Too often people are looking at the price and not the quality of the road bike when they are in the market to buy. Price is important but it is probably more important that you get quality for the price you pay.
Your search for a new road bicycle must begin with certain answers addressed first.
Used-vs-New
There is no shortage of used road bikes on the market today. Craigslist is one of those places and has hundreds available for sale in every imaginable category and price range. If you finances are tight then this may be your only option. The obvious problem with purchasing a used road bike is that you don’t really know how many miles it was ridden and what problems the previous owner had with the bike. Even if the bike appears to be clean and in good shape there may still be small stress fractures that may cause a catastrophic failure.
You must look carefully at the components to see if you can see obvious wear on the metal. Everything wears out, but it is the amount of wear and how quickly it wears out that must be taken into consideration. The frame has to be looked at with a careful eye because if there is a small crack in the weld the bike will be virtually worthless.
Components can be changed provided you are willing to do the work yourself. You have the choice of having your local bike shop do this for you but it will cost you considerably more. These are just some of the concerns when you buy a used bike. Not to mention the injuries you could get if the bike had a structural failure while you were out riding your new used bike.
Low Price vs Medium Price
There are three price ranges for road bikes, but for the sake of this article we will only discuss the mid and lower range road bikes. These bikes range in price from 200 dollars - 400 dollars for the lower priced bikes and 400 - 1200 for the mid priced bikes. Now you may say that 1200 dollars is a lot of money for a mid range priced road bike but when you take into consideration that you could pay upwards of 10,000 dollars for a higher priced road bike it doesn’t seem so high.
The difference among these types of road bikes is the quality of their components including the tires, seat, derailleur, crank and frame. Simply put, the bikes will be as different as night and day. Although you will be probably be getting a Shimano derailleur on both bikes you will be not be getting the Shimano XTR Shadow on the low priced road bike. This is true for most of the bike’s components. If it doesn’t matter to you then by all means get the inexpensive bike as opposed to the more expensive road bike. An example would be, if you couldn’t afford the higher priced Schwinn Laguna you could instead purchase the less expensive Lamborghini Rapido. Both are quality road bikes and for a beginner the Rapido may be just what the doctor ordered. If you can afford something in between, the Tommaso Monza is the road bike for you.
Repair Costs
If you factor in the cost of replacement for the cheaper components you have to ask yourself what you really saved by buying the cheaper road bike. If you needed to replace the derailleur you can expect to pay somewhere in the neighborhood of 100 to 200 dollars depending on the cost of the derailleur and who does the work for you. The same holds true for most of the components on the bike. The original price of the road bike will be far exceeded by the cost to replace it’s components.
You will find that with most things you buy the cheaper it is, the cheaper it is.
