[amol4184]

Originally Posted by SavoyWalrus

I'm planning to join the road bike gang later this year, moving from my Giant MTB.

I currently do 40km rides, but my goal is to do a 100km ride by the end of this year. My budget is around 50k, which ones should I shortlist? I live in Bangalore, so there are plenty of stores and many brands that I can choose from.

If you are not familiar or don't want hassle of used bikes market, Decathlon RC100/RC120/RC500 are pretty good bikes for the money backed by their service which is very, very good. The new RC120 gravel model seems interesting too and would be my top pick out of the range considering road conditions at least where I lived.

[SavoyWalrus]

Originally Posted by BaCkSeAtDrIVeR

For 50 k, you'd get a claris 2 x 8 geared model. This is already entry minus 1, so It will suggest to stay away from tourney models. Scott speedster 40, Giant contend 3 are likely available. These however are above the budget by atleast 10 k. If suggest a triban 500 or 120 in that order. Of course, the used market is become sir with people getting busier.

Originally Posted by amol4184

If you are not familiar or don't want hassle of used bikes market, Decathlon RC100/RC120/RC500 are pretty good bikes for the money backed by their service which is very, very good. The new RC120 gravel model seems interesting too and would be my top pick out of the range considering road conditions at least where I lived.

Thanks for the suggestions! The Speedster 40, Contend 3, and RC500 are way out of my budget, so I'll have to omit them.

From this list, the RC120 is my only option. What do you guys think of the Polygon Stratos S2, Sunpeed Triton, Giant SCR2, and Java Veloce. The Java has a Sora groupset.

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

Is the giant available at all? If so, jump at it. Java veloce is supposed to be a gravel bike, I think. Other brands are a bit to trace oriented, with long reach and low stack, I feel. I suggest you compare the bike geometries rather than components. Jit keep the minimum requirement in mind. You'll find the recommended size and it's geometry dimensions in the brand web page for the specific model. There are sites like geometrygeeks that help you compare geometries. Therese sir tell you how the frame dimensions differ when compared between models. To make any sense of it you should know the geometry of your existing bike. Or some familiar bike.

[Sebring]

Guys,
Is the flat bar Triban RC 120 Disc available in India? I found it simply fantastic

[Fillmore]

Originally Posted by Sebring

Guys,
Is the flat bar Triban RC 120 Disc available in India? I found it simply fantastic

Comes in white with a dropbar
Triban RC 120

You can check with Decathlon to look into the possibilities of swapping it with a Flatbar.

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

Originally Posted by Fillmore

Comes in white with a dropbar
Triban RC 120

You can check with Decathlon to look into the possibilities of swapping it with a Flatbar.

That'd be a sheer waste. It is too bad that Decathlon is unable to bring full range of their products into India. Especially the ELOPS fast City bikes and the triban RC flat bar range.

[Pani]

Originally Posted by SavoyWalrus

I'm planning to join the road bike gang later this year, moving from my Giant MTB.

I currently do 40km rides, but my goal is to do a 100km ride by the end of this year. My budget is around 50k, which ones should I shortlist? I live in Bangalore, so there are plenty of stores and many brands that I can choose from.

50k for a new road bike is tight. You can checkout Element FRC bikes, Made in Indonesia. Alternatively if you have the slightest appetite to try a good pre-owned bike, choices opens up vastly.

IMO, Decathlon is seriously overrated for what enthusiasts seek. Yea they are a big departmental store with all kinds of basic stuff under a roof. Some of their products are decent, like the Triban 540. But beyond that they just a mass market factory. A little more search can result in a much better product from a genuine enthusiast brand. The pleasure of owning and riding a bike from such an outfit is another level

[amol4184]

The Decathlon is famous for what they do in limited budget. Its almost unbeatable in India unless Boardman sells their bikes here.
The entry level road bikes from Deca are some of the best VFMs hands down. The main draw is that despite being a big box store, how good their bikes are. Cheap but not in a bad way. I guess I am truly failing to understand how made in Indonesia Element FRC bike with Sensah/Sunshine bits on it is a better buy than something from Decathlon with Microshift stuff that also happens to be full 1.25kg lighter.

It's not just sum of the components either. The Deca service is nothing to scoff at either v/s all the boutique bike sellers cropped up over last 3 years - which should matter to a person who is looking at a beginner bike and not wanting to spend hefty sums on service and parts later or worse still poor customer service if warranty issues come up.

The used bike though, that is a fantastic option. Personally, if I am buying new in budget bike section it will be RC120 from local Deca store and then Giant Contend AR3 from an enthusiast bike shop. The difference in price is huge but so is the service. That's my opinion any way.

[aneezan]

Originally Posted by amol4184

... Its almost unbeatable in India unless Boardman sells their bikes here...

Can fully vouch for this. The same reason I chose the RC120 in July 2020 when I was very new to cycling. Riding it for the past 2.5 years and over 20,000km, I can easily say its the most VFM road bike to a large extent. I have beat it across every piece of road, hill, no-road etc and it still takes everything. Have had a couple of heavy falls with it as well, due to which I had to replace the gear shifter and the crankset due to the damage from the falls, but it still performs well for its use and age.
Time to move to another bike now, but I will hold on to the RC120. Anyone new to (road) cycling should go to Decathlon try this first.

[NPV]

Vintage bicycles, dating back to 1869, on display in Bengaluru.

Source: Deccan Herald
Link

[aneezan]

Its my new bike day!

[amol4184]

Originally Posted by aneezan

Its my new bike day!

Attachment 2419435

Love Canyons and their simple colorways. The tan walled tires are so hot too! Is it one of their gravel models?

I am taking up a new project after selling my franken-build the hybrid conversion mentioned sometime earlier here, my hands were itching to build something new again. The opportunity presented itself when a guy wanted to trade a frameset for another bike that I was selling. Long story short, I ended up with Salsa Journeyer frameset in size 57 and giving away my cromoly Fuji Jari in exchange for it. Don't know if it was a good deal but here we go.


Comes from factory in this plain jane dark grey on black theme. Discrete, almost too dull. Also had scratches underneath the body and fork that are hard to see.


Decided on pink on black theme. Project is a go with cute Candy paddles in hot pink.


Just paddles were not enough. Got some samples of vinyl wraps for cars and cut them into small bands. The metallic color accents now add some pop. To hide scratches on underside of the fork, got baby pink Salsa decals and stuck them there.



Going to call this bike "Hippie" because of the colors and a strange looking handlebar... here goes nothing.

[aneezan]

Originally Posted by amol4184

Love Canyons and their simple colorways. The tan walled tires are so hot too! Is it one of their gravel models?

Going to call this bike "Hippie" because of the colors and a strange looking handlebar... here goes nothing.

This is Canyon Endurace(endurance road model). I am not into racing, rather like long pleasurable rides. This fit best.

All the very best on your build.

[goandude]

Originally Posted by aneezan

Its my new bike day!

Attachment 2419435

Congratulations on the new addition. What are the specs and Look forward to your impressions after the rc 120

[aneezan]

Originally Posted by goandude

Congratulations on the new addition. What are the specs and Look forward to your impressions after the rc 120

Thanks sir. This is the Endurance 7 AL Disc model, with Shimano 105 components. 30mm tyres. Just taken it out for one ride. Very comfortable and much faster of-course than the RC120. The shifting isn't quite up to the mark yet. Its quick, but sometimes false shifts. A few more rides and then will be able to comment further. The temperatures are dipping again this week, hence not sure about riding for a few days.