I have a Secteur I bought in the spring and just love the snot out of it, but have a pal I could help out. He had been riding it the past couple of weeks and wants to buy it so I may hook a deal up for him. As I peruse the Specialized site the geo chart for the Secteur and Roubaix are dead nuts copies of each other, just different materials. Since I only need a frame and can’t buy the Secteur as a frame only I may do the Roubaix.
Thanks in advance.
Not exactly sure what your question is … But yes, they’re almost identical geometry, components, etc., with different materials. I have one of each (in different continents), and they’re both good. I find the drop bars on the Secteur rather less comfortable, and the curved top tube a little annoying for race set-up, car carrier attachment, etc.
Ooops that was a rather lame post sorry I didn’t clarify…not enough coffee on board yet. Yes I’m looking for owner sentiments on the Roubaix since the geo’s are identical, but material different. Funny you said that about the Secteur stock bars…I put a thread up last night looking for some Erg/Anatomical bend drops to replace the compacts that came on the Secteur.
I have one and love it. It is a very comfortable, yet high performance ride. I liken the ride to a high performance sedan. Comfy but plenty able to corner and go fast if you want it to.
My Roubaix is the only road bike I’ve ever owned, so hard to comment on it compared to others, but I love it. I find it fast, stable and comfortable.
I too love my Roubaix. My only issue was the long head tube which I solved by inverting the stem and slamming it down. It is hands on the most comfortable frame I have ever owned. Designed to absorb the bumps in the road, it does that well. I have the triple, not ST approved, but I bought the bike specifically for some climbing endeavors I wouldn’t manage on compact cranks alone. It climbs well, descends well–I like it so much that when this frame goes, I’ll get another.
Well I took a Roubaix out for about 30 minutes and if it ain’t the spittin’ image of my Secteur feel wise, but dang the Roubaix looks sooooo smooth…extremely tight looking finish and way sexier than the alum aesthetically. Nice to know there are options for exact geo with carbon or alum. I’m probably going to go with a Secteur since they have a couple of last years models still on sale in the color scheme I like. The Apex flavor of the Secteur is such a steal. Thanks for the input guys!
I have this years SL3 Expert which is the better carbon layup short of the S-Works with Ultegra. Do around 500km-600km a week on it mainly on hilly British country roads which are far from smooth. If there is a downside to the frame it is not as tight as say the Tarmac and could not be described as an out an out racer/criterium machine. Whilst it might not be supper sharp in the corners on a tight descent, or the rear triangle super stiff when hamering the power down up a steep climb, everything else about the frame in my mind makes up for it in abundance. The frame is very stiff in the bottom bracket area, same unit as the Tarmac, so accelerates fast. It is compliant in absorbing road vibration for a bike at this weight and in the serious road bike category, that does not mean it is a soft sit up and beg bike, rather it is comfortable for a high performance bike at this weight. I would say for 95% of riders out there it is just about the best bike in this price range. It doesn’t have the personality of some of my other bikes, its not twitchy or the back end doesn’t kick out badly if I get a corner wrong, rather it is well behaved. What I am saying is that an awful lot of riders and I see this when following and passing them down steep descents around my own area, are on out and out race machines and simply do not have the ability to do them justice. The Roubaix is a great all round bike for everyday use and is good enough to be raced if you are that way inclined, highly recomended.
I have an '09 Roubaix Pro 9 with DA 7900 and love it. Really can say the best road bike I have every owned. Maybe not the best bike for crits or pure road racing, but for long rides on the crappy roads of Sonoma County it is perfect…especially the older I get! you can get the front end low enough by going with short top cap and no spacers. I find it to have perfect balance of stiffness where you need it (front end and bb) and comfort where you want it.
Very nice thanks man! I’m actually gonna be a fuddy duddy and stick with the Secteur again as I really couldn’t feel to much diff with the Roubaix. It is a seriously sexy frame though, 10x better looking than the Sec.