Hello,
After my road bike which I only used for commuting was stolen (from inside my locked cage, inside a secure underground space - still a little bitter about that), I'm in the market for a new bike.
Due to having some neck and back issues, and the fact that I never really got into long trips I'm looking at getting a reasonably decent Urban flat bar road bike.
After doing a lot of online searching I think I've narrowed it down to a few options but would welcome some more expert advice as I really don't know too much beyond the groupset tiers.
On paper the Polygon Bend FX4 seems to be a well specced bike for around the 1K mark. Tiagra groupset at that price point seems pretty good- it has a carbon fork, and weight appears to be listed around 9.4Kg so pretty much the lightest I've seen in my budget (don't really wanna spend more than 1K) but is there anything that stands out to you guys as being budget or crap on this machine? I've heard mention of the mechanical brakes not being great but after trying to google the exact model I couldn't even find it... and it is listed as just Tektro hydraulic brake. Seeing the comments I wonder if last year model brakes were not hydraulic?
Can't really find any detailed reviews from buyers on this bike online tho - https://www.bicyclesonline.com.au/polyg ... -road-bike
Does anyone actually have this bike or used it?
The other option is the Giant FastRoad SLR 2 - which I found a reasonable sale on but comes in around $250 more than the polygon at 1200.
I could be convinced to spend the extra on this but the groupset is Sora, bike is slightly heavier, fork is listed as composite which I'm unsure how that compares to carbon other than probably heavier? It is a beautiful looking bike I must say imho.
https://www.giant-bicycles.com/au/fastroad-slr-2
Are there better options out there for mostly commuting and fitness purposes around the 1K mark?
Any help is much appreciated
bike choice advice sought
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Re: bike choice advice sought
Postby Mububban » Fri Sep 21, 2018 8:19 pm
The Giant does look better but I'd probably go the Polygon, Tiagra 10 speed feels great and Polygon bikes get great reviews.
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Re: bike choice advice sought
Postby AUbicycles » Wed Sep 26, 2018 5:35 pm
Brand names like Giant, Merida, Trek, Cannondale, Scott and Specialized are all generally nice... but currently the value for money bikes are from Reid Cycles and Polygon. Both of these brands are also working hard on customer service - Polygon is (now) just selling online while Reid have shops in some major cities and also sell online.
Here is an older review of a different model, it will give you a feel for the brand:
https://www.bicycles.net.au/2015/04/bik ... -commuter/
On the disc brakes - generally hydraulic is preferred as it is much lighter and controllable. In other words, you could use your pinky to brake and get full braking power with hydraulic. With cable-pull, you can still get full braking power but typically without the finer modulation of hydraulic. On the other side, hydraulic is not as basic to service compared to cable-pull.
One thing to keep an eye out for however may be run-out deals where shops are trying to clear older stock so you can get an older model at an attractive price. But the commercial machine is also ramping up for Christmas as well and prices shoot up.
Here is an older review of a different model, it will give you a feel for the brand:
https://www.bicycles.net.au/2015/04/bik ... -commuter/
On the disc brakes - generally hydraulic is preferred as it is much lighter and controllable. In other words, you could use your pinky to brake and get full braking power with hydraulic. With cable-pull, you can still get full braking power but typically without the finer modulation of hydraulic. On the other side, hydraulic is not as basic to service compared to cable-pull.
One thing to keep an eye out for however may be run-out deals where shops are trying to clear older stock so you can get an older model at an attractive price. But the commercial machine is also ramping up for Christmas as well and prices shoot up.
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