Is the "Specialized" bike brand any good or at least half decent? I'm relatively new to cycling and I've never heard of that brand before. I'm in the market for a new bike and a LBS carries that brand.

Specialized is good brand, yes. We have plenty of members here who own bikes made by them. Just wait for their responses...

A quality brand, well known and popular. Mostly manufactured by Merida in Taiwan, one of the big five factories. Their top end stuff is 1st rate. Entry level is a bit under-specced for the price but well made frames. Without a decal its hard to tell from Trek, Giant or anyone else.

I would say they are OK nothing special.....

Specialized is about on par with Trek, BMC, Giant. The Tarmac S works is a hot rod and can be ready to ride at 15.6 pounds depending on wheels. It is a match for the Trek Madone 6.9 and ther Giant TCR-0.

Kind of like a Trek, but without the resale value.

Like anything, you will find fans and then all of the others who are jealous

;-)

I am not a fan of the brand, but I have to admit that they produce quality. They have also introduced some innovations that I think should be more widely available. (The Stout hub/QR, the large flat flange on the front hub for a stiffer fork interface, the co-operative effort with Fox to produce the Brain shock)

They are known also for rather fiercely litigating THEIR PERCEPTIONS of copyright infringement.

They make decent bicycles but their customer service sucks!

I had a different experience. There was a problem with some spokes breaking. Specialized replaced the wheels with better ones very quickly for free.

You'd be surprised. I was selling a Trek and a guy asked if it was not as good as a Huffy, since he'd never heard of Trek before.

Personally, I haven't seen a bad brand sold at an LBS, though I'm not very familiar with the cruiser market, like Globe and Electra.

If the shop has friendly knowledgable employees and the bike works for you, go for it.

Specialized and Trek are like the Chevys and Fords of the bicycle world. Yeah, there are more exotic brands out there but Specialized accomodates to various rider budgets pretty well and offer some quality bikes. I would always remember my first "real bike" I purchased from an actual LBS which was a Specialized Hardrock Sport. I was barely a teenager so I was putting up some hard earned money from mowing my parents and neighbors yards countless times. Even though it had some very entry level components the bike was very solid and I rode it all the time through out my teens till I eventually sold it at a garage sale while I was in college. I still miss that bike so when it came time to purchase a commuter I was partial to Specialized as the "S" logo envoked fond memories of my childhood.

Hmmmm. No one mentioned Cannondale? I think of Trek, Specialized, Giant and Cannondale to be the larger sellers of bikes.

I broke the frame of my Rockhopper after 12 years of hard use. Specialized gave me a new Hardrock frame, no questions or hassles. Sold the Hardrock frame because the top tube was too long. Even though the frame was a smaller size, I never could get comfortable on it.

Specilaized is a good brand. Nothing to worry about. I have several.

When I first heard of them, I was confused as all get out until the dealer finally stopped to explain that he was using the word "specialized" as a brand and not as an adjective.

Both my bikes are Specialized.
1986 RockHopper & 2008 Globe.
I expect them to last longer than me.

My Rockhopper coped admirably with me when I was a heavier rider banging it around over rutted gravel and stuff. I've since added a Tricross to the stable and both bikes are great.

I don't know enough about other brands to specifically say whether Specialized is better than Trek, Giant, Genesis etc but they're certainly a good name.

Mark Cavendish and HTC Highroad were able to do pretty well in the TDF with Specialized. But any company that can make bikes that can race in the TDF today might be considered worthy of the designation, good bike. https://annyas.com/tour-de-france-bicycle-logos/

What bike shops have you visited and which bicycle brands are familiar to you? I'm sure that the LBS that used to service your Schwinn would be glad to see you are upgrading.

You've been a member since May 2010 and you are not familiar with Specialized? That is very interesting!

I have owned a Specialized Secteur Sport since 2012 (2013 model) and have put just under 2000 miles on it. I bought it to commute to work during nice weather (8 miles a day) and put most my miles on by doing just that. I have recently started riding for more performance and fitness, I am keeping up with guys with full carbon bikes (for the most part) and my bike has an aluminum frame with carbon fork. It's been great so far! The on board Shimano Sora STI (18 speed) is not that bad, I was thinking to upgrade drive-train to at least the 105, or Ultegra but it's just not cost effective. I will upgrade when I out perform the bike...long ways off.

You can buy a Chevy Corvette, or a Ford Mustang.

Or you can buy a Chevy Vega or Ford Pinto.

Oops

Specialized and Trek sell a full lineup of bikes from rock bottom to some of the best available.

Just a name doesn't mean much without knowing the model and components.

Yes. There are many who avoid the brand in order to prevent their over-active lawyers from suing the world.

Whenever I see a query like this I think about a question I asked 10 years buying am intermediate drum kit having not played since I was a kid and I asked someone at a dealers which is the best out of the "known" names.

His response hit the nail on the head .... there's so much competition between them for your money if one of them wasn't any good it'd spread like wildfire and they'd be gone as they lost sales to their competitors with better products at the same price.

Ride a couple of different bikes and see which "feels" best and buy that one .. that said I have a Specialized Rock Hopper Comp and it's been a brilliant bike and was recommended by someone I know who used to own a bike shop.

So how do you feel about the people at your LBS?

Shop for a bike shop first. When you find a shop with people that you like and feel good about, buy a brand and style of bike they carry at a price point you are comfortable with and you'll never go wrong.

Specialized like many manufacturers makes a lot of crap at the low end but mid range and higher end tends to be better.