bob2004

https://www.nashbar.com/bikes/Product...0052_533667_-1

hopefully link works now

or should i get Vilano FORZA 1.0 ( bit cheeper) https://www.amazon.com/Vilano-FORZA-A...eywords=vilano

thanx for your feedback

WhetStonez

link doesnt work

Homebrew01

Can you give a better link ?

In general, Nashbar bikes are a good value. Remember to allow for helmet, pedals, shoes, clothing, bottles, cages etc in your budget.

bob2004

weird it works for me, its the Nashbar carbon road bike.

The pedals and other stuff I'm hoping to budget for around 250, is that reasonable?

wallrat

Carbon tiagra compact with a 12/25 cassette for 1000? Is there shipping? I'd personally look at a local shop that had a aluminum 105 instead of tiagra. A lbs usually includes free adjustments for a year or lifetime. That's worth a lot for someone new to cycling.

WhetStonez

bibs/shorts
jersey top
shoes
pedals
pump
helmet
shades
bottles/cages

thats a lot for 250 dollars, will probably have to budget a little more. Unless you are good at scrounging for sales or buy stuff used.

Wooden Tiger

Yeah, that's dirt cheap for all that equipment.

10 Wheels

How do you know what size fits you?

bob2004

I mean I have shades, I have shots, shirts from tennis I can use for now, helmet I can buy later since I'm not going on roads just path near my house, I have a pump. Just mainly need pedals, shoes, and bottle/cage. The rest I can get later.

I don't 100% going to go to a bike shop later and see, but I'm 5'6 soo I think around 52cm.
Just trying to check prices online, and wanted some opinions from ppl with experience. Just in case I don't find anything in the bike shop I like around this price.

RoadTire 

Bike specific shorts are pretty important. You can get bike shorts that go under your tennis shorts for $25 at REI, they work, and you can get by even on 60 mile rides, but not as well as better bike shorts.

JGM411

and remember, you don't have to buy everything at once. Bike shorts, shoes and pedals are probably first items to consider. from there add as needed. good luck with your purchases.

wphamilton

I think the Nashbar site is down, but if I remember correctly the carbon fiber roadbike is mostly Tiagra around $1300 and there usually is an aluminum road bike with 105 for a few hundred less. Either one would be awesome IMO although the aluminum frame with 105 is more tempting.

I don't think it's a must to buy any of the extra stuff right away, including shoes and pedals. Get the bike, wear what you have and start riding!

bikerjp

If you are looking to get into cycling then I suggest going to a local bike shop and have them help you get the right bike with the right fit. Online is great when you know what you want, what fits, how different geometries affect the ride and handling, etc. If you don't care about any of that and get lucky with sizing any bike can work. If you really want to give it a serious go, however, go to a shop.

WhetStonez

True, I wore rolled up Dickie pants and t-shirts the first 3 months, I wasn't going over 10 miles at a time though.

bruce19

Same here.

bruce19

Truly this is advice you need to listen to.

roccobike

The Vilano is less expensive than most LBS bikes similarly equipped. But for some reason it doesn't turn me on. Maybe because it's not the much less than an LBS bike where you would be fitted to the bike. The Nashbar bike is an excellent buy. What's not so good is you're guessing at the size you should buy. You need to KNOW the size frame to buy. In addition to the list provided of items you'll need, you need to reserve another $100 to buy different stems, bars and/or seat posts to give you the best fit. The bargains on line are only a bargain if you happen to be an exact fit to the way the bike is set up. Otherwise, those deals don't disclose the hidden costs. When I purchased my new Giant carbon bike, they had to replace the stem and the seatpost to get the fit right and the bike shop eats those costs. I had to replace the awful saddle the bike came with. You can count on something not fitting correctly when you buy the bike. Maybe you can make corrections with adjustments, but maybe you'll have to spend $$$ to get it right.

surgeonstone

This^^^
I suffered unnecessarily for years from a mail order bike years ago. If just starting then a good local bike shop can really be worth it.

Kevin in TN

So, I recently bought this bike. I'm at about the 2 week / 250 mile mark now, so take this for what it's worth.

I had bought an aluminum bike (Trek 1.5, Tiagra) back in 2010, after having used steel bikes all my life. I didn't really care for the ride of aluminum, and I decided that my next bike would be carbon, but I was a born cheapass.

Right off the bat, it's important to note how the Nashbar business operates: the entire pricing system is based off of discount sale events. Sign up for their mailing list, and they will send you deals routinely. Do not pay $999.99 for this bike. If you wait for a few days/weeks, you are likely to get a 20% off single item sale or a 15% off everything sale (you will have to do the math on which one is better for you depending on what accessories you're planning on buying). The best strategy, if you're patient, is to order the bike on a 20% off single-item sale, and then order any accessories on a 15% off everything sale. However, you do have to be really patient, because once you get this bike, you're going to want to go full HAM and ride immediately.

I was originally interested in Chinese carbon frames and moving the components and wheels from my Trek onto a new frame. If you don't know how this works, these frames are made in the same facilities that many name-brand carbon frames are made in, using "open molds" as opposed to the proprietary molds that major manufacturers use. Historically many value bike brands (Fuji, Scattante (which is actually owned by the same parent company as Nashbar), various bikesdirect brands) have branded open mold frames. However, in the last couple of years, it has become possible to order an unbranded frame direct from China, through a reseller like Flyxii, Dengfu, Hongfu, etc.

