I need a new bike, On a tight budget, HELP

gb155

Ok so my Trek MTB is in the shop, They are all blaming each other, Resulting in, "leave it with us" and no answer as to when its gonna be sorted.

So I have mugged a few pensioners (Joke) and I have a MAX and I do mean MAX budget of £450, Cant go one single penny over it, So Far I have an intrest in the following.

Scott Sportster P55 2009
Gary Fisher Kaitai 2009,
Trek 7300
Specialized Globe Vienna 3 Disc

My requirements are that it has 700c wheels and more gears than my Trek 7300 (44/11)

So based on budget what would you pick from the above for a 22 stone chappy such as myself ? or would you pick something else not on the list ?

gb155

OR a Kona Dew Plus 2009

gb155

Would LOVE this http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=38414

But worried that @22 stone I might be too much for something like that.

UndercoverElephant

Merida Speeder T1. Comes in 1p below your budget, I tried one and comfortably place it above the Sirrus Elite, costing roughly £200 more.

gb155

UndercoverElephant wrote:

Merida Speeder T1. Comes in 1p below your budget, I tried one and comfortably place it above the Sirrus Elite, costing roughly £200 more.

Where from ?

EssexSuffolk

Best thing would be to visit some LBS and try a few of these out, see which feels more comfortable and offers the speed/kit you want. Worth also looking at Marin - they do some nice 700cc street bikes etc.

It's a tough choice in this area I know: loads of variety, hence I'd actually go and take a look at some bikes for real. I wouldn't have thought 22 stone is likely to hinder your choice too much and I think by trying out some, you'll find out what feels right (as everyone does).

Is your MTB beyond repair?

UndercoverElephant

gb155 wrote:

UndercoverElephant wrote:

Merida Speeder T1. Comes in 1p below your budget, I tried one and comfortably place it above the Sirrus Elite, costing roughly £200 more.

Where from ?

That's the RRP, so anywhere that stocks them TBH. It was my LBS. I liked it a lot. Nice frame, strong wheels and really very fast.

prawny

Carrera Virtuoso? Seeing as your looking a road bikes now. 36 spoke wheels so should be plenty strong enough. Good write up in C+ and yours for abot £380 8)

I want one for the rain, the wife says no

tardington

gb155 - your big ride is next week isn't it? Would it be more effective to rent a bike for the week and ride? Off the top of my head you'll have to pay a deposit and fifteen quid (about) a day for the period... Okay, not cheap, (£120 for 8 days) but you could get a much fancier (ie lighter) bike, and aren't you getting your normal bike back, repaired for free, at some point?

Also, you can probably get some sort of a better rate if they know what your using it for...

Oceanblue

tardington wrote:

gb155 - your big ride is next week isn't it? Would it be more effective to rent a bike for the week and ride? Off the top of my head you'll have to pay a deposit and fifteen quid (about) a day for the period... Okay, not cheap, (£120 for 8 days) but you could get a much fancier (ie lighter) bike, and aren't you getting your normal bike back, repaired for free, at some point?

Also, you can probably get some sort of a better rate if they know what your using it for...

Great idea - I would make sure I did a few runs on it first...

gb155

tardington wrote:

gb155 - your big ride is next week isn't it? Would it be more effective to rent a bike for the week and ride? Off the top of my head you'll have to pay a deposit and fifteen quid (about) a day for the period... Okay, not cheap, (£120 for 8 days) but you could get a much fancier (ie lighter) bike, and aren't you getting your normal bike back, repaired for free, at some point?

Also, you can probably get some sort of a better rate if they know what your using it for...

I could but I really need a second bike, My current second is a 2000 year old Townsend Terminator MTB and over the winter I put a couple of hundred miles in on it and REALLY dont wan to do that again as its too small and I have no idea how its still alive so getting a second bike is the best option really, I feel naked without a bike to use.

Your right renting for Blackpool would be nice but its dead money in the long run

IM REALLY like that Kona......Anyone else?

