xpaulinabearx

hi, i'm finally looking at purchasing my very first road bike, but i'm not really sure what to buy...so do any of you guys recommend any road bikes under $500? thanks

hurley1718

If you are looking for under $500, you may want to look on craigslist for a used one. You may also want to go to shop and get fitted properly. I am still new to road cycling, but I bought my Scott Speedster new last summer. I got lucky because the top tube had a chip in and I got some money taken off, but I still ended up paying $650. Now that was just the bike, I then had to buy pedals, shoes, shorts, jersey, gloves, and etc. With your budget you are looking at an aluminum bike with the possibility of a carbon fork with low end components. This is what bike is, but over the past year I have been slowly upgrading my components to Sram Force.

redtires

You definitely will get a much, much better deal on a used bike for that kind of money. One thing, is DON'T rush yourself. There are screamin' deals out there as long as you take a little time and look for them.

colombo357

Do you know what size bike you need?

If not, don't buy a used bike. Go to the LBS and up your budget to $700-800.

ptle

$500 won't buy a bike at the LBS.

My recommendation is to do some research and buy used. If you're budget is $500, you probably don't want to spend too much on a new bike, but you don't want to get a crummy road bike. Buying used will allow you to get something a few years old, but with better components.

Also, I recommend doing a little bit of research to find out what size you need, and what to look for when buying used. If you're looking on Craigslist (which I recommend) you can usually find a really good deal every couple weeks.