Any and all advice much appreciated

[holtj12]

Hi - my son, who has some additional needs, is a dog walker and gets to his jobs on a bike. He has been using a hand-me-down bike for a couple of years but it's on it's last wheels?! So, we are looking for a new one but have absolutely no idea what he needs from the huge variety of bikes available!
He uses his bike all day, he must cycle miles in a week, so it's well used. He doesn't really want to spend too much (max approx £400) as unfortunately, he has to leave his bike secured in the open at each job so it would be too much of a temptation if it was expensive. It will also get wet, a lot and he rides on some rough roads/canal path so it would need to be quite sturdy. He is 5'11" tall and doesn't really use the gears. We've heard about tyres with gel in that prevent punctures? At home the bike is kept in an Asgard bike shed and he uses a spray oil after drying it whenever it's been rained on. He'd like mudguards and a bell for the canal path. He's not a speed rider and prefers to sit more upright so the straight handle bars would suit him better, he also doesn't like the very narrow seats!
If anyone could recommend anything it would be very much appreciated.
Thank you
Joe's mum, Jackie

 

[Jameshow]

Mountain bike or hybrid bike.

A hybrid will be lighter and faster.

Cheap suspension forks are poor and likely to corrode on the rain, so rigid fork are better.

Big name brands are more likely to be stolen.


8/9 speed is all you need.

If he's on the flat he will probably leave in one gear?

This a is good make but relatively unknown.

Most tyres are budget so you would need to upgrade to marathons or simalar down the line £15 each.


https://www.tredz.co.uk/.Lapierre-Shaper-1-0-2022-Hybrid-Sports-Bike_258018.htm?sku=923158&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Hybrid bikes&utm_content=Lapierre&gclid=CjwKCAiA-8SdBhBGEiwAWdgtcIDztWwH1RtDqGXIcJuJjbmVj6VXLdMrSzRaQ7sK__Sfy_Jat655KBoCloUQAvD_BwE

 

[Deleted member 26715]

Visit Decathlon he can try them out for size & what he likes, also Go Outdoors.

 

[All uphill]

How about treating his current bike to a thorough service and any necessary repairs?

Bikes rarely wear out. Most parts can be replaced and upgraded. There may even be a cycle project near you that would do a thorough job for a reasonable price - could be £200 or so.

If, however, your son wants a new bike I'd echo the advice above; no suspension fork, above all comfortable and not too attractive to thieves.

Good luck and happy cycling.

 

[ColinJ]

Why not strip the current bike down and make a reliable singlespeeed machine from the bits plus a few extras?

That's what I did with mine.

I initially only spent £80 to tart up what I already had. Since then I have spent more because I ended up using the bike a lot more than I had expected to.

 

[Reynard]

Must it be new?

Something like a vintage steel MTB with a rigid fork sounds like it ticks most if not all the boxes; simple, sturdy, comfortable to ride and not very nickable. Swap the knobbly tyres for commuter tyres with good puncture protection, stick a set of full-length mudguards and a rack on and it should do the job.

Otherwise, if new, avoid suspension like the plague. Not only is it a hindrance at that price point (cheap sus forks are heavy and not terribly effective), it adds to the "nickability" of a bike.

 

[Big John]

I'd be reluctant to leave a shiny new bike outside on a regular basis irrespective of make and model. If it's shiny they'll nick it. Even if it's not shiny they'll nick it. That said, how would he feel about buying a used bike? I work for a bike charity and I'm told there are quite a few scattered around the country like ours. We give advice to customers (often steering them clear of what they thought they needed) on what bike would be most suitable or we may even advise a service on their existing bike to save money. The downside with places like ours is that we rely on donations and can only sell what we've had donated so our stock changes almost daily. It's worth a visit if you have one nearby. You'll get value for money, a warranty and valuable advice. It's not like buying second hand off eBay or Gumtree where you're taking a gamble. If the charity is like ours you'll walk away with something that'll be fit for purpose without breaking the bank. Our better bikes are priced anywhere between £100 and £200 so well short of your budget. Whatever you decide on make sure he has a good lock. Don't go for anything that can easily be cut with bolt croppers. We see some awful locks on customers bikes.

 

[KnittyNorah]

Hi - my son, who has some additional needs, is a dog walker and gets to his jobs on a bike. He has been using a hand-me-down bike for a couple of years but it's on it's last wheels?! So, we are looking for a new one but have absolutely no idea what he needs from the huge variety of bikes available!
He uses his bike all day, he must cycle miles in a week, so it's well used. He doesn't really want to spend too much (max approx £400) as unfortunately, he has to leave his bike secured in the open at each job so it would be too much of a temptation if it was expensive. It will also get wet, a lot and he rides on some rough roads/canal path so it would need to be quite sturdy. He is 5'11" tall and doesn't really use the gears. We've heard about tyres with gel in that prevent punctures? At home the bike is kept in an Asgard bike shed and he uses a spray oil after drying it whenever it's been rained on. He'd like mudguards and a bell for the canal path. He's not a speed rider and prefers to sit more upright so the straight handle bars would suit him better, he also doesn't like the very narrow seats!
If anyone could recommend anything it would be very much appreciated.
Thank you
Joe's mum, Jackie

I'm going to address some less technical stuff in a less technical way.
First of all I am no mechanic and I have a folding bike so that in the event of getting a puncture or other event that makes my bike unrideable, I can get a taxi, bus or lift back home with the bike. And then I would pay my local bike shop to mend it for me, given that I am 75 with quite bad arthritis in my hands and live in a tiny upstairs retirement flat!

