Commuter Bike with Hub Gears (SRAM i-Motion available?)

_Matt_

Hi all,

My beloved Focus Cross Expert was stolen earlier this year . Anyway, I haven't replaced it but since my car is 2 days away from the scrap yard I have to make alternative arrangements in order to get to work.

There's a train station 1.5 miles from my house. This drops me off 1.5 miles from work, so my round trip each day will be 6 miles.

Admittedly, I'm a bit of a fair weather cyclist but that'll change in the winter when I have to ride. Hub gears seem to require much less maintenance and the short distances to get to work mean that I can take on a bit more weight in the bike as a result of the hub.

I've decided to get a hybrid bike as it's going to be functional (work, shopping, riding to friends' houses) rather than anything to tear around on the weekends. I'm also erring on the side of hub gears. There's one hill on the way to work which is 0.5 miles.

Based on this article: http://hubstripping.wordpress.com/internal-gear-hub-review/ the SRAMs come highly rated but the only bikes I can find with this setup are Cannondale Hooligan 3s which I really don't like the look of.

My budget is around £700 maximum.

If anyone could link to a SRAM i-motion 9 setup for this price I'd be really interested. Otherwise I'll take a look at the Giant Seek 0 with the Alfine 8.

Thanks,

Matt

Tegglington

thoguht this might be of interest but its a 7-speed shimano setup... thought i'd post anyway

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/kon ... e-ec028037

MichaelW

Alfine is a really good system for all-weather commuting.
The Giant Seek is good, On-One Pompetamine has a good reputation.

The Kona has a roller brake, very reliable but not very powerful and more hassle when changing a rear flat tyre.

For this kind of grab and go convenience riding, i found that a front dynamo hub to be very good.

Deezer-D

I have a Cannondale Bad Boy 8 for commuting. Just swapped the Afine onto my 456 and have made the Cannondale single speed. You might be able to pick a 2009-2010 one up for your budget?

_Matt_

Tegglington

For £425 that is great value for money. I hadn't even come across that bike before. In fact, I'm so impressed that I'm going to go to Evans tomorrow to put down a £50 deposit so that I can try it out.

I found a very positive review here: http://cyclinginfo.co.uk/blog/bikes/kona-dr-good-review/

I had a look at the hubstripping blog and the Nexus 7 came overall top of its class so that's a good sign. It would have been nice to have had a QR on the front but it's not the end of the world.

Thank you for the suggestion.

MichaelW

That On One is very smart indeed but passed my budget. I'm going to give it some serious thought though as it's a really nice looking bike. Love the massive list of options!

Deezer-D

I've just seen your post. I'll have a look at the BB.

Tegglington

Your Welcome Sir!