Buying road (push) bikes?

[618ireland]

I'd say you'll notice a difference of them

[alexcornwall]

true, traffic lights are for cars only tbh!

Got a bike for sale atm if you're interested in just buying one cash, nice n light!

Hm.

Spec, and what're you looking for for it, Alex?

Echo control frame - short version (about 10 mm difference in wheelbase against long one i believe)
Echo urban disc forks
Hope disc hubs front and rear (front laced to d321 - rear to a "tryall" rim)
Hope c2 front disc brake, Magura hs33 rear with echo mounts
Middleburn Rs7 trials cranks attached to a nearly new shimano BB by the looks of it
Uhmm other bits are kind of irrelevant but it's a shimano road style rear mech (105 maybe?) Lx shifter, profile stem, cheap headset, and some trials bars Oh and hope end caps Kore pedals also
£400!
good condition throughout! frame has like 2 tiny dings in the downtube (exceptional considering the bike style!)

[alexcornwall]

Din - you got an absolute bargain on those tyres! should have asked for 20

[radddogg]

£400!

Seriously??? £400 for a pedal bike with no seat?

[alexcornwall]

lol aye, frame is 300 new alone

[Din]

Din - you got an absolute bargain on those tyres! should have asked for 20

I know... less than half price

[Sheaf]

http://www.paulscycles.co.uk is a good site to see some deals...

Rotating weight is the key fairly obviously.

Road bikes are quicker and if you're intending on just cycling on very smooth roads only then would be fine. However i borrowed my brothers carbon road bike to make to ride to work the other day and couldn't stand it, I made it in good time but due to poor road surfaces i didn't enjoy it and was rattled to bits. They're also pretty unstable and stopping in the wet is a complete nightmare.

I'd look for lightweight mtb/hybrid solutions myself. If you need any second hand bike bits in the future give me a pm

Cheers for the link, just been looking on there, they seem to have pretty good pricing on some models.

Thinking that maybe a 'Rapid' may be sensible. Flat bars, racing frame. The '4' is a little heavier, but tbh for £350 I'm sure it's good enough.

http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/products.p ... 4s156p2752

I'm also looking at the various hybrids, but I still cant work out how they are different to a mountain bike with skinny wheels?

Maybe something like this though? http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/products.p ... b0s18p3615

[alexcornwall]

Well the hybrid there has the slightly larger 700c wheels, but yeah you're right, they're basically a mountain bike with no suspension and skinny tyres:p

They do have good deals pop up on the website, not sure whether you could use the site with your cycle to work scheme, can't see why not though!

[Sheaf]

Am I right in thinking 700c wheels are just 28" wheels as opposed to the normal 26" variety like I have now....and I presume are usually found on road bikes?

[alexcornwall]

probably right aye 29inch wheels seem to be coming into fashion now amongst mountain bikes also "29ers" i believe. I've never got into the whole road bike scene tbh. I think you should buy a nice light mountain bike and start off roading :p we could do a rovertech wales downhill trip in due course then :p

[cas_uk]

some bike porn(mine) as its the only thread ill get to show them off in i think
Hardcore hardtail(140mm travel)

Road bike (now sold)

my old bmx(lol!!)

full sus(love this thing,its my baby,now wearing fox talas 150mm travel forks though)


full face

One bike I considered buying before purchasing the road bike is a cannondale fatboy,its basically, tight,rigid mtb,so you get the comfort,but the speed of a road bike, Ive been out with a mate who owns one and he can keep with me on the flats,which is quite impressive because I can average 24-25mph on the


On a side note too to all the Bike riders reading this thread.....doe anyone use any sports trackers (use gps on your phone for all not in the know)???

I personally use Endomondo, as I like the fact it uploads to facebook,and uses google maps to plot where you have ridden

[Berger]

I use endomondo too, its a really good application for your phone.

As far as I was aware riding with your seat tilted backwards like you do could cause erection problems....

[alexcornwall]

endomondo, that available on android? I use mytracks, does the trick:)

Loving the pitch! Wanted to buy one of them, but couldn't find a good one on ebay.... probably cos no-one wants to sell them :p

[Geo_coupe]

some bike porn(mine) as its the only thread ill get to show them off in i think

Theres this one
http://www.rt2468abcd.r8technology.co.uk/viewtopi ... 9&t=105918

Liking the full susser, im thinking its nearly time to upgrade my coiler to something a bit more modern

[cas_uk]

I use endomondo too, its a really good application for your phone.

As far as I was aware riding with your seat tilted backwards like you do could cause erection problems....

I'm not posting pics of my old boy but I believe it still works

Needed it tilted for pinching the seat when doing bar spins etc,but low enough for other tricks And who sits on a bmx seat anyway, always standing. Lol
Wouldn't sell my pitch, rides too well.
Yes endomondo is available for sybian (nokia) and Android, there is a pro version you can buy but the free app works just as well for me so havent upgraded

I don't get this new way of bmxer with the saddle decked to practically sitting on the top tube,?

[Sheaf]

See, I just dont get the whole idea of travelling from A to B on a BMX. Ok, people like to do tricks on them, but I see people riding down the road, they just look like idiots riding a child's bike, legs going round like mad and not going anywhere.

[radddogg]

they just look like idiots riding a child's bike, legs going round like mad and not going anywhere.

