

My wheels complete are approx. 350g heavier for front and 460g for rear. Overall, 800g heavier.
Kojak tyres at say 330g each would save over two wheels, 540g, making 260g heavier than lightwheel sets.
wheelset over Spa cycles (not sure what tyres they are using) would be about 300g.

Anyway, if I did keep my wheels on Galaxy and chaned to Kojak tyres, sure it would be lighter by say 500g, but I don't believe I would feel this new setup to be easier/better/more enjoyable than buying say a Trek 1.1 (as I saw this in shop and felt very light and costs about £500).
I also thought of the Decathlon bike (Triband something o another) or the Specialised Allez but I really have no idea if any of these bikes would be worth considering and if others felt I should just stick with my Galaxy given its weight, then fair enough.

Happy for everyones tuppence worth!
Alastair

If the Galaxy is all OK with no real energy-sappers like slack spokes or huge jumps between gears in your favourite range, then you might be surprised how much difference light tyres make. (look at it another way....the overall weight saving of a light bike is a small percentage of the total weight of bike +rider +luggage....OK light wheels are good, but light, smooth, flexible tyres cut the rolling resistance)
On the other hand for me the deciding factor would be the convenience of having 2 bikes, or rather the convenience of being able to take a bike off the road for as long as it takes to do a complete strip down service.

+1 for looking at Decathlon

Problem wirh swapping wheels on the Galaxy is that lighter wheels such as the Chrina, will be narrower than your touring wheels, so you'll have to adjust the brakes everytime you swap. Whilst it will make the bike faster, it still won't be as fast as an out and out road bike in terms of acceleration and climbing.

Any entry level bike from one of the main manufacturers - Trek, Giant, Specialized - will do the job and they all come with a similar level of kit. Best to try and at least sit on a few and see which best suits from a position point of view. Some shops will let you test ride them. The triban 3 is a great bike for the money, but one or two corners have been cut to keep the price down. My son-in-law has just bought one and loves it, but found the brakes a bit lacking. You could buy a Triban and upgrade the brakes, or at least the pads, ans still be well within budget. You may even be able to stretch to a Triban 5, which has a better groupset (all Sora) and, i think, a carbon rear end too, for £499.

I have Ridgeback Panorama for commuting/touring, but have a Trek Domane 2.0 for fast riding, esp in a group. I get dropped on the Ridgeback.

Get a road bike, so much more fun. I have a tourer and a cross bike which are great for their purpose but my Secteur Elite is much quicker for quick blasts or even longer rides, I rode the Dartmoor Classic sportive on it last year. Have a look at these http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/product ... road-bikes

Thank you for your posts which are very much appreciated.
The Decathlon TRiban 3 (£300) and Triban 5 (£430). Can summarise main differnce between these bikes including what is Sora and is the extra £130 worth it ?
I think a lot of road bikes have double chain wheels, whereas the Triban 3 and 5 both have triple ones. Is this a problem with the Tribans? Please briefly compare triple and double and advantages and disadvantages. Alastair

just getting rid of a deluge of emails in the middle was one from Edinburgh cycles 10 years of revolution and within it was this might be worth a look and within your budget

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/product ... aign=sabre.

but I'd look at the second hand market for something like a nearly new Bianchi if you fancy all out road rding.

Another vote for the Triban 3.

The triple gives a better range of gears at the cost of weight. On the other hand, the 8 and 9 speed drive train is longer lasting than a 10/11 speed compact (IME). Friends who own Triban 3s are very happy with them and the frame is good enough to upgrade. They are the equal of some better know bikes which cost considerably more and apart from some components are built in the EU.

AlastairS wrote:Thank you for your posts which are very much appreciated.
The Decathlon TRiban 3 (£300) and Triban 5 (£430). Can summarise main differnce between these bikes including what is Sora and is the extra £130 worth it ?
I think a lot of road bikes have double chain wheels, whereas the Triban 3 and 5 both have triple ones. Is this a problem with the Tribans? Please briefly compare triple and double and advantages and disadvantages. Alastair

Shimano do a number of road groupsets (a groupset is a collection of parts making up the transmission, gears and brakes on a bike). Bottom of the range groupset is 2300. The Triban 3 will have 2300 shifters and front and rear mechs and some own brand components such as chainset and brakes. The next groupset up the range is Sora. This is lighter and more durable than 2300. The Triban 5 is likely to have a full Sora groupset, though may still have own brand brakes. So the Triban 5 will be lighter and the parts should last longer before you need to replace them.

A triple chainset gives a greater choice of gears, which is especially useful if you live somwhere hilly. A triple is slightly heavier than a double. Many bikes with doubles have compact chainsets (50 tooth outer ring, 34 tooth inner ring). A lot of people with compacts end up riding in the biggest chainring but also on the the larger sprockets at the back. This gives a bad chainline and can wear your chain out quicker. A triple will have 50-40-30 tooth rings, meaning you have a lower gear if using the small ring, but a more useful range of gears when using the middle 40 tooth ring. It also gives a better chainline.

+1 for the triban 3 ........... great value, and well suited to the new roadie/non racer!

I would be tempted with a second hand bike from a good maker which has had little use. I saw two Trek 1.2's go on EBAY for under your budget. Both had done less than 100 miles.

Loads of second hand bargains around, check Gumtree, but beware of stolen bikes. Ask lots of questions and if it smells fishy it's either nicked or you're in Peterhead