Want a new cheap bike - false economy?

[JIM600]

Not trying to turn this into a sales thread - just trying to help out. I have a Carrera Fury 2010 bike sitting here - 20" frame. It was/is voted best hardtail under 600 quid by mtbr/bikeradar etc recently.

It was a mates bike that is stored in my lockup, but he has gone off to OZ for a couple of years and said "just sell it". Before you get too exited, it's got Suntour Raidon forks in place of the suntour epicons. But you still get sram drive, mavic rims, suntour forks with remote lockout, decent aluminium frame, avid juicy 3s etc. I could do it for somewhere around your budget. Might be no good to you, but it's genuinly a nice little bike.

Sorry - ignore the above, I've just taken a deposit on the bike. It ended up going for 300 quid ish, BUT I reckon you could pick up an 09 Fury for 200-250 which would probably be a good buy, they are on par with some 600-700 pounds hardtails imo.

Edited by JIM600 on Thursday 5th May 22:07

Edited by JIM600 on Friday 6th May 18:38

[Gooby]

Re-post but worth a read.
http://www.southcoastbikes.co.uk/articles.asp?arti...

[jayfish]

Gooby said:

Re-post but worth a read.
http://www.southcoastbikes.co.uk/articles.asp?arti...

That article is full of so much drivel mixed with sense it defeats it's own purpose, how far up it's own arse can the author disapear? there are many valid points in there but it's cloaked in so much bullst, 'damaging to the environment' etc.. FFS!

[deadtom]

JIM600 said:

Carrera Fury 2010 bike sitting here - 20" frame.

as it happens i was going to suggest the carrera fury as it punches well above its weight for the price they cost. its almost certainly what i would have if i was looking for that sort of bike at that sort of price.

if the size is right i think it would be an ideal first bike.

20 inch frame would suit someone 5'10" - 6'0" i would have thought.

[anonymous-user]

JIM600 said:

Sorry - ignore the above, I've just taken a deposit on the bike.

Not to worry - I'm only 5'9/5'10 (with small legs ) at a push, so it probably would have been too big for me any way. Sounds like a nice bike though!

That article makes some pretty good points about cheap bikes - especially when it puts into perspective how "affordable" a decent bike is these days.

[BliarOut]

You can justify spending thousands on a bike with the expression "with petrol at x per gallon I'm saving a fortune"

Note to self, don't buy those £140 shorts next week

[anonymous-user]

What do people think of this bike? A fair bit more exoensive than I wanted to look at, but I'm beginning to realise I'm not going to get something new and decent for under £200 with ease

http://www.discountcyclesdirect.co.uk/product_info...

[XitUp]

I'm not sure I'd trust hydraulic brakes on a cheap bike.

[curlie467]

XitUp said:

I'm not sure I'd trust hydraulic brakes on a cheap bike.

Ignore this, the tektro auriga brakes are just fine, my brothers tektro brakes stop almost as well as my Shimano deores.

[deadtom]

curlie467 said:

Ignore this, the tektro auriga brakes are just fine, my brothers tektro brakes stop almost as well as my Shimano deores.

+1.

good little brakes the tektro hydraulics. cheap hydro's tend to be such a basic design that they are usually pretty reliable. the only thing you miss out on is power, adjustability and being able to work under extreme load, but they should be perfectly adequate for light weight duties.

i will add however, that i havnt used them in anger long term or know anyone who does, so i might be wrong...

[XitUp]

curlie467 said:

Ignore this, the tektro auriga brakes are just fine, my brothers tektro brakes stop almost as well as my Shimano deores.

Really? I thought you'd want less complexity with a cheap bike.
How do they compare to normal brakes, at that price point?

[shalmaneser]

XitUp said:

Really? I thought you'd want less complexity with a cheap bike.
How do they compare to normal brakes, at that price point?

Define 'normal brakes'

They're pretty good cheap and cheerful hydraulic discs, quite heavy but trouble free and I'd definitely have them over any cable setups.

