Please help me

bullet_math

Ok dudes, i know next to nothing about bikes and biking. I'm looking to get a bike that'll get me to work and back (which is about 10 minutes away in the car) as well as just riding round the streets. I need some advice from you guys. Please help me, you're my only hope

* Is it true that I will need a Hybrid Bike?
* What other stuff should i get with my bike?
* I used to have a Mountain Bike and after riding it for a bit my arse would hurt from going over too many bumps, any way to stop that?
*What are the best makes for Hybrid bikes?
*What are the best places to get them (preferably online)?

I'm looking to spend 300 quid Max. Thanks in advance folks

baudman

Try the commuter forum - they'll give you a good idea.

Others may disagree, however with your distance, I'd advocate a hybrid if all you are going to be using it for is commuting. If you think you might want to do some rail trails or other off-road, you could think about an MTB. If you're going to want to do longer distances, perhaps a road bike. But just for commuting, I like the 'flat-bar' and solid forks.

I ride a piece of garbage (see link in my signature, below) to home and back, similar distance to you. (I used to have a longer commute, but I changed jobs.) I find the old heap does the job, and is less likely to get stolen.

But, as I said, look in the Commuter forum.

dcfcfan

bullet_math wrote:

Ok dudes, i know next to nothing about bikes and biking. I'm looking to get a bike that'll get me to work and back (which is about 10 minutes away in the car) as well as just riding round the streets. I need some advice from you guys. Please help me, you're my only hope

* Is it true that I will need a Hybrid Bike?
* What other stuff should i get with my bike?
* I used to have a Mountain Bike and after riding it for a bit my ars* would hurt from going over too many bumps, any way to stop that?
*What are the best makes for Hybrid bikes?
*What are the best places to get them (preferably online)?

I'm looking to spend 300 quid Max. Thanks in advance folks

A lot of people recommend road bikes but I wouldn't unless you want to do a lot of long distance riding. I think hybrids are sturdier and you can also take them on country trails and places you can't go with a roadbike

I have a Trek 7.3fx which was about £350. You can get a 7.1fx or 7.2fx for your price bracket (same bike with a few cheaper components). Or you can buy the 7100 or 7200 which are identical to the 7.1fx or 7.2fx but have front suspension. If I got my bike again I'd get one with front suspension

My fiancee just got a ridgeback velocity. Too early to say whether she'll find it good or not but everyone says you get excellent compnents for your money and you can adjust EVERYTHING (handlebar angle, height etc) and you can't do that on a Trek

Shadowduck

You don't have to get a hybrid, you could commute on a unicycle if you wanted to! I'm sure it's been done...

I'm doing a 7 mile each way commute on a Revolution Courier Race and I'm quite happy with it - might be worth a look as it's slightly under your budget and leaves you some over for other stuff! It's only a single chainring at the front but I've found the gears (eight of 'em) to be well spaced and I quite appreciate the simplicity. One advantage it does have over a lot of others in the price range is mudguard and rack mounts, which I count as an essential if you're going to be using it at all through the winter.

Ultimately, pretty much anything will get you there and back well enough, just make sure you're comfortable on it! On the subject of comfort, you'll find the posterior numbness (ahem) isn't so bad after a while - as your legs get stronger you take more weight on the pedals and so less on the saddle. Cycling shorts help a lot too, you can always wear them under something else if you don't fancy being seen in lycra. Make sure the bike's the right size for you, with the right width of saddle and set up properly, you'll be fine.

*edited cos of premature posting*

bullet_math

Based on your reccomendations in this thread and the other one i've decided on getting a Hybrid.

There's a few on EBay that look quite good but i dont know if they're reliable makes or not. There's some called Viking and Some others that are about 100 and something quid such as these ones

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/21-Gents-FreedomTrail-Hybrid-Bike-NEW-18-SPEED_W0QQitemZ290153834313QQihZ019QQcategoryZ33503QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MENS-HYBRID-CITY-COMMUTER-BIKE-LIGHTWEIGHT-HYBRID-NEW_W0QQitemZ230165876916QQihZ013QQcategoryZ33503QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Also what websites do you guys use? I'd like to know which ones are best for prices and also for reliability.

