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Trek 1.2 advice

by newleaf
Mon, Apr 24, 2017 08:26
8

I brought a Specilazied Allez E5 over the weekend but took it back as I didn't like it,  a mixutre of wrong size and bike not set up right by Evans Cycles and consequently gears slipped badly on hill climbs, now suffering bad back because of this.  My fault for buying online and should have gone to my local bike shop.  

I currently have a Btwin Triban 500 which is good but the wheels, brakes are not good if it was just that I would upgraded but it also has a tripple set gears and I feel if i want to progress i should move up to  a compact groupset.  I am thinking of keeping and using this bike as a winter bike.

So coming back to the thread title I'm looking at the Trek 1.2 as one of my local bike shops sell Trek, actually they only sell Trek, but it is close to me and that would be great for getting the bike set up and tweeked in the first few weeks.  I have read that the brakes and tyres really let the bike down however, if I upgraded these however will it be a decent bike to last me a few years?  I mainly do cyclying on my own for fitness, last week did 70km but building slowy and hope to join a local cycling club to improve my fitness and get more out of my cycling.  

Are there any other bikes i should be looking at in this price range?  Other bikes that have caught my eye are the  raleigh criterium sport but local bike says they are out of stock and very dificult to get hold of at the moment, also looked at the Decalthan B'TWIN TRIBAN 540 ROAD BIKE, GREY/BLACK - 105 but again they are out of stock and nearest store is around 35 miles away so don't fancy trips back and forth to get it set up right or if there are any problems.

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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8 comments

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newleaf | 7 years ago
1 like

Thanks for all the replies, lots to think about and after visiting my local Trek dealer I think I have ruled out the 1.2, did not like the handlebars for one and also owner of shop kept on trying to sell me a different bike, so back to the drawing board.

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beezus fufoon | 7 years ago
1 like

you can learn to set up the bike quite easily - lots of you tube tutorials - don't rely on evans or decathlon to do it right

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Grahamd | 7 years ago
0 likes

Distance to a good bike shop should not be a consideration IMHO. You would be better served asking which good bike shops are near to you and visiting a few.

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Johnnyvee | 7 years ago
0 likes

Personally if I were you I'd try everything you could get hold of rather than buy what you think is right. As others have said triple chainset is not a major difference, tyres and brakes can all be changed.  Halford, Evans and all decent bike shops will let you test ride and if you're thinking of joining a cycling club you may even want to go along with what you have a they will all have bikes too and some may let you test thiers.

Buy what brings a smile to your face rather than what you think could - you'll ride it far more. 

Only my opinion of course.

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multimodal | 7 years ago
0 likes

I've got a 2016 Trek 1.2. I love it.

I changed the brake blocks rather than the callipers and changed the tyres to conti gatorskins. Both have proved very good upgrades for my mix of commuting and training rides. I also changed the saddle but that's more a personal choice.

It's a great, reliable bike but I think with bikes fit is key so try and take one out for a spin. 

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BehindTheBikesheds | 7 years ago
0 likes

Why do you think a triple set up is holding back your progress, whatever 'progress' is?

Anyway, have you actually taken some measurements/contact points from the Triban so you can ensure that bikes you're going to test can be set up to what you want instead of guessing? Did you actually adjust the bike when you received it to match those measurements, if not, why not?

Important measurements are;

Floor to top of saddle, nose of saddle to centre of stem clamp, bar height from floor to top. once you  have those and can replicate them in a store then whatever size frame it is it'll work for you without giving you grief and you can make fine adjustments later. that is IF your current set up is correct in any case.

I'm not sure what your budget is but a Giant Defy with Ultegra 11 speed STIs and some 105 level/non series components can be had for £750 https://www.paulscycles.co.uk/m7b0s6p6992/GIANT-DEFY-0-2016

 

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Man of Lard | 7 years ago
2 likes

Tyres - consumable - use what's fitted and if you don't like them, change them. Otherwise use them until they wear out and change them.

 

Brakes - blocks are consumables - no big deal to change them. Calipers aren't exactly big cash if you wanted to change those too... 

 

End of the day, there is always someone on an internet forum who is happy to spend (your) money on an "upgrade" that may actually be a downgrade or exactly the same.

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Simon E | 7 years ago
2 likes

"I have read that the brakes and tyres really let the bike down"

I'd take that with a pinch of salt but in both cases you can easily replace them with better ones. On some models merely replacing the brake pads and the tyres will make a big difference to how it feels.

All the big brands have similarly specced models at each price point and they're all very, very good. It comes down to which feels best for you, and that's a personal decision. If you want to consider other brands then I suggest you visit some more bike shops.

A compact chainset is not necessarily better than a triple, it's just a different set of ratios to cover the same range.

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