Dawes Giro 300

"Brian Innes" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Any thoughts on the Dawes Giro 300?

Looking at this it looks like a good bike for road use (and at a painfully
expensive price just above my budget)

Any Dawes riders?

I'm not sure, but I think the 300 is the drop bar version of the 200. I have
a Giro 200 which has flat bars but skinny wheels/tyres and a road bike like
frame, as well as a triple chainset. I bought the 200 to go out on road
rides with road bike riding friends - it does the job well. I paid £270 for
the 200 but have seen them new on eBay for £220 and at the moment there is a
300 for £100 - start bid.

So far (6 months) the Dawes has been excellent, especially when you consider
it cost less than a decent disc brake kit for a MTB.

John

I have a two year old example. It is well made and comes with excellent
parts. I especially like the extremely durable paint finish (powder
coat base coat and coventional top coat).

This is not my first, each has been well made and exceptional value for
money.

I don't think you'll be disappointed. Buy one from a proper dealer so
you get the correct size.

Brian Innes said:

Any thoughts on the Dawes Giro 300?

Looking at this it looks like a good bike for road use (and at a
painfully expensive price just above my budget)

Any Dawes riders?

Some Edinburgh Bicycle Coop bikes are made up from Dawes frames rebadged as
the shop's own brand. It's not underhand, I got a Dawes manual with my
Edinburgh Continental. I think the 2000 Continental had the same f and f as
the Dawes 200 at that time. I'm still riding it almost every day. It has
been pretty reliable. Newer Dawes would address the main problem I have with
the Continental which is its weight. I think the Giro 300 is probably a lot
lighter which counts for quite a lot more than I realised at the time.

Tom.

in message <[email hidden]>, Brian Innes

(') said:

Any thoughts on the Dawes Giro 300?

Looking at this it looks like a good bike for road use (and at a
painfully expensive price just above my budget)

Not bad. Dawes generally aren't. But the Claud Butler Roubaix, at about
the same price and with generally reasonable kit, has a carbon fibre
fork which will tend to give a more comfortable ride. Also, do not
ignore what's available second hand - £350 will buy a very nice bike
second hand.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/
;; Sending your money to someone just because they've erected
;; a barrier of obscurity and secrets around the tools you
;; need to use your data does not help the economy or spur
;; innovation. - Waffle Iron Slashdot, June 16th, 2002

" do not ignore what's available second hand - £350 will buy a very
nice bike second hand. "

In my personal experience it is extremely difficult to find a second
hand example of the make, model and size of bike you are looking for
within a sensible distance of home, available for viewing at a time you
are available in good condition. I would be pleased to know if someone
has solved this conundrum.

Quoted message said:

" do not ignore what's available second hand - £350 will buy a very
nice bike second hand. "

In my personal experience it is extremely difficult to find a second
hand example of the make, model and size of bike you are looking for
within a sensible distance of home, available for viewing at a time you
are available in good condition. I would be pleased to know if someone
has solved this conundrum.

I accept I was lucky, but I bought a second-hand, very low mileage, Chas
Roberts tourer from the original owner for a lot less than half the
original price. Tracked it down within 15 miles of my place when I
needed a tourer quickly as I was going on a bike holiday only to find a
few weeks before that my existing tourer had a cracked frame. The
Roberts is the best bike I've ever owned or ridden.

--
Joe * If I cannot be free I'll be cheap

Quoted post said:

Originally Posted by [email hidden]

" do not ignore what's available second hand - £350 will buy a very
nice bike second hand. "

In my personal experience it is extremely difficult to find a second
hand example of the make, model and size of bike you are looking for
within a sensible distance of home, available for viewing at a time you
are available in good condition. I would be pleased to know if someone
has solved this conundrum.

Yes, I agree, but persevere with it. I just bought a Dawes 300 giro 2013 ladies described as needing TLC, but all it needed was a new front tyre fitting and the saddle re-assembling properly. Got it off Ebay for £103, am delighted with it, almost exactly the sort of spec I was looking for ( might have preferred a triple on the front given the choice, but this was fine) .

Set up your searches and notifications, and keep checking regularly. Yes you often have to ask some questions, especially about frame sizes, but you'll get something right for you eventually. Now is a great time to be looking , and 'TLC' ones can be a real bargain if you don't mind doing a bit of basic maintenance or repair work