Road bikes.
 

Well, it sadly looks like the Trek 2200 I was planning on buying used from my boss is a no-go; he and I are the same height, but my inseam is about two inches shorter than his.

So it looks like I'll just have to get a new road bike, instead. My wallet is going to bleed after this one...so can anyone recommend their favorite road bike in the $1,000 - $1,500 or so category? I might go for a Trek 2200 (or 2300), but I'd like to consider my options.

What size of bike do you take? At my LBS you can get an OCR1 for about 8 or 9. This bike has the complete 105 package and carbon fork. I've noticed a lot of bike shops clearancing out last years models. javabikes.com has a "new" 1997 trek 2120 56cm for $359 it is equiped with 105 and rsx, weighs 20lbs. check them out, new and used. shop around.

Hi, right now I ride the mid level univega (forgot name) and it is awsome. For your price range you could go for the next lvl up wich is their best for around $1,000. Its a very nice bike, it has full campy daytona witch I would take over 105 any day of the week. I think it would be a great buy for you, but whatever bike you get make sure it fits.

-Matt-

The Univega Modo Volare is the one with full Daytona, Strider...

It's an excellent value, and probably the best bike value in its price range -- Campy Daytona 10sp, Columbus Thron steel tubing [not the best steel, but quite good], carbon fork, Mavic CXP-21 wheels and nice components. If my memory serves, it sells in the sub-$1000 price range. You can probably find one for much less these days, since the Univega brand is being discontinued in North America.

Giant makes some very fine bicycle. Unfortuately, the OCR1 [and 2 and 3, for that matter] is not one of them. This is a fine case of you get what you pay for or even a little less. The frame is an amazingly stiff [but not in a good way], rather heavy frame with typically large, gloppy welds; the stem is a threaded, "adjustable" unit with major point of failure written all over it and a saddle that the US Army will be using on Al Q'aeda prisoners at Guantanamo Bay.

This is the bike you buy when you want something that LOOKS like a credible road bike, but that you will be using for 15 km neighbourhood rides.

I think the operative word here is "budget." Yes, the OCR bikes are the best budget bikes, I won't argue with that, but budget usually means below the low-end. They're the best budget road bikes simply because no one makes road bikes that are that cheap. The OCR1 is probably the only ike in its price range with 105. That just means it's a well-specced budget bike... I still wouldn't recommend riding it for rides of any moderate distance. The other thing, of course, is that these bikes only come in three sizes, and you can't easily swap out the stem. They are three-sizes-fit-all and they fit no one.

I respectfully and completely disagree. I have owned two OCR3 's . A 2001 model and a 2002 model with sora for less than $600 each. If your running the tour-de-france skip these bikes but as a real bike for real people on a real budget their better than adequate. The frames a little stiff, so what, put on a suspension seat post or bolt your sofa where the seat goes. They look good and perform equally well.

I can't compare other bikes much. When I did my comparison looking, it was Cannondale, Jamis, and Trek. I ended up with a Cannondale R600. My only dissapointment, was that it was not a triple. So far I'm happy with all but the seat.

Univega and Bianchi have some steel bikes w/Campy Veloce that look like EXCELLENT BUYS.
Remember "Steel is Real"

Ride Ferrous
Pat

I don't know about the Giant OCR bikes, but I have a Giant TCR-2R, and I love it. When I bought it a couple of years ago, it was in the price range you mentioned. Their small bike was just the right fit for me, and I like the light aluminum frame. My Giant has 8,000 miles on it, and the only thing I've had to replace is the chain and cassette.

I own a 2000 Univega. The Modo ?. (It's the white and black one with a mix of Mirage and Veloce triple. Solid bike at a bargain price in 2000 and leftovers are probably even cheaper. Their higher line models looked real nice as others have pointed out. I didn't buy a higher model b/c I knew my Bsso project would end sooner or later and just needed something to ride.

"Univega" has been discontinued. The parent company is Derby and they also own "Raleigh." The Raleigh Heritage line looks to be the previous Univega line. Columbus steel with Campy components. Some models with carbon forks. If the Univega prices were carried over as well these Raleighs should be great values. Assembled in the USA too, if that's a consideration.

:beer:

I suppose it depends on what you mean by "real people." For one thing, the OCR3 is not a Sora-equipped bike, it's a sub-Sora-equipped bike. About half the components are truly horrible Tektro products. The stem is a finnicky, weak, adjustable job. The frame is stiff and it's also heavy. A medium OCR3 weighs in at about 26 lbs.

