Which Hybrid

ABELL91

I am looking to upgrade from Carrera Subway to new Hybrid.

Narrowed to GT Transeo 3.0
Giant Roam 2
Boardman MX Sport

Mostly country road riding but also some light trails. Do want front suspension, Budget around £500.

Can anyone offer views on these bike?

ABELL91

Also just seen the 13 range from Halfords, the 13 Intuitive Beta looks a good alternative?

roger_merriman

the 63mm/2.5 inch travel forks don't give much suspension at all, and what they do tends to be fairly primitive.

A £500 Hardtail MTB is no slower, but will take you further off road and fat fast XC tyres, smooth out the roads.

The Boardman MTB is in budget and a far better bike.

esa2

Chunkier MTB tyres create more drag though and therefore harder work to pedal. If most of his riding is on road with just some light trail riding then a dual sport hybrid probably does suit his needs better than MTB

roger_merriman

esa2 wrote:

Chunkier MTB tyres create more drag though and therefore harder work to pedal. If most of his riding is on road with just some light trail riding then a dual sport hybrid probably does suit his needs better than MTB

The tyres that come with those hybrids are heavy stiff commuter types, on the whole the MTB tyres are better, lighter with posher casings etc.

quite apart from the fact that, you can change tyres, from 25mm/1inch slicks to 2.5 inch tyres, and modern XC MTB tyres are quick really very quick indeed.

esa2

So hes better buying a bike that suits his needs from the off rather than a bike that doesnt and then modifying it with different tyres especially when hes on a tight budget.

Only thing Id say about my hybrid(Specialized Crosstrail Sport Disc) is that going uphill offroad can sometimes be tricky to impossible depending on conditions.

roger_merriman

esa2 wrote:

So hes better buying a bike that suits his needs from the off rather than a bike that doesnt and then modifying it with different tyres especially when hes on a tight budget.

Only thing Id say about my hybrid(Specialized Crosstrail Sport Disc) is that going uphill offroad can sometimes be tricky to impossible depending on conditions.

well to take your bike's stock tyres as a example compared to the stock tyres on a MTB which tend to be budget versions of cross country tires, so they have a bit more heft than the posher versions but even so, around the same weight inspite of being a fair bit wider 38mm vs 55mm

XC MTB tyres are fast tyres, folks who have tested their rolling resistance, have found them dangerously close to road race tyres, they are slower but it's a much smaller gap than people tend to imagine.

ie the chances of the trigger sports or that type being faster is slim.

snowster

I have a boardman comp hybrid fast reliable and has never looked back I also a mtb and find there is a massive difference in the two for commuting