Another what bike thread (sorry!)

[Grumpy old git]

Hi

I want to get back into cycling to work, it's a five mile trip mainly on road, that I used to cycle 4 days a week on a Carrera Vulcan.

I've decided a new hybrid will help get me back in the saddle and I'd appreciate any advice on the bikes I'm considering as I've really no clue what I'm looking at. I need to use a shop that participates in Cyclescheme, so I've been looking at Trek bikes at Evans Cycles.

This is the main contender

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/trek/71-fx-201...

I've also been looking at the slightly more expensive versions of this bike

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/trek/72-fx-201...

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/trek/73-fx-201...

Would it be worth paying a little more for one of the above two bikes bearing in mind I will keep the bike for at least a few years, and are there any other makes I should be considering?

What about Specialized, any good? http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/si...

Thanks

Matt

[LordGrover]

I'm looking for similar, and in the Evans shop I was steered towards their own Pinnacle brand. Clearly, he's doing a selling job but it appears to be comparatively well specced when compared to the big name brands. I'm considering the Lithium four 2015 XL but they offer a fair few models as well.

[Grumpy old git]

I saw your thread and thought about posting on it but didn't want to hijack your thread.

My trouble is I've no idea which components are better than others, short of checking the prices for individual items and assuming more expensive equals better I'm stumped!

As a general rule I ignore what sales people are telling me, it may be true but I assume they're trying to push their own range or get rid of old stock.

[WinstonWolf]

Have you considered just swapping the tyres for some semi-slicks?

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/mtb-slick-tyres/

Will save you a fortune and the difference in speed will be night and day

[richardxjr]

If a hybrid is what you want, any big brand will be alright and similar to each other. Pinnacle are fine too. As long as there's guard mounts and disk brakes it'll be fine for short commute.

[Berz]

I'm not familiar with those components but in general you do get better stuff the more you pay. Whether it's worth it is the hard thing so I'd say try them out in the shop if you can and see what you prefer.

Also, I would check in the shop what is actually on the bikes because the specs online are a bit misleading.

The 7.1 has a 7 speed cassette but 8 speed shifters
The 7.2 has disc brakes but not in the picture

[Grumpy old git]

Thanks for the input, I will go and check out the bikes at the shop and go from there.

I have considered just swapping the tyres on the existing bike but it's got front suspension (although this does lock out), and it's a bit of a beast so I think I'm more likely to regularly use a new hybrid.