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Where to get entry-level road bikes?

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  1. #1

    I am quite happy with Flying Ball Bicycle - I assume they should have something close to your price range

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  2. #2

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    28bike.com, though these days you have to wade through a lot of advertising spam from retaillers.

    Think of it this way if you want to keep it simple: A road bike has remained essentially unchanged in design for over a century. It's two rigid triangles holding a couple of wheels. You get an aluminium frame, then the differences are what standard the components are (105 is good, achievable cheaply on secondhand bikes).

    Decathlon is actually an okay brand to look at. As are Giant and Merida. But you just get whatever aluminium frame, brand is unimportant, and look at the components.

    If you can find an old Giant SCR/TCR that'd be a good basic road bike. Most important thing is that it fits.

    Also: Flying Ball is just as high end as Sky Blue, possibly moreso on the mountain biking side of things.

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  3. #3

  4. #4

    I got into (MTB) biking last year - and love it.

    Let me comment:
    Flying Ball is very good, not cheap though, not much choice below 8000, but good to see what is available in all ranges - and they have LOTS OF BIKES. Decathlon has only a very small selection, not worthwhile I think.

    There are a few smaller bike stores I know. The one in Hang Hau is quite good.

    Alternately you can buy in the UK. Since they deduct the VAT it's sort of the same price here, INCLUDING delivery! Check Wiggle or chainreactioncycles. Will be including delivery cheaper than HK.

    My Vitus MTB was imported from Wiggle (29ers are hard to find here), but I bought it 2nd hand via Facebook marketplace. An new HK$8000 bike for 3500. Carousell has many bikes too. I suggest to not buy anything that costs new below US$ 1000 - you will have substandard parts that will bring issues with rust etc.

    A good value for money would be Giant, they have a wide range.

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  5. #5
    Original Post Deleted
    I am from Saikung area, near Ho Chung, that is my area. Up Ho Chung, sometimes all the way to Kowloon Viewpoint, often to Saikung City via that nature reserve (no main road at all). Quite a lot of trails around with low traffic.
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  6. #6

  7. #7

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    Original Post Deleted
    This is generally not an issue with entry level bikes. They are made of aluminium, so any serious crashes will leave obvious marks- huge dents- in addition to paint damage.

    If you are worried about invisible damage, that's usually related to carbon (and with regards to handlebars, typically overtightened stem clamps if the installer did not use a torque wrench).

    Steel and titanium are the classically durable materials, but steel is rare in HK, and titanium is expensive.

    If you want to trust a road bike, I would say that it's more important to go over it mechanically yourself than whether it is new or secondhand. With road bikes, I would always prefer secondhand because they are just so simple and the market is surprising good here- most buyers don't push their equipment hard at all, and upgrade (or ditch the sport) often. Mountain bikes are vastly more complicated these days.
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  8. #8

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    Wun Pang Bicycle in Yuen Long, right next to the Long Ping MTR station - MERIDA.

    https://www.google.com/maps/place/Wu...!4d114.0283334

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  9. #9

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    Cycling is yet another place where so many people buy for bling instead of what is right for them. The most comfortable rides are on steel or titanium bikes, the least are carbon and alu yet so many people are obsessed with carbon. Carbon is light but stiff and more likely to cause injuries both because it's relatively fragile to impact and because of the vibration transmitted. I would never ever buy a used carbon bike.

    Check with Maxway if you can order one of their steel frames, buy a Shimano 105 groupset a pair of wheels with Kinlin rims and Novatec Hubs and you'll have a new lightweight performing and comfortable bike that could last you a lifetime set up for you. It'll be around 10000HKD though. My first Columbus SL steel bike lasted me 25 years, countless races and well over 100 000km now I'm on my second steel bike that's getting close to the same age and mileage and I have a titanium that's about 10 years old. If you buy a bike that's already put together and it's cheap, watch where corners were cut(mixed groupset with cheaper parts, wheels). I'm a big fan of Schwalbe tires which can be ordered from Chainreactions at a good price. I like the Pro One, smoothy ride and very rarely punctures though I'm tubeless now so I never have to worry about it.

    https://www.maxway-cycles.com/
    https://bdopcycling.com/

    If you pay less , you're starting to get into slightly less reliable parts and chinese alu frame like the Java Veloce 2 and maybe Shimano Tiagra or Claris. You could also get this chinese groupset Sensah Empire but it has mixed reviews.

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  10. #10

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    Hard to argue with the first one... it's dirt cheap and whilst the parts won't impress roadies, they are simple and hard to mess up.

    Stay away from that second one though- Aliexpress special, low QC carbon (if you are afraid of random parts snapping) and unbranded hydro disc brakes that with who knows what sort of mystery failure modes cropping up.
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