Now thats what all cyclist look like to me. IC engines FTW

[russ220]

See, I just dont get the whole idea of travelling from A to B on a BMX. Ok, people like to do tricks on them, but I see people riding down the road, they just look like idiots riding a child's bike, legs going round like mad and not going anywhere.

you can go pretty quick on a BMX but it depends on your gear ratio, most 'Xers are running a custom ratio depending on where they ride it (skatepark/dirt jumps/street). For a short commute if its not a hilly or off-road route i'll take the BMX 90% of the time purely because it handles so much better than a MTB plus i can hop it over something 30" high if need be

but yeah gears FTW for most journeys - that said i dont think alot of commuters know when its time to shift gear

[Sheaf]

This is true... tbh, when I was a teenager I didn't use the gears that much, now as I've been driving for years I tend to just be in the habit of using the gears a lot more.

Saying that though, the 21 gears I have on my bike is excessive I think. I swear I use maybe 8 of them. Never drop to the lowest on the chainset, it's just too low, and various combos are the same anyway.....

[russ220]

ditto! when im on the MTB is rarely use the smaller front chainrings, the biggest is fine for most riding

ive got 27gears on the MTB, apart from trail riding or BIG hills its usually big sprocket and gears 3-7 at the back. i'd say the MTB tops out around 25mph though the knobbly tired dont help, for road riding though inflating to 50-60PSi is sound advice.

That said the tyres were great in the snow, running 30PSi i was actually going faster than the traffic on most routes


oh yeah remember to raise the saddle to height that aids pedalling, unlike mine in the pic

[Din]

Quick update on those tyres for those that are interested, i had them at what i thought was 50psi and set off to work this morning, and save 2 mins off my time !
Then i bought it in the workshop before i left and checked the tyres on the gauge (they where at 48psi) so i put them up to 65psi and set off home... another minute off

So im down to 14 mins to do approx 3 miles, now if i didnt have to use 5 crossings i could probably see slightly more time off..

They make a huge difference i found myself useing the longer gears far more often and for longer periods, well chuffed
Think i might get one of those speedo thingys that shows average speeds and what not next month

[Vard66]

Now imagine skinnies on road rims, even just on that bike!

[Sheaf]

Lol, 14 mins... you'll never need to drive to work again.

Just stick on the road and play with death.

I got myself a helmet today, £40 for a Bell somethingorother from Halfords. 3 of us got the same one, 3 for 2, work gives us £20 each towards it, so cost under £7 each. Win.
I'm sure I look a right idiot in it, but I at least feel like my life isn't dangling on such a thin shoestring now.

Here we are, this one.... http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_228868

They all kind of looked the same really, all look a bit daft, but that was one of the most comfy ones and is black, so is a bit less offensive.

[Din]

Lol, 14 mins... you'll never need to drive to work again.

Apart from when it rains of course

[Sheaf]

Lol, 14 mins... you'll never need to drive to work again.

Apart from when it rains of course

You cant get THAT wet in only 14 minutes....

[russ220]

Quick update on those tyres for those that are interested, i had them at what i thought was 50psi and set off to work this morning, and save 2 mins off my time !
Then i bought it in the workshop before i left and checked the tyres on the gauge (they where at 48psi) so i put them up to 65psi and set off home... another minute off

So im down to 14 mins to do approx 3 miles, now if i didnt have to use 5 crossings i could probably see slightly more time off..

They make a huge difference i found myself useing the longer gears far more often and for longer periods, well chuffed
Think i might get one of those speedo thingys that shows average speeds and what not next month

Good going, the lower rolling resistance makes a huge difference!

Lol, 14 mins... you'll never need to drive to work again.

Apart from when it rains of course

You cant get THAT wet in only 14 minutes....

oh no dont say that; theres nothing worse than riding around with a puddle on your lap

[Sheaf]

Update -

The work cycle to work scheme never panned out, so I never got a bike last year.


However with all the new ranges coming out this month, I started looking again and found a few remaining models from last year at discounted prices.

A mate bought a Specalized Secteur 2011 for £450 locally, reduced from £650. I was rather impressed. It was the last one they had though.

So, I looked on the net and found one remaining 2010 model. For £400.

I've just ordered it.

It's one of these. http://www.evanscycles.com/products/spe ... e-ec019551

It's more of a tourer than a racer, so hopefully it'll be much quicker than my mountain bike but still be comfortable. The drop bars should help as there's some really windy bits of my commute. I've had a go on my mate's one and liked it.

I was torn between hybrid, flat bar road bike and drop bar road bike.... but decided to give the drops a go. We'll soon see how that pans out. Either way, seems good value for money... most around that price range were a bit cheap looking/heavy and I didn't want to pay any more than £400.

[alexcornwall]

quite like the look of that

[cas_uk]

Update -

The work cycle to work scheme never panned out, so I never got a bike last year.


However with all the new ranges coming out this month, I started looking again and found a few remaining models from last year at discounted prices.

A mate bought a Specalized Secteur 2011 for £450 locally, reduced from £650. I was rather impressed. It was the last one they had though.

So, I looked on the net and found one remaining 2010 model. For £400.

I've just ordered it.

It's one of these. http://www.evanscycles.com/products/spe ... e-ec019551

It's more of a tourer than a racer, so hopefully it'll be much quicker than my mountain bike but still be comfortable. The drop bars should help as there's some really windy bits of my commute. I've had a go on my mate's one and liked it.

I was torn between hybrid, flat bar road bike and drop bar road bike.... but decided to give the drops a go. We'll soon see how that pans out. Either way, seems good value for money... most around that price range were a bit cheap looking/heavy and I didn't want to pay any more than £400.

nice looking bike sheaf, just getting one of these on c2w:-
http://www.tredz.co.uk/.Giant-Talon-29e ... _48783.htm
,should be here tomorrow,will be making a little clip of it for youtube shall upload in here