help on what budget bike to buy

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gsifin

New Member
i have decided to start cycling to and from work its only about 3 mile each way

i am new to all this and dont have a clue whats good for the money and whats not

i had a look at a (Revolution Cuillin pro disc 07) today but it was sold out just before i got to the shop it was £230 i thought that was no bad

i dont realy want to spend any more than £250 as i will no be useing the bike all that much

any advice would be great

cheers
 
welcome to the mad house

If I was going to be looking for a new bike at that price I would look at what Im going to be doing with it IE on or off road. As your going to be on road I would look at them not MTB's and as for disks thats a no no on a bike at that price.....
 

walker

New Member
Location
Bromley, Kent
welcome gsifin, just a word of warning that cycling starts at a £250 bike, then the bug hits and before you know it you've remorgaged your house. :blush:
 

col

Legendary Member
I agree with rich p,halfords do have some good budget bikes,mines a carrera vulcan,i changed the crank for a twenty quid sealed one,and its great for me,similar to what you want by the sounds,welcome here too.:blush:
 
Hello gsifin - if you could see your way to mailing all our respondents a £20 - we will be pleased to offer all the advice you could ever need :smile:
Have you had a good look at ebay? If only to do a few calculations re: price / qualities to look for etc - you will soon begin to spot trends. (As the others say - your thinking will be nearer £500 in no time at all..;)) Is 'Bike To Work' an option? Don't forget the clothes you might need - trousers in socks is soooo last year darling :blush:
Oh! And get yourself to the café and meet the real hardcore cyclists who will give you plenty of cheek advice.
 
OP
OP
G

gsifin

New Member
thanks for the welcome guys and advice im going to take a run down to halfords tomo after work and see what they have without disc brakes if there no good on cheap bikes
 

summerdays

Cycling in the sun
Location
Bristol
spandex said:
...........as for disks thats a no no on a bike at that price.....
As someone who doesn't know anything about disk brakes... how much do you need to spend on a bike before the disk brakes are OK ones?
 

rich p

ridiculous old lush
Location
Brighton
Gsfin, it's pretty rare for anyone to recommend Halfords on this site but if you stick to the recommendations given you'll be ok. Don't be tempted by Apollos etc!
 

fossyant

Ride It Like You Stole It!
Location
South Manchester
Best of all - look about if you have time - try the net as well, and don't discount Decathlon - very tidy bikes for the cash.

I'm no expert on the 'entry level' bikes, so trust what is said on here - if possible try and get the best 'level' of components that your budget will allow - see what is still going in the sales as you could get a bike worth £100-£200 more - they are genuine...

Decathlon had their £1000 bike going for £500 last time I was in, most others reduced by at least £100 - I nearly fell over when I saw the prices - unfortunately, not in the market for a bike at the moment...argh.....
 

goo_mason

Champion barbed-wire hurdler
Location
Leith, Edinburgh
gsfin,

I've been more than happy with my (cable) disc-equipped Carrera Vulcan from Halfords. Almost two years old now and just passed 4000 commuting miles.

I started off with the 'I'll only use it once or twice a week' attitude and I'm now 4 days a week (can't do a Monday because I take my daughter to school so use it as a day to bring my week's worth of clothes in to leave in my locker).

You'll soon get the bug ;)
 

got-to-get-fit

New Member
Location
Yarm, Cleveland
walker said:
welcome gsifin, just a word of warning that cycling starts at a £250 bike, then the bug hits and before you know it you've remorgaged your house. ;)

I will testify to this .........

Last year i had a carrera Kraken, old creaky and heavy ...cost about 300 quid

This year i have a Bianchi 928 full carbon CtoC 1300 quid

Your wife (if you have one) will not be a happy bunny in year two.....here speaks the voice of experience
 

John the Monkey

Frivolous Cyclist
Location
Crewe
If you're looking at the Edinburgh Bike co-op, something like the courier, or courier race is probably a better bet than the Cullin (which, if I remember correctly is a full on MTB). A lighter frame, with bigger wheels and thinner tyres will make the whole thing feel much easier ;) (Assuming that your commute is on road)
 

Arch

Married to Night Train
Location
Salford, UK
Aperitif said:
Don't forget the clothes you might need - trousers in socks is soooo last year darling ;)

It's a good point, that the bike is just the start. If nothing else, budget for a decent lock. The reckoning is to spend about 10% of the value of the bike, on a lock, I believe. Don't think you can rely on a cheapy cable lock or something like that - even the quite thick looking ones can often be more plastic than metal cable. A decent D-lock, preferably with some kind of industry rating, (bronze, silver or gold) is what you want. It's something easily overlooked, until you come out of somewhere and find the bike gone.

And if you are going to be riding after dark, lights, of course. Even if you don't plan to ride at night, it's worth carrying a pair with you, maybe the little strap-on backup type, or just a cheap LED set from the pound shop, because riding without lights in dark or dusk is daft, and you can be caught out if you say, have to work late unexpectedly.

For a 3 mile trip, you don't need lots of fancy clothing, unless you want it. A breathable waterproof jacket perhaps, if you want to invest, and maybe some waterproof trousers, but no need to go mad. Gloves are good, to prevent chilly fingers and roadrash if you happen to have a tumble, but again, no need to slend loads on fancy specific gear.

A helmet is up to you, but if you do get one, make sure it fits properly, and the straps are done up right, and secure. A loose badly fitting helemt is probably worse than none at all.
 
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