[Closed] Lower spec Giant TCR or higher spec something from Planet X ?

any 2015 bargains to be had? That's where I'd be looking.

There's some great looking sale items at Dolan, like a 105 equipped carbon L'Etape for £999

http://www.dolan-bikes.com/road/road-bikes.html

reggiegasket - Member
any 2015 bargains to be had? That's where I'd be looking.

The club guys have been buying 2015 TCR Advance Pro sub £1500. 2016 versions are about £2300
That's an Ultegra build and the frame is current technology, overdrive front and powercore BB.
Raced the SL Pro and three generations of TCR. The TCR frame IMO is poles apart, then frame only is three times dearer.

A deal on the current TCR Pro 2 ?

I'd have this, I have the Supersix Evo 105 and it's superb.

[url= http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/m7b65s6p5774/CANNONDALE-SUPERSIX-EVO-ULTEGRA-2015 ]Supersix Evo ultegra 2015[/url]

Shiny "spec" on a crap frame? Silly.
Good frame as the starting point? Clever.

Spec is cheap. Good frames aren't.

the small difference between tiagra and ultegra is eclipsed by the huge gulf between the planet x carbon pro and even the bottom TCR frame......

Pedalon have several TCR's across a range of sizes in their sale:

http://www.pedalon.co.uk/acatalog/road_sale.php

Kryton57 - Member
Pedalon have several TCR's across a range of sizes in their sale:

http://www.pedalon.co.uk/acatalog/road_sale.php

Low spec giant for sure. You'll probably be surprised by the new tiagra stuff as well.

TCR no doubt. also look at any deals on 2015 Super Six Evo, even the base (shimano 105) model had a great sub 1kg frame with an excellent performance and a full carbon fibre fork

a high quality frame is a sensible base to create a great bicycle on, as you wear out original components and upgrade, or have spare money to change parts

a cheap frame will always be a cheap frame, there is a really noticeable difference in ride quality between high quality carbon fibre and cheap carbon fibre

I'd rather have a good aluminium alloy frame than a cheap carbon fibre frame

Did you check Winstanleys? They had a lot of discounted Giant road bikes when I was in the other day.

I'd go for a SuperSix Evo 105 @ £999.

http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/m7b65s6p5772/CANNONDALE-SUPERSIX-EVO-105-2015

chakaping - Member
Did you check Winstanleys? They had a lot of discounted Giant road bikes when I was in the other day.

Paul's cycles and JE James both have TCR bargains

darkplunger - Member
Paul's cycles and JE James both have TCR bargains

They just launched a new frame for 2016, didn't they?

I'd have been tempted to go for that anyway I think.

Have a look on the giant website you can now view stock from concept stores incase there is one kicking about all 2015 bikes are 40% off rrp
i no we have a small 2015 but its an sl model

Hold on OP, a TCR advanced for £1500 in all sizes available, with Ultegra:

http://www.pedalon.co.uk/acatalog/giant-tcr-advanced-1.html

Kryton57 - Member
Hold on OP, a TCR advanced for £1500 in all sizes available, with Ultegra:

http://www.pedalon.co.uk/acatalog/giant-tcr-advanced-1.html

rp16v - Member
Have a look on the giant website you can now view stock from concept stores incase there is one kicking about all 2015 bikes are 40% off rrp

I'm confused. You want the same bike, but last years version. And if you can't get a 2015, despite Ultregra being in budget if you had to buy 2016 you buy a cheaper 2016 with Tiagra?

What am I missing here?

Why confused ? , dont think you read the original post correctly , did say original budget of £1500 but have had to [u]reduce[/u] that hence the pricing of the basic 2016 tcr or planet x

TCR every time. Have you tried [url= http://www.partridgecycles.co.uk/p/sale-bikes ]Partridge Cycles[/url] near Exeter? Collection only. They shift ex demo machines from Giant and Cannondale at good prices.

Also try a few Giant dealers to see what 2015 stock they have.

Not 100% on our stock ATM will have a look tomorrow for you as we are a concept store we get a heads up on any leftover stock

Ah! Apologies OP.

Kryton57 - Member
Ah! Apologies OP.

Stumpy_m4 YGM

I might be able to help out possibly...

Ok only one on shop floor is advanced sl 2 @£2099
ay rour reduced budget id be looking at an advanced 2 2016 with full 105 11sp and still under budget @£1,199

100% go for the giant but try for a 2016 model as its a much improved frame over 2015. I almost purchased one but went for a defy advanced in the end.

