Service 12 yr old Saracen or buy new for ~£400 ? Help!

Multimedian

Hi.

I'm looking at doing maybe a 1.5 mile commute to work, plus fair weather cycling along canal tow paths, woodland trails etc etc.

I have a circa 98/99 vintage Saracen Rufftrax, bright yellow, red decals, tang front suspension. It's pretty heavy maybe 14kg?

Is it worth getting specialized to service it and shelling out for new tyres and tubes (tubes knackered and tyres v work/perished) ?

Would I end up with a better bike than say a new Carerra from Halfords? (Have read on build quality!)

Max budget for new would be ~ £400 ish.

Grateful for any thoughts. I believe it was a good bike in its time, I bought it 2nd hand in 2001 for around £100and was told I was getting a bargain.


If doing up is the best plan, any recommendations re tyres? Mtb or something more hybrid?

Many thanks folks,

Ian

supersonic

For 1.5 miles, I'd just get it serviced. £100 and it will do the job nicely for a long time.

Multimedian

Thanks supersonic, agreed, if it was just for the commute. Thoughts on whether a younger bike would be noticeably more fun / better to ride on canal paths / trails , easier going offroad stuff?

Oh, and thanks for the v quick reply !

supersonic

If you were regularly going offroad, it would be tempting to go new, but for your usage, the service for sure.

Multimedian

Thanks again.