Bilakor

I got into road biking about 3 months ago. Im been using a fuji newest 3.0. I want to go next level on my bike. Im well experienced with my bike and well knowledgeable about road bikes. I think around $700 is a reasonale price for a next level road bike. I would like to get a second opinion. Is a $700 road bike good for next level? Im thinking specialized allez 2018 (red)( its around $700) is a good next level road bike.

Dean V

How about a second hand bike? Get more for your dollar.

ridingfool

Would think it would be heavy and not that good. Of a group set.but depends on your riding style of u lan on going on group rides with a fastgroup and trying to maintain a 25 mile average on the flats don't think its a good upgrade. If ur doing 20 mile solo rides and not trying for kom then maybe a good upgrade

atwl77

I'd advise identifying exactly what issues you have with your current setup first (e.g. weight, wheels, gear ratios), then look for a bike that specifically addresses those issues. Just having a budget and aiming for a bike that fits the budget isn't the best way to spend your money unless you know what you are getting out of it.

Homebrew01

Yes.

hsuehhwa

How many miles have you had? What's your longest ride? Biggest climb? clipless pedals?


You probably save to buy a bike with 105 groupset or better.

Bilakor

I have no issues with my bike. I just want a better bike but dont know if i should aim towards a $1000 or more or less. I usually commute but i also want to ride far.

memebag

Have you ridden any better bikes to see what you like about them?

eric1971

Keep riding your current bike until you have identified specific reasons to upgrade. What makes a bike good is very subjective. You need to ride more to find out what you like and don't like about your current ride.

What you might try is going to your LBS and test riding a few bikes. That would give you a better idea as to what your options are.

caloso

"Better" how, exactly? Lighter? Stiffer? More aerodynamic? Higher level components? Compact crank vs. traditional?

cpach

Your current bike is hardly terrible. There's nothing wrong with the base model Allez--it has a very nice frame for its price point, and Shimano Claris works reasonably well. That said, if you can swing it, I think that something at more like the ~1200 price point gets you some real benefits. Usually you can get Tiagra 4700, 105 5800, or maybe Sram Apex or Rival around that price point, and usually better, matched brake calipers, and usually much more decent stock tires.

Past this price point, you get much more marginal improvements to performance, up until you start getting into mid-end carbon frames or, alternatively, high end steel frames both of which can offer improvements in ride feel that may feel significant. In my opinion, its generally worth it to upgrade tires on almost all bikes unless they already ship with top end product.

kbarch

I think the real question is what kind of step do you want to take, from your current level to the next? Yes, a $700 bike would allow you to step up from where you are now. With the bike you described, you're still looking at a pretty basic road bike, but I suspect you'll notice some difference in quality, and if you want to feel like you're riding a nicer bike than what you have, $700 should be enough.
However, along the lines of what others have said, I'd encourage you to first decide what you really want from a better bike. You say you want to go on longer rides, but longer how? Casual touring or high-speed? To travel by bike, you'd want something very different from what you'd want for sportives. And if you like to mix things up on your rides and don't mind taking dirt roads and gravel trails, you'd want something different from a bike designed for road use only. If you don't have any sense of whether you'd be more into one kind of riding than another, a conservative upgrade like what you describe is prudent, but you may soon develop a sense that you are more interested in a certain kind of riding, and for that you'll probably want to take a bigger step - aside from single-speed, specialty bikes tend to start at a slightly higher price point.

autonomy

Exactly what I was going to ask. If you want to ride 'far', you don't need a 'next level' bike, you need a comfortable bike. If you want to ride far fast, you need training - and then you could benefit from a 'next level' bike.

I ride a 105-equipped endurance bike (Cannondale Synapse). After putting over 3.5K miles on it (I know, a lot of people do 2x that in a year), I know where I'm maxing it out and in which situations I could benefit from smaller gears and aero/carbon/lighter components. However, I would probably want to confirm this by first renting a bike which has some of those improvements and seeing if I get any benefit out of them. I might want something better than 105 but I would want to try it first, 105 has served me well

Seattle Forrest

This one's easy. If you have $700 burning a hole in your pocket and want to feel like you're riding a nicer bike, upgrade your wheels. Your budget will get you a really nice set. They'll be lighter and stiffer, which means they'll handle better. Might be wider and more comfortable too. Look into HED Ardennes.

kbarch

Don't listen to him - yet.
So many folks say wheels are the first thing one should upgrade because that's where one can realize the greatest improvement - the most bang for the buck. That may be true for experienced riders, and maybe when starting from garbage, but I don't think I've ever been less impressed than when I upgraded wheels early on. The difference in performance was not appreciable. Oh, if I thought about it, now and then they might have seemed a little better, but I really couldn't say they improved my riding experience. I told myself they did, but mostly they just looked awesome. It's only recently, after a few thousand miles - riding wheels with varying rim depths, materials, spoke counts, tire widths, tire composition, etc. - that I've started - just started - getting a sure sense of the differences tires and wheels can make on a ride.

You want to know what I DID notice, early on, making a big difference on rides? Better brakes. It was like I'd stepped up from a forty-year-old Ford to a new Rolls Royce. @Bilakor , I understand your current bike has about the cheapest components available. I bet if you upgraded those, you would know immediately that you had a much nicer bike. Shifting and braking, even novices can easily appreciate the difference between good quality and bottom-of-the-barrel components.

popeye

If you want to move up to the next level spend the money on a coach.

kbarch

So the coach can tell him what kind of new bike to buy? (You know he will)

02Giant 

Get the Allez, ride it and later upgrade it.

Seattle Forrest

There's a lot of truth to this. My thinking is wheels will be a meaningful upgrade, and also one that will carry over to the next bike pretty easily.

12strings

"heavy and not that good" is relative.

The Allez with Claris will likely be about 2 lbs lighter than the Fuji steel. That will be the biggest difference.

It will have Claris, which functions perfectly fine.

The Allez will be perfectly capable of keeping up with a 25mph group ride. (the rider may not be.)
I ride a 23lb steel bike in 24-25mph pacelines, and some multi-mile climbs...Im about mid-pack. I have no intentions of upgrading my bike anytime soon. It serves me well. (allez is probably 21 lbs).

One of our fastest guys rides a 1987 touring bike with a rack. He's also probably the best climber.

I have no doubt the OP will be able to tell a difference between what he has and the Allez, but is it enough of an upgrade to forego a possible even better upgrade? Only he can know that. He should go ride one.

caloso

Heck of a nice frameset on that Allez for $700.

firebird854

Meh, an Allez 9 speed isn't going to be very different from what you currently have. It would be better to save and get something that is entry level carbon with 105 Shimano by a known brand.

If you simply have the money to burn, maybe just get a Smart Trainer, add a few levels of fitness and you'd feel a lot more comfortable spending more on the bike in the future anyways.

Dan333SP

Next level. Duh.

ColonelSanders

jordanair45

3 months and already want a new bike? LOL

train on your POS for a couple of years until youre blowing past everyone else on the good bikes. Get a $3k bike and be that much better

Next level? How about a vacation in the mountains with a trainer?