Herzlos

So I, like many, spent a bit of a relative fortune on bikes, and whilst I love them I'm not using them that much (1 or 2 rides a week of 10-20 miles) making it hard to justify 4 good bikes. With a potential house move coming up I'm considering downgrading the bikes a bit to get some money back, but can't decide if I'd regret it.

The candidates are:
Giant Revolt 1 -> Triban RC 120 Gravel. I'd go from GRX400 2x10 with hydraulic brakes to Microshift 1x10 and cable brakes and lose the D-Fuse seat/bars, but I'd also gain standard mounts for racks etc and get about $600.
Triban RC 520 -> Triban RC 120. I'd go from 105 2x11 and TRP Spyre cable actuated hydraulic discs to Microshift 2x8 and cable brakes, but the rest of the bike is the same (seat, frame, wheels, etc) and get about $300.
Merida Big Trail 400 -> Gone. It hasn't been used in a year and would be worth about $800.

It's not huge sums of money, and not a huge change in spec, but probably not something I can reverse if I go for it.

So has anyone done similar? Any regrets?

Iride01 

My newest bike is really fun to ride. My other bikes, a 1991 Schwinn Paramount and a 1978 Raleigh Competition GS were very enjoyable to ride also but they just sat around taking up space so I got rid of them. One in 2021 and the other last year. I don't need the money from them so I gave one away and took the other to the salvage yard. One bike is enough since I don't do anything but ride the roads.

zandoval 

I knew when I went away from SewUps that things were a changing...

I often think back to those older Italians I used to ride with in 1970's Italy. Many rose heavy road bikes from the early 60's. The guys my age would have nothing to do with me, but the old guys were fun, very strong, and I could keep up with them... Ha

I am still riding and just very Thank Full, no Regrets of the bicycle changes...

shelbyfv

Why go to two marginal bikes? Maybe just keep the nicer Revolt, it's pretty versatile.

Maelochs

Maybe I am missing something .... as I read it you have three bikes and want to sell them all and replace them with worse bike?

Don't do it.

The money is fairly insignificant (IMO.) Unless you are running out of food or about to get evicted or have the lights turned off, the money is a side issue. Over the next ten years of riding, the extra few pennies saved will not affect the joy of riding.

I don't care what you paid new, used you will get maybe half or a third for a used bike. So basically, you would be losing money and getting a worse bike. Not a good idea, IMO.

The Revolts seems like a great all-around bike. (https://www.giant-bicycles.com/md/revolt-1) 48/32x11-34----great range of gearing for a casual rider. Tall enough for quick road rides, low enough for gravel, plenty low for most climbs.

"Flip-chip" front dropouts so you can go full road or full gravel (53-mm max tire width) is a huge plus. Also Hydro discs are much, much better than everything else, particularly if you are planning to ride mixed surfaces in mixed weather.

As fro rack mounts, there are lots of options, with p-clips and all kinds of creative solutions. You could even get a big bike-packing saddle bag coupled with a big bar bag. Not well-suited for serious touring unless you went full bike-packing .... which it could totally do. less convenient for commuting, but you didn't say you commute.

The Revolt is such a good bike, and you want to trade it in for a much less good bike? Not that the Triban is bad, exactly .... it is a great value ... (https://www.cyclingweekly.com/review...solar-headunit) but if you already have the Revolt, buying a new bike won't "save" any money, and I am not sure you can sell any used bike for more than a small fraction of its actual value .......

Verdict: bad switch. Ride the Revolt forever.

First off, Spyres are Not hydraulic. They are the best cable-disc breaks on the market (perhaps--IMO) but they are just cable brakes.

The RC 120 (https://www.decathlon.com/products/r...oduct-features) is just a cheaper version of the 520 (https://www.decathlon.com/products/r...ct-information) I cannot see where this step down will make any difference. The cash as I said above is imaginary ... you will not make any money---but you will lose some small measure of joy in riding.

Sell the one you don't ride, and ride the ones you do. Simple.

