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Bikes

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    Bikes

    I'm currently cycling around 20 miles per day to and from work but my bike is not up to the job; hence I need a replacement. I'm not going off road at all - so I'll be quite happy with a hybrid. Bike technology has come on so much since I last bought a bike (15 years) that I really don't know what to look for. Is £400 a reasonable budget and what bits are important?

    Cheers

    Andy
    ...my quagmire of greed....my cesspit of laziness and unfairness....all I am doing is sticking two fingers up at nurses, doctors and other hard working employed professionals...

    #2
    Depends where you can park your bike...

    If it is somewhere secure then the more you pay the better parts you'll get.

    If it is somewhere un-secure, stick with what you have, maybe spend the money on new hubs/wheels, and new bottom bracket/crankset. You're best making the bike look like an old beater, it is less likely to get stolen.

    My regular commute bike has cheap to the eye components, but actually has ceramic bearings, and a titanium frame, just painted to look like a non-descript model from 10 years ago. Thieves'll walk past and steal someones £100 supermarket nasty.

    You can in fact buy decals to make your bike look rusty. Personally I just don't wash it where it don't need washing. Same effect.
    Insanity: repeating the same actions, but expecting different results.
    threadeds website, and here's my blog.

    Comment


      #3
      I've got the '07 version of this.

      Good bike, goes quick.

      Don't pay for suspension.

      If you're doing 100 miles a week you'll be replacing the components fairly regularly (6-12 months) so concentrate on a good lightweight frame and wheels rather than whizzy components.

      Buy from a local bikeshop so you can get advice & take it back easily for servicing (if you're not going to do it yourself).
      ‎"See, you think I give a tulip. Wrong. In fact, while you talk, I'm thinking; How can I give less of a tulip? That's why I look interested."

      Comment


        #4
        Originally posted by threaded View Post
        If it is somewhere un-secure, stick with what you have, maybe spend the money on new hubs/wheels, and new bottom bracket/crankset. You're best making the bike look like an old beater, it is less likely to get stolen.
        Luckily it's quite secure where I leave it but my current bike is a £99 mountain bike from a newspaper ad. It's really not worth spending money on as 20 miles a day is starting to wear all the bits out - plus it weighs a ton and the tyres are far too wide and chunky to use on the road.
        ...my quagmire of greed....my cesspit of laziness and unfairness....all I am doing is sticking two fingers up at nurses, doctors and other hard working employed professionals...

        Comment


          #5
          Originally posted by Moscow Mule View Post
          I've got the '07 version of this.

          Good bike, goes quick.

          Buy from a local bikeshop so you can get advice & take it back easily for servicing (if you're not going to do it yourself).
          Nice bike - thanks. Also good advice about the local bike shop.
          ...my quagmire of greed....my cesspit of laziness and unfairness....all I am doing is sticking two fingers up at nurses, doctors and other hard working employed professionals...

          Comment


            #6
            This place is a good site to check out reasonable prices,
            wiggle.co.uk

            they do some good deals.

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by roadster198 View Post
              This place is a good site to check out reasonable prices,
              wiggle.co.uk

              they do some good deals.
              Yeah, I'd 2nd it on wiggle. They have a nice selection of cyclocross bikes. Cyclocross bikes being good for commuting, iff you've somewhere secure to park it, otherwise they're a thief magnet. Put some mudguards on, swap the tires for Dutch Perfect, and you're laughing.
              Insanity: repeating the same actions, but expecting different results.
              threadeds website, and here's my blog.

              Comment


                #8
                Any idea which make I should go for?
                ...my quagmire of greed....my cesspit of laziness and unfairness....all I am doing is sticking two fingers up at nurses, doctors and other hard working employed professionals...

                Comment


                  #9
                  I saw this in Halfords whilst shopping for a baby seat, slick tyres and a carbon fibre fork makes it a a sort of cyclocross but with upright bars which you don't usually see.
                  Last edited by gingerjedi; 9 May 2008, 13:03.
                  Science isn't about why, it's about why not. You ask: why is so much of our science dangerous? I say: why not marry safe science if you love it so much. In fact, why not invent a special safety door that won't hit you in the butt on the way out, because you are fired. - Cave Johnson

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Originally posted by threaded View Post
                    Yeah, I'd 2nd it on wiggle. They have a nice selection of cyclocross bikes. Cyclocross bikes being good for commuting, iff you've somewhere secure to park it, otherwise they're a thief magnet. Put some mudguards on, swap the tires for Dutch Perfect, and you're laughing.
                    But you've got to spend a lot of money to get a good cyclocross bike...
                    ‎"See, you think I give a tulip. Wrong. In fact, while you talk, I'm thinking; How can I give less of a tulip? That's why I look interested."

                    Comment

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