£300 set budget for a new bike - suggestions?

[sevenfourate]

That's a great deal!

And I’ve got one in the fleet. And had two.

So speak from real World use and experience…..

 

[vickster]

I would think a road bike with good gearing especially for the Dragon ride which I believe is rather hilly!
Maybe look at Decathlon? But second hand will get you something much better for £300

 

[AndyRM]

https://www.halfords.com/bikes/hybr...ike-2020---grey---s-m-l-xl-frames-346126.html

Sale price (Happens fairly often !) is £276…..

Highly rated, overlooked, belies its price point, bulletproof.

If other options don't come through I'd third this option. Great bikes.

One thing to note though is that not all Halfords bike mechanics are created equal if you're asking them to set the bike up. At one with a Bike Hut you're usually in safe hands, but otherwise they generally don't have a clue

 

[derrick]

plenty on eBay. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/18753725...i05ZzZWGs6NTnGhk0sA=|tkp:Bk9SR8i11pGlZg&pfm=1

 

[Dogtrousers]

If you are (understandably) wary of buying a faulty/stolen bike or otherwise being ripped off on the second hand market, then the brand that has a good reputation on here for value for money is Decathlon. I've not owned a bike from them myself but know people who have.

But having taken a peek at their website I think you'd struggle to get anything that isn't genuinely "cheap and nasty" for £300 or less.

Up the budget to £500, and you might be in business. Or else wait for an offer/sale like @sevenfourate suggested above.

 

[infinityleague]

I do not know how to tag every account but thank you to everyone that replied.

Keeping an eye on eBay, studiovelo, Evan’s, Halfords & Decathlon in the hope that something will show up sooner or later.

Will update or ask for advice if I do find one.

 

[Dogtrousers]

On the subject of gearing, do check what the lowest gear is. Lots of people come on here saying "I have bought X bike and would like to get a lower bottom gear for the hills, what do I do?"

So (at the risk of teaching grandmother to suck eggs) here's my quick guide to bottom gears.

Check the bike spec and find the size of the chainrings. On a typical road bike this will be 50/34. On the hybrid @sevenfourate has linked it's 46/30. Take the smaller/smallest of these numbers. Lower numbers give a lower gear.

Now find the spec of the cassette and find the biggest number (sprocket size). Typically you will find 32, or 34. But you do get bigger and smaller. Bigger numbers lower gears.

The combination of these two numbers will give you your lowest gear. All things being equal (ie same sized wheels) you can divide front by back to give you a number that you can compare between bikes. Smaller number - lower gear.

My entirely subjective take (many will disagree) is:

Any chainring > 34. That's a bit high for me.
34 chainring 28 sprocket. Still too sporty
34 / 32. This is quite common. It's getting there.
34 / 34. This is 1:1. One turn of the pedals = one rotation of the wheel. Nice.
30 / 34 (as on the linked Carrera). Wooo, this should get you up anything on road short of the steepest ramps.

 

[Dan Lotus]

I do not know how to tag every account but thank you to everyone that replied.

Keeping an eye on eBay, studiovelo, Evan’s, Halfords & Decathlon in the hope that something will show up sooner or later.

Will update or ask for advice if I do find one.

Personally I would avoid evans, as they are now part of the fraser group, same company that owns sports direct - customer service, and the way they treat staff are pretty sh1te by all accounts, but up to you of course - though not sure how many people realise that about evans, and also sadly wiggle and crc Those two were a HUGE loss to me. Though equally of benefit to my wallet 🤷‍♂️

 

[wafter]

That’s the last option if I cannot find a new one in my budget range after going through all the available online cycle catalogues.

Anything new for £300 will likely be a turd.

Not familar with the welsh event you mention, but London to Brighton is a fair few miles so you'll want something pretty road oriented (unless lack of flexibility or other proclivities dictate something more upright / straight bars etc).

I suspect entry-level road bikes were one of the largest growth areas during covid, consequently the used market is awash with them. Something like a Giant Defy would be a solid if unremarkable choice.

If you lack the flexibility of a racing snake you'll be wanting to look at bikes with "endurance" geometry.

 

[infinityleague]

“Flexibility of a racing snake” brought a smile so thank you for that. I got zero flexibility at this moment but will try to get as close as possible to being aa flexible as a racing snake in the next 6-7 months.

 

[TheDoctor]

You have PM

 

[MichaelW2]

The features that you need at any price for a year round, road fitness, event bike are:
correct size esp length, not too racy.
Low enough gearing
Wide enough tyre clearance
Threaded eyelets for mudguards and rear rack.

£300 wont get much new.

 

[kingrollo]

Decathlon are usually good at this price point .

 

[Animo]

Second hand all day. I got a very tidy bike for about £200 on Gumtree which I use on my turbo.

Have you got somebody you know who would look at suitable options for you?

If not, I'm sure people on here would be happy to help if you give your location.

 

[infinityleague]

Anything new for £300 will likely be a turd.

Not familar with the welsh event you mention, but London to Brighton is a fair few miles so you'll want something pretty road oriented (unless lack of flexibility or other proclivities dictate something more upright / straight bars etc).

I suspect entry-level road bikes were one of the largest growth areas during covid, consequently the used market is awash with them. Something like a Giant Defy would be a solid if unremarkable choice.

If you lack the flexibility of a racing snake you'll be wanting to look at bikes with "endurance" geometry.

Here is the official website.

https://www.dragonride.co.uk/