Road bike under $1000?

I know this has been talked about before, but I would appreciate any
suggestions on a new
road bike under about $1000. Here is my situation:

I am a larger rider (6-2, 190 lbs) and I definitely want standard
geometry (not compact).

I would like better shifters than Sora. Ideally 105 but Tiagra OK.

I prefer steel to Al but will give on this if I like the ride.

All the lower end Fuji, Specialized, Trek, and Giant bikes are compact
geometry (!!).
This cuts the field down significantly. (please correct me if I'm
wrong)

There are no decent shops near me that carry Jamis, and I want to buy
from a shop I like.

I have good shop nearby that carries Bianchi. But the Brava is Sora,
and the next bike up, the
Eros, has jumped to $1300 for 2005. I have toyed with the idea of
setting up the Volpe for
road riding but I hate the color .

There is a good Performance shop near me, and their Tirrena Razza line
seems to be a really
good value - can get 105 for under $1000. These are standard Al frames
but I could live with
that if there are no other good options in steel. Anyone have any
experience with that line?
I heard the frames are made by Fuji - is that true?

Any other suggestions?

Thanks!
Jeff T

"Jeff" wrote:

I know this has been talked about before, but I would appreciate any
suggestions on a new
road bike under about $1000.

Might want to browse around this thread:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=69273

Thanks Neil. I had seen that thread once before but couldn't relocate
it. Seems like
Felt has some bikes I should consider.
Jeff T

Jeff wrote:
I know this has been talked about before, but I would appreciate any
suggestions on a new
road bike under about $1000. Here is my situation:

I am a larger rider (6-2, 190 lbs) and I definitely want standard
geometry (not compact).

I would like better shifters than Sora. Ideally 105 but Tiagra OK.

I prefer steel to Al but will give on this if I like the ride.

snip

It's very difficult to still find a cromoloy steel road bike with
standard geometry for that price. The low end bikes are mostly all
compact and aluminum.

It's hard to even find a Brava, as they are in very high demand. You
could buy the Brava and swap out the Sora components.

You might look at the Trek-Lemond Poprad, which occasionally can be had
for $1000, but it normally sells for $1200. Figure 10% off at a shop
that gives a club discount, so you're at $1080.

The Trek 1500 is a good buy. I am 6'2" and 200 lbs and it fits me
nice. You may have to switch out the pedals..

On Mon, 18 Jul 2005 11:59:41 -0700, Jeff wrote:

Any other suggestions?

Have a look at some of the Jamis bikes, they might offer a good value
considering what you're looking for.

The Jamis Nova is similar to the Bianchi Volpe in the practicality dept.

@ $1000

http://www.jamisbikes.com/bikes/04_nova.html

specs:

FRAME

Reynolds 631 seamless air-hardened chromoly main tubes, double tapered
cromo stays, lost wax dropouts with eyelets. FORK Carbon fiber unicrown,
cromo steerer, low rider bosses. HEADSET Aheadset, alloy, 1 1/8�, 20mm
alloy spacers. WHEELSET Mavic MA3 with UB Control rims(26� Ritchey
Girder XC Pro on 46cm), 36H, Shimano Tiagra front and rear hubs, 14/15g
stainless steel spokes. TIRES Hutchinson ProSeries, 700 x 30C (Ritchey
SpeedMaxCross Comp 26 x 1.4 on 46cm). DERAILLEURS Shimano “105� rear,
Tiagra 28.6mm band clamp front. SHIFTERS Shimano “105�, Dual Control
STI, 27-speed. CHAIN Shimano CN-HG73.
FREEWHEEL Shimano HG50, 9-speed, 12-25. CRANKSET TruVativ Elita,
52/42/30,
165mm (46),
170mm (49-51),
175mm (55 - 60).
BOTTOM BRACKET TruVativ Isis Drive SL, 68 x 118mm. PEDALS Shimano SPD
M520, clipless.
BRAKESET Avid Shorty 4 cantilevers,Shimano “105� levers. HANDLEBAR
Ritchey BioMax II Road Comp, 400mm (46-49), 420mm (51-53),
440mm (55-60)
STEM Ritchey Comp Road (±6°), 90mm (46-49), 100mm (51-53),
120mm (55-57),
130mm (60).

On Mon, 18 Jul 2005 11:59:41 -0700, Jeff wrote:

I know this has been talked about before, but I would appreciate any
suggestions on a new road bike under about $1000. Here is my situation:

All the lower end Fuji, Specialized, Trek, and Giant bikes are compact
geometry (!!). This cuts the field down significantly. (please correct
me if I'm wrong)

There is the Fuji Touring ($840 MSRP) and the Trek 520 ($1100ish). AFAIK,
both bikes are steel and standard geometry. I looked at these last year
when I was buying (ended up with a Jamis Aurora, which I highly recommend,
though you've stated there's no local dealers).

I suspect that you will probably be happier with a touring frame than a
"road" (read: racing) frame.

I have good shop nearby that carries Bianchi. But the Brava is Sora,
and the next bike up, the Eros, has jumped to $1300 for 2005. I have
toyed with the idea of setting up the Volpe for road riding but I hate
the color .

I hear the Volpe is a very nice bike. Are you sure the color is such a
high priority? Also, dealers should be willing to play around with the
setup to some degree. If you like the Brava except for the Sora parts,
say so and see what the dealer is willing to work out with you.

Be sure you get a lifetime warranty on any frame, especially aluminum.

Regarding your budget, I suggest you be willing to stretch it if that
would mean getting a bike you really like vs. one that is just OK. It will
probably save you money in the long run, and you will ride it more.

Good luck,

Reid

"Reid Priedhorsky" wrote in message
news
snipped

Be sure you get a lifetime warranty on any frame, especially aluminum.

Don't mean to hijack the thread but wanted to ask a question on that note...

I was leafing through a KHS owners manual and it states the warranty for
their steel frames was 25 years, aluminum *5 years.* (!)

What can you read into that? (aside from the notion they don't build their
aluminum frames as well...?)


Regarding your budget, I suggest you be willing to stretch it if that
would mean getting a bike you really like vs. one that is just OK. It will
probably save you money in the long run, and you will ride it more.

Gotta agree with that. Certainly set a budget but if there's something that
speaks to you that's just out of reach, stretch a bit - delay your purchase
and save if necessary.

C.J.Patten wrote:

I was leafing through a KHS owners manual and it states the warranty for
their steel frames was 25 years, aluminum *5 years.* (!)

What can you read into that? (aside from the notion they don't build their
aluminum frames as well...?)

The build quality is probably equal, but aluminum frames don't last as
long. Many manufacturers used to have similar warranties, but most got
rid of the limitation on AL because it was bad marketing. A warranty is
more marketing hype than logically based on the product quality.

Thanks everyone. I really need to test ride some bikes now. The
problem is that there are almost no 60 cm bikes in stock this time of
year. I actually ran into this problem last fall and it seems that I
have put it off too long this year also. Oh well, I still enjoy riding
my current bike, heavy and ungainly though it may be.
Jeff T