Road Cycling - Carbon fibre frame?

Hey

I have set a side a bit of cash for a good road bike. I intend to do a lot of mileage on it so I am leaning towards a carbon frame in the form of a Trek 5200. This will be my first road bike and I am heading out to the shops today to have a look around and possibly buy the Trek 5200 at my local dealer in Geneva, Switzerland.
are there anything other bikes I should maybe consider? Is the carbon frame really worth all the extra cash or am I just as well off with a Al frame with CF fork and seat tube? Is a CF road bike frame a frame for life or will it "wear out"? Or should I just forget about CF al together and get a steel frame? I am however a little worried that my weight (around 200 lbs) will make the bike respond like noodles pushed around by a chopstick. If you reckon I should give more thought to a steel frame, what manufacturer should I be looking at?

Cheers.

Hi,
I bought a Trek 5200 last winter. Very very satisfied so far. Being 210 pounds, and having a 60cm frame, I still feel the frame is stiff (not too much though) and was not shocked by what a lot of people refer to as the "dead" feeling of CF. It's a smooth ride and it climbs like crazy (Geneva is a nice place to bike, been there, plenty of "cols" to amuse you.

As for the longevity of a CF frame. Well, even though it has a life warranty, the truth is CF wears out, although less quickly than Al frames (due to welding problems, Al frames might have a tendency to crack). If you're looking for longevity, nothing beats Ti frames. More expensive, more "noodly" has you said. But, CF still can last long. And as much as you can try to convince yourself, in five to seven years from now, you'll probably want a new ride, no matter how long it could still last...

For a bigger rider, Stochaxtix is right on.
Aluminum is going to be the most efficient/stiff
Carbon can be stiff but will last longer than aluminum
Ti is stiff and comfortable and will last forever, but is expensive.

I would not discount aluminum. It is ideal for bigger riders and a good aluminum frame can last you quite a long time if you are a recreational rider.
In any case if you ride alot than I agree that no matter what you get you will want a new bike in 5 years just like Stochastix said. It's just the laws of loving bikes!!

Have you test ridden it? Owning a OCLV and a couple steelies, I'd say you can't go wrong with either. But it's a personal thing, like trying to decide between a BMW M3 and a Mecedes SLK32 AMG.

Or a Toyota Corolla and a Honda Civic or ?????

55/Rad

M3 vs SLK ?

Eeeeasy, I'd take the M3 (coupe not cabrio). SLK looks like a hairdressers ride.

M3 vs Boxster S would have me thinking harder.

Kkar, Don't worry about your weight on the 5200. I outweigh you by at least 60 lbs and have put 6000 miles on my 5200 with no problems.
There are a lot of other CF frames out there though and you being in Europe they may be a better buy than an imported 5200. Colnago, Look, Time, Merckx to mention just a few put out good frames. My two favorite frames at the moment are the new Bianchi Luna and the Orbea Orca.
Try a lot and get the frame that fits and feels the best to you

I'm about 200 pounds and my Orbea Ultrafoco steel bike is almost as stiff as the Cannondale it replaced. Steel framebuilders are building impressive bikes these days.

And I'd love to get a hold of a slightly older M3, before they started gaining weight.

The 5200 would do you fine. However, I would at least ride a Ti bike before making a decision. You get a smooth ride, but still responsive, durability, and light weight all in one package.

Hey

I have set a side a bit of cash for a good road bike. I intend to do a lot of mileage on it so I am leaning towards a carbon frame in the form of a Trek 5200. This will be my first road bike and I am heading out to the shops today to have a look around and possibly buy the Trek 5200 at my local dealer in Geneva, Switzerland.
are there anything other bikes I should maybe consider? Is the carbon frame really worth all the extra cash or am I just as well off with a Al frame with CF fork and seat tube? Is a CF road bike frame a frame for life or will it "wear out"? Or should I just forget about CF al together and get a steel frame? I am however a little worried that my weight (around 200 lbs) will make the bike respond like noodles pushed around by a chopstick. If you reckon I should give more thought to a steel frame, what manufacturer should I be looking at?