Yes, this is a starter bike. It is a very-beginner's starter bike. Perhaps it's ideal for someone who does two or three 30 km rides a week. But I don't think that's "real people." Real people do 150-250 km a week, with occasional 75 km rides. This bike is simply not suited to that, any more than a $300 MTB is suited to epic rides in the dirt.

It's a cheap bike, and ifg someone is looking for a cheap bike, then I suppose it's adequate. If someone's looking to do some real road rididng, then I'd say he's better off spending $200-$300 more and buying a bike that he can actually ride.

26 pounds is heavy. The Univega I referred to above is probably about 24 and I thought it heavy. At least here you've got a consistent gruppo, Campy Mirage with a little Veloce here and there e.g. brakeset. As noted the higher line ones are now sold as "Raleighs" and should be an excellent deal. A leftover Univega would be superb. I know I keep harping but they are great deal and I'm not overly fond of framesets come in small, medium, large as opposed to numbers I can relate my anatomy to.

:beer:

I test rode a Univega Modo Vincere last year. It was an outstanding bicycle for the price. It wasn't LIGHT -- about 22 lbs for the 51 cm model -- but it wasn't that much heavier than Specialized and trek in the same price range. AND it had a carbon fork, Daytona 10-speed and a Columbus steel [admittedly, Thron] frame. Great bike.

The Raleighs are going to sell for a bit more, I think. The bottom model has a Columbus Zona frame and Centaur components. I suspect it'll be in the $1400 [US] price range. Still a great bike for the price, but not quite as affordable as the 'vegas.

Just to throw in a bit of Retro-grouch (a bit of bittering hops to the sweet wort of info we have here);

In 1980 Motobecane offered the fully equipped Grand Record 12 speed at 22.5 pounds for $400.00.

In 1980, they also offered the 20.5 pound Team Champion road bike.

If you were on a budget, would it be too crazy to keep your eyes open for one of these fine machines? - used, of course, but probably at yard-sale prices.

Marvellous bikes, to be sure... but the French threading and the corresponding unavailability of replacement components, as well as the 27" wheels, can mae maintaining them something of a nightmare.

Nice bikes, though... I came THIS close to picking up a 1978 Le Champion for $85 this summer.

Yes, Velocopedio, you are correct that maintanance COULD be a nightmare, but the only threading that is weird is the BB bearing cups (is there more?... Hmm oh well, anyway). That kind of stuff doesn't usually need replacement with normal usage.

My thinking is that if you can get one of these fine machines for under $100.00, get it and ride the life out of it.

Jeeze, Velo, how could you pass up a Le Champion at $85.00. I just couldn't pass it up - even if it were to hang the bike on my wall as art.

I have a 600 as well. I have not had an issue yet with the lack of gearing. The seat, I second that one. Big time.

I'm still kicking myself.

The story is this... I dropped by the local wrench shop [no new bikes, just repairs and used] on the way to work one morning and I saw the Motobecane leaning up against a couple of less-desirable road bikes [a Raleigh Record with Simplex, a couple of generic Peugeots and a CCM Targa]. It was a very pretty bike with sweet lugwork in excellent condition except for a tiny bit of rust on the chain... and it was my size. Shop wanted $85 bucks [Canadian -- that's $55 US], and I said that if they could wait until the afternoon, I'd buy it because I was in a rush and had no cash. Shop said okay...

When I went back, the bike was gone. Seems someone else had come by late that morning and offered $110. I can't really blame the shop. It's a small, cash-only business, and he had to chose between waiting for me, during which time I might have changed my mind, or taking $25 more than I offered.

Oh, my GOD, how painful. Wasn't the le Champion around US$900 back in the old days?

There's a bit of retro-grouch in me as well. My S. Record Basso is as good a ride as I've ever turned a pedal on. I'm partial to Motos as well and would be very depressed if I had missed a Le Champion in such a manner.

They pop up on eBay, usually 2-300$. Infinitely superior to what you'd find in the 6-700$ range IMHO. French threading could be problematic with the BB though in the 80s as Moto became a more popular import I'm pretty sure they converted to English. Being a steel frame any of those quality bikes from this time period can be retro-fitted with Ergo/STI. A 21-22# bike is no longer state of the art but is still pretty good. The best part is that even with some thoughtful "modernizing" they still represent a tremendous bargain in our day and age where $1000 bikes are described as "entry-level."

