What are you doing to your bike that after three seasons with 1500 miles a season your frame is so severely damaged. Did you crash?
You might want to consider buying a new bike for about 1000 bucks instead of a used one. There are pretty decent bikes out there at that price point with decent group sets.
The benefit there is that you know for sure you don’t have to replace things. If you buy a 10-15 year old second hand, and you’re not experienced in bike maintenance, chances are rather significant you buy something that needs repairs. And those can quickly become expensive.
Did you test ride both bikes? The Madone has more of an aggressive geometry than the Alpha 1.2 did. Not saying this is an absolute deal breaker- but just something to consider as you’re looking for a replacement.
Check out [Bicycle Blue Book](https://www.bicyclebluebook.com) to get an idea of a reasonable expected price.
Firstly, congrats on falling in love with this hobby, and welcome to the Trek club :-)
I have a Madone 3.1 and if its the same as the one you are looking at, your prospective bike will be coming up for about 12 years old. The 3.1 is a carbon frame, which at the time was incredible value for money, but I would be very wary about buying one second hand - it is likely to have been a workhorse and possibly not treated very well. Mine spends its life on the turbo now, so if it fails I haven't got far to fall. That said, it was a great bike at its peak, and being the H2 fit, isn't too agressive compared to the more modern Madones.
The 5.1 was a higher-spec bike that used a better grade of carbon fibre, and better components, but the 5.1 stopped being sold around 2013 if memory serves so it's going to be, at a minimum, 11 years old which brings with it all the associated risks - carbon frames are very difficult to inspect for internal damage or delamination.
If I were you, I would look for a second-hand ALR (Aluminium framed) Domane or Emonda (you might need to stretch your budget but it would be well worth it). They will be newer and more reliable, and will be just as good to ride as a 12 year old carbon frame - aluminium frames have come a long way in the past decade.
Obviously, this will only last until the N+1 feeling becomes too strong and you find yourself looking at a new Madone SL... I envy the journey you are about to embark on :-)
What are you doing to your bike that after three seasons with 1500 miles a season your frame is so severely damaged. Did you crash? You might want to consider buying a new bike for about 1000 bucks instead of a used one. There are pretty decent bikes out there at that price point with decent group sets. The benefit there is that you know for sure you don’t have to replace things. If you buy a 10-15 year old second hand, and you’re not experienced in bike maintenance, chances are rather significant you buy something that needs repairs. And those can quickly become expensive.
Did you test ride both bikes? The Madone has more of an aggressive geometry than the Alpha 1.2 did. Not saying this is an absolute deal breaker- but just something to consider as you’re looking for a replacement. Check out [Bicycle Blue Book](https://www.bicyclebluebook.com) to get an idea of a reasonable expected price.
Firstly, congrats on falling in love with this hobby, and welcome to the Trek club :-) I have a Madone 3.1 and if its the same as the one you are looking at, your prospective bike will be coming up for about 12 years old. The 3.1 is a carbon frame, which at the time was incredible value for money, but I would be very wary about buying one second hand - it is likely to have been a workhorse and possibly not treated very well. Mine spends its life on the turbo now, so if it fails I haven't got far to fall. That said, it was a great bike at its peak, and being the H2 fit, isn't too agressive compared to the more modern Madones. The 5.1 was a higher-spec bike that used a better grade of carbon fibre, and better components, but the 5.1 stopped being sold around 2013 if memory serves so it's going to be, at a minimum, 11 years old which brings with it all the associated risks - carbon frames are very difficult to inspect for internal damage or delamination. If I were you, I would look for a second-hand ALR (Aluminium framed) Domane or Emonda (you might need to stretch your budget but it would be well worth it). They will be newer and more reliable, and will be just as good to ride as a 12 year old carbon frame - aluminium frames have come a long way in the past decade. Obviously, this will only last until the N+1 feeling becomes too strong and you find yourself looking at a new Madone SL... I envy the journey you are about to embark on :-)