How much do you need to spend on a new bike to get best VfM?

[Dogtrousers]

I guess the best value for money would be a bike that a person has kept a very long time and needs very little maintenance.

A bike that gets locked up in a dry garage and never ridden at all would be excellent then.

 

[Blue Hills]

Cheap things can still give you a lot of pleasure

I would ask you to elaborate but fear I might tempt you into a ticking off from above.

 

[bonzobanana]

A bike that gets locked up in a dry garage and never ridden at all would be excellent then.

I made the assumption the debate was regarding bikes that were ridden rather than garage queens that can be any type of bike.

 

[Tigerbiten]

And then there are those of us who, due to our odd shapes or sizes, physical limitations/conditions or home situations, are unable to get any use out of the many bikes which are easily available and accessible, regardless of their price, and must thus get the only one, or one of the very few, which suits our specific needs.

I fall into that group.
So 12 years ago I spent around £2.5k on an ICE trike and a further £2.5k getting it tweaked to my specs.
40k miles later I'm still happy with it.
So the £5k was very good VfM for me.

Luck ..........

 

[freiston]

I bought my touring bike (Jamis Aurora) in 2014 which was very good value at £660 and I also think of tourers as good vfm because they are good "do-it-all" bikes too - if you can only have one bike but need it to do everything, get a tourer. My Jamis has changed a bit since then (saddle, bars, pedals, racks, front brakes, mudguards, gearing & hub dynamo lighting/USB charging); it didn't need to change but it is a better bike for it. Back then, there was a lot more choice at the lower end of the touring bike range with many brands offering something but that is no longer the case - for example, Jamis no longer do touring bikes.

I don't really look at new bikes except occasionally drooling over new touring bikes, usually from Spa - and I consider their touring bikes to be very good vfm. Currently, about £1200 would get you one of them so that's what I voted.

I suppose that a decent hybrid (I'm not keen on that term) could be got for £750 and arguably it would be a good all-rounder and very good vfm but I'm not really up to speed with what's available and for what price. I have had the odd glance though and I do recall thinking that a lot of what is on offer doesn't quite hit the mark for me, such as frame quality/material, cheap front suspension/disc brakes, gearing ratios etc. I do reckon that a manufacturer could do a decent no-frills rigid steel-framed, V-braked "hybrid" for about £750 but suspect that it would not be commercially viable on account of no front suspension or disc brakes.

 

[GuyBoden]

Looking at the thread poll, I would say that you can get a reasonable used bike for the lowest amount, £350. If you know how to look for bike defects before buying and can fix bikes. Local Gumtree adverts are probably better, as you can go to see and check the bike before buying.

 

[Blue Hills]

Looking at the thread poll, I would say that you can get a reasonable used bike for the lowest amount, £350. If you know how to look for bike defects before buying and can fix bikes. Local Gumtree adverts are probably better, as you can go to see and check the bike before buying.

If secondhand I'd say a fair bit below that.
My current most used bike cost, kinda £21, and is also an excellent tourer.
On any secondhand bike, unless it's just been sat in a garage, the parts are going to be somewhat worn anyway, and also gearing might not be quite what you want, so there's something to be said for getting a bike where everything is just shot if cheap enough and the frame is good, then you can build from there.
My £21 bike from the bay had a totally bust front brake - I asked about this when buying - you could see in the pics though the fault wasn't declared - worked in my favour.

And no problem anyway for me as I was always going to change the brakes from cantis to Vs.

If buying new I'd say you should be able to get a good steel bike for general (not racing use) for £1,000 to £1,500 - though for me many/maybe all of those would have drivetrains I didn't want.

I agree totally about gumtree - ebay a pain these days as next to impossible to see before buying.

 

[Brooks]

I wanted a touring bike and the Genesis tour de fer and the Oxford bike works bikes tickled my fancy and were around the £1500 mark. Then the Genesis bikes went up to about £1700 and that put me off somewhat.
That was over a year ago and I started to look at 2nd hand, picked up a Spa steel tourer for £500 that I'm over the moon with.
It's a very interesting topic and I've enjoyed everyone's take on it.

 

[roley poley]

That looked pretty steep right.
I was thinking that Otis' thighs would explode up that hill.

that was never 1/10 as quoted from what I saw but am willing to be proven wrong

 

[HLaB]

For me it depends how much you use it. A BSO if used for 1000s of miles is value for money IMO but the majority aren't so in that case they aren't VfM. Compared to that latter case a circa £1000+ used for 10,000s miles will offer more VfM.

 

[roley poley]

the most fun I have ever had on a bike was from a postcard advert in a newspaper shop window for £15 that shed parts like water ..how do you value fun to utility on your scale by the way it is still going after a 25 year thrashing through hill ,dale and commute ..God I am an old git... now I have a Brompton and a genesis day one ..the trick is to cycle and find it practical and fun within your budget