choice of bikes, but which one

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Hello everyone.
Hope you are all enjoying the weather.
I found out I have an option to use the cycle for work scheme to buy a new bike.
I will be commuting mostly, I want a flat bar hybrid bike. I have been cycling for years but this will be my first new bike
so here are my choices:
Specialized Sirrus 1.0 2021
Giant Escape 3 2021
Merida Speeder 20D 2021
They are all arounf the £500 pounds mark.
I would like low maintenance as I am not great at it.
If anyone has any preferences or ideas I would be veryt grateful to hear from you.
Thanks.
 

vickster

Legendary Member
They’ll all be much of a muchness with entry level components, although the Merida has disc brakes and the Sirrus looks a bit overpriced compared to the Giant (m. Try them out, buying local is always good for peace of mind (and a free post purchase check), which can you actually get soon in your size locally?
And which do you like the look of most :okay:
All bikes need maintenance if used, but those should need no more
 
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On an all weather commuter bike, disk brakes ( even mechanical/cable) are a huge advantage over rim brakes. You will be riding on wet roads a lot and disk brakes work the same wet or dry.
My Shimano Alfine 8 speed hub gear is one of the best for low maintenance but the 11 speed is even better. You would have to increase your budget.
Another good reliable commuting aid is a dynamo hib lighting system. Fit, forget, ride.
Modern premium commuter tyres such as Marathon Plus mimimise the most common mishap.

Check that the frames have threaded eyelets for rack and mudguards in the standard positions, nothing propriatory or odd. Budget for these as well.
 

CanucksTraveller

Macho Business Donkey Wrestler
Location
Hertfordshire
I've got a Giant Escape 3 (although it's a few years old now), they're decent, quickish and light and I've had fun on it.
If I was buying again, with a choice of those 3, and if it's for commuting mainly, I might choose the Merida. You're getting disc brakes within your budget and I think it's just that bit nicer looking of the 3. If you're wanting to save a hundred nicker, then the Giant. The Specialized would be bottom of my list.
 

Cycleops

Legendary Member
Location
Accra, Ghana
All are poverty spec but none the worse for that, they'll perform perfectly adequately.
You'll struggle to get a fag paper between them save for the discs (as well as performing better in the wet than rim brakes there is no rim wear) on the Merida which is the obvious choice.
If you want to spend a bit more you could get hydraulic discs and a carbon fork. The discs will give better modulation and control An Alfine hub gear as suggested would make the ultimate commuter but then you're pushing the price up again.
 
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fossyant

Ride It Like You Stole It!
Location
South Manchester
The Giant and Meridia look better. You'll probably get that little bit 'more' with the Merida. PS Merida just about make all the frames for many manufacturers.
 

CanucksTraveller

Macho Business Donkey Wrestler
Location
Hertfordshire
All are poverty spec
That's a really unwelcome and recent cost cutting thing isn't it, the lowest spec bikes from these makes all used to come with Sora as the budget kit, and the more midrange bikes would all have something better like Tiagra or maybe even 105 say. Now it seems that all the low range bikes have generic unnamed Shimano or worse, and you're often needing to spend a grand to get a bike with a Sora mech on it. Nothing wrong with Sora (I'm a fan) but 5 years ago you'd have slapped the Giant dealer in the face for charging nearly a grand for a bike with that groupset.

Ooh, I ranted. 🤣
 
OP
OP
T
Thank you all for your replies, really helpful, Ithink I will look at the giant escape 2 whcih has better brakes thanks to your reccomendations.
Unfortuanlty no one seems to have any bikes in store at the moment so I cant try them. I was wondering with the merida and the boardman it looks like you are quite forward on the bike, would then make you feel like you would be sumersaulting over when you break? I may well be totally imagining a problem that does not exhist.
 

vickster

Legendary Member
Thank you all for your replies, really helpful, Ithink I will look at the giant escape 2 whcih has better brakes thanks to your reccomendations.
Unfortuanlty no one seems to have any bikes in store at the moment so I cant try them. I was wondering with the merida and the boardman it looks like you are quite forward on the bike, would then make you feel like you would be sumersaulting over when you break? I may well be totally imagining a problem that does not exhist.
You are imagining an issue that doesn’t exist - when you brake on a bike it’s not that dramatic, you do it gently!
Where are you buying the bike from? It’s much better to get from a shop when new to cycling to make sure it’s comfortable, the right size and what you want
 

DRM

Guru
Location
West Yorks
Thank you all for your replies, really helpful, Ithink I will look at the giant escape 2 whcih has better brakes thanks to your reccomendations.
Unfortuanlty no one seems to have any bikes in store at the moment so I cant try them. I was wondering with the merida and the boardman it looks like you are quite forward on the bike, would then make you feel like you would be sumersaulting over when you break? I may well be totally imagining a problem that does not exhist.
The Boardman has Hydraulic brakes and is a 9 speed cassette, it £50 cheaper than the Giant which is an 8 speed cassette, so the steps between gearing will be less steep, and there’s every chance a Halfords near you will have one in to try out, a lot of the big names have nothing due in stock any time soon, if you feel like you’re going to go over the bars when braking, you’re doing it wrong, you would really, really have to squeeze the front brake only like a madman whilst leaning very forward.
 

SkipdiverJohn

Deplorable Brexiteer
Location
London
You are imagining an issue that doesn’t exist - when you brake on a bike it’s not that dramatic, you do it gently!

Exactly. I rode a steel wheel Raleigh as a youngster with basic Weinmann rim brakes - and they stopped well enough for me to put myself over the bars a couple of times.
Most of this talk about "you really must have discs if you ride in wet weather or use it for commuting" is absolute bollocks TBH.
Riding a bike is no different to driving a motor vehicle - you ride according to the conditions and the type of vehicle you are in charge of. If it's wet, you simply lightly apply your brakes regularly so the water gets scraped off the rims and then when you do want to stop they are going to work immediately. It ain't rocket science.
 
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