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[tunnie]

My current bike a 20 year old Peugeot, which was originally my Dads, finally needs replacing. Done about 1,500 miles on it since bringing it to London, did near enough 3k at University on it 

Came out from work yesterday, to find that bulge on the tyre wall, thats been there a few months  Finally let go, also 3 of the 18 gears work, the brakes are shot (non existent in the wet), suspension seized and back tyre showing canvas, its time to go.

I'm quite keen on Specialized, keep changing my mind between a Hybrid & Full Road bike.

For Hybrid, considering Sirrus range:

http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/specialized-sirrus-elite-bike-for-sale/108091115

For Road, considering Allez Sport:

http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/specialized-allez-sport/107294274

Questions I keep mulling over is, are Carbon Folks worth it? How well would a full road bike cope with rough roads we get?

My commute route is about 4 miles, 90% road/pavement and 10% through a park, I do tend to cut across grass in some sections (thinking road bike here will be a no-no) - Should add it would get occasional 9 mile runs into Central London

But also thinking about other uses, as the New Forrest is only an hour away and MrsT is considering getting a mountain bike so need something that can cope there.

Any thoughts suggestions? Budget is around £250/300.

I can get a brand new Sirrus for £370, but its basic model with no carbon parts. But, it does mean I can get the XL frame. As most second hand examples are all Medium or just Large.

Being 6ft5, I think I need at least a 61cm frame 

[Kevin Wood]

20 years? Spring chicken. My Raleigh's still going strong after 30 years.

Sounds like it just needs some maintenance and a new tyre and inner tube.

General consensus seems to be that a lot more people buy a hybrid and wish they'd got a road bike than vice versa. I would have thought, if you're happy with the dropped handle bars, road bike would be the only choice living in the smoke. It's something I've been pondering recently. I reckon mountain bike+road bike is the ideal but I've got a lot of woodland to cycle in near me.

Anything with an upright riding position and knobbly tyres will feel tedious compared to a road bike IMHO. Some of the more extreme road bikes these days don't look like they'd survive a decent pot hole, though. Maybe looks are deceptive.

When I told my local bike shop what I'm riding he said a lot of people prefer the "feel" of an old steel framed racer over the ali / CF modern bikes... when he stopped laughing.

[feeutfo]

I don't see the point in hybrids. Seems to me they are for people who are too dim to swap thier mountain bike tyres for road tyres. £50(for puncture proof road tyres and heavy duty tubes) and some tyre levers and you have two bikes in one.

Plus that sport bike frame is way too small for you, but you knew that.


Around the streets of London you need your head up, so no dropped bars, and rugged tyres for pot holes and the odd miss timed bunny hop up kerbs and pot holes. IMO.


If your cycling proper miles in events or joining a road club, then get a racer/sport bike.
Hybrids are gay.

Chrome Molly frames are toughest, Reynolds 501/531 flex like a rubber band. I would think Carbon would flex a little, and chip.

[aaronjb]

I know a friend of mine - who rides a lot (40+ mile trips are her 'Sunday ride') was told by a bike shop not to get a CF frame as they're easily damaged, can't be put on a bike rack on a car and are only designed to last a season; not sure if that follows with just CF forks but it'd be a sod to buy them and have them collapse on you over a pothole!

Oh yes - she has a mountain bike and a full road bike. The mountain bike never gets used and the road bike (ally frame, I think) seems to survive just fine on the potholed roads of Hertfordshire.

[edit] I got my 20+ year old Raleigh out of the shed the other day and briefly pondered riding it. Then remembered how fat I am, sighed and put it away again

[Kevin Wood]

... of course, the great thing about riding a tatty old bike is that when you leave it somewhere, it's still there when you get back.

[feeutfo]

Although as Kev says, there doesn't sound like there's much wrong with the old one that a bit of maintanance won't fix.

[tunnie]

20 years? Spring chicken. My Raleigh's still going strong after 30 years.

Sounds like it just needs some maintenance and a new tyre and inner tube.

General consensus seems to be that a lot more people buy a hybrid and wish they'd got a road bike than vice versa. I would have thought, if you're happy with the dropped handle bars, road bike would be the only choice living in the smoke. It's something I've been pondering recently. I reckon mountain bike+road bike is the ideal but I've got a lot of woodland to cycle in near me.

