Help! Which Bike?
 

Ok I'm stuck. I moved from North GA to FL and am transitioning from great mountain biking to flat land ground covering excursions and need a new bike. Its time to trash the 1970's French Motobecane Garage Sale Special that I spent more on JB weld than the bike and get something a little better. I am in med school so money's tight but I found a couple of good deals.
They both are used, cost roughly $500 and claim "ridden only a few times"

First :
2001 Univega Modo Vincere with full Campagnolo Veloce.

http://www.bikepedia.com/QuickBike/B...cere&Type=bike

I like this bike better but it is 300 miles away so the trip is a little discouraging if the bike does not fit well after driving 5 hours.

Second :
2009 Motobecane Sprint with Ultegra 6600/105


http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/...ane/sprint.htm

I know this bikesdirect moto is not the same as the 1970's one I have but the componentry looks good and the frame feels good under the ride.

Both bikes are from someone who wanted to get into cycling but didnt have the time/commitment to do it.


So all in all my question is, which one would you buy? Thanks

If you can ride each one, get the one you like the fit and feel of better.

MOTOBEACON, its alot newer, carbon stays and fork, im a campy man but I would go w/2 year old ultegra over 10 year old anything ANYDAY. you should have a general idea if its your size, and you can make some fit adjustments through swapping stems and moving the seat forward.

The 2009 Motobecane Sprint is only available in a 50 & 60cm size.

I think the OP is buying a used one, not one from BD.

Personally I'd go with the Ultegra 6600/ 105 set up.
FWIW, best to make sure whichever bike you decide on fits you well.

how about Motobacon? mmmm bacon

How much would it cost for me to get a motobacon? Now thats the bike of my dreams. On those early morning rides, if i get hungry, I can just eat the handle bars.

I agree with achoo. As a med student (which I went through as well) you want to get the most bang for your buck. Test both out and see what feels right to you. Aside from the frame and components, there are a lot of other things that will make a bike fit well (or poorly). Things like stem length, crank length, seatpost setback are a few that could affect this. Some you can fix later with new parts but it'd be a good idea to try to minimize the amount of "tinkering" you have to do to make the bike fit you well.

And try to go with someone who is an experienced rider... they'll be able to tell you pretty quickly if the bike fits you reasonably well (ballpark estimation).