Have I bought a hunk of junk?
Discussion
I am in the middle of a fitness push, been on it for 6 months.
I want to rekindle my love of cycling, but the wife is dubious of spending the £300 I wanted to spend on something half decent.
So she told me, buy a cheap bike, prove I will use it, and in 6 months she will let me spend what I want.
So I just won this on ebay.
Will this last 6 months, or will I want to kill it before then?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mountain-Bike-/181213016...
I want to rekindle my love of cycling, but the wife is dubious of spending the £300 I wanted to spend on something half decent.
So she told me, buy a cheap bike, prove I will use it, and in 6 months she will let me spend what I want.
So I just won this on ebay.
Will this last 6 months, or will I want to kill it before then?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mountain-Bike-/181213016...
backwoodsman said:
I am in the middle of a fitness push, been on it for 6 months.
I want to rekindle my love of cycling, but the wife is dubious of spending the £300 I wanted to spend on something half decent.
So she told me, buy a cheap bike, prove I will use it, and in 6 months she will let me spend what I want.
So I just won this on ebay.
Will this last 6 months, or will I want to kill it before then?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mountain-Bike-/181213016...
I'm sorry but that is where you made the fatal error. I want to rekindle my love of cycling, but the wife is dubious of spending the £300 I wanted to spend on something half decent.
So she told me, buy a cheap bike, prove I will use it, and in 6 months she will let me spend what I want.
So I just won this on ebay.
Will this last 6 months, or will I want to kill it before then?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mountain-Bike-/181213016...
You should have bought the bike you wanted then told the wife, or waited until you'd taken delivery. Yes, you may have had to withstand some heat but you could get out the way of it by going for a nice ride on your lovely new bike.
Unless you intend on using it off road, i'd oil the chain, perhaps get some cheap road tyres (makes sure they aren't intended for a road bike sized wheel) and give it a go. It's not going to win any awards, but at least you don't have the energy sapping full suspension that's fitted to so many cheap-ass 'mountain bikes' found in supermarkets for £100. I seriously doubt it's any worse than my first bike which lasted me 5 years as a teen, and has the added bonus of being fairly safe to leave locked up outside a pub with little fear of it being nicked.
It depends what your expectations are - if it's just to get around on short journeys, I dare say it'll do he job, but I don't think you'll get much in the way of enjoyment. Boss weren't well thought of against the contemporaries in the 90s never mind now.
If you want bang for buck, I'd suggest ignoring all forms of suspension (it'll be crap) and disc brakes (same). Keeping it simple, you could get something half decent for a couple of hundred quid.
If you want bang for buck, I'd suggest ignoring all forms of suspension (it'll be crap) and disc brakes (same). Keeping it simple, you could get something half decent for a couple of hundred quid.
Mth70 said:
If you want bang for buck, I'd suggest ignoring all forms of suspension (it'll be crap) and disc brakes (same). Keeping it simple, you could get something half decent for a couple of hundred quid.
A lot of sense in this post. You can pick up an old but good quality 90's steel bike for pennies if you have a look around, retrobike is a good start. The frame will be bloody indestructible (no cracks to worry about), lock it up without scrotes taking an interest and you should get decent shimano gears (maybe even XT). Probably no heavier than a cheap nasty alloy bike either.
Some good advice here.
Its s
te, but its a hell of a lot better than the full suspension heap of junk I started with - and it was a bargain :-)
Decent road tyres for an MTB won't cost a lot (30 quid or less for a pair of slicks or semi slicks) and will transform the on road ride.
Apart from that lube it, tune it, but don't spend anything else on it (apart from a lock and some lights - both of which you can keep and use on your next one).
Hopefully it will potter around nicely for a couple of months without needing major work, before you prove you're going to use it and upgrade! :-)
Good luck :-)
Its s
te, but its a hell of a lot better than the full suspension heap of junk I started with - and it was a bargain :-) Decent road tyres for an MTB won't cost a lot (30 quid or less for a pair of slicks or semi slicks) and will transform the on road ride.
Apart from that lube it, tune it, but don't spend anything else on it (apart from a lock and some lights - both of which you can keep and use on your next one).
Hopefully it will potter around nicely for a couple of months without needing major work, before you prove you're going to use it and upgrade! :-)
Good luck :-)
I was in the same boat this year. My mate gave me his old GT aggressor which I used for a few months. I then decided to treat myself to a decent bike and it has completely transformed the experience! It makes riding much more pleasurable and I am sure if I had stuck with the old bike I would have given up but now Im out 3 times a week at least.
I haven't seen one of those for years! 'BOSS' bikes used to be pretty cool way, way back when - early 90's I'd guess - although I've only ever seen them in yellow before.
Is it crap - No, Is it great - No.
But it's a supposedly fully functioning bike for less than I paid to replace a torn tyre recently. It'll feel like riding a anvil compared to a modern bike, but I note your main driver is fitness?
Think of it this way, if you wanted to join a gym to get fitter, would you go along and lift 500g weights and set all the cardio machines on the easiest setting? - of course you wouldn't so if fitness is your driver, why spend thousands to make it easier.
Is it crap - No, Is it great - No.
But it's a supposedly fully functioning bike for less than I paid to replace a torn tyre recently. It'll feel like riding a anvil compared to a modern bike, but I note your main driver is fitness?
Think of it this way, if you wanted to join a gym to get fitter, would you go along and lift 500g weights and set all the cardio machines on the easiest setting? - of course you wouldn't so if fitness is your driver, why spend thousands to make it easier.
I can remember them coming out in the shops, I just can't remember if the reviews were any good. They weren’t totally crap though by any means.
As long as there’s nothing mechanically wrong with it it’ll be absolutely fine. And if you get on with cycling in general it’ll be a good pub bike for when you inevitably upgrade.
As long as there’s nothing mechanically wrong with it it’ll be absolutely fine. And if you get on with cycling in general it’ll be a good pub bike for when you inevitably upgrade.
Right, I collected it today.
Good points
It's lighter than I expected.
Seller put a new inner tube in rear.
Gears work like a dream, and don't need adjusting.
Bad points
It looks a bit chavvy
The very good, and almost unused tyres need replacing due to cracking, from drying out.
Overall I'm happy with it for the cash.
See you all back here is 6 months asking how to spend a fair few hundred quid on something better.
Good points
It's lighter than I expected.
Seller put a new inner tube in rear.
Gears work like a dream, and don't need adjusting.
Bad points
It looks a bit chavvy
The very good, and almost unused tyres need replacing due to cracking, from drying out.
Overall I'm happy with it for the cash.
See you all back here is 6 months asking how to spend a fair few hundred quid on something better.
Gassing Station | Pedal Powered | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff