Advice for complete novice.
Discussion
I have interrogated the search function and gone back ten pages and can't find a thread along these lines. I would very much like to do some cycling to get some excercise. I haven't ridden a bike for thirty years.
Locally there are many cycle tracks, along a canal towpath and round a reservoir etc, so all are fairly well maintained and most importantly flat (for starters).
I know nothing about mountain bikes and am a little loathe to blow a fortune, in case it goes the way of the golf clubs etc.
Is this a complete piece of junk or a good starting point?
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...
Locally there are many cycle tracks, along a canal towpath and round a reservoir etc, so all are fairly well maintained and most importantly flat (for starters).
I know nothing about mountain bikes and am a little loathe to blow a fortune, in case it goes the way of the golf clubs etc.
Is this a complete piece of junk or a good starting point?
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...
You have to start somewhere, but that bike is very 'budget' oriented. If you are planning to stick to cycle/tow paths and the road, then a Hybrid bike will probably suffice. Take a look at websites like BikeRadar that will provide reviews to various makes/models. You can then take a closer look at the ones that catch your eye and shop around for best price.
FWIW I got rid of a Giant Boulder Breeze (12 years old, steel frame & 26" wheels) and replaced it with a Trek 7.5fx (700c wheels, aluminium frame and carbon fork) - the Trek is a much more comfortable bike to ride).
You can pick up a decent 'brand name' hybrid bike for £100-£150 if you want a used model.
Good luck.
FWIW I got rid of a Giant Boulder Breeze (12 years old, steel frame & 26" wheels) and replaced it with a Trek 7.5fx (700c wheels, aluminium frame and carbon fork) - the Trek is a much more comfortable bike to ride).
You can pick up a decent 'brand name' hybrid bike for £100-£150 if you want a used model.
Good luck.
I am/was a complete noob, hadnt been on a bike regularly for at least a decade. thanks to some good advice in here I bought one of these
http://www.merlincycles.com/bike-shop/bikes/mounta...
It has some decent bits on it, it is light (compared to the bikes i rode 10yrs ago) and I am very impressed with it. I did try a couple of times to buy cheap bikes from ebay and tbh I wasted a fair bit of money doing it as the cheap ones seem to be heavy and not particularly nice to ride, so i decided to bite the bullet and actually spend a (to me) reasonable amount.
http://www.merlincycles.com/bike-shop/bikes/mounta...
It has some decent bits on it, it is light (compared to the bikes i rode 10yrs ago) and I am very impressed with it. I did try a couple of times to buy cheap bikes from ebay and tbh I wasted a fair bit of money doing it as the cheap ones seem to be heavy and not particularly nice to ride, so i decided to bite the bullet and actually spend a (to me) reasonable amount.
Do not under any circumstances buy that bike. It is awful. You probably want new so you have no problems? Forget it. It will fall apart after 20 miles and put you off cycling for life.
You would be far, far better with a good, and even well used 2nd hand bike. I bought my missus a second hand Specialized Rockhopper for about £150 (legit, fellow enthusiastic cyclist) to see if she would like riding. Ok it had v brakes and a crap fork, but now many years down the line and with many fantastic trail centre trips and holidays to Scotland/ Wales behind it, there's very few original components left (wheels, tyres, forks, brakes, bars, stem, saddle all upgraded) but its will go on for ever and is still a very capable machine. Next year she will probably put skinnies back on and do the c2c on it. The only upgrade to that halfords thing is to melt it down to make bean cans.
Not being a bike snob here, just get yourself to your local bike shop that does 2nd hand/trade ins, and they should see you right.
Bikes are all about diminishing returns. There's not much difference between a £750 hard tail and a £1750 one really, especially for a newbie, but there's an absolute gulf between a new £80 snotter and £250 of second hand bike.
You would be far, far better with a good, and even well used 2nd hand bike. I bought my missus a second hand Specialized Rockhopper for about £150 (legit, fellow enthusiastic cyclist) to see if she would like riding. Ok it had v brakes and a crap fork, but now many years down the line and with many fantastic trail centre trips and holidays to Scotland/ Wales behind it, there's very few original components left (wheels, tyres, forks, brakes, bars, stem, saddle all upgraded) but its will go on for ever and is still a very capable machine. Next year she will probably put skinnies back on and do the c2c on it. The only upgrade to that halfords thing is to melt it down to make bean cans.
Not being a bike snob here, just get yourself to your local bike shop that does 2nd hand/trade ins, and they should see you right.
Bikes are all about diminishing returns. There's not much difference between a £750 hard tail and a £1750 one really, especially for a newbie, but there's an absolute gulf between a new £80 snotter and £250 of second hand bike.
After putting this idea on the back burner for a while I popped into Costco on Tuesday for a jar of peanut butter and walked out with a Schwinn Searcher Sport hybrid bike. This means I ignored all advice I was given.
After spending a couple of hours with the spanners off I went to give it a go.
Great fun, nice to ride (even though I have nothing to compare it to), but my thighs and bum hurt.
I suppose I could have probably done better but £215.00 and the Costco policy of returns mean I am a happy chap.
After spending a couple of hours with the spanners off I went to give it a go.
Great fun, nice to ride (even though I have nothing to compare it to), but my thighs and bum hurt.
I suppose I could have probably done better but £215.00 and the Costco policy of returns mean I am a happy chap.
At the end of the day a bike is better than no bike. Because you can't ride a bike you haven't got.
Get out there, get in the habit, get used to the riding position (don't be afraid to tinker, get the seat height right etc) and we'll see you in a couple of months for a "what new mountain/road bike" thread
Get out there, get in the habit, get used to the riding position (don't be afraid to tinker, get the seat height right etc) and we'll see you in a couple of months for a "what new mountain/road bike" thread
bingybongy said:
Just a quick one, at what point do you lock the front suspension or don't you bother?
If you find the front end bouncing about and you don't like it then lock it.I've never felt the need to on a suspension fork that is properly set up, but then a quick google suggests your fork has no damping so might be a bit bouncy.
Try it and see what you prefer.
OK, thanks. The suspension is adjustable, I'll just fiddle with it a bit.
Here's the next question, when I last had a bike, all I used to do with the chain was squirt it with WD40 or 3 in 1. I can see things have moved on somewhat is GT85 the new WD40? I looked at the thread on here and there wasn't really an answer.
Here's the next question, when I last had a bike, all I used to do with the chain was squirt it with WD40 or 3 in 1. I can see things have moved on somewhat is GT85 the new WD40? I looked at the thread on here and there wasn't really an answer.
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