Buying Advice - Buying A Bike Through Cycle To Work Scheme

mightymax

Hi, newbie to the site.

I am looking at getting a new bike (I say new the last one I had was a BMX when I was a kid ) through the cycle to work scheme. I will be wanting to use it to commute to and from work and bike rides over the weekends. I have asked a few people for advice and it has been suggested that I get a hybred bike as it will best suit my needs.

I have tried looking into all this and it's a bit of mine field really and I start to get lost in it all! Can anyone please provide some guidance on what I should and should not be looking for (frame material, suspension (been advised not to have full suspension) etc...). My cycle to work scheme will let me spend £1000 although I can add more of my own money to it although I wouldn't want to add much more, so if the ceiling of my bike budget is £1000 max and then I can buy helmet and stuff out of my own cash if nothing is left from the £1000.

Can people make suggestions on bike models/makes that are worth having a look at and provide guidance. I live in Wolverhampton and according to the goverment website I am restricted to a number of shops.


I have tried to provide as much information as I can think of for you to help me but if you need more information please ask.

Thanking you in advance

ride_whenever

I would suggest going straight to a full blow road bike.

Head into several local bike shops and see what they have in the way of top end hybrids and 1k road bikes. You might find something that pops out at you, plus you want to start to develop a good relationship with your favourite local bike shop

amaferanga

ride_whenever wrote:

I would suggest going straight to a full blow road bike.

Why? The guy said a hybrid will best suit his needs so what do you know that he doesn't!?

If you do want something for quicker road rides at weekends though that will still be good for commuting (where you might want full mudguards and a pannier rack) then you could look at the Specialized Tricross Sport (or Comp if you can stretch your budget a bit). It'll also take fatter tyres so it'd be a good potion for canal paths and Sustrans routes.

Can't really help you with hybrids I'm afraid as I know nothing about them, but you'll usually get the most for your money with the big manufacturers (Giant, Trek, Specialized, etc.).

Underscore

mightymax wrote:

I will be wanting to use it to commute to and from work and bike rides over the weekends.

Hello and welcome!

To know what is likely to suit you, we would need to know what type of riding you fancy doing at the weekends (on-road, bridleways, gnarly singletrack, ...), how far your commute is and what proportions of urban and non-urban.

_

mightymax

Hi all, many thanks for the responses.

I will be travelling approx 10miles per day round trip to and from work (rough guess). For weekends I will be looking at biking tow paths, bridle ways etc... that kinda stuff. At a guess for commuting for work it would be 60%urban and 40% non-urban well until I start finding short cuts!

Is that of any help?

Underscore

mightymax wrote:

Hi all, many thanks for the responses.

I will be travelling approx 10miles per day round trip to and from work (rough guess). For weekends I will be looking at biking tow paths, bridle ways etc... that kinda stuff. At a guess for commuting for work it would be 60%urban and 40% non-urban well until I start finding short cuts!

Is that of any help?

Well, I would certainly suggest that you try a cyclo-cross bike - basically a road bike that takes chunkier, knobblier tyres. The Specialized Tricross is probably the most easily availble, though there are plenty of others. Have a go on one and see how you get on...

HTH,

_

Sanderville

Have a look at the Trek Soho hybrid with hub gears. Apart from the gears it seems to be pretty light, it has a zero-maintenance belt drive, it has braze-ons for mounting a rack, and it comes with proper mudguards (essential for commuting).

I've been commuting for two years on a bike with hub gears and the main benefits are:

1. Change gear any time - you can change gear while stationary and as a commuter you will definitely be forced to stop unexpectedly. With hub gears you shift down to 1st and ride off; the people around you with de railleurs will be standing on their pedals just to get going again.
2. Low maintenance - hub gears are sealed and need no lubrication. If you need to make any adjustment to keep the change smooth then you just twiddle a little knob and make two red needles point at each other in a little window on the hub. No need to adjust tiny screws.
3. Ease of use - a lot of people are flummoxed by de railleurs when they come back to cycling but hub gears are easier to use than a car's.

Some people will tell you that hub gears break easily and that there aren't enough ratios. These people are generally talking about the 3-speed Sturmey Archers on their Raleigh Choppers of 30 years ago. Shimano Nexus hubs are as tough as anything and the ratios cover the same range as the 21-speeds that you'll find on the average road bike. Some of the ratios on de railleur gears are unuseable anyway.

I mentioned the Trek Soho because it's new and stylish, but there are a growing number of hybrids with hub gears. You do need to think about a rack because you'll need to carry stuff and you don't want the weight strapped to your back - let the bike carry it.

CumbrianMan

As an alternative to the Spesh Tricross, if you don't want drop handlebars, you could try the Spesh Crosstrail (comp/elite/sport/pro). They advertise it as the 'true' hybrid.

I got one for my missus (unisex bike), and she loves it.
It's got 29'er wheels, so the same size as a road bike, meaning good speed, mtb style frame, tyres that are slick down the middle but with a bit of grip on the edge, so good for towpaths and a bit of rough stuff (but probably not a full blown mtb outing), and suspension that can be locked out, so no bob when on the road. It also has disc brakes, bringing you to a halt very sharpish (great in urban traffic), and also has rack mounts for the obligatory rack/panniers setup.

I got some SKS Beavertail guards, and put them on, and they are spot on, even with the front suspension. Only thing I can see me adding for her is some bar ends, just for a different hand position for comfort.

A fine bike for a fine price if I do say so, and bearing in mind you'll be getting a better bargain because of cycle to work, you could maybe go for the best model.

It's worth a look anyway. http://www.specialized.com/gb/en/bc/SBC ... il&eid=125

Smonks

Take a look at the Marin Mill Valley - in budget for the cycle to work scheme, it's nice and light, quick and yet it'll take a bit of a hammering on the not so urban trails. A friend has one and rides both on the road and along tow paths and a few bridleways and loves it. Carbon fork and seat stays too!

http://www.chevincycles.com/products.php?plid=m1b2s363p5396

It looks pretty sexy in the flesh too! 8)

mightymax

hi many thanks for all the information and suggestions it is very very much appreciated

Someone has mentioned to me Boardman range of bikes are these any good?

Again thanking you all in advance