Boardman Comp (08)
BikeRadar verdict
"Superb value for money at just £599"
The Boardman Comp is the entry-level model in the new range of bikes that Chris Boardman, former Olympic gold medallist, has brought to the market in collaboration with Bikehut at Halfords. Currently Boardman bikes are available only in the UK and Ireland.
FRAME
The Boardman uses 7000 series tubing that is vertically ovalised at the head of the down-tube and twists along its length through 90 degrees to where it attaches to the bottom bracket. The black finish is excellent and the attractive diamond-to-round profiled top-tube has a boss underneath for attaching a race number that is mandatory for UCI sanctioned races abroad, and mimics that of bikes used by Chris during his time as a professional. Boardman frames are available in four sizes that are based upon the effective horizontal top-tube dimension ranging from 54-58.5cm.
EQUIPMENT
The Boardman comes with a Ritchey Comp handlebar and stem and the combined weight of the groupset and finishing kit is a cool 745g lighter than the rival Pinnacle Sentinal 1.0, and 554g lighter than the Cube Aerial Comp. Shimano Tiagra is used on the Boardman, together with a 105 rear mech that gives added value and while designed for a 10-speed system, it works well across the 9-speed cassette.
The Truvativ Elita two-piece compact chainset looks like it should be on a bike costing twice the price, although we would like to see the Comp also made available with a triple chainset. The Boardman saddle - made by Velo, was popular among the testers.
WHEELS
The combined weight of the Boardman's tyres, cassette and Ritchey Comp wheels is just 2,920g and they are the only wheels on bikes in this price group to use cartridge bearing hubs, which are generally better quality than traditional ball and cone bearings. The black spokes - 20 front and 24 rear - look good with their aerodynamic elliptical cross section, and remained perfectly true throughout testing. The Continental Ultra Sport tyres are of the cheaper steel-beaded type but the tread grips well wet or dry.
HANDLING
At a recent press launch, Chris Boardman said that his 19.7lb Comp bike was lighter than the Eddy Merckx bike that he started his professional cycling career on back in 1993, and we wouldn't disagree with him. The forks are certainly light, and though we were expecting there to be a point at which they showed their limitations on fast descents, if there was, we never reached it. The Boardman's frame is marginally stiffer than its direct competitors from Cube and Pinnacle and a lighter overall weight than its Specialized rival the Allez Sport. It might not be the liveliest of rides but it scores on composure.
Verdict
In his prime, Chris Boardman was unbeatable on the short, sharp efforts of a hillclimb and the Comp reflects that with its lightness. While we weren't expecting to break records for frame weight, at this price point the equipment level, wheels spec and low overall weight places it firmly in the best buy category. We'd change the stem for a longer one, but at £599 it's hard for all but the most heavily discounted bikes to beat, and sets a new benchmark.
User Reviews
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
Ive had this bike for 6 weeks and it is awesome. I was buying on a certain budget and the Boardman fit the bill on cost, looks and spec!!
The bike was very well set up on collection and after a 30min fit I rode it 30 miles home with no trouble.
It is a comfortable and sturdy ride and even with a compact chainset I have not failed an ascent yet.
Do not be put off by the retailer, the bike is extremely good value for money and a joy to ride!!
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
I have the Hybrid version of the comp series and i'm been more than happy. Its an excellent bike, well balanced and fast too. I did have a slight issue with Halfords, but they we're excellent in rectifying it. Had it 6 weeks and done 600 miles of very enjoyable riding.
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
Have just bought a boardman bike, i love it and it is very well specced!
Halfords in Weston on the other hand are letting Boardman down and they were not providing a service up to the standard of the bike. Not only did they able to fit the bike up properly, but they also were either to lazy or had no knowledge to be able to put the bike together, making it both unsafe and no were near to standard of quality of the bike.
I am about to take it back for a refund. Is there anywhere else more professional i can buy it, and anyone else got any simular experiance..please reply.
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
As chance would have it, just visited Halfords Weston this evening and am on cusp of purchasing comp. Thought I'd better check reviews first though, glad I did! Will print out Oli... review and show it to staff/manager prior to purchase. Will let you all know how I get on.
Is this a common problem? Should Boardman have lent his name to Halfords (The BeWise of bike shops?)
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
fabulous value for money and a joy to ride , i would also have to say that the halfords store in belfast that i got it from where pretty good . bike was well built and set up and they where very helpful as i needed it in a hurry.
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
This looks like the bike for me especially considering the spec compared to other similar priced bikes but the frame doesn't look compact. This will be my first road bike so am i going to be able to do 60 miles on it without killing my back & neck? Currently ride an old mountain bike with road tyres 20/30 on a saturday & sunday.
