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Buying a basic bike - advice?

4 watchers
Drell
Drell
Apr 2012
10:42pm, 15 Apr 2012
1,100 posts
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Drell
OK, there is a whole vocabulary here to learn, I can see. Drop handlebars I know about (and don't feel confident in the dropped position) but what are bar ends?

And, while I think about it, what about tyres? As well as the different widths (is the 28mm etc the width, or what?) I know that bikes I've encountered in the past have had different valve types - what's that about?
Gobi
Gobi
Apr 2012
10:48pm, 15 Apr 2012
47,174 posts
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Gobi
What do you want it for ?
Hertford Tiger
Hertford Tiger
Apr 2012
10:49pm, 15 Apr 2012
21 posts
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Hertford Tiger
Sorry - Bar ends are bits of metal that attach to the end of a flat handle bar so that your can alter where you hold the bike to relieve pressure on your wrists.

28mm is the width of the tyres - basically road bikes use thin tyres which have less friction on the road but are not very comfortable, off road bike have fat tyres which soak up the bumps but need a huge amount of effort on the road. 28mm is for me a reasonable compromise between the two but closer to a pure road bike.

I haven't yet worked out why there are so many different valve types - just make sure the pump fits the type that your bike has.
Drell
Drell
Apr 2012
10:50pm, 15 Apr 2012
1,101 posts
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Drell
Gobi: see first post (and now the header), but basically cycling into town and back, a trip of around 4 - 5 miles, and for leisure rides which are currently up to around 10 - 12 miles, but could get longer if I had a better bike.
geordiegirl
geordiegirl
Apr 2012
10:54pm, 15 Apr 2012
4,938 posts
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geordiegirl
About this time last year I had same question, while you can easily get carried away adding better bits here & there I opted for a Halfirds 'special offer' a Carerra hybrid. I love it cost £200 I've done a few commutes 13m each way and some reasonable bile rides. Like the hybrid as its Ol for commuting but ok to get off road for the off road types I find myself on. Good luck.
CStar
CStar
Apr 2012
5:18am, 16 Apr 2012
696 posts
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CStar
I would take whatever cash you have, find out what that will by at Halfords, then use ebay to make it go much further. I've just done this and ended up with a great Trek bike with all bells and whistles for the price of a mid-range Carerra.

Also worth looking at whether your employer does the Bike to work scheme. Can save you loads if you are buying new.
Oysterboy
Oysterboy
Apr 2012
7:06am, 16 Apr 2012
2,435 posts
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Oysterboy
I have this one
halfords.com
I've been doing about 80 miles a week on it to work for the last year with some longer rides of about 30 miles at the weekend. It's very comfortable, comes with mud guards and I easily fitted a pannier rack.

I just bought this one
halfords.com
Pretty comfortable to start with but am used to it now. Much much lighter and faster. The other one is a bit of a heavy weight to drag up hills.
Drell
Drell
Apr 2012
10:38am, 16 Apr 2012
1,102 posts
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Drell
Thanks for all the helpful tips!

Sadly I'm self employed so the bike to work scheme won't help :-)
Quengyrea
Quengyrea
Aug 2019
10:26am, 28 Aug 2019
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Quengyrea
So I am starting a new job soon that's about a 40 walk and I am looking at getting a road bike to make the commute quicker. The road I'll be travelling on requires me to go up and down hills too.

I am not very knowledgeable when it comes to bikes and was wondering if anyone could give me any tips? Like what to look for in a bike? Should I buy second hand? How much should I spend?

Need advice guys
GordonG
GordonG
Aug 2019
10:51am, 28 Aug 2019
7,814 posts
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GordonG
Hello Quengyrea

i would suggest your options are road bike (lighter, faster, more prone to punctures) vs hybrid (slower, likely to be able to cope with bumpier roads).

Second hand is always an option but, like any used item, you're more likely to have to be able to do some DIY at a point sooner than if you bought new.

"a 40 walk" would be, i guess 3-4 miles each way, so in the overall scheme of things not massive bike mileage. Unless you also plan to cycle at weekends and/or do triathlons in the future, my advice would be to look online at somewhere like Evans Cycles to get an initial idea of the market. Obv i don't know what your budget it, but i really can't see why you'd need to spend more than £700 (and these days you can get a lot of bike for your commute for that price).

You don't actually NEED disc brakes - many people will choose them but for 8 miles a day, the most important thing is a bike that fits you and many bike shops will do a fitting service.

good luck!

About This Thread

Maintained by Drell
I need a new bike. Pretty much all I know about bikes is that they have 2 wheels and gears and things. So I need advice (which I might then ignore).

I will use it for cycling into town and back, a trip of around 4 - 5 miles, and for leisure rides which are currently up to around 10 - 12 miles, but could get longer if I had a better bike.

My basic questions are probably:
- what type of bike should I look at? hybrid, or something else?
- what do I need to look out for in the way of features? (gears, brakes etc - obviously that they are present, but what else?)
- any specific recommendations? I could imagine spending say £300, but I have no idea how much more (or less) you'd get for more (or less) money
- any recommendations for shops in Cambridge? (there are enough of them...)
- any particular pointers about how to ensure a good fit? (one of the problems with my current bike is that it's probably too small a frame)
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