Anything with an upright riding position and knobbly tyres will feel tedious compared to a road bike IMHO. Some of the more extreme road bikes these days don't look like they'd survive a decent pot hole, though. Maybe looks are deceptive.

When I told my local bike shop what I'm riding he said a lot of people prefer the "feel" of an old steel framed racer over the ali / CF modern bikes... when he stopped laughing.

I have considered fixing it, but it needs two new wheels, the current bearings are shot, they are all over the place. I need two new inner tubes, plus tyres. The rear set of gears have no cable to them, the switcher self destructed. New brakes needed all around, new cables too as current ones are shot. All that , is not far off something new...

Heard that quite a bit, that the Hybrids are a bit of a compromise.

[tunnie]

Gahhhh, back to maybe mountain bike or road bike then 

Yeah I knew in the links the frame sizes were wrong, when I first started looking at second hand the prices are really good, but none of the frames are big enough 

Lot to be said for an old tatty bike, my £2 bike lock from Wilko's is enough to secure it even in Central London 

A mate did buy a Mountain bike, then stick road tyres on it. Worked well for him, could go that route 

[tunnie]

This is quite tempting, could always upgrade the tyres at a later date, also available in 23" frame which is what I need.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/hardrock-disc-2012-mountain-bike-ec030131

[albitz]

Had one of these sat in the shed for the last two years.Brand spankers,hasnt even had the labels taken off.
http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=bianchi+mazda+zoom+zoom&hl=en&sa=X&rls=com.microsoft:en-gb:IE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7ACAW_enGB404GB404&biw=1366&bih=587&tbm=isch&prmd=imvns&tbnid=KXiV6nytBszH8M:&imgrefurl=http://regensburg2.auto-schindlbeck.de/go.to/modix/2,426010/after-sales-service.html&docid=nE6hw2gaHNpITM&imgurl=http://userdata.modix.de/userdata/10459/files/lb_zzbike_gr.jpg&w=668&h=423&ei=PDQiUIDhM8jQ0QWfyIGgDA&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=72&vpy=144&dur=94&hovh=179&hovw=282&tx=136&ty=78&sig=103304408089237875137&page=1&tbnh=94&tbnw=149&start=0&ndsp=23&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0,i:73

[tunnie]

Had one of these sat in the shed for the last two years.Brand spankers,hasnt even had the labels taken off.
http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=bianchi+mazda+zoom+zoom&hl=en&sa=X&rls=com.microsoft:en-gb:IE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7ACAW_enGB404GB404&biw=1366&bih=587&tbm=isch&prmd=imvns&tbnid=KXiV6nytBszH8M:&imgrefurl=http://regensburg2.auto-schindlbeck.de/go.to/modix/2,426010/after-sales-service.html&docid=nE6hw2gaHNpITM&imgurl=http://userdata.modix.de/userdata/10459/files/lb_zzbike_gr.jpg&w=668&h=423&ei=PDQiUIDhM8jQ0QWfyIGgDA&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=72&vpy=144&dur=94&hovh=179&hovw=282&tx=136&ty=78&sig=103304408089237875137&page=1&tbnh=94&tbnw=149&start=0&ndsp=23&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0,i:73

How big is the frame? 

[Kevin Wood]

Bearings are just a race of ball bearings, though. An adjustable race of ball bearings. What's wrong with the wheels? They can be trued easily when you get the hang of it. All excuses to buy a new bike rather than show stoppers with the old one, IMHO. 

I have an ally framed mountain bike and do enjoy riding that. They do "give" a little more than a steel bike, but possibly that's a good thing on a mountain bike. Ali frames do fatigue quicker, and if you do damage them you'll be lucky to repair them successfully, even if you can TIG.

Biggest frustration I have with the mountain bike is that it's geared too short for the road. Plenty of downhill stuff near me and over 20MPH you just have to sit there and coast. On the racer I can push it up to 35MPH (then I start thinking about how old the bike is ). There's a lot more drag on the mountain bike, but then mine has knobbly tyres. Not such an issue for me as I'm cycling to get fit anyway, so effort is what I need, but for longer rides (I probably do 10-20 miles on average) the racer is much less effort.

