What do I have to consider when buying a road bike?
Who wants to buy a road bike, I must first ask the question of what routes he would like to ride with it and what features the racing bike should bring. Because a racing bike is in this day and age no longer just a racing bike, but it was usually developed for a very specific purpose. There are racing bikes for sprinters, for climbers, for time trialists, for comfort lovers, for touring enthusiasts and many other types. Of course, you can also climb mountains or eat up miles with any road bike, but just not as fast or as well as with a particularly aerodynamic or light and stiff road bike that was designed for these purposes.
Ultra-light classic road bike, aero road bike or endurance road bike?
The differences between the three most popular types of racing bike aero racing bike, endurance or tour racing bike and the "classic" ultra-light racing bike are sometimes very large. Which road bike is right for you depends on the future owner.
You drive with sporty claim, gladly also times a race, and need a versatile, competition-suited companion? Then the classic racer is exactly the right choice for you. As the name suggests, the classic road bike clearly focuses on weight. Less is more in this case.
You can drive over a longer period of time a high cut, stand also times with an aero handlebar attachment in the time trial or marathon at the start? Then an aero racer is the right partner. The main focus of an aero road bike is to reduce air resistance during the ride. That's why the head tube is shorter, so the rider sits as flat and aerodynamic as possible on the bike. The eye-catching profile of aero bikes is also characterized by the thick and long frame tubes, which are often pointed or tapered at the ends. A big unique selling point of aero road bikes are also the high rim profiles that provide better aerodynamics.
You drive a lot, gladly also long tours or marathons? You attach importance to a comfortable seating position and the saddle cant of an aero road bike is too extreme? Then you are right with an endurance or touring road bike advised. The main characteristics of an endurance road bike are comfort, robustness and stability. The road bikes dampen the vibrations of the ground, which otherwise lead to faster fatigue of the rider. That is why the frames are built with higher compliance and flexibility, as well as equipped with larger tires.
What manufacturers are there?
We offer a wide selection from reputable manufacturers like BMC, CUBE, Storck, Koga and Kross. These brands impress with excellent quality and best driving characteristics.
Carbon or aluminum frame?
At the turn of the millennium, the racing bike world was seized by the carbon wave. A carbon frame is lighter, stiffer and offers more comfort because the frame reduces vibrations from the road. In addition, carbon, unlike aluminum, can be formed into any shape and made the futuristic designs modern aero racing bikes possible in the first place. For aluminum frames speaks mainly the drastic price advantage and the robustness compared to carbon. The cost advantage of aluminum counts especially when the selling price is a very important -argument for a bike. If a cheaper aluminum frame is used instead of a carbon frame, the manufacturer has more room in the overall calculation for higher-quality equipment. And with a better component group or lighter wheels, the aluminum racer is usually the better overall package on balance, compared to a similarly priced carbon road bike.
Which road bike group should I choose?
A group consists of the brakes and the drive, which in turn consists of crank, chainrings, chain, cassette, rear derailleur, front derailleur and shift levers. When it comes to choosing the right group or road bike gears, the basic principle is the more you invest, the better quality you get. The market-leading component manufacturers Shimano, SRAM and Campagnolo all have a wide selection of shift groups in their range, both mechanical and electric. The advantages of electric shifting are more precise shifting, easier operation of the shift levers, high user-friendliness and higher shifting speed. The modern groups give little to each other in terms of functionality and a choice can therefore be made only on the basis of personal preference.
Is a disc brake better than a rim brake?
Rim brakes are the classic brakes on a road bike. They have been installed for decades. Rim brakes are light and cheap compared to disc brakes. However, you need more hand power and especially in bad weather rim brakes offer a much worse braking performance. In addition, the wear of rims and brake pads is relatively high. The slightly more expensive disc brakes offer an almost consistently high braking performance in all weather conditions. However, disc brakes weigh on average up to 500g more. In addition, the frame and fork must be reinforced to withstand the loads. In terms of safety, a disc brake is always preferable to a rim brake. The braking distance is significantly lower in all weather conditions.
What do I need to consider with the wheels?
Wheels are among the most important components on a road bike. The stiffness, weight and quality of a wheel have a great influence on the performance of a road bike. Generally, the better the material from which the wheels are, the lighter and stiffer the wheelset, but also the more expensive the wheelset. Also in this category, the question arises carbon or aluminum. The use of carbon makes wheels particularly light and stiff at the same time. For this reason, carbon wheels are mostly used on the wheels of professionals, but also hobby riders rely on the direct driving feel. On the wheels of the pros are also always seen racing wheels with very high rims. The advantage of such a wheel is the lower air resistance. Due to ideal aerodynamics, the driver must apply less force to reach high speeds.
What does a good road bike cost?
As usual, when buying a road bike, the buyer gets what he pays for. It is important to ask yourself before buying, what you want to use the road bike for. For those who first want to get started in road cycling and do not want to invest so much money right away, are well advised with an inexpensive road bike model. Prices in this category start at around €900. However, if you travel a lot, want to compete and have high demands on your sports equipment, you can't avoid looking in the higher price categories. These range up to over 10000€ for masterpieces of technology with low weight and top equipment. Top material and technology have their price.