casjr2171

I am a noobie to road bikes, having ridden a Bianchi hybrid for the last ten years. After struggling thru a 50-mile event, I decided I needed to get a road bike for distance cycling, so I went to my LBS and ordered a Felt Z95 entry level bike. From the day I ordered it (over 3 wks ago) the owner tried to talk me into Specialized. (He is a volume Specialized dealer but is also listed as a Felt dealer) He went into the many reasons, according to him, why Specialized makes a far superior bike compared to Felt.

Now, excuse after excuse, we're going on four weeks and no bike. He offered to get me a Specialized road bike that was "more expensive" than the Felt in attempt to satisfy me but I stuck with Felt since I had researched it on line for weeks.

I'm about to give up and bend to his offer, depending, of course, on the model Specialized he will offer. I was looking at their Allez Comp M2 at $1450 because I might as well shoot high -- he knows I'm extremely P.O.'ed at this point.

I'd like to ask opinions of anyone who would like to offer one about (1) the Specialized vs. Felt issue and (2) why is it apparently impossible to find out the WEIGHT of the Allez Comp. I've googled every spec sight I could find but none list the bike's weight.

Thanks for any input you care to give.

Carl

Mike F

Whats the hold up on the Felt, what are the components on each and which one feels better to ride? Dont let some frustration force you into a decision you may regret later if you really wanted the Felt.

merlinextraligh

There's very little difference between major manufacturers at a given price point. If he has a Specialized that fits you, and you like it when you test ride it, I'd go for it.

If he'll give you the Speicalized ($1495) for the price of the Felt ($939) I'd jump on it, if it fit.

bonz50

this

casjr2171

I'm just beginning to spec out the Specialized, so I'm just familiar with the Felt specs right now. That's when I found that I cannot find any reference the weight of the Allez Comp. Felt weights 22.5 lbs.

casjr2171

I agree -- IF he will give me the Allez for the Felt price, I'll go for it, once I have ridden it to be sure I like it.

merlinextraligh

Realize also that ordering a bike mid year is a crap shoot. In all likelyhood all of the 2013 Felt Z95's that are going to be built have already been built. So it's a matter of finding one somewhere in another shop, or sitting with a distributor. So it's not necesarrily that unusual to have troulbe ordering a bike.

However, I think your LBS should have been candid with you when you ordered regarding whether there was one readily available.

Campag4life

A couple of things OP. As Merlin stated, Felts are very good bikes. I will tell you is there is very little foul in buying a slightly upgraded bike however.
Resale will be better with the Specialized. We can talk about performance differences between groupsets and wheels, etc.
But...most important thing is...frame geometry. If you are coming off a hybrid and want a distance speed bike, consider a Felt endurance geometry bike...or my favorite, a Specialized Roubaix. Have fun...you will be much faster on a road bike...I ride my Roubaix long distances routinely.

moppeddler

Many bike manufacturers don't advertise weight because the size of the frame, components, etc. affect weight. At least that's what they say.

casjr2171

Thanks for the excellent input. I may be jumping the gun with my dissatisfaction and suspicion of my LBS owner. He did recently say that the mfgrs. are working like mad to bring the 2014 bikes to market. (He keeps saying he's going to call his Felt Rep and "make" him bring one from another city, but who knows?) He should have told me this on the day I ordered (AND PAID) as you mentioned.

casjr2171

(RE: frame geometry.) In my limited knowledge, I read bicycle magazine article which said that the Felt Z95 was a good "transition bike" from going from hybrid to road. It spoke of "compact geometry" and a more upright position which sounded good to me. I have to admit though, I have not ridden one, just a similar Felt bike just briefly. But it felt good. So many choices!!

casjr2171

(sorry, can't see one from "halfspeed")

P.S. Forgot to mention that the < $1000 price tag was also a consideration when looking at the Felt Z95. Doesn't the Roubaix start at $2000 and go up from there? Maybe too much for a first road bike.

grolby

Something like this is probably going on. Keep in mind that 2013 models for all makers will be supply-comstrained at this time of year, they're probably starting production on 2014 models. The LBS owner may also be having problems in his relationship with the Felt rep, or he's under the gun to meet his Specialized dealer contract terms... Or other reasons, or all of them. Not making excuses for him not being upfront with you if this is the case, mind you. I'm guessing that for whatever reason he can't get you the Felt. His offer to match price is generous and will probably see him make almost nothing or even lose money on the Specialized.

Rwc5830

Did a quick search and found an article that lists the Allez weight. Near the end of the article.

I have several friends that ride Allez and they put a ton of miles on them. Personally I have a specialized roubaix and at 13 months of ownership have about 8,500 miles on the bike. I hear the felts are good also but we don't have a big felt dealer here so don't see too many.

