Bike Selection quandry

misterben

I've managed to borrow a bike (extremely limited funds at the moment) for my commute, but I have a few questions about both it, and purchasing a new bike.

The bike I've borrowed is a "Raleigh Stonefly" - a cheap, heavy "mountain" bike, with front shocks and knobbly tyres However, it was a free loan, and it's in ridable condition, which is more than I can say for my old Saracen Tufftrax Extreme, which has been languishing in various cupboards and garages for 10 years.

1. Is it worth splashing out money on the Stonefly for things like some Schwalbe Marathon Plus's, or should I save the money and try and restore the Saracen?

2. Having done a couple of shortish rides, I've noticed that even in top gear I'm spinning heavily downhill and pushing it on the flat - is this normal? I'm sure I used to remember being able to get extra speed downhill in top gear without having to spin like a maddie.

3. I want to buy a road bike, preferably with drops. I was looking at some of the touring bikes out there, as I was thinking of doing some touring too, but it seems that the base level for touring bikes is around £450-£500, whereas you can get a "racing" bike for £250-£300. Am I better off going for the cheaper option (despite having to work around the lack of braze-ons for racks/mudguards) at this time, or should I save a bit longer and get a proper tourer?

(NB - My commute (when I finally get started) will be about 3.5 miles each way initially, potentially lengthening to 6.9 miles each way, and eventually to 10 miles each way if I can manage it. In terms of bikes, I picked the price for the Carrera Virtuoso (£299) and the Dawes Horizon (£450))

Thanks in advance

mike kluge

1. Try and restore the Saracen. Unless it's been getting wet, chances are the bike is still serviceable . Problem areas will be the Chain and Cassette (the rear cogs). If it's had a lot of use, you usually need to replace both at the same time. BUT, you will struggle to get replacement parts due to it's age. Most cassettes are 8 or 9 speed these days and won't be compatible with your "groupset" (thumbshifters, rear mech etc). With a bit of luck, it might just need a good clean. Get hold of some degreaser to clean the chain and components and some proper chain lube (not wd40). The "heavy" bike you currently have sounds like a halfords special - cheap and nasty.
2. Unless there is a problem with the thumb shifters or rear mech, the Raleigh is probably "undergeared" which means it's just not got high enough gear ratio's to pedal the kind of speeds the Saracen can.
3. Take a look at some of the hybrid bikes on offer. I know you want drop bars but these bikes are really practical - full braze ons, mud guards, triple chain sets, good value etc. You kind of get what you pay for, but the give away is weight - the more you pay the less you get and weight is everthing to a cyclist!. Spend as much as you can afford. For tarmac and commuting, don't get suckered into suspension whatever anyone else says - it's fairly useless on-road and probably fairly crappy technology in this price range. It's just lugging around dead weight and a bit of skill will more than make up for it.

Good luck

redddraggon

The virtuoso isn't a bad bike, change of tyres needed. Recommend the bike for commuting.

As it's from Halfords you might need to do a bit of your own tweaking to get it right though.

RossC

I dont want to sound patronising but are you using your gears right in the first place?
sit on the bike and look down: left hand (smallest) chain ring between your pedals is to use with the left hand (largest) three cassette cogs on the back wheel, middle (medium size) chain ring is to use with middle three cassette cogs, right hand (largest) chain ring is for the smallest (right hand side) cassette cogs.
count the teeth on each and work out the ratios (1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 3.5, 3.6, 3.7) gives you the 9 best progressive combinations from cycling up a steep slope to top speed along the flat

next: chain rings are always smaller on a mountain bike (meant for slopes), larger on a road bike (for flats, but with climbing ability). so decide what you want to do and get a bike to suit. see http://www.dawescycles.com/dawes/touring-series.htm for tourers as a starting suggestion

hope this helps (I've been riding a Dawes World Tour for nearly 10 years, as a commuter. It looks much like the Kara-Kum but isn't aluminium and doesn't sound so silly)

misterben

RossC wrote:

I dont want to sound patronising but are you using your gears right in the first place?

Yes On the flat/downhill I've been using the largest chainwheel with the smallest cog on the rear cassette. According to the spec I found here this should mean that I'm running 42/14 assuming that the spec is right.

next: chain rings are always smaller on a mountain bike (meant for slopes), larger on a road bike (for flats, but with climbing ability). so decide what you want to do and get a bike to suit. see http://www.dawescycles.com/dawes/touring-series.htm for tourers as a starting suggestion

hope this helps (I've been riding a Dawes World Tour for nearly 10 years, as a commuter. It looks much like the Kara-Kum but isn't aluminium and doesn't sound so silly)

I had been looking at the Dawes Horizon as a potential bike, but it's quite pricy compared to buying a cheap(er) roadbike, and I wasn't sure if it was worth the extra money to buy a "touring" bike, compared to a "normal" road bike. Presumably the geometry is a bit different, and it'll have more mount points for mudguards/racks, but is it worth it for a short commute?