Help me choose!

[WillJo]

I'm in two minds what to do regarding my new bike (my previous one was nabbed!)


Would you suggest that I either:
1. Buy any old cheap bike from ebay/ gumtree
Pros: Most economical option, likely to be undesirable and thus less likely to get stolen.
Cons: Could well be stolen (a lot of too good to be true deals around, and I wouldn't want to fund the sort of people who nicked my bike!), could end up being a false economy if I get conned and get something too ropey.

or

2. Buy a nice bike again (Ideally some sort of hybrid/ tourer...I'd like a road bike but the roads around Cardiff are somewhat unforgiving, one of my flat mates has a road bike and he's forever changing his tyres!)
Pros: It would be nice to think I wasn't letting petty criminals influence the enjoyment of my possessions, sense of satisfaction owning a nice bit of kit, less likely to go wrong!

So what does everyone think is the best option?

Also with my un-sensible hat on I found this which looked very tempting! http://www.sportsdirect.com/viking-sti-road-snr-21-933073

 

[musa]

Ive seen the bike I personally would not be in a rush to get it...

triban 3 is the answer

 

[vickster]

Or if flatbar... http://www.decathlon.co.uk/btwin-fitness-3-id_8188895.html

 

[WillJo]

Ive seen the bike I personally would not be in a rush to get it...

triban 3 is the answer

This is a cringey amateur question but how do the brakes form on that? Is it via lever side lever or through the brake handles as I think leaver shift gears might be a bit impractical for what I need?

 

[Scilly Suffolk]

What is your budget? What do you want to use the bike for? How much use is it going to get? Etc., etc.

Just going off the back of your suggestion, I would second the Decathlon Triban 3.

Sports Direct and Viking are an unknown quantity; Decathlon have a solid reputation for offering reliable, value-for-money products at the budget end of the price range.

 

[musa]

This is a cringey amateur question but how do the brakes form on that? Is it via lever side lever or through the brake handles as I think leaver shift gears might be a bit impractical for what I need?

its on the shifters...left to right movement is gears

Ive seen viking i dont know what the reputation is like no discredit to SD but i certainly buy a bike from them

so its either a MTB or Singlespeed your after

 

[WillJo]

What is your budget? What do you want to use the bike for? How much use is it going to get? Etc., etc.

Just going off the back of your suggestion, I would second the Decathlon Triban 3.

Sports Direct and Viking are an unknown quantity; Decathlon have a solid reputation for offering reliable, value-for-money products at the budget end of the price range.

Hi there,

Yes Decathlon looks fantastic thanks ! Well at max my budget is £325 (ideally I'd like to spend less) as that's what I got for the insurance pay out on my old bike. I would just be using it for getting around Cardiff city quickly, really - Getting to lectures in 5 minutes was a luxury I had become accustomed to! I think whatever I went for I'd like it to be reasonably robust, and ideally comfortable.

I do like the look of the Triban 3 but my sensible hat is telling me the flat bar is a better option!

 

[WillJo]

Having said that It's taken all of ten minutes for me to realise there should a shrine in this forum dedicated to the Triban 3.....I'm very tempted!

 

[musa]

Having said that It's taken all of ten minutes for me to realise there should a shrine in this forum dedicated to the Triban 3.....I'm very tempted!

Yes, I was tempted to get one but my budget didnt reach thus far so i got a Defy4 for £230
but T3 is VFM and thats what you want nowadays

 

[the snail]

Hi there,

Yes Decathlon looks fantastic thanks ! Well at max my budget is £325 (ideally I'd like to spend less) as that's what I got for the insurance pay out on my old bike. I would just be using it for getting around Cardiff city quickly, really - Getting to lectures in 5 minutes was a luxury I had become accustomed to! I think whatever I went for I'd like it to be reasonably robust, and ideally comfortable.

I do like the look of the Triban 3 but my sensible hat is telling me the flat bar is a better option!

A hybrid would certainly be the sensible route for your requirements. I'd go for something that will take 28 or 32mm tyres, that will give you a comfortable ride over crappy roads. The answer to punctures is to fit puncture-resistant tyres like Continental Contact or Schwalbe Marathon and keep them properly pumped up. You could do worse than a Carrera Subway from Halfords, lots of them about and you could probably pick one up cheap on ebay. I wouldn't worry too much about a bike on ebay being stolen, just use your common sense and if the seller/bike sounds wrong, avoid. A lot of cheaper bikes get bought, ridden a couple of times, then sit in the garage unused - look for one of those and avoid the ones that have ridden into the ground.

 

[Andrew_Culture]

I'm fast coming to the same conclusion, I've just picked up a fifty quid frame from eBay and am planning a long slog to save up for the bits to build a bike, but £250 for a Triban 3... tempting!

 

[Scilly Suffolk]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but you're a student just looking for something to get you around town?

Uni towns are magnets for thieves (but you already know that); the population of uni towns has a high turnover; you're skint.

Broadly speaking any bike will do what you need; the more beaten-up and unattractive it is, the less likely it is to be stolen; the University/Council must have some arrangement for disposing of abandoned/stolen & recovered/left by graduates bikes.

I'd make some enquiries, spend £50 on a ropey mountain bike and the rest on dope, strong cider and getting laid...

 

[WillJo]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but you're a student just looking for something to get you around town?

the University/Council must have some arrangement for disposing of abandoned/stolen & recovered/left by graduates bikes.

I believe they do...It's called the 'leave it in any vaguely popular area of town, turn back for 5 minutes, then turn back to found bike gone' initiative

 

[caimg]

I bought a Triban 3 today, my first road bike, first experience with drop handlebars. Rode it for about 20 mins...absolutely loving it over flat bars so far, feel closer and more connected to the bike, and everything feels that bit more compact and efficient.