You could do a lot worse than the specialized!

https://road.cc/content/review/55145-...zed-allez-comp

fstshrk

This time of the year, most bike brands are sold out at the manufacturer. 2014s are coming mid-July.
Take the Allez, it is a much better bike from a great manufacturer.

NeoteriX

Re: Bike Weights: For the 2013 Specialized lineup, this is a pretty good listing of many of the weights: https://www.bikerumor.com/2012/07/20/...ctual-weights/

Your Allez Comp isn't one of the ones measured, but you can estimate the weight from the lower end Allez Elite and Sport:

Note that the measured weights should be per the 56cm size frame.

Since the Comp uses Shimano 105 compared to the (mostly) Tigara of the Elite and then (mostly) Sora of the Sport, it's probably a few ounces lighter than the Elite--you could look into how each groupset compares in terms of weight, but generally they get lighter as you go up. I'd put the Allez Comp at 56cm at probably 21 lbs, maybe a little under.

edit: Guy posted review with measured weight. Damnit!

macca33

I do like the look of the Felt offerings, but have to say that the Specialized Allez looks very nice!!!

From my signature, one may discern that I am a fan of aluminium...

Good luck with your decision.

cheers

Terry66

The Roubaix is full carbon. Check out the Specialized Secteur. It is pretty much the aluminum version of the Roubaix. The Secteur is a little more relaxed and plush versus the Allez. Both are great bikes. I suspect you'll like the Secteur a little better.

IMHO, it would be crazy to buy a bike you've never ridden. You can read all the specs, you can compare the looks and you can read the reviews, but nothing will determine which bike is right like taking it for a spin.

mr645

I think you really have to ride the bikes. I rode several Felts and rally liked them. Seemed like a great bike and the Z85 fit me really well. The F 85 seemed a little cramped. I would have been 100% happy with the Z85, very smooth and stable ride as well. I ended up with a different brand that I would say was second best fitting, mainly because it was $700 less, and I will work on the fitment this week. I mean the Fuji I bought fits well, but the Felt seemed just a little better out of the box.

Campag4life

OP...again, most important thing is geometry...this transcends manufacturer. You mentioned a good Felt hybrid transition bike...presuming it is Felt's Z series endurance bike...would be my choice in the Felt line...but the Allez is a very different geometry...more square race geometry similar to the Tarmac. The Allez is more a CAAD 10 race bike equivalent as compared to a more comfortable endurance bike which the average guy may appreciate more. An endurance geometry Speciaiized bike is either the Aluminum Secteur or the carbon Roubaix.

Phil_gretz

I'd recommend going for a refund from the bike shop. What other bike shops/dealers and brands are within a 60 mile radius of your home? I'd cast a wider net... Then find other sellers who have the bike you want to ride in your size. Ride these bikes and choose from among those you can compare in this way. Ask for endurance type geometries, and begin to recognize how those feel as compared to racing geometries. Set a price limit and narrow your choices using that criterion. Make certain that the shop is willing to fit you and take the time to make certain that the bike that they're recommending fits reasonably well.

If you visit during off-peak customer hours, they should be willing to put your candidate bike on a trainer and observe/adjust things to better suit your body type, flexibility, and perceived comfort. These include saddle position/angle and height; stem reach and angle (and to a lesser degree, height); and handlebar rotation. When you shake hands and leave with your bike, it should fit you and be pretty comfortable to ride.

hyhuu

Like others have said, you need to ride it. What the magazine said doesn't mean much at all.

bonz50

yup, if the Felt Z is in your wheelhouse then the Secteur is the Specialized you should be looking at. imho, it might be Specialiazed most under appreciated bike the Allez gets all the 'low end' love and the Roubaix is always talked about when endurance road bikes are mentioned, most seem to forget the Secteur even exists, it is a FINE machine and worth a serious look if the Felt Z is something you're serious about. but it would hurt to try the Allez, just go in understanding that it is a very different machine than the Z95 and Secteur.

Gray99

Full disclosure, I own a Felt, ride it as my primary bike and love it. That being said, when I ordered the frameset I had to wait a very long time to get it 5-6 months. I was told when I ordered it that it would take about 2 months to arrive. For a variety of reasons, it took much longer. I don't know the allez, but my all time favorite bike was a specialized Roubaix. My next bike will probably be the s-works roubaix. From my experience a bird in the hand..... (if you know that saying). Best of luck, hope you like which ever one you end up on.

PS - Which ever one it is, "Ride it like you stole it."

RonH

Hang in there Carl. I had a 2011 Specialized Tarmac that I struggled with for 9 months. Even though I got a professional fitting I never could get comfortable no matter what I adjusted.
Sold it and bought a 2011 Felt Z4. After the pro fitting I've never had to adjust anything and it rides like a dream.