Must also admit to some reservations with Hlafords so i may try a Bikehut instead?
Any helpful feedback would be appreciated and gratefully received.
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
Just got mine - great bike, especially for the money. Nice ride too - very assured on the descents, very light on the ascents. Much more comfortable than my old road bike (admittedly a rather old steel framed model!). Local Halfords service pretty nondescript. Bike competently put together, but needed a few tweaks before riding. Staff offered nothing more than handing me the bike. Didn't really expect much more though.
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
It is a cracking bike, which seems to fly up inclines. Very comfortable ride from day 1.
Not had the greatest experience with Halfords (I was committed to them because my employer is in their cycle2work scheme) but at the price/the bike being unavailable elsewhere... went with them.
Went out on it for a quick spin yesterday (done about 50 miles on it), braking lightly at a junction - the front brake mechanism came off. Bike is now in a local bike shop, with a very smug bloke giving me "I told you so" look. Basically - buy the bike and then take it to a bike shop and have it set up/looked over properly. Compared to my old bike it is like going from a Ford Model T to a DB9 and I would not know where to start. I do know how put a bolt through a front fork and turn it through 6 or 7 rotations though!
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
I got this bike at the weekend and after setting it up (see below) took it for a 20 mile ride. It's a stiff and composed mount and I got the sensation that all my leg work was going into forward motion, coming to hills the rigid frame inspired me to fly up there and I didn't quit (take the lower gears that is) on any incline between Coventry and Birmingham. Going downhill I was into the drops and feeling in control at high speed, no wobbles or 'crikey' moments while caning it in top gear.
The bike looks excellent, and it's stupidly light for something of this price.
The downside, as already mentioned by other posters is Halfords and their lax staff (i hesitate to use the word mechanics). The bike as picked up from Leamington Halfords had a number of safety critical deficiencies in the set up, as well as poorly set up gears and cosmetic things like untrimmed cables. This was despite the young bikehut staff member assuring me the bike was 'set up and ready to ride'. Fortunatley I took this with a pinch of salt and being fairly good with bikes i set it up myself after getting home (I'm pretty experience with bikes but appreciate that doesn't apply to everyone)
I find it worrying that Halfords can release a bike as 'ready to ride' with a loose stem, no air in the tyres and slack brakes. On a machine that is capable of high speeds on road, these guys need to get it together big time, they are endangering riders as well as letting down an excellent range of bikes.
I highly recommend this bike, I also recommend you take it to your local bike shop and get a proper fitting and set up instead of leaving it in the hands of halfords!!
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
Hi,
i have ridden my Boardman for 800 miles now and the rear wheel bearing is loose,i called Halfords who tell me it has some adjustment but can't get it booked in for about 6 weeks,Anybody know how to do it.The only fault with the bike is the fact that Halfords sell it and not a decent bike shop.
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
If you need to have your boardman setup properly, use bikehut instead of halfords. Speak to the staff in the shop to garner how much riding they do themselves and what sort of bike they ride themselves. If they commute in or ride at weekends, then they should be competent at putting a bike together.
Anyway, that is my experience with Bikehut in Putney, South West London.
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
I have to agree with all the comments about both this bike and Halfords/ Bikehut.
The bike is an amazing piece of kit full stop, let alone for the price. I put 1000 miles on mine before it needed any mechanical attention. Granted I had it trimmed up here and there at my local specialist a couple of times but they even commented on the quality of it.
The only let down were the brakes. I know it is to do with price point so I can't be too critical, but considering the pace this thing is capable of the brakes may as well have been made of fudge. Anyone buying this needs to budget for at least a set of 105 quality callipers. The factory fitted units just aren't safe in my honest opinion and experience using them.
Halfords and the in house Bikehuts are the weakest link in the chain. I tried my hardest to defend them both with this Boardman and my new carbon model, but I echo Boshy's comments and then some. Set up was terrible and the mistake made would have resulted in serious injury had they not been spotted by my local shop. The list of work required was so extensive I threatened to take Halfords to the small claims court for the costs of putting it right. They refunded me eventually after a letter from the shop who carried out the work, but had the same experience recently with my new £1500 Boardman. Off the point of the review but critical in my opinion.
Especially when after talking at length to the senior mechanic about previous my experience with this bike, he assured me "the attention to detail is now much higher"....!
