Help Thinking about making purchase of a bicycle

[FuzzyLogic]

Lo chaps,

Not ridden a bike for about 13 years now but with the small journeys I make in my car it's looking like the better thing to do (both in terms of fuel consumption and making my flabby arse a little less flabby) and I was wondering if any of the resident cyclists could offer any advice.

The main use of it is planned to be to/from work and to my parents or any other place locally, with the possiblity of off road use when I become more confident. With little knowledge other than a pricetag I went off and found something that resembles a two wheeled death machine at Halfords.

Does this look like a good start for me? What rules and regulations are there that I should know about and are there any legal requirements in the UK for cycling on the roads? Anything I may not have thought of that would be useful?

Any help is appreciated since I have so little idea about what's needed.

Thanks.

- FL

 

[DaGaffer]

Honestly? No. A full suspension mountain bike is just hard work on road. Get something with a fixed rear at least, and also ask yourself if your actually going to off road it or its just something that sounds like a good idea but you probably won't. If you're not really going to ride it off road, get a proper road bike, you'll get more bike for your money.

 

[old.Osy]

Don't get a full suspension, get a hardtail. That bike has a steel frame, which means it's quite heavy. Get a duraluminium frame, it's as resistant and way lighter.

Disk brakes on a bike which is less than 200 quid? You're in for constant trouble with that bike, especially if you use it to comute to work on a daily basis.

ching sheng suspension? GTFO.

That thing there is a cheap ass bike, whose life expectancy is limited. I would not recommend purchasing such a thing unless we're talking about a kid who needs something to trash before moving on to a serious bike.

As for recommending something, see below:

Evans Cycles | Trek 4300 Disc 2010 Mountain Bike | Online Bike Shop

Evans Cycles | Cannondale Trail SL 6 2010 Mountain Bike | Online Bike Shop

links just for model reference, i don't know about pricing, you could maybe find them at a lower price, i just googled for them and took more or less first hit.

These are entry-level bikes, but they are solid and the equipment on it won't fail you in the first 6 months. Fully recommended for a beginner.

 

[Wazzerphuk]

Hard tails FTW.

Just create a bike forum already.

 

[FuzzyLogic]

DaGaffer: Yea it's something of a pipedream is the offroad bit, just going from how I used to ride a bike as it's been a while so a roadbike sounds quite sensible, thanks.

Are the Hybrid bikes much cop? Something like Evans Cycles | GT Transeo 4.0 2009 Hybrid Bike | Online Bike Shop looks like it would do the job (Sure it's obsolete but hey).

Thanks Osy, unsure if disc brakes are worth having for the use, only read a little about them compared to rim brakes, it's all gubbins to me right now anyhow.

Reckon something similar to that hybrid majiggy would do the trick?

 

[Tom]

I wouldn't even recommend a hardtail at that price. Go with a regular hybrid, you don't need suspension for the roads.

You can worry about doing other things once you've decided whether you like cycling or not.

 

[Gumbo]

Will your work do the cycle to work scheme? Can be a good way to get a decent bike.

 

[Tom]

Not any longer, HMRC have neutered that scheme.

 

[old.Osy]

DaGaffer: Yea it's something of a pipedream is the offroad bit, just going from how I used to ride a bike as it's been a while so a roadbike sounds quite sensible, thanks.

Are the Hybrid bikes much cop? Something like Evans Cycles | GT Transeo 4.0 2009 Hybrid Bike | Online Bike Shop looks like it would do the job (Sure it's obsolete but hey).

Thanks Osy, unsure if disc brakes are worth having for the use, only read a little about them compared to rim brakes, it's all gubbins to me right now anyhow.

Reckon something similar to that hybrid majiggy would do the trick?

Regarding disk brakes, I meant that with that 200 quid price tag, the disk brakes are most certainly crap, as with the rest of the fitting.

You need front suspension regardless of road, you do get down from the sidewalk once in a while, having something soften the shocks is nice for your wrists - we're not getting any younger, and for someone spending a lot of time in front of a computer, wrists are something to be taken care of.

That Evans thingy looks semi-decent, although i'm pretty sure you can find it cheaper elsewhere.

I didn't even know if i'm going to offroad or not with mine, still went for a model which would allow for it. Made a good choice, park trails and such are treacherous places.

This is my ride: Ride it your way!

 

[Shagrat]

I've got one of these:

http://fotos-alt.rennrad-news.de/fotos/data/890/scott2.jpg

mines got straight bars though, not the racing ones. light as a feather and a dream to ride to and from work. would definitely recomend something like this rather than a "mountain" bike.

I went from mountain to my scott, and the difference in the ride on the road, and how tiring it was, was immense.

 

[Gumbo]

Not any longer, HMRC have neutered that scheme.

Not really, there's a lot of sensationalist bullshit being bandied about that. Yes, it's not quite such a deal as a year ago, but it's still bloody good. If you are thinking of buying a bike new, and your company is running the scheme, you'd be a fuckwit not to use it.

 

[Gumbo]

For instance, quick calculation.

£1000 bike (yes I know fuzzy isn't thinking that big)

Total cost to me after savings of vat, NI and tax contributions is £587.23 and then if the company gifts me the bike at the end of the year I have to pay tax at 40% of the agreed value of my £1000 bike of 25% so 40% of £250 which is £100.

Therefore my £1000 bike, all above board and following HMRC's latest guidance costs me £687.23 a saving of £312.77

Hardly neutered.

The saving is bigger too as HMRC value sub £500 bikes at a lower percentage than >£500. You can also stretch the scheme over more than one year so the agreed value at the end of the term gets smaller and smaller.

