heavy duty commuting bike

supersonic

I'd take a look at this:

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165534

You may have to check regards to pannier racks, but is a sturdy bike with hydro discs, and leaves plenty of change. The frames are pretty stiff too.

slowbike

Depending on what you want to carry in the pannier you could look at p-clips if the bike doesn't have suitable mounts. I did this last year on my road bike and carried quite a bit. It's not as good as proper mounts and you have to ensure you're protecting the frame from rub - but if it's just to carry lunch & clothing it'll probably suffice.

arran77

dilemna wrote:

F**k me that's fat! That's over twice my body weight, me carrying another me of lard. Blimey :shock: .

Lay off the pies, crisps and cakes.

You should head over to bottom bracket, you'll fit right in with us with comments like that

daniel_b

I just bought a Kona Minute from crc for £370, and very nice it is too.
Not seeing Evans or Halfords able to match that though.
How far is the commute?

An off the wall suggestion is this that comes with guards and integrated rack, and to my eye looks a bit different and therefore interesting.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/globe/haul-1-2012-hybrid-bike-ec020356


Or this for a more sensible choice:
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/jamis/commuter-2-2013-hybrid-bike-ec041471

dmclite-3.0

arran77 wrote:

dilemna wrote:

F**k me that's fat! That's over twice my body weight, me carrying another me of lard. Blimey :shock: .

Lay off the pies, crisps and cakes.

You should head over to bottom bracket, you'll fit right in with us with comments like that

Have you ran this through the BB committee ?

Initialised

supersonic wrote:

I'd take a look at this:

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165534

You may have to check regards to pannier racks, but is a sturdy bike with hydro discs, and leaves plenty of change. The frames are pretty stiff too.

Looks good, but the spec is a fair bit lower than the HooDoo. However, the savings will let you upgrade bits as you need to. I have a VooDoo HooDoo and kinda like it on the trails. I was the wrong side of 100kg when I took up cycle commuting a few years ago. Now I'm a fair bit lighter and have done my first sportive and race events this year after making the switch from a hybridised rigid MTB to a road bike.

Pross

Most bike frames will be fine, it's the wheels that will be crucial. One thing to be aware of is that there are lots of shops that will accept Halfords vouchers so don't feel bound to buying from them or Evans (or one of the brands on the Halfords C2W site although there are some good choices). I've just spent my Halfords voucher at Leisure Lakes cycles who were excellent (I have to say the Halfords C2W call centre was also very good).

arran77

dmclite-3.0 wrote:

arran77 wrote:

dilemna wrote:

F**k me that's fat! That's over twice my body weight, me carrying another me of lard. Blimey :shock: .

Lay off the pies, crisps and cakes.

You should head over to bottom bracket, you'll fit right in with us with comments like that

Have you ran this through the BB committee ?

There were a few objections but he got seconded

keyrulzman

Pross wrote:

One thing to be aware of is that there are lots of shops that will accept Halfords vouchers [..]

Thanks for the tip, I'll call the local bike shops to ask if they accept the vouchers.

keyrulzman

Daniel B wrote:

I just bought a Kona Minute from crc for £370, and very nice it is too.
Not seeing Evans or Halfords able to match that though.
How far is the commute?

It's about 11-12 km depending on the exact route.

An off the wall suggestion is this that comes with guards and integrated rack, and to my eye looks a bit different and therefore interesting.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/globe/haul-1-2012-hybrid-bike-ec020356

This one is a bit small, even the large size. But I agree, looks interesting.

Or this for a more sensible choice:
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/jamis/commuter-2-2013-hybrid-bike-ec041471

This one looks very sensible indeed. Does anyone have experience with this bike? To be honest, it seems a bit too cheap, considering it includes the mudguard, panniers, lights that other bikes don't. I think I'll try and take this for a test ride.

keyrulzman

Slowbike wrote:

Depending on what you want to carry in the pannier you could look at p-clips if the bike doesn't have suitable mounts. I did this last year on my road bike and carried quite a bit. It's not as good as proper mounts and you have to ensure you're protecting the frame from rub - but if it's just to carry lunch & clothing it'll probably suffice.

It's mostly a laptop and lunch, so not too much. I managed with a backpack until now, but I'd prefer to put everything on the bike.

slowbike

Interesting brakes ....

Slidepad Single lever automatic braking system, linear pull.

http://www.treehugger.com/bikes/slidepa ... ycles.html

Ie just 1 brake lever that operates both brakes ... only noticed because I was looking at the detailed pic on Evan Cycles ...

tailwindhome

dilemna wrote:

Talk about ignoring the elephant in the room! .

Harsh


@OP

Before doing anything check out Gaz's blog

http://39stonecyclist.com/about/

He was where you are now.....

gb155

dilemna wrote:

keyrulzman wrote:

Hi, I'm new to the forum - be gentle

My workplace started to offer ride2work vouchers, and I'd need some advice. I would like to buy a hybrid bike, ideally something with panniers, saddlebags, proper lights - under £500, it still has to be paid from my salary and times are tight.
The scheme only offers Halfords and Evans vouchers though - I have a Halfords in town, Evans is a bit further, but both are OK.
I read bad things about the quality of Halfords builds, is that a hit and miss thing or consistently bad? I bought some stuff in Halfords but nothing really expensive and nothing built by them, so I have no first-hand experience.

Here's the catch - and the reason for my title. I'm fat, and I need a bike that won't break. I don't want some lightweight alloy frame to break or twist if I go across a bump or the kerb. We're talking 140+ kg here. On my previous used £40 MTB, I had one of the pedals broken, maybe not from my weight, but who knows. (Obviously, I hope that would reduce with my daily commuting, but for now, that's the fact.)

