First road bike - help please

Btw, these are all bikes to get you started, but there's little to stop you from up-speccing from time to time

Some really useful comments and observations on here to mull over.
A few of the guys at work have the TdF and have been really happy with it, after a year's w&t.
One guy has a Zelos but, as the smallest rear cog has 14 teeth, he struggles a bit to keep up with 12T bikes.
Despite that niggle, however, he's pleased with his purchase, as the steel fork rides well over Plymouth's potholed and rutty roads.
I'm considering buying a Zelos for £269 (even less, if can find a discount code) to do the Around Dartmoor and the Lands End & Back routes, soon.

If you're not going to race or be desperate to save a few grammes then MTB pedals/shoes are the way to go.

The roadies may sneer at you but at least you'll have shoes you can walk in and you'll be able to ride your bike in trainers or ordinary shoes if need be.

Also you can get used to being clipped in by wearing 1 trainer and 1 cleated shoe, that way you'll have 1 foot free to put down in an emergency. This tip worked for me.

I've got some dhb shoes (SPD SL) version which I use in winter / bad weather.

I like them a lot.

What ever bike you get you'll start looking for the next one pretty soon.

I know a few riders who were nervous of clips that have bought the Shimano touring pedals so flat one side but have a clip the other and then can get used to SPD in time.

Something like these:

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/shimano/oe-a530-touring-pedals-ec050...

Admittedly most have then gone on to SPD SL etc

Congrats Matt!

Enjoy the new bike.

When you say non-clip pedals, do you mean with toe clips and straps like this:

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/products/budget-r-road-pedal-and-toeclip

Or complete flat pedals? (Not that I'd recommend that on a road bike tbh)

You can pick up a real bargain on eBay. It's where I got my current bike, a GT GTR Series 3 (2010 model) in pristine condition for £255. I can't afford a more expensive bike at the moment, but it does what I want it to and I can upgrade components (new wheelset this year! )

I don't know about harsh, all the comments appear to be constructive and supportive. The fact is that £200 doesn't buy you a decent bicycle, it's not 1990 any more.

Smartphone tariffs are £20-40 per month and petrol is £1.30 per litre so money doesn't go very far. Spending a bit more for a 'proper' bike will pay off in the long term, of that I am convinced.

The Forme looks good but I like Genesis so the Volant 00 would get a look, Rutland still have the 54cm in stock at the moment. But it has no mudguard mounts so you'll need Raceblades if you want to keep dry. A Carrera Virtuoso or TdF from Halfords is a safe option, see if you can get that BC 10% deal.

Bikeradar's classifieds might yield something, alternatively if you list the ebay category 'bikes' then filter <£400 and sort by distance you see the bikes nearest your location.

My first road bike was a TdF which is now only used as a winter ride and has been bomb proof despite being ridden almost exclusively on wet muddy country lanes.

I've done about 4k miles without it needing any attention - apart from regular cleaning and lubing - so the 'cheap components' have not been a problem.

I know I've mentioned this before (apologies), but the Forme Longcliffe 5.0 I bought from Rutland Cycling for £300 is also excellent value (they recently also had a basic Genesis for around that price). To be honest, when I bought the Forme, I also looked at Halford's Carerra TdF which is often discounted to around £250 (and if you loin British Cycling you can get another 10% off), so that might be worth looking at, too.
here's the review of the Forme I wrote for by blog in case you're interested:
http://fortywheels.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/review-forme-longcliffe-50.html

I have a 2012 specialized allez with new wheels,new shimano claris groupset.its just been totally serviced and cost £400 to be done.i'd accept £300 for it

I ride a carrera during the winter, the virtuoso rather than the zelos, and am very happy with it. Wouldn't have bought a Halfords bike, but my work's cycle2work scheme steered me that way, and i'm glad i did.

Note that I would avoid paying full RRP for Halfords bikes - they regularly put them on sale, which coupled with cycle2work made it a good deal.

Or, just get the Triban

+1 for the second hand on ebay recommendation.

I got a lovely bike for my mate off ebay, a BH with carbon forks and seatstays, and full 105 groupset (except cranks), for £250. Took a few weeks though!

The Zelos would do a job. It's "ok", nothing more, and unfortunately you should expect that it will require some TLC now and again due to cheap components.

I'd go with a Triban 3 as suggested. Or beg/borrow £100 off my mum and get a 2013 CAAD8 with 2300 or Trek 1.1...

3 things I'd spot at a quick glance.

1) tektro brakes rather than no named brand. Especially if they are the same ones as on the TdF as they have cartridge blocks for improved braking. If you go in store have a look.

2) the sti shifters (as in that they are integrated with brake levers) rather than the horrible looking thumbshifters near the stem on all 3 other bikes.

3) branded tyres rather than nameless rubber that more than likely won't be up to much.

I'd still say the red Triban is better but its another £30 (nothing for getting carbon forks) but its red!

Anyone know why the white triban 3 doesn't have a carbon fork? Or its not listed with one anyway!

As much as the triban is a starter bike, I put a full 105 groupo on mine last year and came in 19th in my category at the Manchester Great Cycle last year, and even though I have other "better" bikes its still my favorite....probably because its red

Yeah - harsh but fair I'm afraid. If you can save up a bit longer and buy something a little more expensive

Your other alternative is to keep an eye out for decent 2nd hand bikes.

Also, I know you're currently bikeless but September to November is a really good time to buy bikes as shops are flogging off that year's models in Sales. Often lots of bargains to be had around then