TiHabanero

Shelbyfv, that is the very same thought I had. Makes no sense to ditch a nice bike like the Revolt 1, and replace it with something a bit less nice and on par with the rest of the bikes you have. As for the Merida, it hasn't been used in a year. It makes a lot of sense to get rid of it.

Robert7659

I can afford anything but I only look at Sora and mechanical disc brakes now. The rides are as great as ever.

georges1

Never downgraded but always upgraded my rides. Keep the giant and upgrade it with GRX .Qualitywise I value the Giant over the Decathlon.

Herzlos

Wide tired gravel for the all rounder, and the road bike for the trainer, when I really need the extra speed or when I'm commuting to work and want to put all my crap in panniers.

Though the RC120 Gravel is a 1x10 so I'd lose a lot of the range benefits from the Revolts 2x10 and making it less of an all rounder.

I'd probably be better off ditching the gravel bike and just getting a cheapish flat bar hybrid for commuting.

But I think I've been largely convinced to hold off for now; I never know if I'll get more use out of them.

rosefarts

I’m not sure your estimates are accurate. I doubt you’ll make as much money as you think and you’ll have two way worse bikes. Keep the two you ride and sell the other.

Wildwood 

If I had to downgrade to only 4 bikes, I would regret it. Good luck.

soyabean

What's all this silly talk about not able to hold onto 4 bikes?

If there isn't a zero on the end of that number, it's not a problem.

Gotta get more bikes.

Poor bikes follow us home all the time, who else will take care of them?

himespau 

Not sure what your market is, but those prices that you would "make" seem...generous.

mstateglfr 

I genuinely cant imagine myself wanting to do this just to net $300 at most.




My old gravel bike was repurposed into a commute bike and it was 'downgraded' as a result.
- Was 2x11 shifting with 105 derailleurs plus cassette and hubs, a Shimano crank, pretty light wheels.
- Is now a 3x9 shifting with a 25 year old XT RD, a Sora FD, a Sakae crank from 35 years ago, some heavy duty wheels with Tiagra hubs, and bar end shifters.

I have really enjoyed both setups because they fit the purpose of how I want to use the bike at each given time.

Juan Foote

When I was riding far more actively my main ride was the Spec Roubaix in my description < (over there). I started doing a lot of Critical Mass and other large group rides in Atl and due to the nature of those rides not only do you have to be concerned with other riders running into you, but theft at stops and such as well. I purchased an el-cheapo single speed bike off BD and it was PERFECT for the use case. The rides ended up getting faster and faster and eventually i was unable to keep up with the gearing I had selected for hills and such, so I then purchased an inexpensive city/hybrid that I continue to ride to this day. I enjoy it a lot for its versatility. I still own the Spec, but am too heavy to ride it safely.

PDKL45

I'd just keep the Revolt and the RTC520 and sell the Big Trail. Why go through all the rigmarole of selling bikes, setting up new ones etc.? Also, there, in my opinion, your used Revolt and RC520, through use and depreciation, are about the same as cheaper new bikes. You may net a little, because, IMO, people buying used bikes often neglect to properly examine consumable parts and factor in replacement costs, but why bother? Sounds like a bunch of work for little to no actual return.

SurferRosa

"Do​​​wngrading the bikes"? does that mean? Downsizing your collection? Or do you actually mean "downgrading" the componentry of keepers?

mdarnton

I have a 1970 Raleigh Competition that I period-Campy'd up and it's a pleasure to ride, but my daily commuting bike is a Trek FX1-disc and it's fine. I don't mind riding it, I don't worry about it getting hurt or stolen, it's tough and doesn't mind abuse. It's got racks for carrying stuff to work or the post office. The Raleigh is in the shop right now getting some updates, but I probably won't ride it much when I get it back.

veganbikes

I would never downgrade a bike unless I was so hard up for money I had to sell stuff and even then I probably wouldn't I just wouldn't buy new stuff.

I would certainly understand getting rid of bikes and focusing on fewer builds but upgrading those builds. I am currently getting rid of some bikes to add some nicer bikes into the collection but not doing a direct number replacement actually going down but upgrading to nice bikes.