Cheers.

I've been very happy with my 5200. However, you owe it to yourself to ride several bikes before you make a decision. I rode a bunch before deciding that the 5200 was the right fit, and feel for me. Now go out there and test ride, and let us know your impressions! :)

The great thing about the Trek is that it is a great bike, great price and has a life time warrenty. Note that a crash will void the warrenty. Trek is just betting that you will either not ride the bike hard and get lots of miles out of the bike, or if you ride the bike hard, you will crash it and void the warrenty. But it is great ride that is light at a great price. What does a 5200 go for? What does a Merckx go for? I would say the Trek is the Chevy Camaro or Corvette of bikes...

The 5200 is US$2500.00 here. The 5000 is on sale here for US$1798.00! I don't know if the full Ultegra and differnet rims are really worth the difference?

The guy at the shop keeps inviting me to test ride the 5000. I have resisted so far since I could never afford the bike.

i wouldn't discount an aluminum frame with some carbon too - i just picked up an aluminum litespeed with a carbon fork & carbon seatstays, and love it - super stiff, really light, and the carbon stays & fork absorb a lot of the road buzz - plus it will save you some serious change - i decided to go with alum. now and like stochastix said, regardless of what you get you you'll want another bike in a few years - i'll get a ti bike next time when the prices settle down a bit. definitely ride a bunch of bikes - you'll find the one that's right for you

I had this same decision to make last year...I rode the Treks,5500 and 5900. Also rode the Giant, Kestrel, and Bianchi Carbons as well as the Klein Q-pro Carbon/Alum and carbon. I liked the Klein and Giant best and then saw a picture of the Kuota Ksano and fell in love. I bought without riding as it was only sold in Europe at the time and I love it. The ride is similar to the Giant but it is simple yet beeeeautiful. I found the Bianchi to be the stiffest...to stiff IMO. The Orbea Orca is another incredibly beautiful bike IMO. Go out and ride because there really are differences in ride and fit. Have fun.

The 5200 would do you fine. However, I would at least ride a Ti bike before making a decision. You get a smooth ride, but still responsive, durability, and light weight all in one package.

I happen to own both frame materials, and the carbon is MUCH more plush of a ride than a Ti bike. But having said that, it would still be a very hard to give up either bike since both are wonderful in their own way. If I could only have one bike it would probably be the Ti, since it is a timeless frame and I've spent way too much on bikes already..

I've owned a 5500 for 9 years now (about 30,000 miles) and it shows no sign of wearing out yet. I used to race with it and still do hard training rides.

K-

I was in the same situation after deciding to replace my 13 year old Klein, and I did what everyone said to do- I went out and test rode allot of bikes.
After 13 years so much had changed with materials, design, etc. The only
way to compare what's right for you is to know what you want do with the bike and see which frame material (and cost) will work best for you.

I rode Ti, Al/Carbon/ Ti/ Carbon and 4 different all carbon frames and picked the Orbea Orca. It met all my criteria for performance, aesthetics, weight (13.75lbs in race trim) and warranty. The funny thing is I did not ride one Trek as one of my priorities for a carbon frame was the ability to see the carbon itself.

So when you ask which is better, the only person to answer that is you.
Find a good dealer who knows how to fit you properly and ride a bunch
of bikes to really get the feel for what's out there.

Good Luck.

I went out shoping the same day I started this thread. I couldn't wait... I had a look around and tried a few bikes, but at the end I got the Trek 5200. I got a cracking deal on two bikes that I could not resist. I looked at Bianchi and Pinarello CF bikes as well but they were more expensive.
The bikes will be ready for pick-up Thursday this week and I feel like I did when I was a kid, waiting for Christmas. I can't wait to get the bikes and give them a good thrashing on the road. I will post my impressions after I've done a few more miles on it and let you know what my wife thinks of it. I hope she'll like it, I still can't believe I managed to talk here into buying these bikes. :D

Good luck with the 5200. I have one and love it. :)

I've got a 5200 too. I love it. You'll love yours too.