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atomship47
 
i want a cx bike. i wanted to get a frame and take the time to build it up exactly how i liked.

i've had to ride my hybrid because my roadie was sent back to the mfr. so now, i just want an inexpensive cx bike to tide me over for a while. i'd like a comfortable/reliable frame and i can upgrade components later.

here are my questions, the cheapest cx bikes i've seen are in the $1100 range. are there lower pricepoints for complete cx bikes? What makes/models?

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flargle
 
Bianchi Volpe

surreal
 
surly cross check. whatever nonsense they're selling on bikesdirect.com. used stuff. whatever the cheeepest redline is. i'm sure there are more, as well.

-rob

atomship47
 
i called around....i'm going to check out a ridley, bianchi and felt today. the ridley/bianchi dealer wants to show me a merckx....not sure that's going to be in my price range for now.


any other suggestions?

Tony O
 
Don't want to discourage you from building your own bike but it will cost you a lot more (unless you already have lots of usable parts lying around) than buying a new bike, or a used bike off ebay or Craigslist for example. I picked up an '03 JTS for $560 off ebay a few mths back. I've seen cheaper on Craiglist though.

if you want to buy new, do a search, there have been a few threads lately asking questions like "cheapest out of box cross bike", etc.

I'm not done with my Nashbar build and I think I will spend about $900 (and countless hrs on ebay and CL!)for mix of new and used parts when all is said and done -ouch. I learned a lot though...like next time I will by used or new donor bike with good components, strip it and sell what I don't want.

cheers
Tony O

Fishy
 
I bought an '08 Giant TCX a couple of days ago - a TCX 0 runs about $1,100 and change. Some changes from the 2007 model.

However, they're also selling a TCX 1 with the same frame, but with some lower end components and an aluminum fork for $790.

Giant TCX 1 (http://www.giant-bicycle.com/en-US/bikes/road/1239/29259/)

atomship47
 
as an update....
i test rode an all alum. merckx. hated the ride! the person who fit me for my roadie had a felt f1x all set up and ready to go for me. however, the bike is aluminum except for the fork. the merckx ride was so crappy that i'm afraid to go with aluminum (i've got an extended test ride scheduled for tuesday).

i also test rode an '06 bianchi cross concept. full ultegra. $2100. i liked the ride. i just CAN'T STAND the colors of the bianchi. celeste is bad enough, then they add blue and red into the mix.




i wanted to go cheap, then swap out from there. it doesn't look like any shops by me have what i'm looking for (unless i like the felt - but that's pretty expensive for an aluminum bike - $1300).

now i'm back to considering building up a bike from scratch again.

i like my road drivetrain, brakes, etc. i plan on running 28mm tires with non-aggressive tread patterns on my cx bike. should i just look at steel cx frames, but fitting them with a road groupset? i found both soma and surly cx frames for about $400. pbk has groupsets on sale right now.

are there steel road frames that would handle 28mm cx tires with plenty of room to spare?

efficiency
 
They didn't have a Bianchi Volpe?

FXjohn
 
as an update....
i test rode an all alum. merckx. hated the ride! the person who fit me for my roadie had a felt f1x all set up and ready to go for me. however, the bike is aluminum except for the fork. the merckx ride was so crappy that i'm afraid to go with aluminum (i've got an extended test ride scheduled for tuesday).

i also test rode an '06 bianchi cross concept. full ultegra. $2100. i liked the ride. i just CAN'T STAND the colors of the bianchi. celeste is bad enough, then they add blue and red into the mix.




i wanted to go cheap, then swap out from there. it doesn't look like any shops by me have what i'm looking for (unless i like the felt - but that's pretty expensive for an aluminum bike - $1300).

now i'm back to considering building up a bike from scratch again.

i like my road drivetrain, brakes, etc. i plan on running 28mm tires with non-aggressive tread patterns on my cx bike. should i just look at steel cx frames, but fitting them with a road groupset? i found both soma and surly cx frames for about $400. pbk has groupsets on sale right now.

are there steel road frames that would handle 28mm cx tires with plenty of room to spare?

Seems ridiculous to rule out a bike because of it's colors

flargle
 
Seems ridiculous to rule out a bike because of it's colorsThe bike also happened to way above his price point, but I don't think it's strange at all not to want a bike because of its colors, especially if you're dropping all kinds of money on it.

I happen to like Bianchi green but that's besides the point.

flargle
 
i like my road drivetrain, brakes, etc. i plan on running 28mm tires with non-aggressive tread patterns on my cx bike. should i just look at steel cx frames, but fitting them with a road groupset? i found both soma and surly cx frames for about $400. pbk has groupsets on sale right now.It's economically smarter in almost all cases to buy the complete bike. Have you considered the Cross-Check complete bike? It has a pretty smart complement of parts for the price. And do get your Bianchi dealer to get a Volpe for you to try.

acorn_user
 
There quite a few road bikes that will take a 28c tyre. The Soma Smoothie is a good example of the genre. Over here, they are often called road sport bikes. Back home, they are called Audax (or winter) bikes. They are more upright than a road bike, and take long drop sidepulls. Redline makes one, Schwinn makes a range (Le Tour) and then you have the Somas and Surlies. One caveat is that they would not be suitable for actual cross races. They would rock at everything else though.

MTBLover
 
They didn't have a Bianchi Volpe?

My question exactly. The Volpe is cheap (under $900), steel, and the components are reasonable (Tiagra, mostly). Personally, I love the Cross Concept, but it's above my price point too, so I went with the Volpe. And, it's not celeste, if that bugs the OP- or is it the olive drab (they call it "Gang Green") that bothers you?

atomship47
 
no. they didn't have a volpe.

and, yeah, the "importance" of looks is relative (covered in several threads in other forums recently). if i got a cross concept used for $500....i'd learn to live with its color. there aren't too many things that i'll spend $1k on when i hate how it looks. maybe a car, or a house, or a wife.


i don't really care for the color of the volpe either...but it's not as bad as celeste green. i could probably live with it if their weren't any other options.



i had 28mm tires on my roadie for a while....but there wasn't enough clearance for my comfort.

i don't expect to compete in races. if i ever get to that point, i'll sink the $ into a real cx bike.

isotopesope
 
if you're still considering a soma, i bought one for my wife from here. (http://www.bikemania.biz/Soma_Double_Cross_Frame_Tange_Prestige_tubing_p/merry_somadoublecrossframe.htm) they seemed to have the cheapest prices i could find online. 309 for just the frame.

wireless
 
I bought an '08 Giant TCX a couple of days ago - a TCX 0 runs about $1,100 and change. Some changes from the 2007 model.

However, they're also selling a TCX 1 with the same frame, but with some lower end components and an aluminum fork for $790.

Giant TCX 1 (http://www.giant-bicycle.com/en-US/bikes/road/1239/29259/)

+1 on TCX . I bought 2007 model back in April and like it a lot. Now is a good time to search for 2007 bikes going on sale. My LBS sells 2007 TCX for $900.

atomship47
 
+1 on TCX . I bought 2007 model back in April and like it a lot. Now is a good time to search for 2007 bikes going on sale. My LBS sells 2007 TCX for $900.

i went on several test rides on the felt f1x with a carbon fork, bars and seat post. didn't like it.

i'm sticking with steel frames. otoh, i saw a leftover litespeed tuscany ti in my size. from the looks of it, it has plenty of clearance for 28 - 30 mm knobby tires. unfortunately, it's double my target price point.

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