Good road/path bike

[Pyro]

Hello

Im probably going to be made redundant next week.

I'll be selling my car and getting a bike to get around.

I would like to buy a bike for the road/cycle path but i dont even know where to start...

Can any of you guys suggest a good bike to get?

Around £100 is what im looking to pay but if thats not going to get me a decent bike i will pay more...

Ta!

[Parrot of Doom]

To be honest £100 is second-hand territory. For brand new I'd look at about £250 minimum.

[Pyro]

Yes your right as it seems, checked the net last night for five mins and £250 sounds right, there were some less expensive but all had band reviews of falling appart!! Might just have to get a second hand claud butler!

Would a fork suspension mountainbike be good enough for road and path use?

[prand]

Bad luck with the job, but good call that you will be getting a lot fitter this summer!

As long as you can use a spanner, any old bike should be suitable. I would look for a slick tyred, non-suspension mtb or hybrid which should get you around the road and a bit of rough cycle path.

Suspension is just not needed on road or path, and just adds extra weight and is another thing to fix so you can happily stop worrying about that. I woudl totally avoid very cheap full suspension bikes as they are truly crap quality, don't do the job they are designed for and look ridiculous when being cycled around town.

I'd perhaps look for a well known make, second hand and take it to a bike shop for a good service to set up gears and brakes properly and new tyres (or DIY if you fancy).

Try you local bike shop for trade-ins, local paper, ebay etc.

www.wiggle.com will make you want to spend your redundancy money, but is a good place for equipment and spares.

Edit - forgot to say, sure, a front suspension MTB is fine for the road, but you will be slower due to knobbly tyres, and suspension is not really needed.

Edited by prand on Friday 15th May 10:07

[Pyro]

Thanks for your reply! Dont worry about the job, im not

I considered a none suspension mountain bike, am i able to change the nobblies for something for road use that is meant to fit the mountain bikes wheel?

[Parrot of Doom]

Wheel sizes are pretty standard, road bikes often use 700c, mountain bikes 26", you can put whatever tyre on you like. Make sure you carry a spare inner tube and a pump, and of course tyre levers. A small multitool is also a good idea.

[prand]

MTB wheels are all 26 inches (saying that there are a fewe 29 inch wheels about now, but you're unlikely to come across them on an older/cheaper bike).

Have a look at Wiggle - they will have a selection of MTB road tyres to look at, Halfords usually have some cheapo ones and you will be able to get some at your local bike shop.

[Chris71]

eBay is your friend - you're going to be much better off secondhand for that sort of price.