Hi OzBargainers,
Please can you help me pick a new road bike under $600? Or suggest a 2nd hand model around $600?
I mostly need it for training and commuting.
Thanks!
Help Me Choose a Road Bike
Comments
Jump on the facebook bicycle marketplace groups. Best deals are usually found in there. If you post with a budget people will usually let you know what they've got.
What are the most popular groups?
Depends what state you are in. Most have a page with lots of members
e.g. Buy/Sell road cycling Victoria
if you type in bicycle marketplace & cycling marketplace there should pop up the a few for your general area.
Congratulations on deciding to get a road bike. I've only ever bought them 2nd hand (usually from 1 - 3 years old) and had a great experience with each of the four bikes I've owned. To give you an idea, I've paid $700 to $1500 for them - my current one I purchased over a year ago is a 2017 Merida Reacto 7000e (see here https://www.99bikes.com.au/merida-reacto-7000-e-bike-matt-re…). New in this spec they go for about $5000 - $5500 so my purchasing one that was two years old, I saved $4000. Groupset is Ultegra 6800 11 speed Di2 (electronic shifting). Electronic shifting is nice but not a must have.
In your budget for a second hand bike, you'd be able to pick up a Giant Defy or Merida Scultura with a 11 speed Shimano 105 groupset if you hunt around so that's what I'd recommend. If you go for a new bike, $600 isn't going to get you too much in the way of quality so I'd look at a second hand bike to get a better quality model. It also comes down to how much you're planning to ride - I usually do 100km - 150km a week so I'd prefer a better quality bike but if you're only looking at doing the occasional small ride then a cheaper bike is fine.
That was an insanely good deal. Wow
OP also be aware of n+1 —> The number of bikes you (will) want in n+1, where n is the number of bikes you currently have.
OP must also be aware that n+1 is limited by d-1 ——> The number of bikes you need (n+1) is limited by the number of bikes that will result in a divorce (d-1).
if you can spend a tiny bit more, I would go with BMC Teammachine, Bianchi Oltre, Trek Madone, Aurumania, Pegoretti, or a Saffron Frameworks.
They're a fair bit more expensive than the budget the OP is looking at. Although i agree, they're all great bikes, probably better if you'd been riding for a few years on a cheaper bike to appreciate them.
S works Tarmac SL7 😜
haha good one to learn on!
by 'tiny bit more' you obviously mean moving the decimal place?
Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R. :)
that's a girls bike, he needs a zx14r
hahahaha
For $600 you are not going to get anything great brand new. I definitely recommend checking your local buy/sell bikes group on Facebook. You can't go wrong with an entry-level Giant, Merida, Trek, or Specialized. At a minimum (I don't know what state you are from) you should be looking at carbon forks. For the groupsets, you are looking at either Sora, Tiagra or even 105 for your price range. If you manage to get something with 105, I see that as an absolute win.
If you do a lot of cycling it may be worth it to increase your budget to get an entry-level full carbon bike. Then upgrade in a couple of years.
I managed to find a TCR for $1000 with Ultegra 11-speed (not stolen). So you never know what you can find.
Agreed. You can definitely find an 11 speed 105 bike in the $600 range - you just need to keep an eye on Facebook marketplace. They come up reasonably frequently in Brisbane especially as 11 speed 105 bikes came out in 2015 and Merida and Giant both sold a couple different models of these bikes new for $1000-$1100.
For reference, I just picked up a 1 year old Liv (Giant) Avail with the latest gen 11 speed 105 (R7000) for $550 for my 11 year old daughter. As she's tall it's a women's size Medium and is actually a great bike. Flat bar too which is great for a bit more control and comfort. The equivalent men's bike would be a Giant Roam if I'm not mistaken.
Also, when you look for second hand bikes, look at the size first. You need something that will fit you, the last thing you want is a frame that is too small, or worse, too big for you. Different brands have slightly different sizing measurements too, so make sure you have a look at the bike and try it before you commit.
Giant or Merida flatbar
What sort of training?
For commuting I’d recommend a flat bar road bike. Sitting up a bit higher with the flat bars makes it easier to see around in traffic.
You aren’t going to get a ‘road bike’ new for $600. I reckon minimum spend for a drop bar road bike would be $1k.
Under normal circumstances it should be easy to find a good second hand bike for $600. Unfortunately covid times have wreaked havoc on bicycle sales. New bikes are out of stock, used bike prices are up and harder to come by, br you might get lucky.
Something a lot of people are glossing over is size and i would recommend going to a bike store and getting an idea of what frame you need. If you are in a city I would have a look at Reid bikes, they are cheaper than most other brands and will be a good starting point until you figure out what you are really wanting to pursue (eg. Strictly road, Cyclocross, Beach Road, City bike etc)
Find a second hand Giant Defy or Contend.
Probably wont find much brand new for that price. Something like a Reid, but a second hand Giant or something would be the better option
Just get an idea of sizing because you dont want to go buy something that doesnt fit.