:beer:

Yeah... could we, like, stop talking about it!:cry:

OK, we can stop talking about it, but jeez! Man!

That was one that really got away.

What a shame. What a true bummer.

Hmm.

What color was it? Was it really nice?

FWIW a '77 Le Champion just went for 178.50 US$ on eBay. Kind of a tall frame, 59cm, or it might have attracted a few more bids.


Just thought I'd mention it.........:D



:beer:

and
I think it's called twisting the knife.

The 2300 is made with Trek's new ZR 9000 Alloy, supposedly lighter and stiffer than the aluminum they use for the 2200 and down. Thought I'd drop that little info bomb in here.
I was looking at Trek road bikes just the other day when I was buying a helmet, and the 2200 was selling for 1700, so the 2300 is probably close to 2000. The problem with going to the 2100 is that it is Tiagra/105 mix. It would be nice if it was straight 105.

Interesting opinon. I sense bias here.

If you have something against 'entry level' road bikes so be it. But not everyone wants to drop 1200+ on a bike initially. The OCR1, and 2 are great bikes because they can be upgraded. They both have excellent 6016 compact Aluminum frames and are well designed. The OCR2 has always been all Sora with mavic and cinelli, and for this year I believe its Tiagra, while the OCR3 is Sora.

You say no other manufacturer makes bikes in this range....hmmm.....perhaps the

Cannondale R400, R500
Trek 1000, 1200, 2000
Specialzed Allez Sport, Elite

dont count???

all sport virtually the same frame materials and component group (save Cannondale and the worthless CODA components).

Fact is The Giant OCR series is one of the best values in the entry level price range. Your comment about the welds on the frames is simply overstated....the welds are as good on my OCR2 as they are on my R600. I also fail to understand your comment on the 'one size fits all' idea. The frames come in S, M, and L....same as cannondale did for a while...the idea is that if you take a compact frame design, then you only need a few sizes. You can mix and match seatposts and stems to acheive a better fit, since the frame is scaled down. How is this different then buying a 54cm Cannondale or Trek? Same concept, different design. The measurements for each frame are listed on the Giant website. Truth is, if you want more frame choices/odd sizing you are going to order a custom frame anyways, virtually all mass production manufacturers use standard frame sizes to sell to the general public, who generally do not need custom frame sizes.

In summation, I am new here....I am not trying to offend, but your comments on the OCR line seem to stem from your personal bias against them, rather than being based in any sort of factual reality. The only real weakness would be the Sora components which are standard on ALL bikes in this price range...be it Trek, Cannondale etc. And as anyone knows, you will upgrade those when necessary....thats why they are entry level.

H20...

Where I live [Montreal], the OCR3 sells for about $700 [Canadian]. There no other road bike in that price range. Period. The Bottom-end Specialized Allez sells for $1200, and the Allez Sport sells for $1700. The Cannondale R400 sells for $1200 and the R500 sells for about $1700.

In contrast, the OCR range is: OCR3 [sub-Sora] $700, OCR2 [Tiagra/Sora] $1200, OCR1 [105] $1500. Bear in mind that I was posting about the 2001 models; the 2002 models have been considerably up-specced.

Having said that, the OCRs are hobbled by a pretty crummy, heavy frame [available in only three sizes] and a no-name brand finsihing kit. Sure, you get 105 with the OCR1, but you also get a no-name handlebar and stem, bottom-end Hutchinson tires, a questionable headset, all hung on a nice-looking but compromosed frame.

I'm not much of a fan of the Cannondale or Specialized bikes either. I think the Tiagra on the Allez Sport is a significant down-spec and I agree about Cannondale's Coda components. However, the Allez and R500 frames are far, far superior [IMO] to the OCR frames, and much more amenable to upgrading. The Allez economizes on the pedals, which I think is a worthwhile trade-off for the Kinesis fork and superior frame.

If someone came to me with only $700 to spend on a road bike, I would steer them far, far away from the OCR3 and toward a used bike. If they had a little more money to spend, I'd direct them to smaller brands with better products, like Devinci or Marinoni. If all they want is something that looks like a road bike to tool around town on. then I'd say go with the Giant.

I think Giant does a fine job of filling the low end with a budget line of bikes. But it is a budget line of bikes. I don't think anyone will be cheated for buying an OCR3, since that's the only bike with drop bars and roadie-ish components in that price range. But you get what you pay for, and you don't get much.

