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Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3
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Hi all,

I am looking at getting a tri bike for the 2018 season and I am kind of torn between 2/3 bikes, all will fit.

Right now theres a pretty good deal with an argon 18 e117 tri with ultegra 6800. Its at a pretty good price around 3k CAD.

My other option I am playing with is upping my budget to a Trek Speed Concept for around 5.5k CAD. This would have the new Ultegra 8000.

Lastly, they have old season Felt IA3s left in my size I could order for around 5.5K CAD.

I just got some ENVE wheels for a smoking deal and used some of my bike money to get them, so I am basically torn between the speed concept/felt or saving money and going with the Argon, being able to get hydration, perhaps a power meter etc. and still being under my budget had I gone with the higher end bikes.

What are your thoughts? Is the upgrade to a Speed Concept/Felt worth the extra speed/sex appeal/aero vs the Argon E117? I see very little reviews for the E-117, although it seems like it is quite a decent setup. The 5.5K CAD bikes would also be pushing the budget a bit, although it could be done.

I assume I could upgrade the front end of the E117 at some point or even the frame, so saving the 2.5K is quite a bit of cash I could use for upgrades (DI2, etc.). Would this be worth the trade off?

Sex appeal says I want to go with the Speed Concept, although something tells me I will not be any faster.

Thanks
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [Aid.dre.an] [ In reply to ]
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I’m biased as I have a SC. I am well versed in the other 2, and could ride any of the 3. There is so much great about the SC you will never regret it.

http://www.TriScottsdale.org
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [Aid.dre.an] [ In reply to ]
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I would go with the trek s.c.. I find the argons to be boring. Trek has a ton of storage and is sexy.
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [Sbernardi] [ In reply to ]
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Sbernardi wrote:
I’m biased as I have a SC. I am well versed in the other 2, and could ride any of the 3. There is so much great about the SC you will never regret it.

So from your perspective, ponying up the dough is hands down worth the upgrade? Is the speed difference that noticeable? I am just having trouble justifying 2.5K more for sex appeal, although it is hella sexy.

The other draw to the SC is the trek customer support. But like I said, will the bike will be significantly faster?
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [littlefoot] [ In reply to ]
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littlefoot wrote:
I would go with the trek s.c.. I find the argons to be boring. Trek has a ton of storage and is sexy.

However, I can always upgrade the frame later and the SC is what, 5 years old? I am kind of debating if its worth dishing the dough out now. I think we have basically reached peak aero, but I could always upgrade the frame to the next big thing later
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [Aid.dre.an] [ In reply to ]
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Are you a guy who 'buys and holds' or do you upgrade frequently? I doubt that the Argon will be 2k slower, allow you to buy other stuff and still be under the cost of the others. Bikes do not hold values super well, so if you are a 'buy and hold', you *might* be better served to buy whatever you prefer - if you'll ride it 5-10 years. If you'll trade it in / sell in in a year or two, just go for the Argon and see what's available in two years. Probably the other two bike for 2.5k!
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [Aid.dre.an] [ In reply to ]
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The 117 doesn’t play in the same sandbox as an SC. You would have to go 119 to be comparable. Also the 117 will be a far harder resale. At least here in the US. I would buy a used 7.5 if I were you. That’s the best “value”.

http://www.TriScottsdale.org
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [giorgitd] [ In reply to ]
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giorgitd wrote:
Are you a guy who 'buys and holds' or do you upgrade frequently? I doubt that the Argon will be 2k slower, allow you to buy other stuff and still be under the cost of the others. Bikes do not hold values super well, so if you are a 'buy and hold', you *might* be better served to buy whatever you prefer - if you'll ride it 5-10 years. If you'll trade it in / sell in in a year or two, just go for the Argon and see what's available in two years. Probably the other two bike for 2.5k!

Well thats really how I was looking at it, if I get the argon, im saving around 800$ (usual MSRP is around 3.8k), that a lot of ultegra (old mind you) and I would likely be able to get any addons I would need. Then in 3 years I could reassess and either sell the frame and buy a new one or just get a new bike when i have more cash.

Anyways its so hard to decide, I just wish there was more data on the E-117
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [Sbernardi] [ In reply to ]
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Sbernardi wrote:
The 117 doesn’t play in the same sandbox as an SC. You would have to go 119 to be comparable. Also the 117 will be a far harder resale. At least here in the US. I would buy a used 7.5 if I were you. That’s the best “value”.

Do you know how many watts I would basically save going SC vs Argon? I mean with decent positioning the only thing I see is a few watts and the sex factor. Im not a fan of the aero bars on the E117 but I could still swap them out and still be 1K+ ahead
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [Aid.dre.an] [ In reply to ]
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I would sharpen your Google Fu skills and look for a LBS with a previous year's SC 2015-2016. They tend to be about 25% off. Trek is also clearing out their 2017s in the States. Check the Trek site in Canada. Just realize that 2017 has a slightly different fork and base bar.
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [Sbernardi] [ In reply to ]
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [Aid.dre.an] [ In reply to ]
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Aid.dre.an wrote:
Sbernardi wrote:
I’m biased as I have a SC. I am well versed in the other 2, and could ride any of the 3. There is so much great about the SC you will never regret it.