If you're riding mostly on the flat, shortish journeys and need the upright position, mountain bike with road tyres might be the best compromise.

I certainly can't see the attraction of hybrids. Seems the worst of both worlds to me.

[feeutfo]

Re the evans one, No experience with cable operated disc brakes, but yes, only question is if you need a soft tail or not, or lockable suspension. Probably not, esp given the added price those parts incur.

I went 21" frame as I find 23 I bit cumbersome. Steering angle, mine(xc pro) is juuuust a fraction wobbly, a bit too quick steering. So try before you buy. I presume specialised stick with the same geometry accross their range.

[albitz]

Had one of these sat in the shed for the last two years.Brand spankers,hasnt even had the labels taken off.
http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=bianchi+mazda+zoom+zoom&hl=en&sa=X&rls=com.microsoft:en-gb:IE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7ACAW_enGB404GB404&biw=1366&bih=587&tbm=isch&prmd=imvns&tbnid=KXiV6nytBszH8M:&imgrefurl=http://regensburg2.auto-schindlbeck.de/go.to/modix/2,426010/after-sales-service.html&docid=nE6hw2gaHNpITM&imgurl=http://userdata.modix.de/userdata/10459/files/lb_zzbike_gr.jpg&w=668&h=423&ei=PDQiUIDhM8jQ0QWfyIGgDA&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=72&vpy=144&dur=94&hovh=179&hovw=282&tx=136&ty=78&sig=103304408089237875137&page=1&tbnh=94&tbnw=149&start=0&ndsp=23&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0,i:73

How big is the frame? 

No idea,but I could probably find out.
I know its too big for its owner (Mrs Albs) to ride,and pointless me trying,as spazzy right leg would result in me going round in little circles.

[albitz]

One for sale on Scumtree,all the details should be there.Im pretty sure they are all the same,as they were a limited edition thing for Mazda.I dont believe they were actually available to be bought retail, although the value at the time was put at around £650 iirc.

http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/bianchi-mazda-zoom-zoom-mountain-bike/106159232

[tunnie]

Biggest frustration I have with the mountain bike is that it's geared too short for the road. Plenty of downhill stuff near me and over 20MPH you just have to sit there and coast. On the racer I can push it up to 35MPH (then I start thinking about how old the bike is ). There's a lot more drag on the mountain bike, but then mine has knobbly tyres. Not such an issue for me as I'm cycling to get fit anyway, so effort is what I need, but for longer rides (I probably do 10-20 miles on average) the racer is much less effort.

Yeah I'm annoyed by that, going flat out and Road bikes still go zooming past. With my long legs I could easily achieve a higher cruising speed.

My other thoughts are get a road bike for the commute & fix up the current one when I'm looking to go off road. 

[tunnie]

One for sale on Scumtree,all the details should be there.Im pretty sure they are all the same,as they were a limited edition thing for Mazda.I dont believe they were actually available to be bought retail, although the value at the time was put at around £650 iirc.

http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/bianchi-mazda-zoom-zoom-mountain-bike/106159232

If I'm reading that right, its 54cm frame 

[feeutfo]

Biggest frustration I have with the mountain bike is that it's geared too short for the road. Plenty of downhill stuff near me and over 20MPH you just have to sit there and coast. On the racer I can push it up to 35MPH (then I start thinking about how old the bike is ). There's a lot more drag on the mountain bike, but then mine has knobbly tyres. Not such an issue for me as I'm cycling to get fit anyway, so effort is what I need, but for longer rides (I probably do 10-20 miles on average) the racer is much less effort.

Yeah I'm annoyed by that, going flat out and Road bikes still go zooming past. With my long legs I could easily achieve a higher cruising speed.

My other thoughts are get a road bike for the commute & fix up the current one when I'm looking to go off road. 

guess a third chain ring on the front is needed...?

[albitz]

One for sale on Scumtree,all the details should be there.Im pretty sure they are all the same,as they were a limited edition thing for Mazda.I dont believe they were actually available to be bought retail, although the value at the time was put at around £650 iirc.

http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/bianchi-mazda-zoom-zoom-mountain-bike/106159232

If I'm reading that right, its 54cm frame 

No idea tbh. Cushion on the seat ? 

