New bike

[Summertime33]

Hey guys,

So I'm on a fairly limited budget here, but I'm looking for the best bike available to me for around $500-600. Do any of you guys have any suggestions for a good road bike that's available to me?

 

[Uawadall]

Maybe some of the more experienced members can give you more options, but id suggest going into your local bike shop and giving a few test rides. From what I've heard, 600 is more than enough for a good mountain bike. Most of the big brand road bikes start at around 600-700 before taxes. I've heard good things about Giant Defy and Specialized Allez entry level bikes, but those are a little higher than your range. If your looking for a road bike in that range, you may want to see if your LBS has any used ones for sale. I purchased a used bike for 800 that had a 1350 msrp. Giving advice on picking a bike is like telling someone what shoes to wear. You have to try am on and see which one suits you.

 

[Volnix]

If you are not an odd size you will probably find a lot of used womenz bikes around.

Xcuse me but if girls over there buy bikes like they do here you might find something practically new.

600 is OK if you buy in sales.

but with 700-800 you can grab something good when still a new modeI.

So a road bike? Not an electra Cruiser with a dog basket and selfy stick?

Why a road bike?

 

[oportosanto]

Hey guys,

So I'm on a fairly limited budget here, but I'm looking for the best bike available to me for around $500-600. Do any of you guys have any suggestions for a good road bike that's available to me?

$500-$600 is not so limited, you can get a really decent bike for that value. Good question though, unless you do speed, there's really no need for a road bike.

 

[kuroba]

What are your plans for the new bike? Do you want a road bike to race, commuting or an all-around bike? Flat bar, drop bar? With a bit of info folks will be able to give better recommendations.

You can get a good deal of used bikes with your budget. I'd recommend getting something locally so you can at least sit on the bike and see how it fits. A women specific bike may or may not fit you, so don't restrict your search to women models only. Good luck!

 

[Froze]

I'm assuming this is your first bike? or first road bike and have done another form of cycling before? Do you run nearly everyday now and have been doing that for a long time? Do you go to a gym nearly everyday and have been doing that for a long time?

The reason I ask those questions is to probe you to find out if you are doing something now regularly and are committed to doing whatever you do, and why is that important to know you scream? Because paying $600 or $500 for a bike is a bit expensive just to find out 3 to 6 months later you give up the sport and now you have expensive garage art.

If you're new to anything related to physical fitness I would suggest you find a good used bike on Craigslist that fits of course for around $250 and ride that for awhile, if you're still riding it after 2 years than consider purchasing a better bike.

If you're doing some sort of activity now on a regular basis the choices in that price range are not all that great. If you have Dicks Sporting store in town check out the Diamondback Century One but you might be able to get it cheaper at Performance Bike which is a mail order place as well, so check the prices, you can always check the fit at Dicks than buy from Performance (they're not paid on commission at Dicks so you're not screwing some sales person; and maybe they might price match?). The next one to consider if you don't mind mail order is the Vilano Forza 4.0 found on Amazon. Another mail order bike is the Motobecane Gran Premio SL; this bike is actually a steel bike which would last longer and be more comfortable to ride than the previously mentioned aluminum bikes, and I think is the best buy of the bunch in my opinion of course; this bike is found on Bikes Direct which isn't known for their customer service.

If you go mail order, either Amazon or Bikes Direct, I strongly recommend that after you assemble the bike is NOT to ride it until you take it to a bike shop and have them go over it with a fine tooth comb to make sure everything is adjusted correctly, this won't cost you more than $75 and probably closer to $30.

http://www.performancebike.com/bikes/Product_10052_10551_1163832_-1___
http://www.amazon.com/Vilano-FORZA-Aluminum-Integrated-Shifters/dp/B00PUGUPG8
http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motobecane/gran_premio_sl.htm

 

[Summertime33]

Wow thanks for the all the info thus far - I'll try to be more specific now.

You can probably all tell I'm new to cycling - I suppose when I said "road bike" I meant something more along the lines of a general purpose bike. I live in the city and I need to commute a few miles everyday for work, and besides that I like to go on longer rides (10-20 miles) every weekend. I'm in shape, running roughly 4-5 miles a day.

 

[Summertime33]

Nah

If you are not an odd size you will probably find a lot of used womenz bikes around.

Xcuse me but if girls over there buy bikes like they do here you might find something practically new.

600 is OK if you buy in sales.

but with 700-800 you can grab something good when still a new modeI.

So a road bike? Not an electra Cruiser with a dog basket and selfy stick?

Why a road bike?

While a basket might be nice, I'd rather avoid the selfie stick >

 

[Volnix]

Nah


While a basket might be nice, I'd rather avoid the selfie stick >

Aaah something sleek and fast for commuting... How it aways starts. ( I bet you'll be here trash-talking about race tires pretty soon ).

Ok. Froze gave you some brands to check. I can add:

-A Womenz Alu Cyclocross bike. Check Ridley if you can find one there.

Cyclocross: Dropbars for the wind, lots of gearing options, clearing For wider tires - Fenders. Sometimes rack mounts.

You might also want to check Surly's Crosscheck.

Btw if it is commuting and you are not too crashy check some Steel Chromoly stuff too. You'll have the Frame for Eons. Unless you slam the thin sidewalls in a column or something. You might need to be a bit more careful with corrosion.

Also: Bro-Tip:

You might want to avoid "Brifters" (brake-Gear lever combos. They are 50€ each for low end and might just add another 100€ to the price. Maybe just dedicated hoods+brake levers and Some separate shifters. )
So how's it going? Picked something?

(I wouldn't know, but I suspect that you can find a CrossCheck around every corner there.)

Nice huh?

 

[kuroba]

My current bike is a hardtail MTB with skinny tires (Kenda Kwick Trax 1.5") and to me it's a great all-around bike. The MTB upright position is very comfortable and with the skinny tires I don't get as much rolling resistance. The roads here are craptastic, I even have some sections of gravel on my commute, so the front suspension is nice to have (it can be locked out too).

I do wish I had more hand positions because the flat bars make my hands tired and numb after a while, that's why for my next bike I'm going for a gravel grinder/cyclocross bike (I currently use bar ends for this issue).

If you're looking to get from A to B, I think a hardtail (or even, rigid) MTB could work very well for you. Plus these bikes usually have mounts for racks and fenders (plus for commuting).

 

[tommytrant20]

I want to buy a bike for exercise on balanced then how you

 

[Summertime33]

Thank you all so much for your input regarding this, I obviously have a lot to think about and consider! There's a cute little independent bike shop close by and I'm planning on going there this weekend to see what's what. I'll let you all know how it goes!

 

[Volnix]

Thank you all so much for your input regarding this, I obviously have a lot to think about and consider! There's a cute little independent bike shop close by and I'm planning on going there this weekend to see what's what. I'll let you all know how it goes!

You do that, If - you see pink Fixies and beards - but no scars - run!

Maybe you want something a bit more... Roadie?

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[oldbobcat]

Hey guys,

So I'm on a fairly limited budget here, but I'm looking for the best bike available to me for around $500-600. Do any of you guys have any suggestions for a good road bike that's available to me?

You can get very nice general-purpose commuter bikes for road riding for under $600. Check out Trek's 7.1 and 7.2 FX, Raleigh's Alysa 1 and 2, and Specialized's Vita and Vita Sport, for starters. These are sporty bikes with derailleur shifting, flat handlebars, and capability to be accessorized with racks, fenders, lights, and what have you. And every major brand has some of these in their lineup.