Dawes Clubman Review - BikeRadar

I can't believe this. Good review, but bite me if bike manufacturers aren't taking the absolute p*ss nowadays. Let's put this bike in context...

I bought my Focus Izalco Expert in 2007. Price? £850.

"We might have hoped for Tiagra at this price..." Understatement of the year. My bike came with full Chorus, aside from the crankset, which was an arguably even lovelier Truvativ Rouler carbon piece.

"...£849 isn't bad for a Reynolds steel-framed bike with carbon fork". My Focus is full carbon, and good quality carbon at that. The fork? Full carbon too, I suspect this Dawes fork has an alloy steerer.

"All-up weight of 10.9 isn't light.." You're not wrong there. Mine came in a shade under 7.5.

Those Dawes wheels look seriously standard. My bike came with Mavic Ksyrium Elites.

I guess Vittoria Rubinos are alright, though I've never tried them. I got Michelin Pro 3's.

I also got carbon levers, even FSA carbon spacers, the lot. Apparently this Dawes saddle is slightly suspect. I got a Selle Italia SLR. Superlight and the wrong shape for me, so I changed it, but still a top saddle with a Kevlar base. Worth about £60 on it's own.

Admittedly this is not a like-for-like comparison. It's tricky to compare carbon to steel, but frames aside and in terms of spec at least, there's no contest.

Yes I got a hell of a deal on my bike. But with a bit of patience and research I found a bargain, so it IS possible. But what I've witnessed over the last 4 years is shocking. Spec levels have decreased dramatically to the point where people are having to (supposedly) fork out good sums of money for sub-standard bikes. But if you have no price comparison or context, you wouldn't know you were paying over the odds. The Dawes may well be a lovely ride, but it's not worth £850. Focus bikes have been pro-tour machines for a few years now. I don't see Dawes up there. It's fabulous to see so many new riders out, but I feel they're getting sorely ripped off, with bike manufacturers just seeing the dollar signs and riding the gravy train.

If you're thinking of buying a new bike, reviews are a great starting point but for everyone's sake, look, research and ferret around for the best deal. The more of us that by these bikes at the asking price, the more the manufacturers will think they can get away with it. And the next year, the spec levels will drop further as they test the waters again. Those irresistible forces of supply and demand unfortunately. We deserve better value.

To look at it another way, if I'd bought several new models of my bike at that time and at that price, even 4 years later, I reckon I'd still be able to sell each one today for £1k easy, in brand new condition. There's something horribly wrong with that thought...

The reason is economics.....

I didnt intend posting a comment here, but after reading the ridiculously pointless comments (or should i say, ranting) by itchierichie, i felt i should say something!.

1st, your bike was purchased as you say in 2007 on a discounted price of £850, well maybe you aint noticed, but this is 2011!. Prices of things in general, including bikes, have gone up considerably, at least they have in my world. So your beloved focus, were it still available today, would almost certainly be retailing at more than £2000.

2nd, banging on about how customers are being ripped off by poorly specced bikes, is i suspect, some way short of the truth. The fact that bikes are being offered with lower specs is an inevitable result of the higher prices of the equipment. Bike makers wanting to sell a decent bike for a decent price are faced with the choice of selling a well equiped bike with a crap frame, or a good frame (which in this case will probably outlast its owner!) with some compromises in the equipment, which is going to wear out and need replacing anyway, its a no brainer!. So dawes are bang on with this reynolds steel framed bike in terms of its price and spec, in relation to what type of riders it is likely to be bought by, and what type of riding is likely to be done by them.

3rd, the fact that you are comparing your carbon framed racing machine with the dawes at all, in terms of price, spec, and weight, frankly beggars belief, you may aswell compare a race horse to a pit pony, they may both be horses, but they have totally different purposes!.

4th, your comments about the relative merits of carbon over steel on a racing bike may have some merit (depending on your point of view), but on a retro styled bike like this?, no!, decent quality steel is what you want. Lets also not forget that dawes have been making bikes like this for a long time, i think they know what they are doing. I would seriously consider this lovely looking bike if i were after a steel framed audax/ light touring bike at a decent price. But if i were interested in bikes similar to a focus izalco expert, i wouldnt even have read the article, let alone commented on it!.

So get off your soap box (thats what the forum is for), stop banging on about your precious 4 year old focus, and stop assuming that us mortals are to stupid to do a little research on t'internet regarding what we want out of a bike, oh, and leave reviews of bikes like this to people who are interested in bikes like this!.

The Clubman is available for £630 online (Spa Cycles). Review prices are always RRP, not the best price that you can find online.

Bike prices 2011 do not compare to those of 2007. This is basic economics.

If you want to boast about the spec/£ ratio of your bike then the 2007 Cayo you got was a bargain. If you want a comfortable bike that will be rideable long after you have given up cycling, the Dawes is a much better buy.

Unlike any of the other users leaving reviews so far, I actually own this bike. First things first, the RRP for this bike is £850, however it is available on-line for under £500. I purchased the bike from Evans using their price matching policy.

I was looking for a bike with all day comfort, solid components, suitable for light touring and with no toe overlap. The rear rack mounts and sensible geometry fitted the bill nicely for the touring/comfort aspect and a quick test in the shop showed no problems with toe overlap - although I do have small feet so always check for yourself before buying. I also wanted a bike which didn't look like the numerous sports bikes, which are so ubiquitous.

The Clubman looks much better in the metal than the various photographs on-line show. It's a pretty machine and although I may change the silver muddies for black, overall it looks great.

How it rides of course is the most important aspect. My bike came as a 9 speed, which I assume is the latest specification. Shifters and front and rear mechs are Sora and are much better quality than most give credit for. The chainset is FSA, whilst the rear cassette is by SRAM. Despite the mish-mash of manufacturers the drivetrain is smooth and positive and a pleasure to use.

Brakes are stock Tektro dual pivots and work well with plenty of feel. Note that if you like to fit cross levers on the tops, then you will need to change the bars. The bars taper from 31.8mm to 26mm over a wide section of the bar, meaning cross levers would have to be positioned right next to the stem. They won't fit anywhere else as the levers would catch on the radius of the bar. Not a major problem, but worth bearing in mind the extra cost, particularly if upgrading the bars is not a job you can do yourself - bike tech labour rates are not cheap.

The wheels on my bike were almost perfectly true and have not run out despite some early punishment over a very uneven stretch of concrete road.

Handling is much more responsive than I am used to. I cannot comment how this compares to sportier designs, but the front end seems very keen to turn, but not seemingly at the expense of stability, which feels fine at speed.

The saddle is not great. As Bike Radar noted, the covering is way too slippery and I will be upgrading this to a nice Brooks B17 once funds allow. This will further enhance the looks of the bike.

Overall for under £500 you can't go wrong. It looks good, rides well and (I hope!) will last years. The frame and forks are also a great starting point to add upgraded components too over the years and build your perfect companion.

Hi. I don't understand the sizing. I'm 5'11 and 32cm inside leg which makes me 56cm by Dawes reckoning but they do a 54 and a 57 and say 'go smaller if in between'. I know that nothing is better than sitting on the bike itself but when the bikes involved are100's miles away that just isn't possible.

Does anyone ride one of these??? How tall are you and you inside leg measurement?