Maaan, my bikes advice thread seems to have disappeared : (

jahtao · Post by **jahtao** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 10:31 am

Have we been infiltrated by a rival clan?

Anyone want to remind me what were those good bike names/models so i can get researching? I'd really appreciate it

Basically i wanna buy a bike for cycling round London, nothing fancy, nothing shit, but i know nothing, so anyone who knows....

datura · Post by **datura** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 10:48 am

good for seeing over buses:

jahtao · Post by **jahtao** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 11:11 am

badger · Post by **badger** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 11:26 am

lol how the fuck does that work? the wheels move each other like cogs or something? weird

datura · Post by **datura** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 11:28 am

i assume so, wouldn't like to be knocked off it!

jahtao · Post by **jahtao** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 12:04 pm

What bike shall i buy?

thinking · Post by **thinking** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 12:06 pm

what do you want it for?

jahtao · Post by **jahtao** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 12:08 pm

(thanks) just cycling round london

datura · Post by **datura** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 12:11 pm

you can get specialist street bikes - i'd just head into a halfords and ask them what they'd recommend

thinking · Post by **thinking** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 12:16 pm

If it was me, I'd go and spunk about £300 on a mountain bike, either fully rigid or just front suspension, whack some nice slicks on it, some narrower handlebars for negotiating traffic, then cover it in stickers or cut up inner tubes to make it look like shit (and therefore less nickable). I'd also buy the best D-lock I could afford as well as a decent cable lock to go with it.

BUY A HELMET. I've had 2 crashes where I definitely had my life saved by my helmet. Not optional, esp in London.

As for what brand to buy, I used to race mountain bikes and I raced Kona bikes which I could heartily recommend, but any of the well respected brands like Specialized, Marin etc are worth a look. It's more about what fits you than what brand is best - all of them have a slightly diff approach to frame geometry etc so you just need to spend some time in a shop getting help to find the one that's most comfortable.

Also, don't forget to check out 2nd hand bikes (best to look in the classified ads of a proper bike mag like MBUK than Loot or whatever), as you can get a serious bargain.

jahtao · Post by **jahtao** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 12:19 pm

wicked thats super helpful, am most grateful, cheers!

deamonds · Post by **deamonds** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 12:25 pm

ThinKing wrote:If it was me, I'd go and spunk about £300 on a mountain bike, either fully rigid or just front suspension, whack some nice slicks on it, some narrower handlebars for negotiating traffic, then cover it in stickers or cut up inner tubes to make it look like shit (and therefore less nickable). I'd also buy the best D-lock I could afford as well as a decent cable lock to go with it.

BUY A HELMET. I've had 2 crashes where I definitely had my life saved by my helmet. Not optional, esp in London.

As for what brand to buy, I used to race mountain bikes and I raced Kona bikes which I could heartily recommend, but any of the well respected brands like Specialized, Marin etc are worth a look. It's more about what fits you than what brand is best - all of them have a slightly diff approach to frame geometry etc so you just need to spend some time in a shop getting help to find the one that's most comfortable.

Also, don't forget to check out 2nd hand bikes (best to look in the classified ads of a proper bike mag like MBUK than Loot or whatever), as you can get a serious bargain.

if its for general transport to/from work i wouldnt reccomend 2 much suspension as this will weigh the bike down

jahtao · Post by **jahtao** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 1:50 pm

cool, yeah if there's one thing i know about bikes is that i like light ones

feebles · Post by **feebles** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 1:53 pm

Not sure whether I can see the point in buying a mountain bike if you just want to cycle around within the city. I mean, sure, by modifiying it as ThinKing suggested you can probably make it a good solution for any purpose but unless you're somewhat of a bike geek with a certain amount of time, knowledge and/or money on your hands I doubt this is really the way to go for you.

If I was to buy a bike with just that purpose in mind I'd probably go for a road bike or a plain city bike, depending on how sportive I consider myself. Something roughly like this, just to give you an example. Try and look for something reasonably comfortable. Crossbikes might be an option, too. (Edit: OK, the crossbike is actually pretty similar to what ThinKing suggested, now that I read his post again.)

feebles · Post by **feebles** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 1:59 pm

As for locks, I'd rather stay away from D-locks (bulky) and definitely from cable locks (useless). These are the best, I hear (foldable and very solid but a bit costly).

thinking · Post by **thinking** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 2:00 pm

Feebles wrote:Not sure whether I can see the point in buying a mountain bike if you just want to cycle around within the city. I mean, sure, by modifiying it as ThinKing suggested you can probably make it a good solution for any purpose but unless you're somewhat of a bike geek with a certain amount of time, knowledge and/or money on your hands I doubt this is really the way to go for you.

i usually recommend a mountain bike cos they have the sturdiest frames and in particular strongest wheels - yes most people just bash up & down kerbs for the life of their bike instead of getting muddy and hooning down hills but that's not the point here, it's just about durability for most peeps.

hybrid/city bikes imo are just the worst of both worlds, and road bikes are often a bit too sporty in their ride position for a lot of people who just wanna commute (and it's much easier to taco a road bike wheel if you're not careful with kerbs & potholes).

Also, I reckon it's pretty reasonable getting a shop to stick slicks/semi-slicks on a bike, and asking them to change the handlebar for something that isn't 2 feet wide. I'd expect any shop I'm spending money in to do this for me for free.

jahtao · Post by **jahtao** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 2:05 pm

Feebles, thanks, yeah road bike sounds more like it, what were you trying to show me on the specialized site? there seems to be a problem with the link you posted

jahtao · Post by **jahtao** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 2:06 pm

i see this ThinKing, this is all new to me...

deamonds · Post by **deamonds** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 2:19 pm

ThinKing wrote:
Also, I reckon it's pretty reasonable getting a shop to stick slicks/semi-slicks on a bike, and asking them to change the handlebar for something that isn't 2 feet wide. I'd expect any shop I'm spending money in to do this for me for free.

Definately, the tyres on my BMX have almost no tread, and the bike fucking shacks

feebles · Post by **feebles** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 2:20 pm

ThinKing wrote:i usually recommend a mountain bike cos they have the sturdiest frames and in particular strongest wheels - yes most people just bash up & down kerbs for the life of their bike instead of getting muddy and hooning down hills but that's not the point here, it's just about durability for most peeps.

Agreed.

ThinKing wrote:hybrid/city bikes imo are just the worst of both worlds

I hear that a lot, mostly from purists ;)
Personally I can't say I have the money and space to buy two/three bikes for each a different purpose (although I wish I did) and since I only got a bit more into cycling half a year ago ended up with a crossbike. I am neither a mountain biker nor a race cyclist, mind you. In fact, I am really happy with my choice and wouldn't pick anything else right now, although I understand your point.

ThinKing wrote:and road bikes are often a bit too sporty in their ride position for a lot of people who just wanna commute (and it's much easier to taco a road bike wheel if you're not careful with kerbs & potholes).

Agreed although there still are plenty of people who'd choose this. For city use I probably wouldn't.

jahtao, do the links take you to a site where you're being asked to pick a country? In that case just click them, pick your country and you'll be automatically directed to the actual links then.

Maaan, my bikes advice thread seems to have disappeared : (

Maaan, my bikes advice thread seems to have disappeared : (

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