I would say no. It’s a good price to pay for a first road bike but imo you should be getting a bit more than this for your money. That 9 speed 105 is, in my experience, fairly crap.
It’s also a really old fashioned saddle with no pressure relief channel so you’re gonna fuck up your soft tissue especially as a newbie; the handlebar width, drop depth and shifter ergonomics are also pretty outdated and less than ideal.
It’ll work if there’s really bad availability in your area, but I’d keep looking. Don’t be scared to go lower-end but newer. At this price point, you don’t have loads of choice with features but the very first thing you want to worry about is contact points. The places you interact with the bike (shifters, bars, saddle, pedals) are going to have the biggest impact on your experience so try and optimise those. I’d look for something with more modern Claris or Tiagra components, a more modern saddle and narrower bars.
Remember a 12 grand bike that doesn’t fit will never be as nice to ride as a 500 quid bike that does, so test ride some stuff, use an online calculator but aware most of them will give you a size too large, and if in doubt size down. Fit affects everything from speed via affecting the power you can generate and how aerodynamic your body position is, to comfort on long rides, to handling and ride feel. Worry about fit even before you worry about getting a good deal, way too many people buy bikes on sale which don’t fit them and end up with a paperweight and a missed opportunity to start the best hobby ever 🙂
No-Ingenuity-4898 on
Fair.
Foxy1525 on
It’s okay but even for a rim brake bike very outdated. The gear ratios must be knee breaker in comparison to wider cassettes from 10 years ago. Even a 10 year old rim brake bike can get a 11-32 cassette on it.
3 Comments
I would say no. It’s a good price to pay for a first road bike but imo you should be getting a bit more than this for your money. That 9 speed 105 is, in my experience, fairly crap.
It’s also a really old fashioned saddle with no pressure relief channel so you’re gonna fuck up your soft tissue especially as a newbie; the handlebar width, drop depth and shifter ergonomics are also pretty outdated and less than ideal.
It’ll work if there’s really bad availability in your area, but I’d keep looking. Don’t be scared to go lower-end but newer. At this price point, you don’t have loads of choice with features but the very first thing you want to worry about is contact points. The places you interact with the bike (shifters, bars, saddle, pedals) are going to have the biggest impact on your experience so try and optimise those. I’d look for something with more modern Claris or Tiagra components, a more modern saddle and narrower bars.
Remember a 12 grand bike that doesn’t fit will never be as nice to ride as a 500 quid bike that does, so test ride some stuff, use an online calculator but aware most of them will give you a size too large, and if in doubt size down. Fit affects everything from speed via affecting the power you can generate and how aerodynamic your body position is, to comfort on long rides, to handling and ride feel. Worry about fit even before you worry about getting a good deal, way too many people buy bikes on sale which don’t fit them and end up with a paperweight and a missed opportunity to start the best hobby ever 🙂
Fair.
It’s okay but even for a rim brake bike very outdated. The gear ratios must be knee breaker in comparison to wider cassettes from 10 years ago. Even a 10 year old rim brake bike can get a 11-32 cassette on it.