[Gooby]

This always worries me - "what do you think of this bike?" [insert_link_here]

Would you buy a car without driving it? A car has far more adjustment for the driver so even if you were to go out and buy car x you could very probably get it to fit your body shape but car and bikes all drive differently and what compounds this with bikes is individual quirks of body shape and personal desires expectations about the ride add up.

At the price point you are talking about you have very limited choice but to buy off the 'net without a ride is a little foolish and basically what you are doing is buying the cheapest indian car with no extras and no drive. It might work out....

I suggest you go to your LBS and start a conversation "I would love a bike but my budget is limited...' have a few rides, take some notes then tell us what you find...

[oyster]

Gooby said:

This always worries me - "what do you think of this bike?" [insert_link_here]

Would you buy a car without driving it? A car has far more adjustment for the driver so even if you were to go out and buy car x you could very probably get it to fit your body shape but car and bikes all drive differently and what compounds this with bikes is individual quirks of body shape and personal desires expectations about the ride add up.

At the price point you are talking about you have very limited choice but to buy off the 'net without a ride is a little foolish and basically what you are doing is buying the cheapest indian car with no extras and no drive. It might work out....

I suggest you go to your LBS and start a conversation "I would love a bike but my budget is limited...' have a few rides, take some notes then tell us what you find...

Good grief, the OP is riding a few miles a day. He's not entering races.

I borrowed my 10 yr old nephew's heap of a bike last summer and managed commuting into and out of central London for 3 weeks.
I may have looked like a dick. I may not have had the most uber cool bike gadget freak but the damn thing got me there and back and in over 250 miles didn't put a pedal wrong.

There's way too much machine snobbery on this forum.



Here's my advice to the OP buy the cheapest bike you can get that works. Make sure you ride it first to see it has no bad buckles, squeaks etc and buy it. In 6 months if you're still enjoying cycling then treat yourself to something better. That way, if you actually find that cycling isn't your thing yet, then you don't have £300 of rusting metal in your shed.

[Mr Will]

oyster said:

Here's my advice to the OP buy the cheapest bike you can get that works. Make sure you ride it first to see it has no bad buckles, squeaks etc and buy it. In 6 months if you're still enjoying cycling then treat yourself to something better. That way, if you actually find that cycling isn't your thing yet, then you don't have £300 of rusting metal in your shed.

I disagree. A poor bike can be enough to tip the balance and turn the OP off cycling completely. I'd suggest getting something half decent second hand rather than at the very bottom of the market brand new, you are more likely to enjoy it and even if it turns out that you don't, you should be able to sell it for pretty much what you paid for it.

The other option I am surprised nobody has mentioned yet is the Cycle to Work scheme... Can open, worms everywhere

[Gooby]

oyster said:

Good grief, the OP is riding a few miles a day. He's not entering races.

I borrowed my 10 yr old nephew's heap of a bike last summer and managed commuting into and out of central London for 3 weeks.
I may have looked like a dick. I may not have had the most uber cool bike gadget freak but the damn thing got me there and back and in over 250 miles didn't put a pedal wrong.

There's way too much machine snobbery on this forum.



Here's my advice to the OP buy the cheapest bike you can get that works. Make sure you ride it first to see it has no bad buckles, squeaks etc and buy it. In 6 months if you're still enjoying cycling then treat yourself to something better. That way, if you actually find that cycling isn't your thing yet, then you don't have £300 of rusting metal in your shed.

Here is the difference, the OP was asking for advice and opinions - these were duly given. You didnt want an opinion when commuting on a crap heap. Good for you you are now my hero and elevated to "Lance Armstrong" status cos you managed to successfully ride a POS for 3 whole weeks. Perhaps you could do the 'tour as an encore.