[tunnie]

Biggest frustration I have with the mountain bike is that it's geared too short for the road. Plenty of downhill stuff near me and over 20MPH you just have to sit there and coast. On the racer I can push it up to 35MPH (then I start thinking about how old the bike is ). There's a lot more drag on the mountain bike, but then mine has knobbly tyres. Not such an issue for me as I'm cycling to get fit anyway, so effort is what I need, but for longer rides (I probably do 10-20 miles on average) the racer is much less effort.

Yeah I'm annoyed by that, going flat out and Road bikes still go zooming past. With my long legs I could easily achieve a higher cruising speed.

My other thoughts are get a road bike for the commute & fix up the current one when I'm looking to go off road. 

guess a third chain ring on the front is needed...?

Yeah, or a Road Bike.

Just been crunching the numbers on the Cycle to Work Schemes they do, big savings to be had. Take a salary reduction for 12 months, saving on NI & Tax.

£600 voucher, net cost in the end is around £390

[Weds]

I know a friend of mine - who rides a lot (40+ mile trips are her 'Sunday ride') was told by a bike shop not to get a CF frame as they're easily damaged, can't be put on a bike rack on a car and are only designed to last a season; not sure if that follows with just CF forks but it'd be a sod to buy them and have them collapse on you over a pothole!

Carbon fibre framed bikes certainly last more than one season. I have a CF road and MTB, the MTB is from about 2006 and has been around the trails in Wales and Down Hill courses in the Alps its still in one piece. The CF road bikes survives riding the potholes in Kent and hasn't broken yet. Both bikes have been on bike racks without any problems.

[Rods2]

Gearing should be considered as part of buying the bike. My mountain bike has three front chain wheels, with quite high gearing for the road and well as low gearing for off road hill climbing on dirt surfaces. My racing bike has high top gearing for speed.

My racing bike big ring and top gear is 52 / 13 and good for up to 45mph and I can't remember what my mountain bike is, but is is good for about 35mph.

Frames built with exotic materials are basically a marketing fad to get you to part with more money, unless you are a professional or serious amateur racer, then the extra 1-2% performance is important. Much more important is the quality of the groupset (wheel hubs, gears, chain set, bottom bracket bearings, gear changer, brakes and pedals). The higher the groupset the better the quality, the better the precision engineering, the more maintenance free they will be and especially how long they will last. With wheels the deeper the aluminium extrusion the more robust they will be on our pot hole strewn roads and the much less often they will need truing up.

By far the biggest factor for speed is: Your strength and fitness after that the type of bike / gearing / saddle and handle bar height are correctly set up / tyre type and width.

My mountain bike has knobbly tyres so there is much more road friction than my racing bike that I used to use for time trialing which has 20mm width, racing tyres and the riding position is much more upright on the mountain bike, so there is more wind resistance.

[tunnie]

Thanks for everyones comments, my fitness on the bike is reasonable.

I've tried a few halfrauds bikes (be it just sitting on them) they felt very cheap and not really that cheap.

So strongly considering this now:

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/hardrock-disc-2012-mountain-bike-ec030131

Upgrading tyres to Road based if I need more go 

Leaves Mountain tyres spare for when its taken off road at the weekend 

[Gaffers]

I have been looking for a new bike in preparation for a couple of half Ironmans next year and the Ribble TT carbon bikes impressed me a lot for the price.

That said I have decided to wait and see whats about close to christmas after the hype of this summer and everyone selling the unused bikes in their garages 



Tunnie, if you want to get faster on the bike then you need to get in the gym and do some deadlift, squats, cleans and jerks  a couple of months concentrating on those and your legs will be so powerful you'll breeze along on the bike.  Couple it with some fast-twitch exercises to get even more benefit.  On the DL start with half your body weight and build up from there with 4 sets of 4 reps.  Keep adjusting your weight until you max out at the end of a session.  I did that starting at 60kg and I am now on 220kg yet still sprinting 400m in 1m20s. Plus my distance runnng has become a lot easier as I ue less energy to run now thanks to the increased strength.

I cant wait to do a Triathlon wen I get back

[feeutfo]

Maybe. But if the bike is geared wrong or geared too short, you can be as fit as you like , you'll be spinning away getting nowhere.

