Toolhead87

Hello everyone I hope this is the right board for this.
I'm getting a bike for my birthday next week and I have a spending limit of $700 max (I'm chipping in $150 myself.)
I mainly need a bike to ride to work and I like riding down the Riverbed towards Seal Beach here in Socal.
I'm 6.2' and I weigh 260 pounds so I guess the bike needs to be sturdy....
I honestly know jack about brands and what parts are worth money up until now the bikes I had were all crap.
But a friend of mine helped narrow down my choices.
Tell me what you think.

Vilano FORZA 2.0
Vilano Forza 3.0
Diamondback Podium Sport Road Bike '12 (sadly out of my price range as of now...

Diamondback 2012 Podium 1 Road Bike

and the last two are used from craigslist.
https://losangeles.craigslist.org/sgv...437404370.html
https://losangeles.craigslist.org/sfv...436365820.html
I think the 2nd one might be two small though.
I'd appreciate any advice I can get to narrow down my choices more.

Gjc985

felt

Toolhead87

the f85?
isn't 56cm too small for me? I'm 6.1/6.2

10 Wheels

Felt may be too small.

What is your cycling inseam?

https://veloweb.ca/bike-fit/

vesteroid

At that price point I would seriously consider bikes direct.com. They are having a lot of year end sales and from what I have seen some good deals are available

jsigone

the 58 will stretch you out, the 56 will have a larger seat post drop and be more aggressive fit. If you try to raise the bars, you might hit your knees on them w/o going to longer stem off the saddle, climbing.

The parts on the Felt are allot better then allez.

This one is pretty sweet, old DA 9 speed but still clean as heck. Might be able to talk him down a bit more and get a 110 stem, that 130 might be too long or swap out the bars to something more modern.
https://losangeles.craigslist.org/lac...427872684.html

Beachgrad05

Welcome to the C/A forum. I might suggest going to various LBS in the area (not sure exactly where you are at) but in Long Beach you might check out Jax on Spring and Bellflower and test ride several models to see what you like best and what suits what riding you intend to do.

You might also check out Out-Spoke-N in Sunset Beach as they carry several brands (Surly, Cannondale and Focus). Derick here is a great guy and very helpful.

I personally have an Trek FX hybrid that I use as my commuter bike and prior to getting my road bike it was my sole bike for fitness riding.

If you ride SGRT to Seal Beach you might see me.

ahultin

I agree with vesteroid. The cyber week deal below seems pretty sweet and while it is $100 over your price, there is no shipping or tax which brings it just about in line.
https://bikesdirect.com/products/windsor/knight_x.htm

fietsbob

Already got Mechanics chops? Bikes direct requires them.. they are not ready to ride .

If not , have a nice Chat with Your LBS, they will fix you Up.

In LA? Pick The Shop First, then the bike at that shop. shop the shops.

Beachgrad05

+1

Toolhead87

I think I'm gonna meet the guy that's selling the Specialized bike on craigslist todat and I'll see if I like it.
Thanks for all the input guys

ahultin

With the exception of the craigslist finds, all three other options that he presented are mail order bikes so I dont believe the Bikes direct would be out of line

ahultin

Make sure you ride it to get a good feel, and good luck hope it works out!

Toolhead87

ended up getting that for $580 feels great and shifts great.
Only thing I'm gonna change is the Pedals for now.



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CommuteCommando

I paid $750 for a Masi Partenza at a LBS. At that price point the actual brand is not real important, all will have a decent quality aluminum frame, and have Tectro, or equivalent components. Not top of the line, but decent. If you are confident you can assemble and service the bike yourself, you can go to Bikes Direct. If you are not an expert, shop around for a good LBS.

At that price point most will have platform pedals. Mine did. I changed them out to cheap SPD's and just recently got Speedplay Zero's. They were a bit pricey, but worth it.

seymour1910

Congrats on your new (to you) bike. It looks like a nice bike but that pic is pretty bad. I didn't get to see the CL ad so can you give details about the bike? What size is it? What group? Those look like good wheels for your weight. That saddle is pretty low, with you being 6'2" make sure you have it right or you will feel it in your knees.

PhotoJoe 

Congrats! Nice find. That looks like a 58cm frame. Being 6'2" myself, I agree that the saddle looks pretty low. You don't want your knee fully extended at the bottom of the down-stroke, but have a very slight bend to it. Otherwise, as Seymour said, your knees will let you know about their displeasure!

Toolhead87

I'll take some detailed pics my my d5100 when I get back from class later tonight and yes the saddle is way to low,I'm gonna have to fin a alan wrench jey thingy to adjust it.

Toolhead87

****ing rain...havent had a chance to ride it since I bough the damn thing