However I found the best deals were at http://www.swinnertoncycles.co.uk/bikes-c97/road-c110/tcr-advanced-2-carbon-road-bike-p53926 who were doing 12% off most of the giant range.

I ended up emailing a load of giant stores and getting 40% off a 2015 defy advanced pro 1. So definitely some deals out there

Winrya, where from if you don't mind me asking. Would love to get my hands on two defy advanced pro 1 in medium. Not a fan of next year's colour really.

I'm toying with selling my Cannondale Super six Evo with SRAM RED. Size 56.

With full RED groupies Inc chainset; in the best colour Matt graphite and black.

I've covered less than 200 miles since buying it.

It's this one: [url= http://www.bikeradar.com/road/gear/category/bikes/road/product/review-cannondale-supersix-evo-red-13-47542/ ]Review with pics[/url]

@Onzadog

I rode this last season

[img] [/img]

Also rode this on a dealer demo day in July, the "new" 2016 TCR

[img] [/img]

the medium and medium / large size carbon road bikes (TCR, Propel and Defy) sold through very quickly in 2015, by August neither we (Giant Docklands) nor Giant UK had anything left. the best bet would be to call smaller Giant dealers who may have purchased stock they are sitting on.

I thought that might be the case. Popular bike in a popular size. I think I'm just going to have to get used to blue. (or 105)

Winrya, where from if you don't mind me asking. Would love to get my hands on two defy advanced pro 1 in medium. Not a fan of next year's colour really.

Giant sheffield and it was a medium but was the last one. He also had a TCR Advanced SL 2 - £3499 Down to £2099.

http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-gb/bikes/model/tcr.advanced.sl.2/19193/77276/ in medium.

Bristol had;

Left in store we have
A TCR advanced SL 2 in small
A propel advanced pro 2 in a medium
A propel advanced SL 1 in a medium large
And a propel advanced 2 in a extra large

Well worth a call if you're after a deal, saved £1050 on mine.

[URL= http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e58/winrya/IMG_0537_zpsajrv6a5w.jp g" target="_blank">http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e58/winrya/IMG_0537_zpsajrv6a5w.jp g"/> [/IMG][/URL]

Can't believe how much of a step up it is over the boardman carbon it has replaced

^^ Very nice looking Defy

Very nice indeed. My local giant store as well! Should have been quicker I guess.

Stumpy - some like Planet X some hate them. The PX Pro Carbon isn't a a bad frame (in fact it has done very well over the years in tests) but it is old and for the larger gentleman (ie me) it has one noteable drawback - it flexes.
I had one and at 43 with sciatica I decided I wanted something higher at the front end - so I bought the PX RT-58. Higher front, tapered steerer and a massive bottom bracket area.
Result? Better turn-in and cornering generally, more confident descending, and far better out of the saddle. Comfort is better too.
So in summary, don't write PX off, but do be aware that their different frames have different qualities. The Pro Carbon is cheap and light, but under a 16st ex-rugby type it flexes noticeably. Their other frames are more expensive and no lighter - with the RT-58 (sadly no longer available) that money had gone on making a stiffer (in the good way) bike.
I've also ridden Specialised and didn't find them that different to PX - certainly less different than between the two PXs.

I went through the same thought process last summer. I ended up getting a Radon Spire from Germany, heck of a bike for the money.

@igm

I've owned a lot of Specialized bikes including several carbon fibre road bikes (Tarmacs) and carbon fibre mountain bikes (Stumpjumpers)

they have a clever strategy in that people want the top tier (S-Works) but can't / won't pay the premium and choose a model several down - typically using the same mold, but actually made in a different factory (less expensive) with a lower grade of carbon and higher ratio of resin/carbon

its been a thing in the bike industry for some years that Specialized won't actually tell you what their "Fact 9", "Fact 10" labeling actually means, they won't admit which brand of carbon or resin they use, whereas some brands will proudly tell you they use Toray

if you've ridden production frames and then S-Works frames of the same model, there is a very noticeable difference in the ride quality and a big weight difference. I was surprised how heavy my last Tarmac (SL4 Elite) frame was, nearly 1300 gm for a naked 54cm. It had great handling / geometry but felt quite soft under power and a bit wooden up climbs

Giant do not have the "sexy" S-Works brand and the marketing nous of companies like Specialized, but their carbon fibre manufacturing is really second to none, even on their more affordable models.

they use full Toray carbon on all their frames (they make their own carbon fibre cloth in house from Toray filament, rather than buying in pre-impreg) and use their own in-house developed resin, whereas many brands will mix cheaper carbon with elements of Toray to save money.the fact they own their factories means they are competitive on price for bikes, despite their frame manufacturing being relatively expensive due to the quality