 

[Gumbo]

At least a year interest free credit for that matter too.

 

[Tom]

You need front suspension regardless of road, you do get down from the sidewalk once in a while, having something soften the shocks is nice for your wrists - we're not getting any younger, and for someone spending a lot of time in front of a computer, wrists are something to be taken care of.

I'm sorry but I have to say that's complete nonsense. There's no problem riding a bike without suspension, people have been doing it for about 100 years.

 

[Wazzerphuk]

There's no problem, but it's much more comfortable to have front suspension on roads, as long as it doesn't have too much travel and you keep them on the the more taut settings, as too much travel or absorption will only make your ride harder.

And you do not need disc brakes.

 

[old.Osy]

I'm sorry but I have to say that's complete nonsense. There's no problem riding a bike without suspension, people have been doing it for about 100 years.

Let's not improve technology, because it has worked fine for 100 years. Get a grip Tom

 

[TdC]

lies. sus bikes have their gimmicks bolted on for a reason. if you're going to ride one purely for commute and or having a lark, then I would say man up and get a rigid bike. the latter will usually tend to be cheaper, lower maintenance and more efficient.

 

[Tom]

Let's not improve technology, because it has worked fine for 100 years. Get a grip Tom

Suspension forks aren't an improvement on road handling - they increase weight, need more servicing, and absorb energy while cycling.

They're completely unnecessary on anything but the roads of an African Dictatorship.

 

[old.Osy]

Most forks come with lockout, and they don't increase the weight much, so you can be flexible either way - going for a fixed one will mean that when he decides to take the offroad way, he'd have to chip in for a new fork, and worry about the frame accepting the fork.

Don't listen to tory Tom here, go for a suspension fork - you can lock the travel for flat roads, and go pogo stick fork whenever you feel like it. You can even adjust the stiffness of the suspension, so all's good.

 

[TdC]

Most forks come with lockout, and they don't increase the weight much.

not to be rude, but did you see the price range he is looking at? personally, I would not buy an off the shelf full suspension bike that had a sub 1k pound price tag.

 

[Tom]

A bike with a decent lightweight lockout fork on a bike costing £200, and adjustable too? Even my Rock Shox Revelation fork doesn't have an adjustable setting, and that cost nearly £300 alone.

Pull the other one.

 

[old.Osy]

The bikes in that price range - ~300 come with Suntour XC/XCT/XCM forks, which are ok-ish, and don't cost an arm and a leg. Sure, they're no competition forks, and he could not do serious DH action with it, but for bumpy back country roads or trails - they're perfect. And yes, they do come with lockout and adjustable stiffness.

@TdC - I did advise him not to go full suspension, just front.

I couldn't say i'm a regular rider - I do use it to go to work, just not everyday, and couple times a week in my spare time. I wouldn't buy a bike without front suspension - it helps with going up and down sidewalks, holes in the road, bumpy alleys, etc.
And when I hit the park trails, having a suspension fork is a must.

Anyway, that's my suggestion and i'm sticking to it.

Moving on, he doesn't need disk brakes or anything fancy - V brakes are fine.

TdC, my Univega was about 320 pounds when i bought it (this year, actually), and it came with Deore shifter, and all around decent kit, such as Smart Sam Schwalbe tires, Alivio front shifter, etc. Of course, I had to look around extensively before deciding on it, but for that price, the kit and quality of the bike make for a pretty good money/value ratio.

Fuzzy, if you can scrape 100 quid more, the 400 pounds range offers more options, such as Kona Fire Deluxe, Cube Aim, etc.

 

[FuzzyLogic]

Thanks chaps, much appreciated, I prefer to do this type of thing as opposed to simply googling and not getting the interaction. There are parks nearby that I would likely use so the front suspension would get some use if not heavy (live basically next to one). As it happens my workplace does have the cycle to work scheme and is really quite keen on pushing the green agenda (whatever that is) so i'll look into that a little more carefully.

£400 is pushing it a little I guess but depending on what kind of bike I can wangle and whatever I can work out regarding the work scheme it could very well be worth it, certainly seems to be the case that you very much get what you pay for with them.

Again, thanks chaps.

The roads here aren't exactly what I'd call smooth not too bad though.

 

[Pfy]

PASHLEY PICADOR TRICYCLE / TRIKE IN NICE TIDY CONDITION on eBay (end time 11-Sep-10 20:36:52 BST)

Get that, you could put the works briefcase, your lunch box and anything else you want in the handy rear basket!

 

[TdC]

TdC, my Univega was about 320 pounds when i bought it (this year, actually), and it came with Deore shifter, and all around decent kit, such as Smart Sam Schwalbe tires, Alivio front shifter, etc. Of course, I had to look around extensively before deciding on it, but for that price, the kit and quality of the bike make for a pretty good money/value ratio.

no worries. by any means a smart move to look about and even play dealers against each other. fwiw, I am a bit of a bike snob. my mtb is made of titanium, carbon, and magnesium, though I assure you that I do not bike even a little bit faster because of this

still, I would advise anyone to get a rigid bike in the same price range because the components will just be slightly better and it will tell on a commute. choose tyres to fit your environment eg big, knobbly fookers are pointless on the road. test ride the bike extensively, not just five minutes up the road and back, and make sure you get one that fits you well.

I used to ride a rigid carbon/scandium mtb off road and it was ace. I currently have a very plush DT Swis fork, and I would really be hard pressed to tell you which was more enjoyable. The only reason I got the bouncy fork is because I was going to ride with Will in Scotland and he had warned me the routes were somewhat more extreme than I was used to, specifically because they contained jumps.