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Going to put a deposit on one tomorrow. My first ever road bike. They were 1600 but now 1400. The Birmingham shop is 4 mile from where I live and they really do look after you.
Was just wondering what you thought about it likes dislikes etc etc. Thought about giant defy but this one has come down in price and seems to me half decent bike. The frame on bike radar.com has fantastic reviews and specialized say it's the lightest and strongest frame they make.
Hopefully my research has paid off.
well i cannot offer any advice in regards to other road bikes,but i did have last year's model tarmac sport and loved it tbh. i sold it to fund a guitar,but do plan on saving up for another one at some point.
it was pretty comfy to ride considering it was more race based than the roubaix.
enjoy yours when you get it 🙂
The SL4 frame is fantastic. Stiff and direct, but comfortable and stable (for a race bike). It looks good too, and is very good value in my opinion. I've got a 2012 Pro, which if I recall cost similar to the Sport does now for the frame alone. It's a slightly different lay up, but essentially the same.
You might find that you want to upgrade the wheels and groupset over time, as that's where the money is saved, but general wisdom tends to say go for the best frame you can afford and upgrade the bits that hang off it as things wear out or money allows.
Cheers guys,
Yes the group set is a bit of a mix but I'll soon find out what's good and not good.
Going to commute to work as often as I can.only 8.5 mile and 6 of them country lanes.
Can't wait!
Have you ridden one? I sold my Tarmac sport and got a defy composite 2 because it fit me better...
Defy more relaxed. I'm interested because of life time warrenty on frame and there customer services is brill.
Did consider canyon because of what you get for your money but if things ever went wrong what do you do? Send it back for inspection in a big cardboard box.
Specialized and giant both have exceptional customer services
if you are talking about the 2014 model, then its well worth getting, the production SL4 frame alone is worth the asking price of the entire bike (its surprisingly close to the SW Tarmac SL4 in terms of weight and ride quality)
I had a SL2 Tarmac and the SL4 I now have is a quantum leap in improvement of sharper handling, ride quality, stiffness yet oddly more comfortable (the SL2 was a bit of a bruiser on rough roads, yet soft under power and could feel "wooden")
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the bigger brands can seem expensive when comparing component spec. against smaller or directly sold brands, but the quality of the frameset on the bigger brands is noticeable (they basically have more money for R&D and production tooling) and the backup you get should you ever need warranty support gives peace of mind
the bike above is a USA colour SL4 frame model I was given under warranty because my SL2 frame developed an issue. I had a new frame in less than 4 days thanks to Specialized customer services in the UK. I have swapped the same parts over so its a direct comparison riding the 2 different frame models on the same roads I ride.
a guy I work with had an issue with his Canyon road bike and he's been waiting 3 months for his new frame....
@jacob46 - I don't think you'll be disappointed.
@Esher shore - you seem to have good knowledge of the range. How would the SL3 compare? I'm interested as that is what I have. (SL3 Expert)
@Normal Man
the SL3 is a good frame but was felt by many, to be perhaps a little too orientated towards professional racing in that it was somewhat "unforgiving" in terms of rider fatigue on rougher roads
SL3 was certainly a step above SL2 in terms of performance riding, as a more efficient frame at transferring rider power to the back wheel
as another contrast, generally the production frames using the less expensive, lower modulus carbon cloth tend to be more "comfortable" than the S-Works frames which use a higher modulus cloth
Ordered one yesterday. Sport model. Can't wait, should take 5 mins off my commute to work and looking forward to Sunday morning rides. £1400 bargain.
@ Jacob46 - congrats and enjoy!
@ esher shore - thanks! I'm pretty pleased with mine I must say. It is in test colours.
Although I use mine as my comfort bike as it is less racey than my Dogma (ex-pro).
Thanks all, just pedals and shoes to find now.
might be worth speaking to the dealer you got the bike from, and checking out the Specialized BG road shoe range
~I've found the basic model very good for the money, paired with some inexpensive Shimano SPD-SL and get the dealer to setup the cleats properly for you
check this out, just arrived today so I could not resist building 'her up
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That is stunning Esher Shore.
Do you work @ a Concept Store?
Also did you work at Esher Shore / Freeborn? If so, we may have met some time back!