Hybrid Bike for Riding to Work

rdb85

I am looking at getting a Hybrid bike to ride to work etc. I have a local bike shop: https://www.formbycycles.co.uk/ but I am unsure which brand to go for? Any help or ideas please? I dont have a budget so could go up to £2000, as they do finance which suits me.

The commute to work is about 8 miles a day, I will also be using it regulary, the roads are mixed on my way to work. there are cycle lanes.

So if anyone could help me on deciding the right bike that would be great.

fenix

It's hard to find a bad bike over about £500 now. Any bike could cope with 8 miles per day - a 2 grand bike would probably be about 10 secs faster over a £500 one. What kind of bike paths ? Tarmac ? Trail ?

rdb85

Right okay, what would you recommend then, if I can get something just as good for 1/4 price that is excellent. There is a local bike shop by me: https://www.formbycycles.co.uk/

Paths are Tarmac and some Trail.

apreading

DONT get one with suspension. It makes the bike heavy and unless you spend alot of money doesnt generally work well and you dont need it for the ride you are talking about.

Get one with carbon forks as they smooth the bumps a little, and get one which can take wide(ish) tyres 28mm or such (some dont have the frame clearance for wide tyres). Wider tyres allows you to run lower pressure in them which makes the ride alot more comfortable without the need for suspension.

I would get disc brakes, especially as your commute is likely to involve town cycling with traffic. Ideally you want shimano or Avid brakes but Tektro arent supposed to be too bad.

On the site you link, the Whyte bikes are nice and there are some 2016 models a little discounted. Something like the Portobello is a nice bike. The Specialized Sirrus sells extremely well and is also a very good bike but they are usually more expensive than equivalent from other brands and put cheap components on them. More importantly though, they ride very differently - the Sirrus is a much more relaxed, upright position - the Whyte is more stretched out and racy. You can change alot with setup but the nature of the bikes generally remains. You really nide to ride a couple and see what you like the feel of.

You would do even better if you went to Halfords and looked at the Boardman Hybrid though - thats still the best bang for the buck by miles.

rdb85

Okay So look out for

Carbon Folks or I was thinking Carbon Frame , Hydraulic Disc, One that I can change tyres and upgrade parts. I was thinking of the Canondale bikes. So which ones out of Halfords: http://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/h ... d=Boardman

Any others from Formby Cycles

fenix

Definitely agree with the wide tyres. THey make a big difference.
No suspension - definitely not needed.
Brakes - I'd not rule out rim brakes - they've worked for me for 30+ years.
I'd also want full mudguards - if you're commuting - it makes a big difference. Not many have them fitted as standard but make sure your choice can have them and get teh shop to fit them for you. Trust me on this...
Gearing - if you're close to Formby then you don''t need a huge range - it's flat there ? Nothing with a triple. And you could even get away with a single ring.

That should narrow down the options for you ?

rdb85

Thanks, would you mind linking some possible bikes

apreading

The Boradman Hybrid Team is the sweet spot http://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/h ... -team-bike You wont get better for anything like that money. The pro version is good but its £300 more.

Bear in mind that Halfords do 10% off or similar offer on Boardman bikes every other month, and if you join British Cycling for around £30 you get 10% off everything in Halfords on top of that. Its a steal if you stack those offers.

As Fenix says, make sure you can fit mudguards and pannier rack - probably most hybrids will unless you go for carbon frame - they often drop them on the carbon bikes.

If you do want Carbon then the Whyte Montpelier (http://www.formbycycles.co.uk/whyte-mon ... -2094.html) that Formby sell is a nice bike, as are the Cannondale Quick models (e.g. http://www.formbycycles.co.uk/cannondal ... -2017.html) that you have presumably looked at.

Again though - debating on here is the wrong way to do this - you need to ride a few and see what you like.

apreading

Thinking about it - if you dont really know what you are looking for, I wouldnt recommend spending thousands. I would doubly recommend a bike for £500 - £1000, with the Boardman high on that list. Ride whatever you get for a year or so and then decide if you need something more. You will then have a better idea of what you want from that bike and are more likely to avoid making an expensive mistake.

rdb85

Thanks I will have a look in Halfords also. I will also ask can Mud guards be fitted to those bikes, and also the tyres.

rdb85

Would you recommend I change any parts on those bikes listed, as I will look at those first.

apreading

I wouldnt recommend you change anything, on any bike, until you have ridden it for a while.

Just get something relatively cheap, but good enough to enjoy, then get some experience.

rdb85

Okay I will look at the Boardman bikes and also the Canonsdale which was linked before as I really liked it. Would you say the extra £300 Boardman bike is worth the extra?

rdb85

Would you be able to recommend a bike on Formby, for around the £700 mark?

https://www.formbycycles.co.uk/

apreading

rdb85 wrote:

Would you be able to recommend a bike on Formby, for around the £700 mark?

https://www.formbycycles.co.uk/

Crikey, its not hard to use the search: http://www.formbycycles.co.uk/bike/hybr ... rice=-1000

Just pick one that doesnt have suspension.

But sit on/ride a few - nobody can tell you what will feel best for you to ride.

rdb85

apreading wrote:

rdb85 wrote:

Would you be able to recommend a bike on Formby, for around the £700 mark?

https://www.formbycycles.co.uk/

Crikey, its not hard to use the search: http://www.formbycycles.co.uk/bike/hybr ... rice=-1000

Just pick one that doesnt have suspension.

But sit on/ride a few - nobody can tell you what will feel best for you to ride.

I can use the search just fine, but as people on this forum have a lot more experience that myself when it comes to bike, in terms of equipment, and the different variations, then I just thought I would ask. Its like picking a car just because you like the colour. I am just asking so that I can in terms of people experience weigh up from a cost point of view, the difference between the boradman one, and one from formby. As I would like to buy something that is quality, will last and something that is upgradable over time. As I dont really have the space for a lot of bikes.

fenix

Why not ask the people in Formby cycles ? They're the one getting paid to help you ?

Go in with a written down checklist of what you want and the price range and they can do their job ?

apreading

Fenix wrote:

Why not ask the people in Formby cycles ? They're the one getting paid to help you ?

Go in with a written down checklist of what you want and the price range and they can do their job ?

^ this

And they wont have them all in stock in your size. So you will only be able to try out the ones that they do have. Start with that, then post on here what you did/didnt like about them and we will have a better idea of what you want.

Its NOT like picking a car just because you like the colour. Its like going into a car showroom, trying out a few cars they have in stock and seeing which you like the feel of and fits your needs best.

What you are doing here is like saying you have £50,000 for a car - which one should you buy? Without working out if you want a family estate, sports car etc.

What works for one person may not be best for you.

Have a look, try some out.

rdb85

I will ask in Formby, but its always better to get s second opinion from other people.

fenix

To be fair - i think you have had a lot of help off people on here. It's over to you now.

apreading

Happy to do so but first opinion is that most on that link should be good bikes - Giant, Cannondale, Trek, Whyte, Specialized. But the hybrid tag covers a wide range of bikes, from Moutain bikes with big wheels and slick tyres to road bikes with flat bars - they each ride massively differently.

If you can, I would try out the Specialized Sirrus, Whyte Portobello and any one of Giant Rapid, Trek Zektor and Cannondale Quick Hybrid (any one of the three latter as they are more alike than the first two). But as I said, thats basically any on that list that dont have suspension (it will be c**p on all of those bikes).

My personal preference would be for disc brakes but you should try both and make your own opinion.

Deffo carbon fork, mudguard mounts and (did I mention?) no suspension.

rdb85

Okay no worries, I will let you know what I have picked.

fenix

And pics. We demand pics !