After many weeks of debating, thinking, looking for bargains, checking out second hand bikes and out dated models i came across a company which i had never really considered, Planet X. I have brought things from the online store in the past and use a set of the 50mm carbon tubulars for racing, they seem to be able to sell things at amazing prices and yet there own products always seem to perform to the same standards of kit which are 3 times the price. I had seen a new frame which they had just launched, the Nanolight High Modulus which was basically and updated, lightened and stiffened version of its predecessor and in true PX style it was reduced by a whopping 42% bringing the price down to £699.99. After seeing one in the flesh a few days later and doing quite a bit if research in to it i decided to take a plunge in to the unknown and order myself one, i had originally ordered a Large but after asking around on forums i realised that a Medium was the best size for me. Payments sent and confirmed i had just brought myself a new bike and i was very excited and little bit anxious to know how it would perform given that i had previously been riding a bike with Tour winning pedigree which had years of R and D and input from the best riders in the world.
Ordering and Receiving the Frame.
I placed my order directly on the Planet X website, a painless process which took seconds. I was informed that i would have to but a specific steerer bung so i put this in my basket as well which cost an extra £15.00. The website informed me that the frame size i wanted were out of stock and would be in on the 13 of May. The 13th of May soon came buy, i checked my account to see if my order had been dispatched but saw that the frames were now expected on the 17th, a bit annoying but great that they had updated the website straight away. On the 17th i gave Planet X a call to see if they had arrived and was told that they had all come in and were being sorted through, i called them again the next day to get an update and was told that the frames had all been checked and confirmed and that mine would be sent out the same day. Each time i called them i got through no probs and my questions were answered quickly and efficiently so first impression of customer service was very good.
The next day my frame was delivered, packed and protected very well. after unpacking it and checking it over, i am pleased to say that there were no scuffs or chips to be seen and everything looking in order. The frame looks the bee's Knee's, quite similar to my trek in many ways, however the PX has a much more tradition looking frame unlike the Treks Compact design which is one of the reasons why i liked the look of the PX. The frame was very light as was the fork, unfortunately i didn't weight them before i built it up so i cant confirm whether they were as light as stated but hey, they felt light. Now the only thing left to do was build this bad boy up!!
Building up the Bike.
This was a simple case of swapping all the bits from my Trek over to the Planet X, there were a few bits that i had brought new (Bars, seat post and stem) but other than that it was all the same kit. It was nice to see that the frame had sent with a faced BB which is something that a lot of companies don't do so this was great as meant i could crack on. The BB and the headset went in with no fuss and there was nothing in the way of tolerance or fit issues. In fact the whole bike went together seamlessly with no problems what so ever, something that doesn't happen very often when it comes to me.
The First Ride And My First Impressions.
The Bike was petty much done, i had yet to put the bars on as i wanted to ride it with the original kit on to what size stem to order and as it was this was a good idea. The first thing that i noticed was that the front end felt a bit higher than my Trek even though the head tube length was exactly the same, i figured that this was because the head tube angle was 0.5 degrees slacker than the Trek, only a tiny amount but enough to make a different to how high the bars sit. Mind you i did run my Trek stupidly low so any bike would feel high compared to that. I decided to order a 130mm stem, 10mm longer than what i was running on the Trek as i wanted to stretch out more and i also went for the -17 degree drop so as to get lower and resemble my Treks saddle to bard drop. Perfect.
So, now to the moment of truth, what did the bike ride like compared to the Trek? Well i am pleased to say that i am overly impressed and very happy with my bargain frame. There was a lot of talk about the frames stiffness with many riders saying the the older model used to flex all over the place and the new one had some flex as well. I have to honest, when i first went out i ride it with a very critical view trying to find any fault that cropped up and as far as flex is concerned, WHAT FLEX!! This frame is stiff, OK I'm not the heaviest or most powerful sprinter but i can still make a spongy frame wobble but not this one, i was accelerating, sprinting, climbing hard out of the saddle and the bike just kept wanting more. The only this i had was some clicking and creaking coming from the BB but it turns out this was because my bearing were a bit dry and after a bit of riding it has vanished.
The other thing i can say is that this is the smoothest, most silent bike i have ridden, it just feels so sure footed when you ride it. It smooths out rough road but gives nice feedback so you get the best of both worlds which is great. I can also confidently say that who ever designed the geometry clearly knows there stuff as this frame goes round corners like its on rails. Again the top tube and fork and perfectly stiff and tracks corners like nothing i have ridden, its mega responsive to cornering but not twitchy to ride, as you can tell i am very impressed with this bike and even more so given the price. I hoped that it would be at least comparable to my Trek but on reflection i thing i prefer the ride of the Planet X, this may surprise a lot of people just like it surprised me but it honestly how i feel.
In conclusion its fair to say that this bike will definitely do the job for a while whilst i save up for a Cannondale Super Six High Mod!! and i hope to enjoy much success in races whilst riding it. Personally i love the way it looks as much as the way it rides but no of this compares to how much i love the price. If you were considering getting a Planet X but wasn't sure then take my advice and get one, you wont be disappointed and if you were looking at options for a new frame then i would give this some consideration. It may not have the name or the profile of the big brand bikes but don't let that put you off, you would be surprised how many frames come out of the same factory in China, its just that they put different stickers on them before sending them off :)Hope this review help answer any questions that you might have had about Planet X bikes but if not then just ask, i would be more than happy to answer anymore.
Dan
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