JonS123

You considered something second hand? Could be a few gems on ebay, and if they are local the seller should be willing to offer you a chance to see it/mini test ride

gb155

JonS123 wrote:

You considered something second hand? Could be a few gems on ebay, and if they are local the seller should be willing to offer you a chance to see it/mini test ride

Ebay prices are pretty silly right now and time is agaist me, thanks for the suggestion though

d21dga

Make sure you try the Kona out before buying it. I tried it and wasn't a massive fan of the geometry. Also worth noting if your buying over the internet is that apparently the frame sizes for the Kona Dew models come up quite small. Evans reckon you have to take 5cm off the quoted size to get the actual size, not sure how accurate that is though.

gb155

d21dga wrote:

Make sure you try the Kona out before buying it. I tried it and wasn't a massive fan of the geometry. Also worth noting if your buying over the internet is that apparently the frame sizes for the Kona Dew models come up quite small. Evans reckon you have to take 5cm off the quoted size to get the actual size, not sure how accurate that is though.

Cheers for that, Im hoping to have the money in place by Saturday, So will pop along to Evans to try them out

tardington

Err... if you do go evans, may be sensible to get a proper bike shop to check it over... :shock:

gb155

tardington wrote:

Err... if you do go evans, may be sensible to get a proper bike shop to check it over... :shock:

Im told where I got my TREK from was a "PROPER" bike shop, EKKKK now what ?

tardington

Just because of your problems so far!

fossyant

What about a Scott Sub....sure they come in 700c and 26"..... I like them.

amnezia

Really not a fan of th kona, its a bit too chunky, and the geometry of the specialized is not great. Front sus is just unecessary weight unless your planning on doing a lot of off road.

I'd go for a Ridgeback Velocity which is £100 under your budget but is solid and will give you a decent speed gain over the mountain bike.

gb155

amnezia wrote:

Really not a fan of th kona, its a bit too chunky, and the geometry of the specialized is not great. Front sus is just unecessary weight unless your planning on doing a lot of off road.

I'd go for a Ridgeback Velocity which is £100 under your budget but is solid and will give you a decent speed gain over the mountain bike.

a mate of mine commutes on a Ridgeback Velocity might borrow it tomorrow, if he lets me

gb155

fossyant wrote:

What about a Scott Sub....sure they come in 700c and 26"..... I like them.

ohhhh, I will look into that, are they 48/11 (Im off to google it anyway lol)

d21dga

amnezia wrote:

Really not a fan of th kona, its a bit too chunky, and the geometry of the specialized is not great. Front sus is just unecessary weight unless your planning on doing a lot of off road.

I'd go for a Ridgeback Velocity which is £100 under your budget but is solid and will give you a decent speed gain over the mountain bike.

I don't think the Kona is chunky at all. The tyres it comes with are pretty hefty (42c if I remember correctly) but the frame isn't that chunky.

amnezia

d21dga wrote:

amnezia wrote:

Really not a fan of th kona, its a bit too chunky, and the geometry of the specialized is not great. Front sus is just unecessary weight unless your planning on doing a lot of off road.

I'd go for a Ridgeback Velocity which is £100 under your budget but is solid and will give you a decent speed gain over the mountain bike.

I don't think the Kona is chunky at all. The tyres it comes with are pretty hefty (42c if I remember correctly) but the frame isn't that chunky.

The comfort saddle and riser handlebars are also pretty hefty to be fair. In terms of hybrids its not particularly sporty.

gb155

amnezia wrote:

d21dga wrote:

amnezia wrote:

Really not a fan of th kona, its a bit too chunky, and the geometry of the specialized is not great. Front sus is just unecessary weight unless your planning on doing a lot of off road.

I'd go for a Ridgeback Velocity which is £100 under your budget but is solid and will give you a decent speed gain over the mountain bike.

I don't think the Kona is chunky at all. The tyres it comes with are pretty hefty (42c if I remember correctly) but the frame isn't that chunky.

The comfort saddle and riser handlebars are also pretty hefty to be fair. In terms of hybrids its not particularly sporty.

Neither am I lol

gb155

Ohhhhhhhh, Scott SUB 30 Classic 2009, Anyone have one ?

It has the wheel size I want, decent ish spec, gear ratio and totally flat bars ( I cant stand the bull horn type thingys)