[GastronomicKleptomaniac]

... of course, the great thing about riding a tatty old bike is that when you leave it somewhere, it's still there when you get back.

Pfft, try one of my local town centres. You daren't stop the wheels rotating...

I have two bikes, ones my posh Specialised Secteur which is my "it isn't going to rain in the next 3 days, and I can lock it up at work" one. And an old... I can't even remember the make... mountain bike that gets used and abused for everything. Both have their ups and downs.

 The biggest complaint for me is that road bikes and potholes don't make great friends - on the old'un, I can be a little less careful.

[TheBoy]

Gave my bikes to my little bro last summer, as I went to all the effort to bring them to Brackley when I moved here, and they never left the premises

TBH, not much opportunity to use them here, without driving somewhere first.

[Elite Pete]

Jesus, I thought a bike was a bike. My old butchers bike has taken me on and off road without a hitch

[tunnie]

Tunnie, if you want to get faster on the bike then you need to get in the gym and do some deadlift, squats, cleans and jerks  a couple of months concentrating on those and your legs will be so powerful you'll breeze along on the bike.  Couple it with some fast-twitch exercises to get even more benefit.  On the DL start with half your body weight and build up from there with 4 sets of 4 reps.  Keep adjusting your weight until you max out at the end of a session.  I did that starting at 60kg and I am now on 220kg yet still sprinting 400m in 1m20s. Plus my distance runnng has become a lot easier as I ue less energy to run now thanks to the increased strength.

I cant wait to do a Triathlon wen I get back

That sounds like an awful lot of work! 

When I did cycle into Uni few years ago, I noticed the improvements day by day, little quicker, hills easier and easier, average speed always going up.

I took the plunge and bought that one I linked above, if I want it to go faster I'll prepare myself better, then fit thinner tyres and lock in shoe pedals if needed.

Looking forward to picking it up and doing some trips on it 

[aaronjb]

Bumping an old thread..

Tunnie, in your searching, did you see if anyone is still making mountain bikes with no suspension? Everywhere I look they have at least soft front forks - which would be no use with me on it, it'd be down on it's bump stops!

[edit] Specifically not kids bikes, of course - I can find those with no suspension although they all have 'lightweight' rims that I imagine would buckle under my weight!

[edit edit] There I was, looking on all sorts of specialist websites.. Halfords have loads

[tunnie]

Don't remember seeing any, although the higher spec ones had the ability to "lock" the shock. MrsT has a switch on top of her shocks (Specialised Myka Sport) which locks the shocks from moving. Aimed for when on roads I guess.

Mine just has an adjustment for how soft you can make it, I've left it on standard setup. But guess you could increase it?

[tunnie]

This was my new one, taking it for a blast in Hyde & Green Park:

[Gaffers]

It's missing some stabilisers

[Proz]

Im a bit late for this party but I'm trying to get back into cycling after lots of years of fags kebabs and beer 
Just been out for my first ride on this puppy i bought yesterday. Only done 5 miles but dont want to get too sore too quickly and sicken myself 
Was working last night so didnt have time yesterday . Need to get myself some of the padded shorts though 
Still got some adjusting to do like the seat , i think needs up and slightly further back for me and possibly handle bars down slightly.
Nice and comfortable though . Think i could get back into this quite quickly .
Better go clean it all now 

[tunnie]

Very nice, I almost went road with an Allez Sport Road. But my cycle commute takes in some rough parts, I cut across parks. Also do a lot of the Thames Path if cycling to Kingston, it's no place for a road bike 

[Proz]

Very nice, I almost went road with an Allez Sport Road. But my cycle commute takes in some rough parts, I cut across parks. Also do a lot of the Thames Path if cycling to Kingston, it's no place for a road bike 

I contemplated the Specialized Allez Sport myself but every review i read about the Boardman just couldnt praise it high enough .
Plus the deals you can get on Halfords convinced me.
Halfords is nice and close and anything goes wrong it goes back easily 

[Gaffers]

I'm looking t this puppy when I get back.  I'll certainly need to get some miles in now I have signed up for the UK 70.3 and the UK Ironman next year

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/felt-ar4-ultegra-2012/