[neurostar]

My dad is looking to get into road biking... he's looking for a relatively cheap bike...

There's a bike at the local shop he's been looking at...

Raleigh AL frame
1" threaded carbon fork
shimano 600 gruppo...

the shop wants 600 for it.. I don't really know much about the value of road parts... how's the price sound?

He doesn't really have his heart set on the bike... he's just looking for something to ride that is decent. He says max of $400 (unless he goes for the raleigh...)... is there a different bike you'd recommend for a decent price? He doesn't really care about the gruppo, so shimano sora would probably work for him... all he's basically said is that he doesn't want downtube shifters...

Any suggestions?

He's 5'9"... so a 53cm? 54cm?

 

[splat]

is it 600 , 600ex, 600sis or 600 ultegra ?

But Shimano stopped using the 600 ident a while ago, to me that seams a Bit pricy.

 

[bigevilgrape]

He has to try it to get a size, but I'm 5'8" and ride a 54.

 

[LordOpie]

I bought a Fuji Finest for $420 -- steel with sora components. I'm very happy with it based on my financial situation. Granted, I'm happy, but I dropped an additional $300 on it -- Fly saddle, 105 rear de-rail, Open Pro/Ultegra wheels & cassette.

From what little I know, do NOT bother with Tiagra.

As for sizing, well, you know... go to a shop, get the right frame, fit it to him. But for reference, I'm 5'10" and felt the Fuji 56cm stretched me out too much, so I'm on 54cm. You can always make the bike a bit bigger than you can smaller. Depending upon the model, he might even feel more comfortable on a 52.

 

[Motionboy2]

As for sizing, well, you know... go to a shop, get the right frame, fit it to him. But for reference, I'm 5'10" and felt the Fuji 56cm stretched me out too much, so I'm on 54cm. You can always make the bike a bit bigger than you can smaller. Depending upon the model, he might even feel more comfortable on a 52.

That is not exactly true. It is true that you can raise the seatpost and put a longer stem on a smaller bike, however it will cause other problems down the line. (Saddle to handlebar drop) I would suggest finding someone who is knowledgeable about fit at the shop (someone that doesn't just make him stand over the bike and yank it upward) and have them help you out. A good guideline is to have his saddle about 17-19cm over the top of the top tube and have a stem length between 9-12cm.

I would not get a bike with less than 8spds on the cassette and ideally 9spds on the cassette. That will make it easier to get parts for longer.

Hope this helps

 

[RideND]

There is a complete bike in the buy and sell forum for $75 right now.

Linky

 

[neurostar]

is it 600 , 600ex, 600sis or 600 ultegra ?

not sure.

But Shimano stopped using the 600 ident a while ago, to me that seams a Bit pricy.

yea, it kinda felt pricey for a 10 yr old gruppo....


i'll have him get to a shop and get fitted for a bike... that fuji might be worth a look... where'd you pick it up? idk if there's any fuji dealers in town....

 

[LordOpie]

That is not ...

i totally agree that a great fit by people who are fully qualified is the right way to go, but if you're looking to spend $400, I doubt you could convince him to spend $100-150 "just" on fitting.

i'll have him get to a shop and get fitted for a bike... that fuji might be worth a look... where'd you pick it up? idk if there's any fuji dealers in town....

I got it at Performance Bikes. They did a horrible job fitting it to me -- in other words, they didn't try. And yeah, they did the typical stand-over check... which put me on a 56cm. I rode it for a week and took it back for the 54cm. So, while they don't really try, they do provide good customer service overall and exchanged my bike without a problem.

I've learned a lot since then and make my own adjustments. Someone on RM has offered to pro-fit me and as soon as I find the time and he's free, I'll make the drive up to his place.

I say you just watch your dad and fit the bike to him yourself. Don't overwhelm him tho, make it fun This will hopefully be his first bike, not his last

 

[neurostar]

I say you just watch your dad and fit the bike to him yourself. Don't overwhelm him tho, make it fun This will hopefully be his first bike, not his last

Yea He actually did a lot of road riding about 15-20 years ago, including a tour down the Oregon coast... but the saddle tech left much to be desired, so he stopped riding due to discomfort... I guess I'm kinda getting him back into it..

We went to the bike shop yesterday and I kinda fitted him to a bike from what I knew about them... then had the employees fit him to a bike... He ended up ordering a specialized allez in 52cm... which seemed kinda small, I was thinking a 54, but.... *shrugs* We'll see how it fits him when it gets in...


His biggest thing is saddles, though, so that'll be the challenge I guess.

Thanks for the help everyone!

 

[LordOpie]

congrats to your dad!

hey, just think, if he had kept riding on the bad saddles, he might not have spawned you

 

[Nitromike]

We went to the bike shop yesterday and I kinda fitted him to a bike from what I knew about them... then had the employees fit him to a bike... He ended up ordering a specialized allez in 52cm... which seemed kinda small, I was thinking a 54, but.... *shrugs* We'll see how it fits him when it gets in...


His biggest thing is saddles, though, so that'll be the challenge I guess.

Thanks for the help everyone!

Good buy, carbon fork, decent components, and a good frame.

 

[Arsbars]

I was actually going to recommend that bike. Good choice!

 

[neurostar]

congrats to your dad!

hey, just think, if he had kept riding on the bad saddles, he might not have spawned you

haha. good point...
I think I was pre-bike though.. thank goodness...

Good buy, carbon fork, decent components, and a good frame.

Yea, it seems like a good entry level bike... I didn't even get a carbon fork when I got my bike bike, and I paid the same! (Although it was 2 or 3 years ago..) still rockin' the CrMo fork..

 

[SuspectDevice]

It is so hard to guesstimate road-bike fit based on someones height, it just amazes me.

i'm 5'10" and ride 57 and a 58 ct frames, with 120 and 130 stems. Other people my size ride frames that are up to 4 cm smaller than mine, and with up to 5 cm less reach... Human morphology is a miraculos thing.