Another 'What bike?!' on a student budget :)

Garbit

Hi there,

I've been looking at getting a new bike as my current bike is pretty much a death trap (front wheel wiggles like its nobody's business, no brakes and gears no longer work)

Over the summer i hope to work around my area and i'd love to see if i can do it with pedal power alone. I'm relatively fit so i may also consider local trails to mooch about on as well, although im not sure how to get into this sport. Also should i just avoid a mountain bike as i'll be doing quite a bit of road stuff?

I went into 'that shop' :P and the guy suggested a GT Aggressor XC 3 (£299.99), a little pricey so i've been scouring ebay like mad.

i've also been doing shed loads of reading and have seen that the Carrerra Subway 1 also fits the bill. However you guys are definitely more knowledgeable than me and so i'd really appreciate any advice you can give me.

I have a budget small budget of maybe 200 - 250 and would most probably have to buy second hand although all suggestions are welcome as i might be able to stretch further if its for the best, or you can persuade me

Thanks a lot in advance for any responses,

Andy

Canny Jock

For £250 you'll struggle to beat this new:

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/ebwPNLq ... 333c018336

I think that price is just for this weekend. It's a really decent bike for commuting and general knocking around, with knobblier tyres it can also handle mild off-roading with ease (it's an MTB frame with solid fork).

Garbit

I noticed this on ebay GT Aggressor 3 (not got disk brakes) been told its the 2009 model
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320510825454&ssPageName=ADME:X:RTQ:GB:1123#ht_819wt_1165

Is this a good purchase if so, how much should i bid to? I've told the bloke i'd pay for delivery
Is an aggressor mb over the top for road use as the tyres looked huge in the shop, really fat

cyberknight

Halfords have a subway 1 for £199.99 atm

Garbit

Nice spot! I didnt notice that when i was looking Is a subway 1 any good?

cyberknight

generaly the carrera range /boardmans are cracking bikes for the price, if you can get past some of the snobbery some folk have towards halfords bikes.
Sure the cheap ones they do (apollo) are not much cop and its pot luck whether the guy at the shop can set it up right.(thats what this website is for

http://bicycletutor.com/


That all said the subway 1 is a rock solid lower end commuter that is tough as old boots,apart from replacement gear cassette,chain and brake pads (all standard wearable items ) mine has done good 4000 miles and still is going strong.I did change the tyres for city jets as the ones supplied are ok but i wanted slicks.
Fittings for rack,mudguards etc.

This is mine ..

Garbit

Considering that Aggressor 3 is only at £75 on ebay would i be better off bidding up to ~£150 ish OR the Revolution Courier Classic OR the nice little subway?

Which is best value for money?

Also im assuming here that i'd fit a 20" frame, have an inner leg of about 81cm (32 inches)

right i feel a wonder down to le shop might be in order

cyberknight

Only an hour to go on the ebay , maybe go to £100 or as much as you feel, can always look at other options if you do not win it.

I ride a 18 inch subway with a 31 inch leg

mtb sizing is smaller than raod , you should be ok with a 20 " (what size you got noe ? go measure it quick )form middle of pedal spindle to where your seat tube joins the frame

Garbit

*edit* 19"

I messaged the guy about postage and he kind of half got back to me so i'm a little hesitant about bidding because i dont know if he'll post grr!

I've noticed as well all the xc 3's on halfords all have disk brakes and this has only V brakes, has the bloke been altering the spec?

cyberknight

Ah well maybe do a search on ebay for bike by distance withing the sort of bike you want? if you see nowt then pop to the shops

If an ebay bike is close enough try to pop round and see it , if its a genuine sale why would the vendor refuse?, i have a road bike off ebay and it look slike htey ran tyres to wide and rubbed the frame so caveat emptor

Could be an older spec , if in doubt walk away

Garbit

Am i silly getting a MB for pretty much road use (except when i might decide for some fun on a weekend?)

I've just realised as well that i might be able to get 10% off with NUS in store so a new GT Aggressor XC 3 could come in at £270 or a new Subway 1 at £180

That guy has said postage on top would be £40 so bidding at £100 looking probably £160 ish in total, what do you think?

cyberknight

Over £160 + for a second hand bike when you can get a new one for a similar .forget it

Considered taking your old bike to a LBS to get a quote for repair?

Could work out cheaper than you think , true the wheel if it is not bust maybe new chain , gears and index gears as well as some pads .

Garbit

right im off to the shop of dreams :P be back in a minute

Garbit

Oh jesus they managed to crack my wallet, dam them :P

Managed to swing 10% off GT aggressor XC 3 (18 " frame) and 1 year care plan, ended up paying £286.19

I thought sod it, the bike will last a few years and i need some encouragement to finish my degree

thanks for your help cyberknight much appreciated

now just wait for the mountains of questions i have about insurance and kit lol

cyberknight

Ahh well glad to help sorta .

i went to halfords to look at a vanquish i can pick up on cycle to work for £320 over a year but the sizing is an issue as the medium is the smallest they do and tbh is a bit big. Probaly look at a boardman or the virtuoso.

redddraggon

What do you want a mountain bike for?

Garbit

lol dont say that now!

I didn't fancy a road bike and a hybrid would have suited me for lots of roads its just that i'd like to be able to do some cycling over summertime.

If i hadn't have gone for the GT what would you suggest?

redddraggon

Road bikes FTW

cyberknight

of course you need 1 of each for different terrains

Sounded like the OP wanted to do off road/trails so a roady might have had problems , i know he could have gone CX but on that budget?

personally i would have gone for the carrera virtuoso in that price range new or 2nd hand if i wanted a road bike.

toybhoy

I just bought a cyclocross from Edinburgh Bicycle coop for £339 so I would have recommended that.

Garbit

youch! my arse hurts from that seat, are bike seats normally this tough? Is there any benifit? I have a really padded one on my other bike shall i swap it?

Valy

Garbit wrote:

youch! my ars* hurts from that seat, are bike seats normally this tough? Is there any benifit? I have a really padded one on my other bike shall i swap it?

I've been recently looking for a bike myself and yeah - one of the things that jumped out at me as how hard the seats were...

I kind of got used to mine now - which i think is a fair bit more padded than the ones on the Carrera bikes and such.. (Specialized XC)

UndercoverElephant

Garbit wrote:

youch! my ars* hurts from that seat, are bike seats normally this tough? Is there any benifit? I have a really padded one on my other bike shall i swap it?

Harder saddles do have various benefits, certainly once you develop a harder arse. Sheldon says the following:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/saddles.html

Sheldon Brown wrote:

Imagine placing a soft pillow on top of the coffee table. Now, as you sit down on it, the sit bones compress the pillow, which yields until the sit bones are almost on the table surface again. The difference is that now, you have pressure in between your sit bones from the middle part of the pillow.

Many cyclists are unaware of this, and many saddles are made to appeal to the purchaser who chooses a saddle on the basis of how easily the thumb can sink into the squishy top. This type of saddle is only comfortable for very short rides, (though an inexperienced cyclist will often find it more comfortable than a better saddle, as long as rides don't exceed a mile or two.)

Saddles with excessive padding are also a common cause of painful chafing of the inner thigh, as rides become longer.