Best Bike for £500 please

ricgreen

Looking for the best all round Hybrid bike for £500 or less
Like the look of the Giant Escape 1 at around £450

Can anyone agree or disagree + add any others ?

Thanks

cooldad

Look at Decathlon, Go Outdoors or Halfords. Much better value generally than big brands.
Specifically no idea - links help.

N0bodyOfTheGoat

Bikes such as...

Voodoo Marassa
Boardmans Hybrid Comp
13 Incline Alpha (heavily skewed towards off-road, but great frame/fork for the money)

oxoman

Loads of bikes that are around your budget but need to know what kind of riding you intend doing. Trail centres, forest tracks or natural trails, or more downhill type of stuff.

cooldad

He wants a hybrid, so probably none of the above.

kickaxe

oxoman wrote:

Loads of bikes that are around your budget but need to know what kind of riding you intend doing. Trail centres, forest tracks or natural trails, or more downhill type of stuff.

Read again-Hybrid

N0bodyOfTheGoat

cooldad wrote:

He wants a hybrid, so probably none of the above.

So if the Voodoo Marassa and Boardman Hybrid Comp are not hybrids in your eyes, what are?

cooldad

I was replying to oxoman. Do keep up.

ricgreen

The Hybrid bike will be used for some road riding and some slightly off road, nothing mad,
Best bang for £500 would be good

Thanks

cooldad

cooldad wrote:

Look at Decathlon, Go Outdoors or Halfords. Much better value generally than big brands.
Specifically no idea - links help.

NitrousOxide wrote:

Bikes such as...

Voodoo Marassa
Boardmans Hybrid Comp
13 Incline Alpha (heavily skewed towards off-road, but great frame/fork for the money)

oxoman

Cheers cooldad, mislaid the glasses. As much as I dislike halfords the Boardman and voodoo aren't to bad, the Giant is not to bad but your paying for the name.

ricgreen

I understand that I be paying more for the Giant Escape 1
But is there really much difference between that than the others mentioned?

cooldad

Links help, but if it's the one I looked at it's a bit of a stupid price. V brakes and low end bits.

The Rookie

The Escape is dire value, you would be paying £250 for the name, get a Voodoo Marasa and change the rather heavy tyres to something to better suite your usage.

Rookie1986

The Rookie wrote:

The Escape is dire value, you would be paying £250 for the name, get a Voodoo Marasa and change the rather heavy tyres to something to better suite your usage.

+1

The spec on the escape is shocking for the price tag, it's comparable to bikes 1/2 it's value, go with the Voodoo it's pretty decent for the price bracket and will give you much better bang for buck

ricgreen

Sorry all the bike will he brought through the cycle to work scheme so that rules out Halfords

Here's the escape

http://www.googleadservices.com/pagead/ ... black.aspx

oxoman

Have a look at some of the other brands that LBS tend to stock, Moda, Forme, Ridgeback to name three. All do various spec levels for your budget just google the cycle scheme approved supplier list. Just remember that some retailers will only do RRP or charge a handling fee for the cycle to work scheme. Decathlon do various hybrids worth looking at and I believe your C2W voucher would be ok for sale / discounted bikes without charging with them. Check first though.

ricgreen

Thanks oxman

I'm off to decathalon today a bit later on,
Is there any ones there you or anyone else can recommend,
I don't want to get there and be fed a load of bull from a worker who's got less idea than me lol

Thanks

ricgreen

Here's a couple of links to decathalon Hybrids
Let me know your views please.

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-540-f ... 22798.html

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-520-fl
at-bar-road-bike-sora-id_8322799.html

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-500-f ... 22664.html

ricgreen

Good write up for this hybrid


https://www.google.co.uk/url?q=http://w ... pgb6Ks5pig

The Rookie

What cycle to work scheme (Halfords have a cycle to work scheme of their own and accept some other cycle to work schemes) so we know which retailers yo have access to?

ricgreen

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&sourc ... fLuctr7yMQ

This scheme does not include Halfords

The Rookie

I know, so what, there are lots of schemes which is why we need to know the right one! Note I said some not all, net contribution of that post=zero.

ricgreen

The Rookie
Chill out
I'm not looking for an argument and wasn't being funny when I mentioned the scheme,
I've been on the schemes website and the bike shops in coventry that I can use include decathalon go outdoors, Ride, Thornton cycles in Rugby
None of those stock the voodoo

I'm looking at decathlon as per links earlier, and will visit this afternoon.
And will go to the others tomorrow.

Thanks

The Rookie

Do we read between the lines and assume that cyclescheme is the cycle to work scheme you have? You haven't actually said.

ricgreen

The Rookie

Yes I should have made it a lot clearer,
But It was not intentional,
My mistake.

The Rookie

No worries, confusion on both sides.

Voodoo is a Halfords only brand.

Decathlon have do a pair of decent fast road Hybrids
http://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-520-f ... 22799.html

ricgreen

The Rookie
Thanks for that

I'm in decathalon looking at the bike you have just put a link to,
Just ridden it and it's a lovely lightweight bike,
That's top of my list at the moment
And I'm going to struggle to beat that all round for spec and price I think

Thanks again

The Rookie

That one is superb value for money for a fast road hybrid, it's only limitation is that it won't take winder tyres if you want to take it off Tarmac.

ricgreen

The Rookie

The bike in Decathlon was fitted with 35mm tyres
And the guy told me the bike would be ok using it on tow paths and through the woods
Obviously nothing stupid though
Do you think he may have been giving me a bit of duff advice?

The Rookie

The one linked to is on 25mm tyres, which bike did you look at?