And that's exactly what Nashbar is doing here -- building a bike around one of these unbranded frames. I've read in various reviews that the same frame was sold in the past from Flyxii and/or Dengfu, but I've been unable to find the model number.

With the difficulty of handling warranty claims with Chinese companies (Allegedly, these resellers have amazing customer service, and I am certain that this is true, but shipping to China incurs a cost and lead time that I didn't care to get into), I chose to go through Nashbar and pay a little more. Nashbar is also known for outstanding customer service and warranty handling.

And when looking at the price of frame only versus complete bike on Nashbar, and considering that Tiagra/105 mix is just fine for me, it made sense to just buy the complete bike.

So that's how I ended up with Nashbar Carbon Road Bike.

I ordered it on a Monday with expedited shipping (which was only around $30, IIRC). It arrived on Wednesday.

Assembly is trivial. I was a little intimidate before it got here and before watching [this video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nz5nExj48Nk), which uses this exact bike as an example. One warning: In the video he does not use a torque wrench, I would recommend using a torque wrench, especially on the seat post, and checking the torque on the pre-installed parts.

Brakes were installed perfectly and shifting required only minor adjustment (rubbed a bit in highest gear, required high limit screw adjustment on the back). It's important to note that the rear wheel does not have a spoke protector ("dork disc") installed, so you need to make absolutely sure that the chain isn't going into the spokes (with the rear derailleur low limit screw) before going for a ride).

Once getting it assembled and checked out (about 30 minute job), the initial test ride proved it to be very sturdy and ride well. The ride quality was a league above my aluminum bike. I did not even give the stock saddle a chance, as this is the most common negative in reviews. Saddles are a very personal item, so don't take this as a recommendation, but I bought a [Selle Italia Q-Bik SE](Selle Italia Q-Bik SE Saddle - Normal Shipping Ground), and it works great.

The only negative that I didn't expect is the handlebar tape job. Not only does the handlebar tape feel cheap and have very minimal padding, but the wire routing on mine was poorly done. After a couple of rides, I bought some new Cinelli cork tape, watched a youtube on how to re-tape, and all is good now.

My main concern when buying the bike was the quality of the wheels. I am a larger rider (in excess of 250 lbs). Initially I did not expect these Shimano R500 machine built wheels with 24 spokes to last very long at all. But today they are still well tensioned and true. But again it's only been about 250 miles. My strategy is just to ride them until they break, and then get some clydesdale-approved wheels.

Another thing is that it is an unsealed bottom bracket which in my experience means that it will fail within 6 months to a year of riding. But that's a $50 fix.

After putting a good amount of miles on any new bike (at least, one without electronic shifting), cables will stretch and the drivetrain needs to be re-adjusted. If you buy a bike from a bike store, you can just take it in and have them do it for free. You can do this with the nashbike too, but will likely have to pay a small tune-up fee. Or you can learn to do basic maintenance and tune-ups yourself, which is my preference. There is a lot of stuff on youtube, and I like the book "Zinn and the Art of Road Bike Maintenance".

But overall, it's comparable to any other carbon fiber bike at a similar component level. My buddies have Roubaixs, Defys, and Madones (the geometry of this bike is more like the Madone than the Roubaix/Defy, very similar to the Madone actually), and I don't feel like this bike is inferior to them in any practical way at all. If you want to go full 105 shifting, you can always get shifters and a front derailleur for relatively cheap.

It's been an absolute blast, and the best bike I ever owned. While I do believe that you get what you pay for, if you're willing to put in a very little bit of effort and take care of basic things yourself, you can get a whole lot of bike for not a whole lot of money. Would recommend.

Rode 62 mi today and felt great.


(As far as fit, it is an issue to get fit right with an online bike if it's your first bike. But you can chat with the nashbar rep and measure yourself and get a very confident answer, and I would be certain that they would exchange it if you needed to. Buying an adjustable stem ($30 or so) to dial in the fit and slowly adjust to a more aggressive position as you build flexibility (since you're new to cycling) may be a good idea.)

Kevin in TN

If you can ride a bike without pedals, you are pretty awesome.

(The linked bike comes with NO pedals included. So getting pedals of some kind is a must. )

goenrdoug

^^ best reply in the thread.

Kevin in TN

And here's what it looks like right out of the box. I had the shifter cables on top when I first put on the handlebars, so this is kind of a fail pic .

The finish is more "unfinished" rather than a typical UD finish. It has some blotchy areas but I think it looks kind of cool. I'm getting some custom decals made (going with a Night's Watch from ASoIaF/GoT theme ).

WhetStonez

Cool man, might as well get the carbon clinchers from china too! Bike looks cool, like the matte look to it.

Kevin in TN

Heh, I don't think carbon wheels are built for dudes my size, maybe some of the Boyd carbon/alloy composites one day, but regular old wheels are fine for me for now.

wphamilton

Did you really think I was telling him to ride with no pedals?