KMKEcho

Hey Everyone,

I am seeking some advice on getting a decent Diamondback road bike, I am looking to ride 50-100 miles a week in spare time and would like to have a quality bike that is not outrageously expensive.

I am looking at the DiamondBack Century and the Century Sport also maybe the Century 1.

What one would be a better choice for the money? Also do you have any experience or own one? What one would you recommend for a beginner rider?

Thanks for looking and for the help!

EDIT: Budget is hopefully under $1,000.

10 Wheels

What is your budget?

KMKEcho

Sorry i forgot to add that. I would like to stay under $1000

trek3700

For $1000 I would go Specialized Allez or Cannondale Caad8.

dr_lha

Do you have a local shop that sells them, or are you ordering over the internet?

Diamondback make solid, if unexciting, road bikes. The frames are made by Kinesis, and they have the usual parts (FSA cranks, low end Shimano groupsets, own brand everything else) for low-end road bikes. Nothing wrong with them, but there's nothing to really make them stand out, other than maybe their price, but there are others who are competitive.

I speak as someone who owns a Diamondback.

Spoonrobot 

Do you live near a Performance Bike or REI? I head over to one of those stores and test ride a few bikes.

I like Diamondback bikes because they're almost always a little cheaper than other equally spec'd brands. If you are considering the century series note that the big difference between the century sport and century 1 is that sport has a aluminum fork and the 1 has a carbon fork. This is a big difference and is going to affect your riding more than the groupset and wheelset differences.

So I'd recommend getting the Century 1 from Performance, joining their buyer's club and spending your 10% back on a helmet and maybe shorts/shoes.

KMKEcho

I do not live near one of those without it being a drive so that could be an option over the weekend.

I am going to be buying over the internet. One of the reasons i am looking at Diamond backs is i can get them for the following cost:

Century Sport: 400
Century: 500
Century 1: 600

I just want to make sure that i can have a decent quality bike that will last a couple years before i upgrade. Not looking for anything to spectacular but just enough to go 50-100 miles a week and be comfortable.

Thank you everyone for the input this far! You have all been a great help!

Stillmoving

Since you are buying online, you should also look at Bikes direct and Nashbar. Both sell good value bikes. For $650-800 u can get a 105 group set aluminum frame carbon fork bike made in Tiawan probably in the same factory as the Diamondbacks.

snidely

Get the Century 1.


The better componentry is worth the extra $. And the price you are getting is great!

GuitarBob

If you want endurance geometry rather than race geometry, the it looks to me like the Century 1 for $600 would be a great deal and a solid choice. The drivetrain is all Shimano 105, aside from the cranks (and brakes, of course).

The only thing I would have liked to see is a carbon fork rather than alloy fork, but for $600 you can't have one! It's on the next model up, which also has an Ultegra drivetrain, so the price bump is appreciable.

dr_lha

$600 for the Century 1? I assume that's not the current model?

To be fair, I got my Diamondback for about that, and it carried a MSRP of $1350.

Spoonrobot 

Ah, you have the employee pricing.

The Century 1 is a fantastic deal for $600.

No way you're getting anywhere close to Shimano 5800 shifters/derailleur/cassette/FC-R crankset with any other brand.

KMKEcho

Here is a link to the main site:

Diamondback Bikes - Road Bikes - Century 1

Same exact one but on a different DiamondBack site. I am not sure if it is a 15 or 16 model.

Spoonrobot 

It'll be the 16 model unless they have 17s already. They just pull your order from the most recent shipment. I got a Haanjo Comp recently and it was a late april 2016 manufacture date.

ARPRINCE

Forget about the other century models, I'll get that Century 1 as well.

KMKEcho

OR should i wait for the 2017 models seeing how they are going to be out soon?

Does it matter?

dr_lha

Nope.