Subject: RE: Reasonably-priced road bike??For 600 dollors your best bet is a used bike. I would go to a bike shop and get a fitting before hand so you have an idea of the correct size for you (it might vary a bit from brand to brand but when buying used you just need to get close enough. ) Craigslist, Ebay, BT are all good places to look. Be wary of something that really sounds to good to be true like, bought this nice road bike last year, paid 300 for it now want to get rid of it for 500, only ridden for 15 miles etc...Things like that just make me nervous that it is either A. stolen. or B. a scam to get your money. You can also check in with your LBS (Local Bike Shop ) and see if they have any used bikes for sale or know of someone selling. Some shops that rent bikes will occassionally have their renters up for sale as they update/replace them. The sales for bikes generally happen in the late fall to early spring from my experience. look around and always test ride before you buy if at all possible to make sure it feels right. You might consider looking for a newer bike from an online shop like Bikesdirect.com I am not a fan of them necessarily and have never used them but I understand you can get a pretty good bike from them for a cheap price even if some are offbrand names (the Motobecan Nemesis is the one I hear mentioned the most but is, I believe a tri bike, not a road bike ). If you are looking new check out some of the entry level models for the more popular brands like Trek, specialized, and whatever else your LBS carries. You may be able to get it on sale from them when they are cleaning out stock for a cheaper price but you might be trading down a bit of the quality of components. If you do not mind Shimano Tiagra/Soror level then that is no problem but if you are looking for higher quality components (105 and above ) for 600 you would probably have to go used. Good luck in the search and take your time! Edited by bel83 2009-07-29 1:33 PM
|