I did some commuting on my £40 second-hand mountain bike, so I know I can do my distance everyday. I also know that any kind of hybrid bike will be infinitely better than my current MTB. So I can do with a heavier bike if it's sturdy enough. I do plan to visit both shops in the coming week and ask in person, but I would like to have some non-partisan advice.

Thanks.

F**k me that's fat! That's over twice my body weight, me carrying another me of lard. Blimey :shock: .

Lay off the pies, crisps and cakes.

What an utter Prick

Op ignore the asshole, if I can help, I will

Gaz

keyrulzman

gb155 wrote:

Op ignore the asshole, if I can help, I will
Gaz

Hi Gaz,
I'm just looking at your blog. It's great - I hope to race you someday

gb155

keyrulzman wrote:

gb155 wrote:

Op ignore the asshole, if I can help, I will
Gaz

Hi Gaz,
I'm just looking at your blog. It's great - I hope to race you someday

I'll look forward to it :0)

arran77

gb155 wrote:

keyrulzman wrote:

gb155 wrote:

Op ignore the asshole, if I can help, I will
Gaz

Hi Gaz,
I'm just looking at your blog. It's great - I hope to race you someday

I'll look forward to it :0)

Those before and after photos on your blog should be a massive inspiration to anyone wanting to loose a few pounds, excellent effort

nigglenoo

For the OP, the best deal for a commuting bike I have seen is this:

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/mens-nework- ... 22609.html

Fully equipped for £269 with 3x8 speed gears, mudguards, rack, hub dynamo lights. Not on your Bike 2 Work scheme but if you can buy it outright or put it on an interest free cradit card in the long run it would be a lot cheaper IMO as you will have to pay out lots on most other bikes available in the UK just to get them up to that spec.

BTW did you get rid of the old MTB or is it still sitting in the shed? If so it would probably be best to fix it up with some fat slick tyres like Big Apples and ride it until you have worked out exactly what you want in the way of a shiny new bike.

Oh and for everybody else: as usual on an internet forum, don't feed the troll ;-)

nigglenoo

anewman wrote:

I think you might be best looking at a tourer. They are designed for lugging weight around. This would also have the panniers, lights etc covered. The downside of these types of bikes is they aren't usually designed for speed

I have a Claud Butler Dalesman touring bike which is a tad slower on smooth tarmac than my Genesis Equilibrium set up as an audax bike, but makes up for it in terms of comfort over distance and copes much better with rough roads or trails. It has 35mm slick tyres (true width 36mm) compared to 28mm (true width 26mm) on the Genesis.

IME tourers are quite similar in performance to a crossbike on slicks and only outperformed by audax/road bikes, definitely quicker than any straight bar bikes including sports hybrids: aerodynamics out perform all other factors as speed increases. Touring bikes make excellent commuters and utility bikes and still give you the freedom to go off into the hills at the weekend or round the world for a year or two.

Mikey23

@gaz... Inspiring
@kayrulzman... Welcome. Can't help with your enquiry but I hope it works out for you. Rissoles in the world there will always be unfortunately

jimmypippa

nigglenoo wrote:

anewman wrote:

I think you might be best looking at a tourer. They are designed for lugging weight around. This would also have the panniers, lights etc covered. The downside of these types of bikes is they aren't usually designed for speed

I have a Claud Butler Dalesman touring bike which is a tad slower on smooth tarmac than my Genesis Equilibrium set up as an audax bike, but makes up for it in terms of comfort over distance and copes much better with rough roads or trails. It has 35mm slick tyres (true width 36mm) compared to 28mm (true width 26mm) on the Genesis.

IME tourers are quite similar in performance to a crossbike on slicks and only outperformed by audax/road bikes, definitely quicker than any straight bar bikes including sports hybrids: aerodynamics out perform all other factors as speed increases. Touring bikes make excellent commuters and utility bikes and still give you the freedom to go off into the hills at the weekend or round the world for a year or two.

I'd second this - my tourer is slightly slower than my Croix de Fer, but adequate.

@Gaz,

Always glad to see your posts - I was about to mention you.

daniel_b

keyrulzman wrote:

Daniel B wrote:

I just bought a Kona Minute from crc for £370, and very nice it is too.
Not seeing Evans or Halfords able to match that though.
How far is the commute?

It's about 11-12 km depending on the exact route.

An off the wall suggestion is this that comes with guards and integrated rack, and to my eye looks a bit different and therefore interesting.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/globe/haul-1-2012-hybrid-bike-ec020356

This one is a bit small, even the large size.

You must be 6ft or so then?
Looking back, Supersonics voodoo bike in a large would probably fit you, though the 45mm tyres you may want to change for thinher ones.

SKS mudguards you can normally source for circa £25, and racks start at about £18, but imo £30 will get you something of quality, something like a topeak super tourist.

In hindsight the second bike I posted, although fulfilling the criteria, may be a little dull and not motivate you especislly - all imho of course!

the_hundredth_idiot

Nothing particularly constructive to add to those posting before but ...

Good luck! I'm sure a decent MTB will work just fine for you, and you should be able to get one for the money you're looking at spending.

Gaz is an inspiration for what can be achieved.

tomBux2

I'd echo the others advice about wheels. I'd aim for 26" if possible, rather than the 700c of most hybrids as they will be stronger for the same strength of rim/spokes due to their smaller size. 36 spoke will help too, and 1.5" + tyres will stop them from getting too beaten up. I use panaracer Paseala TG in 1.75" at the moment (Evans might be able to exchange these for the stock tyres). I commute on 26", much more suitable for the job in hand IMO.

The Rookie

The Marasa I am convinced will be plenty strong enough, decent Formula wheels (used on bikes upto £600), strong brakes and no unnecesary suspension stuff, they are also fairly quick and as you get fitter you can go to narrower tyres for more speed if you want (my Nephew runs 32mm).