Hey guys,
Ive been wanting to get into recreational riding for a while now.
I will mainly be doing trail riding (paved), but also want to have the abuiluity to ride to work and back.
Ive either got a second hand Apollo Trace 20 i can go for, or a brand new Triban 100 Adult.
What would be the better option?
I want to keep the budget to under $300, so have gone for these two as options.
Thanks for your help :)
Which Bike to Go for? Apollo (Used) or Triban (New)
Lyerdem on 24/12/2019 - 13:01
Comments
Can go wrong with the triban. Pretty ordinary gearing with 1x7. Won’t be fun on hills. Stem shifters suck. Brakes will be pretty ordinary, and terrible in the wet.
You could get a used good brand bike for that price.
the Apollo bikes go for 600-700 new. Are they not considered solid entry level (medium budget) bikes?
I would personally not buy an apollo, is it not just 99 bikes home brand? You could get a trek, giant, Merida etc.
Thanks, having a look now.
I have also been told to go to Melbourne Bike Shed in Brunswick, who have good bikes for sale that are cheap.
Might have to go past on the weekendApollo has been around for a long time. Used to be a pretty good brand, but slipped away to being a budget brand. Still, they are typically much better than Kmart bikes. Think similar to Reid, polygon etc.
Triban 100, save yourself the extra $100 and invest in a good set of tyres or a better saddle
The Triban isn’t much up on a Kmart bike. stem shifters suck. Single chain ring up front won’t make hills enjoyable, 7spd will have gaps that are too big between them for getting a comfortable cadence.
The Apollo is a much better bike. Assuming RRP was similar to the current model around $799 sounds to be good value under $300.
Awesome thanks heaps
** provided it is in good condition.
I think the pro of the triban is that you can be absolutely sure that nothing will require immediate attention, has warranty and a free service at 3mths so you just fork out the money and focus on riding, at least for a yr or so; whereas with the apollo whilst yes you are paying $200 for a $700rrp bike, the ~$100 remaining budget won't go very far on parts & servicing should any be needed. The ad says it needs new brakes which are $10+ a pair, and if we assume other consumables are at middle of life then you might have to budget for tyres ($25-50ea), chain ($20) or cassette ($30), and a basic service you'd have to start investing in tools. these costs will hit much sooner than with the new bike and it will slowly add up.
the other consideration is frame sizing. with the triban you can demo diff sizes at decathlon and find the best fit whereas the apollo its a yes/no decision.
Current price of $399 the triban is not worth it.
You will have the option of warranty repair if it does need adjusting, and given the price point it probably will need it soon after delivery. Cheap bikes don’t hold their adjustment on gears etc as well as more expensive bikes because they have the cheapest cables etc.
buying online makes it harder to get the warranty work done. Buying the Apollo and learning how to service it will be a better choice. Parts are easy to obtain online, YouTube is available to show you how to do the reel air work and repairing a bicycle is easy for someone with mechanical aptitude.
Agree at $399 the Triban 100 is not worth it, especially as an online buy without the demo/adjust/servicing. But they do go on sale a lot and it looks like they are now offering the next level up Triban 500 with carbon fork & slightly better mech at the same $399 as well now.
I totally love DIY servicing GCN videos and all, but what gripes me is the economics of bike parts - even buying online the sum of parts costs more than a new bike that has those parts in the first place (e.g. Decathlon's CF900 when on sale for $999 that had Shimano 105s) - at some point you might look at your bikebug/99 shopping cart and say - wait I couldn't I just buy a new bike for that? and you are back to the same dilemma!
Of course it costs more to buy in parts, you are buying a part that has passed through numerous people with numerous markups. The manufacturer buys tonnes of the things at a much lower price.
Perfect thanks heaps guys.
Will message the Apollo owner to see if i can go have a look at it tomorrow.
Ill pop into BikeShed in Fairfield to see if they have anything decent on sale.
They're a bike repairs shop who sell quality bikes for cheap apparently.
If nothing, id probably go and grab the Apollo.
For $200 you can't go too wrong with the triban, but you still get what you pay for. Can you give any details on the Apollo you have your eye on?