The Ouzo Posted October 13, 2022 Posted October 13, 2022 My cycling friend wants to buy a new road bike. I suggested to him to send me a link to anything that caught his eye and I would try and get more info. He sent me this link https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/item/road-bikes/591997/giant-propel-excellent-condition From what I can see the bike is circa 2014. But what bothers me though is the info I'm finding on the net shows this bike having more aero wheels and di2. From the pics it looks like its in good condition though. What say the hub ?
agilwolf Posted October 13, 2022 Posted October 13, 2022 Depending on the derivative, the Propel came with Aero Rims & Di2 (Advanced 1 I think), or Alu Rims with Ultegra (Advanced 2). There is also a difference in the Carbon materials used between the derivatives. I ride the 2016 Advanced 2, and upgraded my rims as funds became available. It came standard with the 34/50 Chainwheel set, which I changed over to the 36/52. Thus far no issues. The bike in the advert looks in good nick. DieselnDust and Steven Knoetze (sk27) 2
robbybzgo Posted October 13, 2022 Posted October 13, 2022 How experienced is your friend? I ask coz the propel is more aero and a more harsh ride. The frame might also be limited to 25mm tyres where 28 is seemingly preferred these days. If he is new to road riding then a more compliant frame might be a better choice. The advertised bike looks in reasonably good condition but I think a long test ride might be the deciding factor here...
The Ouzo Posted October 13, 2022 Author Posted October 13, 2022 Thanks gents. He is not new to riding (we've been riding together since the late 90's), but like me is getting on in years, so a more compliant ride might be better. With the bike being in CPT and him in JHB a test ride is not an option.
agilwolf Posted October 13, 2022 Posted October 13, 2022 5 minutes ago, robbybzgo said: How experienced is your friend? I ask coz the propel is more aero and a more harsh ride. The frame might also be limited to 25mm tyres where 28 is seemingly preferred these days. If he is new to road riding then a more compliant frame might be a better choice. The advertised bike looks in reasonably good condition but I think a long test ride might be the deciding factor here... The Frame is indeed limited to 25mm tyres. I've never ridden another carbon framed bike, so I'm not able to comment on the "compliance / harshness" of the ride. At 49yrs, my bones are still coping with the "harshness" dished out by the frame...
throttles Posted October 13, 2022 Posted October 13, 2022 Bike looks good and value for money imo. Whats the fitness level of the rider and whats his preferred positioning on the bike? - Some like sitting in the drops, hoods, top of handlebar.. I'm 106kg and ride an aero bike, I've done the DC and many 130+km rides on it with no issue.
The Ouzo Posted October 13, 2022 Author Posted October 13, 2022 ok it looks like some more info on the rider is needed. He has never had a proper fitting bike, always made do with what he could get. Different hardtails MTB, and over the last 10 or so years a cheap ill fitting road bike. He doesnt like to spend money. He has a bad back though, so something a little less aggressive is probably what he needs to get. He hardly ever rides in the drops (but that could also be the ill fitting bike). His goal is to do an ironman, so has been using a coach. Obviously input from her and the rest of the team has made him see the need for something a little better than what he has. Doesnt NEED carbon, budget was originally only R10k, but whatever he gets needs to last him 10 years, so the more modern the better. I think he will do well with modern compact gearing too.
The Ouzo Posted October 13, 2022 Author Posted October 13, 2022 ok well it looks like he is wanting to go ahead with this bike.
agilwolf Posted October 13, 2022 Posted October 13, 2022 It is a good "starting point" if his end goal is Ironman ...
The Ouzo Posted October 13, 2022 Author Posted October 13, 2022 4 minutes ago, agilwolf said: It is a good "starting point" if his end goal is Ironman ... I dont think he wants to go the full TT bike route so I think this will work well. And if he doesnt enjoy it I doubt he'll lose to much selling again.
agilwolf Posted October 13, 2022 Posted October 13, 2022 27 minutes ago, The Ouzo said: I dont think he wants to go the full TT bike route so I think this will work well. And if he doesnt enjoy it I doubt he'll lose to much selling again. Correct
EddieV Posted October 13, 2022 Posted October 13, 2022 (edited) 2 hours ago, The Ouzo said: ok it looks like some more info on the rider is needed. He has never had a proper fitting bike, always made do with what he could get. Different hardtails MTB, and over the last 10 or so years a cheap ill fitting road bike. He doesnt like to spend money. He has a bad back though, so something a little less aggressive is probably what he needs to get. He hardly ever rides in the drops (but that could also be the ill fitting bike). His goal is to do an ironman, so has been using a coach. Obviously input from her and the rest of the team has made him see the need for something a little better than what he has. Doesnt NEED carbon, budget was originally only R10k, but whatever he gets needs to last him 10 years, so the more modern the better. I think he will do well with modern compact gearing too. At 57.5cm "top tube" the bike is close to XL? How tall is your friend, and what is his inseam measurement? I see there is still space to lift the handlebars a bit. Also check with seller whether the seatpost had been cut? It's a unique seatpost, so not easy to replace. Well done for assisting your buddy. Edited October 13, 2022 by EddieV
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