So from your perspective, ponying up the dough is hands down worth the upgrade? Is the speed difference that noticeable? I am just having trouble justifying 2.5K more for sex appeal, although it is hella sexy.

The other draw to the SC is the trek customer support. But like I said, will the bike will be significantly faster?

x 2

Get the Argon and a powermeter and smart trainer and maybe coaching.

That will make you faster...
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [Aid.dre.an] [ In reply to ]
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You mention possibly upgrading the argon, well thats gonna cost $$ too. A nice handlebar setup can easily run 1k or more.
Get it over with and go with the trek or the felt. PM's are dropping in price, you can get a stages crankarm for about 400US I think? Don't make your decision based on that.
I have a gen 1 trek sc, they are awesome, easy to work on. I like the way the felts look, but have no experience with them.
Lastly, forget about which bike is faster. These frames are all so close it shouldn't matter. Sit up to stretch your back in an Ironman and you likely just gave away the time savings. Kiley showed in his wind tunnel testing that his old felt DA# was pratically just as aero as the P5x, P5, etc etc.

Oh, and out of the three, the trek will almost certainly be the easiest to get spare parts for as there are a ton of authorized trek dealers around.
Last edited by: SBRcanuck: Oct 26, 17 3:43
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [Aid.dre.an] [ In reply to ]
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Aid.dre.an wrote:
My other option I am playing with is upping my budget to a Trek Speed Concept for around 5.5k CAD. This would have the new Ultegra 8000.

Lastly, they have old season Felt IA3s left in my size I could order for around 5.5K CAD.
I would get the Speed Concept. Given that it is the same price as the felt, the new Ultegra makes it a better value. The IA and SC are probably faster bikes than the E117. Maybe not by a huge amount, but they are faster. The E119 is the bike that competes with the other two in the wind tunnel.
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [exxxviii] [ In reply to ]
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Speedconcept
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [grumpier.mike] [ In reply to ]
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grumpier.mike wrote:
I would sharpen your Google Fu skills and look for a LBS with a previous year's SC 2015-2016. They tend to be about 25% off. Trek is also clearing out their 2017s in the States. Check the Trek site in Canada. Just realize that 2017 has a slightly different fork and base bar.

Unfortunately there's basically no shops that stock SC bikes locally. Is there stock at trek or are you talking about local old stock? I'll swing by a shop and inquire about previous season models. Thanks!
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [SharkFM] [ In reply to ]
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SharkFM wrote:
Argon

Is the 117 similat to the p3 in performance? I somehow doubt the bike will be the limiter but long term the support from trek seems much better.
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [SBRcanuck] [ In reply to ]
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SBRcanuck wrote:
You mention possibly upgrading the argon, well thats gonna cost $$ too. A nice handlebar setup can easily run 1k or more.
Get it over with and go with the trek or the felt. PM's are dropping in price, you can get a stages crankarm for about 400US I think? Don't make your decision based on that.
I have a gen 1 trek sc, they are awesome, easy to work on. I like the way the felts look, but have no experience with them.
Lastly, forget about which bike is faster. These frames are all so close it shouldn't matter. Sit up to stretch your back in an Ironman and you likely just gave away the time savings. Kiley showed in his wind tunnel testing that his old felt DA# was pratically just as aero as the P5x, P5, etc etc.

Oh, and out of the three, the trek will almost certainly be the easiest to get spare parts for as there are a ton of authorized trek dealers around.

Hmm i appreciate the advice. So it seems like get the bike that makes you want to ride and is within the budget. Simple as that. There's no major speed differences between something like the argon vs the SC (obviously the SC is more aero, but it would be a minor improvement overall, the limiter is obviously me)
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [Aid.dre.an] [ In reply to ]
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The SC integrated cockpit, the fork, the brake mounted in front of fork, the draftbox, etc. The comparison you need to make is the 117 vs the Older SC 7. The 119 is a comparable bike to the current SC . Buy a used 2015/6 SC, you will not look back.

http://www.TriScottsdale.org
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Re: Paralysis by analysis: Argon E117 vs Speed Concept vs Felt IA3 [Aid.dre.an] [ In reply to ]
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I have two Argons both are great riding bikes
My E118 is my sprint machine paid $3300 Cad for the frameset incls bars brakes

The E80 is awesome too!! Alum Just a little more draggy setup - prob less than a min on 20km

Business is in Qc so for Canada you are same country for support

Training Tweets: https://twitter.com/Jagersport_com
FM Sports: http://fluidmotionsports.com
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