[coolcars011]

i am a beginner to all this, and i am looking at bikes in the 500$ or less range.. can anyone give me suggestions..Hopefully bikes available at local places in houston..
or any major seller..
thnx

 

[Seamus]

At that price point, you're going to have much better luck finding something decent used. I would start with craigslist and ebay. If you start looking at new, try to avoid anything lower than Tiagra components (big step down to Sora). Perhaps look for last year's models on closeout. HTH.

 

[fbagatelleblack]

i am a beginner to all this, and i am looking at bikes in the 500$ or less range.. can anyone give me suggestions..Hopefully bikes available at local places in houston..
or any major seller..
thnx

What kind of riding are you planning on? Do you want a bike with race-style drop bars, or mountain-bike-style flat bars? Or, you could be ultra-cool and go with moustache bars...

The other poster is right when he says that you will have a better selection in the used bike catagory, but your local bike shop (LBS) might have some new options for you as well.

- FBB

 

[fbagatelleblack]

Specialized Sirrus - $550

http://www.specialized.com/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=12388

 

[fbagatelleblack]

Jamis Coda - $440

I really like the Jamis line. Double butted Reynolds cro-moly ofr $440. You can use the money you save to get bar ends or a drop-bar setup, although the latter would cost you a bit more than $60.

http://www.jamisbikes.com/bikes/06_coda.html

 

[fbagatelleblack]

Jamis Satellite - $750

If you could find a few hundred dollars extra, this bike would be oh-so-sweet!

http://www.jamisbikes.com/bikes/06_satellite.html

 

[coolcars011]

i would like to get a road bike, and the only real thing i care about is speed...i want it to go fast...um.. yea so i have like in the 500's to play with..how is the diamondback podium 1 or the OCR 3

 

[T-shirt]

i am a beginner to all this, and i am looking at bikes in the 500$ or less range.. can anyone give me suggestions..Hopefully bikes available at local places in houston..
or any major seller..
thnx

I think that you can find some good new bikes at that price. I suggest looking at the four big brands, Cannondale, Giant, Specialized & Trek. Knowing nothing about Houston, there must be a few bike shops not too far from your house? I would visit a few of those, rather than a sporting goods store or a department store.

While I don't have a specific bicycle to recommend, look at the four big brands and you will probably come out pretty well. I hope that this helps.

Good luck and have fun,
Tshirt

 

[T-shirt]

i would like to get a road bike, and the only real thing i care about is speed...i want it to go fast...um.. yea so i have like in the 500's to play with..how is the diamondback podium 1 or the OCR 3

I can't give you much help on these specific models. I've owned both brands that you are talking about and they were both quality products. There is a Giant forum here so you might ask there about the OCR 3.

Giant not only makes it own bicycles, it makes bikes for many other brands; Giant knows what they are doing.

If both of these bikes are carried locally, I would test-ride both of them and see what you think.

Thanks,
Tshirt

 

[bikeman105]

At that price point, you're going to have much better luck finding something decent used. I would start with craigslist and ebay. If you start looking at new, try to avoid anything lower than Tiagra components (big step down to Sora). Perhaps look for last year's models on closeout. HTH.

Regarding Sora, while it's not the greatest, It is a good group for the begginer on a budget. I ran Sora on my bike for several years (only the chain and cables were ever replaced) before I switched to Campy Mirage, and I didn't have a single problem with the Sora.

 

[coolcars011]

the diamondback podium has the sora 8 speed, while the OCR has a tiagra 9 speed and i think hse said a ultegra...so i guess for an extra 100... ocr is better?