"Machine snobery" in a forum for people who love cycling? Are you serious? What did you expect in the pedal powered forum? [sticks_toungue_in_bottom_lip_like_Joey_Deacon] Almost as stupid as "they are all car fanatics on pistonheads"

To the OP - Oyster recomends you get a bike from a random relative cos that wont "put a pedal wrong".

Thankyou - I am sure there is another forum for you to belittle decent advice with your "expertise"

Edited by Gooby on Monday 9th May 14:11

[curlie467]

XitUp said:

Really? I thought you'd want less complexity with a cheap bike.
How do they compare to normal brakes, at that price point?

They compare a bit like chalk and cheese to be honest.
While the v-brakes can be very good, they can also be hindered by a couple of things, if you buckle your wheel slightly then they will rub but the disc brakes would carry on fine as they are bolted to the hub. Also they can lose a bit of bite in the mud etc.
While these issues arent that big a deal, they are just minor points like you asked.

Generally, v-brakes are good, cable discs are better when set up well and hydros are better still, even the budget ones are super reliable and knock socks off v-brakes and cable discs.

I used to have no problem stopping on my v-brakes to be honest but when i went for a set of hydros, well, they were just infinitely better once bedded in!

[shalmaneser]

Gooby said:

Here is the difference, the OP was asking for advice and opinions - these were duly given. You didnt want an opinion when commuting on a crap heap. Good for you you are now my hero and elevated to "Lance Armstrong" status cos you managed to successfully ride a POS for 3 whole weeks. Perhaps you could do the 'tour as an encore.

"Machine snobery" in a forum for people who love cycling? Are you serious? What did you expect in the pedal powered forum? [sticks_toungue_in_bottom_lip_like_Joey_Deacon] Almost as stupid as "they are all car fanatics on pistonheads"

To the OP - Oyster recomends you get a bike from a random relative cos that wont "put a pedal wrong".

Thankyou - I am sure there is another forum for you to belittle decent advice with your "expertise"

Edited by Gooby on Monday 9th May 14:11

Lol ain't that the truth!

[oyster]

Gooby said:

oyster said:

Good grief, the OP is riding a few miles a day. He's not entering races.

I borrowed my 10 yr old nephew's heap of a bike last summer and managed commuting into and out of central London for 3 weeks.
I may have looked like a dick. I may not have had the most uber cool bike gadget freak but the damn thing got me there and back and in over 250 miles didn't put a pedal wrong.

There's way too much machine snobbery on this forum.



Here's my advice to the OP buy the cheapest bike you can get that works. Make sure you ride it first to see it has no bad buckles, squeaks etc and buy it. In 6 months if you're still enjoying cycling then treat yourself to something better. That way, if you actually find that cycling isn't your thing yet, then you don't have £300 of rusting metal in your shed.

Here is the difference, the OP was asking for advice and opinions - these were duly given. You didnt want an opinion when commuting on a crap heap. Good for you you are now my hero and elevated to "Lance Armstrong" status cos you managed to successfully ride a POS for 3 whole weeks. Perhaps you could do the 'tour as an encore.

"Machine snobery" in a forum for people who love cycling? Are you serious? What did you expect in the pedal powered forum? [sticks_toungue_in_bottom_lip_like_Joey_Deacon] Almost as stupid as "they are all car fanatics on pistonheads"

To the OP - Oyster recomends you get a bike from a random relative cos that wont "put a pedal wrong".

Thankyou - I am sure there is another forum for you to belittle decent advice with your "expertise"

Edited by Gooby on Monday 9th May 14:11

There's a thread started almost every hour on PH for 'What cheap car?', so actually I disagree that the rest of PH is like this sub-forum.

Have a re-read of this thread - the suggested costs of the bikes being recommended to the OP are creeping up and up as the thread goes on. Madness.

[E21_Ross]

do not, under any circumstances, get a dual suspension bike for anywhere near that price!! i wouldn't buy a dual suspension bike even with £1000 let alone about £100. go 2nd hand, and get a hard tail.