Tyres to prevent punctures. There are certainly tyres that minimise punctures. I ride my bike a lot on the canal towpath and on the cycle paths through the woods, they are stony, twiggy, thorny etc in turns. My bike has Schwalbe tyres - actually a 'city cruiser' type of tyre (they are not very thin and smooth, nor are they huge and nobbly), with a particular marking thing which in that make indicates they are puncture-resistant - and I have had no punctures. Tyres are an easy thing to upgrade even if the bike you buy has cheap or worn ones. Any bike shop will do it for you and if they don't have good puncture resistant tyres available, you can buy your own and pay the mechanic to fit them for you.
You can also get stuff to put in tyres that helps to mend small punctures, it is usually referred to as 'slime' and you could ask a bike mechanic in a shop to 'slime' the tyres for you if you don't want to do it yourself. When I asked the local bike shop I use to do that, they said I didn't need to with the sort of tyres I have but if I did start to get small punctures they do it for me.

BTW when I talk about a bike shop in this context, I don't mean a Halfords or anything like that, I mean Joe Bloggs who works at (and may well part own) Sometown Cycles or Acacia Avenue Bike Servicing (second hand bikes available for all ages). Some of them will come and pick up your bike from home and return it later so you are not having to wheel it across town with with a puncture.
You can get a bell from Wilko for a couple of pounds, and it just fits on very simply with a screwdriver so no need to look for a bike with one on already.
Perhaps consider a bike with hub gears if your son doesn't really use his gears - they take much less maintenance and are much simpler to use.

 

[KnittyNorah]

Hi - my son, who has some additional needs, is a dog walker and gets to his jobs on a bike. He has been using a hand-me-down bike for a couple of years but it's on it's last wheels?! So, we are looking for a new one but have absolutely no idea what he needs from the huge variety of bikes available!
He uses his bike all day, he must cycle miles in a week, so it's well used. He doesn't really want to spend too much (max approx £400) as unfortunately, he has to leave his bike secured in the open at each job so it would be too much of a temptation if it was expensive. It will also get wet, a lot and he rides on some rough roads/canal path so it would need to be quite sturdy. He is 5'11" tall and doesn't really use the gears. We've heard about tyres with gel in that prevent punctures? At home the bike is kept in an Asgard bike shed and he uses a spray oil after drying it whenever it's been rained on. He'd like mudguards and a bell for the canal path. He's not a speed rider and prefers to sit more upright so the straight handle bars would suit him better, he also doesn't like the very narrow seats!
If anyone could recommend anything it would be very much appreciated.
Thank you
Joe's mum, Jackie

Jackie. my post that you 'liked' had sent itself before I was finished and I've written quite a bit more, so do look at it again. I also agree that a 'bike scheme' of some sort might be an excellent place to find a good bike at an even better price; what approximate part of the country are you in? as one of us here might be aware of one that a non-cyclist might not know about.

 

[holtj12]

Jackie. my post that you 'liked' had sent itself before I was finished and I've written quite a bit more, so do look at it again. I also agree that a 'bike scheme' of some sort might be an excellent place to find a good bike at an even better price; what approximate part of the country are you in? as one of us here might be aware of one that a non-cyclist might not know about.

Thank you, I've just been reading everyone's replies and they are very useful. We are in Trafford - South Manchester and I've just had a quick look online. There is a guy on facebook who refurbs bikes so I'll get in touch with him to see what he has or even ask him to look at Joe's current bike to see if he can refurb that for him. Trouble is Joe rarely has a day off so can't really do without a bike for more than a day or so. Lots of food for thought though - thank you everyone, we really appreciate all your comments

 

[alicat]

Hi Jackie

You say that Joe uses his bike regularly to get to his work so buying a new (to him) bike and servicing the old one and keeping it as a spare could be a good idea.

Whatever he can find that has as many of the advantages of his old one and as few of the disadvantages is what he needs. Going secondhand (Facebook marketplace/Gumtree/Ebay etc) could be the way forward to get a cheap and not too tempting to steal bike that he could try beforehand.

If you post your location, some kind person on here might be able to give a prospective bike a once over to check that it isn't a complete dud.

 

[Arrowfoot]

Would second the idea of visiting Decathlon. Good value for money. Wide range to choose from. They can make modifications on site. Lots of bike locks to choose from. Etc

 

[MichaelW2]

The most resistant tyres are Schwalbe Marathon Plus. There are several versions of Marathon , the Plus is heavier and slower but by far the toughest tyre you can get.
For people who dont like gears, hub gear bikes are a good choice. Not so common in the shops and often more expensive. They also need frames that permit moving the rear axle backwards to tension the chain.
A hybrid style bike with aluminium frame and non suspension forks using wide tyres will be reliable and easy to ride. You will get a 3x8 derailleur gear system ss standard.

Beware of using WD40 on a bike. If it gets into any bearings it will dissolve the grease. I winterize a bike by cleaning, drying, and waxing all exposed metal. Grease all metal-metal contacts to prevent siezing up.

 

[annedonnelly]

If you're talking hub gears there are still a few Elephant bikes left. I have one and it's virtually bomb proof - though a bit heavy.

But defintely look at refurbished bikes if you can find a organisation doing them near you.

 

[KnittyNorah]

Just to add, after noticing your mention of Joe disliking narrow saddles - if the 'right bike' has a narrow seat/saddle, these are very easy, and not expensive, to change. Even non-mechanic hardly-any-tools me can do it. I'd probably need to borrow a spanner from a neighbour, and wait for a day with fine weather as I have no undercover work area, but I could do it with no real problem.
So if the bike is otherwise right - and especially if it's a good buy, such as from a cycle recycle scheme! - don't let a narrow uncomfortable saddle put you or Joe off.