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
What a great bike this is, I got mine for £499.00 in the sale and a further 10% off making it just £450.00. I purchased mine from Bikehut in Twickenham and have to say they did a great job of setting it up. The only downside for me up against my old trusty Dawes ultra plus is that you cannot fit a full set of mudguards for winter commuting, I did know this before i bought it but did not think it would matter to much, I have fitted quick release ones but they are no where near as good as full ones. The bike Is superb in every respect and rides like a dream and I cannot wait for the summer to fully appreciate it. I am 6' 2 and ride the large size which is just right for me. If you have any doubts as whether to buy one then dont, you will not regret it.
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
I have only had this a short while and so perhaps consider this a provisional review (hence the 4 stars).
The discounts available before Xmas made this a very attractive offer and the spec. when compared to competitors (even Giant and Focus) is excellent. Compare it also to 2009 bikes and it is even better.
My first ride experience was excellent, though Bikehut didn't convince me that they are fully able to support this brand - at least not in the stores I visited in Essex. The bars weren't facing the same direction as the front wheel, which ok was easy to sort, but why did I have to point it out to the Bikehut sales assistant? Surely, given the difference in angle he could see that? Perhaps they are building bikes for roundabouts?
There was a little nick of a scratch on the bars that earned a £20 discount and I have since got a LBS to fit replacement pedals. I may forgo my free 1st service and get this done at the same LBS as I would hate for Bikehut to end up doing more harm than good. It seems that the store you visit and who is on duty makes a big difference if you read all the user opinions. Don't bother contacting Boardman as they just reiterate what should be happening and say they will remind the stores etc.
In use the ride is firm and the bike feels so light and agile coming from an MTB. On poorly surfaced roads you will notice the rigidity but I can't say that this is any more than on comparable road bikes. I guess that I will have to get used to anticipating pot holes and rough surfaces earlier and, where possible, avoid them. The repaired surfaces of utility firm's digging work seems very poor locally and I wasn't enjoying taking the Boardman over that.
Gear changes are pretty smooth and braking is okay so far. If you are a short-arse like me you might not be able to get a Topeak or similar saddle bag to fit under the seat due to where the common saddle bags have their fittings. An answer to this that I discovered are the excellent bags from Scicon that you can get via Wiggle and maybe elsewhere too. I haven't seen another of these locally yet and I must say that I'm really enjoying the experience of road cycling on the Boardman; it is so fluid and, obviously, transmits your power on the road so much better than a heavy MTB, as I used previously, would. The saddle is quite hard and I am going to live with it for a while to see if my backside can adjust, especially since I may move the saddle height up a bit yet and this may affect my comfort. If you are an MTBer don't be concerned about drop bars. I found them to be very natural, offering a variety of positions, though I can only reach the brakes form two and the gears form one, but swapping between seems easy. The new 2009 range also looks great and if I won the lottery I would stick with this brand and get the carbon model later on.
So far - very good.
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
Used my Boardman Comp for over a year for nice sunday rides as well as for my Triathlon racing. The bike has been absolutely excellent and there really is no faults at all I can think of.
The only piece of advice I would offer is that if your not confident with maintaining and checking the bike yourself then use your local bike shop as the service from Halfords does not always inspire confidence. Having said that I have just upgraded to the 09 Team Carbon and it is stunning but I also received excellent service from the staff at the Hereford branch. So I think it may be a case of suck it and see. Certainly wouldn't tell anyone to steer clear of Halfords as they would miss out on some cracking bikes.
Also ignore the many bike snobs on forums such as this. If some brand minded idiot wants to belittle a bike sold by Halfords and bearing the name of one of our most famous Olympic medalists then they must truly be ignorant.
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
Like stardelta I got mine for just £440 due to a few minor blemishes, and as I'm fairly new to cycling I may not be very qualified to comment as I have little to compare it against but I do have to say I'm very impressed, it's superlight (compared to my clapped out old mountain bike!), really smooth and I think it looks pretty smart too but the gears needed adjusting and the handlebars were not in-line with the front wheel (sound familiar?!) after I picked it up, but these are just minor niggles. Recent weather has made it difficult to get much riding done but I'm really looking forward to getting some miles under my belt.
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
Hi, got mine Dec 08 for £440 as well due to sale and vat adjustment. Drove 300 miles to collect mine and built it at home. Looks amazing and the spec for the price is amazing, still not used it though due to shocking weather in sunny Scotland and a recent knee operation so its been murder reading all the rave reviews and i have still not been out. Hopefully knee should be well enough in a couple of weeks for my maiden ride....
Anyone still looking for the 08models i found some available for £499 at the Halfords in Oxford, thats coming up the nearest to me and im in Glasgow...