Do I have a bias against Giant? Not particularly, but I do have a bias against low-quality bikes. I think that a heavy, poorly-specced [of necessity, given the price point] bike will discourage a beginning cyclist rather than encourage him. $1500 spent on a bike that you love and ride every day for years represents great value. $700 spent on a bike that you ride a few times and find so frustrating that it ends up in the garage for the rest of the decade [and I suspect that this will vbe the fate of most OCR3s] is not a great value.

I've owned a 2002 OCR2 for about eight months now. I ride 150 miles a week on a regular basis and have enjoyed quite a few century rides. I haven't had a single problem with the bike. I went for the Giant becuase I was interested in triathlons and didn't have $1500 to spend. My reasoning was that if I really enjoyed the sport, I could reward myself with a better and tri specific bike at the end of this years season (thinking cervelo P2k) and still have a road bike for early season training. If for what ever reason I bail on the sport, them I'm only out eight hundred bucks. All in all, I wouldn't change a thing if I had it to do over again.

Velo,


Hm, thats pricy! I agree about the OCR3 if you are talking about the 2001 models, but I think from any year the OCR1,2 are highly upgradable. I did a lot of comparing before spening my cash on an OCR2 for training. I will agree that the OCR frames are slightly heavier than Id like but they compare quite favorably to the Cadd3 on the R400 and the Trek frames I have looked at. The allez frames are basically a copy of the Giant frame (compact geometry, average aluminum build)...and if you research the OCR frames, the only real difference between the OCR and TCR (top of the line) frames are the thicknesses of the Aluminum tubing...the OCR weighs in a little heavier. Around here (washington dc) you can pick up a OCR2 for around $800 or so. An OCR3 is about $700....conversely, the Cannondale R400 (absolute bottom end from cannondale, almost all CODA) comes in at about 899.00 in a typical store, sometimes more. I too work at a bike shop on weekends, and most folks i know seem to agree that the OCR1, and OCR2 are two of the best deals going in beginner/intermediate road bikes. The one problem I have with it is the threaded fork, Id like to see an unthreaded carbon fork on the OCR1, 2 instead of the steel. However, this is an upgrade that would put you in Cannondale R400, R500 price territory (or Trek 2000) and I think this bike beats both of them hands down.
I think for people using these bikes for training, and a good work out are getting a great deal. I would not race with the OCR2 unless I upgraded everything to Dura Ace or something equivalent....but I could easily get this bike to around 18-19 pounds. I beleive mine weighs in at 22.5 stock. Eliminate the Sora and steel fork and well......I do agree with you about the OCR 3 though it previously was no-name sora...as it would take a bit more cash to upgrade it. But I beleive even IT has been upgraded to sora, mavic and cinelli.....

I think you need to remember too, that $1500 is a lot of cash, in the US that would buy you something in R900 territory or a high end Trek etc. I think if you get to the point in your riding where you are serious enough that you are going to race or begin to take epic rides on your bike, THEN you should drop the extra cash. When top performance is essential, and begins to be expected..... But bikes in the range are HIGH end. I dont consder entry level bikes to be budget, but simply practical. I also dont consider 8-900 bucks to be throw away cash either. bottom line to me, is that any bike in the 700-1100 dollar range is not only going to be upgraded but its DESIGNEd to be upgraded...lets be honest, you are paying for the frame. An intermediate, frame with low end components. If you want better right off the bat, you are better off spending $1300+. Bt even then you are getting the same frame but with Tiagra/105 components...For most folks, even myself, its simply not worth it. Id rather buy the entry model and upgrade to some real components later on....And in the end, Im not making a living off weekend races, or fun/training rides.

I agree that, generally, you'll get a better used bike for $700 than buying new, providing you are an educated consumer. I've bought 1 bike (used Raleigh M80) and 2 frames (used Giant NRS, new Fuji Team) off eBay. I'm a huge eBay advocate, but I knew exactly what I wanted with respect to frame material, sizing and price. I would not suggest a novice do this.

A beginner on a limited budget can be happy with a new $700 bicycle - even an OCR. However, he better keep his expectations in line. A $700 bike is not a race bike. It probably will be 3 to 5 lbs. heavier than a $1,200 bike. It will not be as comfortable on 30+ mile rides. The components will wear much faster. And, no matter what is said, it's probably not as upgrade-worthy as you think.

Check out this month's Bicycling Magazine review of a $450 road bike they actually liked. Forget the brand, but for many people it's a place to start.