Of the ones that have been reccomended the Trek 7100/7200 sound best. If front suspension makes a significant difference and makes sure my ass doesn't get knacked i'm all for it.

Big Red S

Avoid those two. As a general rule, if it's under £250 it's essentially disposable. You'll get to ride it just long enough to work out it's terrible, before it breaks.
You want to avoid frames made of Hi-Ten steel like the plague, too.

Brands worth looking at include Ridgeback, Giant, Specialized, Trek, Marin.

Suspension is generally superfluous, and you rarely get anything worthwhile on the front of a hybrid anyway - it's there to appeal to the people that think suspension makes a bike better, rather than for any shock absorbtion or traction increase.

evanscycles.com cyclesurgery.com leisurelakesnbikes.com

How are you working out what size frame you want?

davelakers

I have been using a Carerra Gryphon for the last 12 months. Excellent bike and Im selling it to get a road bike.

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yrn_47151#[

inaperfectworld

i'm very happy with a raleigh mtrax hybrid which i use for commuting; it is noticeably faster than my old slick tyred mtb. i recently used it for a 30+ mile ride when the road bike was not available and reckon it did a decent job, and it seems solid enough for gentler offroad routes. although i got it in sale the price is about £230 but needs some extra cash for mudguards and maybe a rack

bullet_math

Hi Guys. I've been looking through the bikes on Evans Cylces (which is a bike store near my house and it's one of the sites you guys reccomended). I rang them up and they said they could order a bike for me. Now it's just a case of choosing one. Here are the ones on the site that look quite good and are also on sale at the moment. Your reccomendations from those listed would be greatly appreciated. Please could you tell me which of these bikes is the best value for money. I don't mind about paying 300 quid as long as their is a tangible difference between a 300 quid bike and say a 250 quid one (not just an aesthetic difference).

http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=70146
http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=71079
http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=60369
http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=60501
http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=71081
http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=70239

I am 5 FOOT 9 INCHES tall but from what i've been reading on the internet frame sizes are dependant on a variety of factors so i might just ask the guy in the shop which one he thinks is best for me. Thank's for all your help with this, i really appreciate it.

heavymental

Just a word of warning. Not that I've ever been to an Evans shop but I hear the staff aren't that great. Make sure you have a ride on a couple of sizes of the same model if possible before you buy it as they might just fob you off with whatever they have in. If they don't have more than one size available make sure you're happy with the one they do have. No use rushing it and ending up with something that doesn't fit.

heavymental

By the way....the GT looks like not a bad bike. I wouldn't bother with suspension at that price range so that looks like the best of the bunch to me. Obviously it doesn't have mudguards so you might want to add them but you should be able to get some money knocked off them in Evans along with the other stuff you'll need (I see no ones answered that part of your question yet but if you look on this thread: http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtop ... 2266&start theres a few ideas...not all of which will be necessary for you)

bullet_math

Thank you for your reply Heavy Mental. So you would reccomend the GT bike?

http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=70239

What do you think of the Gary Fisher Zebrano S 2006 Hybrid Bike. It is only 230 quid and seems a lot cheaper than the other bikes. Will bit be a lot worse than the other ones?

http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=60501

I'd also like to hear your views on the Specialized Expedition Elite 2007 Hybrid Bike and te Saracen Hy-Trail 4 Gents 2007 Hybrid Bike. both of them are 275 quid and they seem to be good makes. Are they worse than the GT bike?

http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=71081
http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=70146

On your advice I will go into the store on the weekend and ask them to let me try out a few bikes so i can find out which size is the best one for me. For now i just want to finalise what bike is the best one to get. Then i can buy it when i work out the reght size

I already have a bike lock and a bike pump. I will also get a Mudguard and a light set as well as some tyre levers a multitool and a pump and patch kit. I'm assuming that's all i'll nead but if there's anything else please tell me.

Rich Hcp

Like most things, the decent makes are all much the same, for the same budget, so get one that fits and you're comfortable with it.

You may get the tools and pump for a good price if you haggle!

baudman

Heart says GT. It looks NICE. My partner rides an Avalanche and she's happy with it.

My head says the Saracen. I don't know anything about them, but it's well-specc'd.