Jayr
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
Great bike, superb price! Note to any members in Essex...buy one from Halford in Braintree. The bike staff provide a top service and are happy to help with any unlikely problems. Its the staff that make the store and Braintree's got it sorted!! Nice one Ben, Neil, Andy and colleagues. Dave H
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
Hi everyone just updating my previous post as i had not yet ridden the bike, but getting out finally was well worth the wait. The ride is excellent frame and fork soaking up what our crap roads could throw at it, very surprised by how comfy the saddle was and the gear changes where flawless and super fast from the Tiagra/105 combination. Ritchey Kit throughout compliments a very well put together package. Cant think of anything that comes close for this price. Get one!!!!
You wont regret it.
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
Ive had the bike for 2 months now and i agree with everyone else.... Awesome ride and great price. bought an 08 comp for £500 from exeter halfords.
Must admit there were a couple little tweaks needed when i took it out for the first spin but Adam and Rob in Halfords Sowton know their stuff and sorted it instantly whilst i was waiting.
I think the whole halfords thing just depends on who serves you and who buildsand pre delivery checks the bike... every company has good and bad staff... unfortunatley halfords do tend to emplys bike hut staff that dont know squat about bikes!!! but as i said get a good staff member serving/building for you and your fairly safe. Many thanks to Rob and Adam.
Im not i roady by any means i tend to ride mountain bike xc and freeride stuff mainly plus alway used to commute on a BMX (more fun round the streets ;). But i must admit its probably the best 500 quid i have ever spent!! With the bmx i would only ride when i fancied a thrash with this boardman i use it EVERYDAY and its already pretty much paid for itself in 9 weeks!! I used to use about £60 a week in fuel now i use about 15!!!
Now ive just got to get fit enough to be happy in lycra!! Untill then i dont think i will be able to hit the elusive 50 mph... fastest if had so far is 47.5 mph and its realy bugging me that 50's teasing me soooo much!!! need to stop riding in baggy shorts and t-shirt :)
Anyway BUY A BOARMAN!! as soon as ive got my head round road ridding properly im pretty sure i will be ordering a carbon for the sunny weekend rides and keeping the comp for my winter hack :)
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0.3
User review of Boardman Comp (08)
This bike is great. Amazing value - I picked mine up for £425 from ebay.
Very light but also reliable; it took me 120 miles to the coast on the Dunwich Dynamo the other week without any problems.
Highly recommended.
Shopping partners
Specification
- Name:
- Comp (08)
- Built by:
- Boardman
- Price:
- n/a
- Available Sizes:
- L, M, S, XL
- Weight (kg):
- 8.93
- Year:
- 2008
Frame & Fork:
- Frame Material:
- Aluminium
- Frame Weight (g):
- 1657 g
- Fork Brand:
- Alloy
- Fork Offset:
- 4.5
- Fork Weight:
- 580 g
- Headset Type:
- Integrated
Geometry:
- Trail:
- 6.6 cm
Brakes:
- Brakes Brand:
- Tektro
- Brakes Model:
- Quartz dual pivot
Transmission:
- Cranks Brand:
- TruVativ
- Cranks Model:
- Elita
- Gearing:
- 36/50
- Bottom Bracket Brand:
- Truvativ
- Bottom Bracket Model:
- X-Type
- Rear Derailleur Brand:
- Shimano
- Rear Derailleur Model:
- 105
- Front Derailleur Brand:
- Shimano
- Front Derailleur Model:
- 105
- Shifters Brand:
- Shimano
- Shifters Model:
- Tiagra STI
- Chain Brand:
- Shimano
- Chain Model:
- HG53
- Cassette:
- 12-25 Tiagra
Wheels:
- Front Wheel Weight:
- 1185 g
- Rear Wheel Weight:
- 1735 g
- Rims Brand:
- Ritchey
- Rims Model:
- Comp
- Tyres Brand:
- Continental
- Front Tyre Model:
- Ultrasport
- Front Tyre Size:
- 700x23C
- Rear Tyre Model:
- Ultrasport
- Rear Tyre Size:
- 700x23C
Contact Points:
- Saddle Brand:
- Velo
- Saddle Model:
- Chromoly
- Seatpost Brand:
- Ritchey
- Stem Brand:
- Ritchey
- Stem Model:
- Comp
- Handlebar Brand:
- Ritchey
- Handlebar Model:
- Comp
:
- Chainstays (cm):
- 40.5 cm
- Top Tube (cm):
- 55.5 cm
- Standover Height (cm):
- 78 cm
- Seat Tube Angle:
- 73 Degrees
- Seat Tube (cm):
- 49 cm
- Head Tube Angle:
- 72 Degrees
- Bottom Bracket Height (cm):
- 27 cm
- Wheelbase (cm):
- 99.7 cm
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