Giant do not have the "sexy" S-Works brand and the marketing nous of companies like Specialized, but their carbon fibre manufacturing is really second to none, even on their more affordable models.

they use full Toray carbon on all their frames (they make their own carbon fibre cloth in house from Toray filament, rather than buying in pre-impreg) and use their own in-house developed resin, whereas many brands will mix cheaper carbon with elements of Toray to save money.the fact they own their factories means they are competitive on price for bikes, despite their frame manufacturing being relatively expensive due to the quality

Although this is true, I believe Giant use a different layup/carbon on the SL models, reflected in the price.

I'm a full novice road biker (mtber for 30years +) still not really my thing but it's handy for training, my question here is everyone is saying go for the TCR because it's so much better than a Planet X, but what is better ? Build quality ? Strength ? geometry ?. and what is that based on?

not a fan of planet x but if price needs to be low why not ?

Essentially mikekay PX is a budget brand aimed at a budget market. If your prepared to put up with the reported lack of customer service, variable pricing, some flex in the frame perhaps some lowering of quality - some or all of which you may not experience or may not bother you - go for it.

Giant are a large reptutitive brand and some argue the leading brand in volume frame design as their establishments are also used by others. They tend to push out lots of high quality frames a decent prices vs the other volume providers, win lots of awards and receive fantastic reviews with good customer service.

As an analogy some are happy to fly with Ryanair, some BA, and the longer you fly the wider the quality gap in your choice becomes - you pays your money... etc.

and what is that based on?

Marketing

Planet X make bikes that're just fine. Not the best, nor the worst. Plenty of competitive riders race them to a decent level aswell. They work. It's easy to get brainwashed by all the mumbo jumbo.

If you're the sort of rider who needs a bike with "special" geometry such as a tall headtube, then it's unlikely any difference between Planet X and Brand X will make any difference to you.

Do what the OP did, buy the bike you like the look of best, or that can offer a local service

@Kryton

the SL models use higher grade Toray filament and carbon nano infused high spec resin, as well as more advanced manufacturing (fusion process and continous fibre technology) and the more obvious integrated seat post design

On my phone I can see a 2015 bike on the Giant website showing as having the size I am interested in "in stock" - how do I find out which of the stores has it in?

Might be being dense or the full website might be different?

@nathans77

site does not work too great on mobile, its always worth trying it on a desktop device

if you are on the Giant UK website it shows that Giant UK have it in their warehouse as "free stock" (i.e. up for grabs through any of their dealers)

if you are on a "brand store" website (i.e. Giant Camden) it shows that Giant UK have it in their warehouse to be shipped and then collected from Camden, or in Giant's Camden store as 'consignment stock' - these are bikes actually owned by Giant UK and placed into that store for display/sale purposes

the issue with consignment stock is that its tied to a particular store by frame number, and not easily moved between stores

what is better ? Build quality ?

Hard to substantiate but Giant are widely regarded as among the best in the biz with carbon and their frames are very slick.

Strength ?

A Giant "Advanced" frame will offer similar strength at a lower weight to the basic offerings from PX, Ribble etc. They're also surprisingly competitive on price these days IMO.

geometry ?

A little bit.

For me it's a combination of the above - with ride quality being the main thing. When I swap from my Ribble to my Defy Advanced I often spend the first mile or so checking whether I've got a flat tyre.

Is it possible to order giant bikes from Germany? There's a bit of a saving to be had right now given the euro exchange rate.

A point on PX Pro Carbon flex I mentioned. I'm 16st and I struggle to get suits because 25 years of rugby do certain things to your thighs.
Others may not experience flex.
The RT-58 is better though.

igm - Member
A point on PX Pro Carbon flex I mentioned. I'm 16st and I struggle to get suits because 25 years of rugby do certain things to your thighs.

One of the spanner monkeys at my LBS is a full on race whippet. Seriously quick, on and off road. His entire body weighs less than my left leg. His verdict - Planet Flex.

I've got a Viner/Px cross bike.
Full carbon, cx1, tubeless wheels with tune hubs, pacenti rims and stock tubeless tyres.
Amazing spec. and super stiff frame.

Best value race bike out there I reckon...

Inspired by this thread I just bought this, bargain!

http://www.cyclesense.co.uk/m1b0s6p16780/GIANT-TCR-Advanced-Pro-1-2015

@ £1,389, was their last one too

Blimey a Propel Ultegra for £1200 - if only I was a few inches taller....