My daughter wants a BSO.

[Mugshot]

As the title says. My daughter is looking for a bike, cheap. Her budget is £100, I'll probably chuck another £50 on top for her. She's seen this one;
http://www.argos.co.uk/product/5997163
She's not going to be entering races just a mile or so back and forth to work. I'm thinking it may be better if I look around for a second hand one but I was just wondering if anybody has seen any bargains around recently?
She's tiny BTW, 5' and very slight.

 

[Cycleops]

Stories of mail order BSOs horrors abound on here as I'm sure you'll know. You must have a Decathlon near you they have a great range of cheaper bikes and they'll fix any probs.
How about this https://www.decathlon.co.uk/riverside-120-hybrid-bike-id_8379017.html

 

[Rooster1]

The Decathlon

B'TWIN RIVERSIDE 120 HYBRID BIKE coming in a small. £159.00

I bought one for my daughter and it is well made, robust and cheap.
It is not alluminium but steel framed,

You might have to order it and wait a few days.

Don't ask for the cheaper Riverside 100 as it does not come in small.

A friend has also bought one and they are happy too.

Please don't buy that crap from Argos - please.

 

[summerdays]

From my experience of BSO's steer clear. We bought one for my daughter (before we knew better because she liked it), and it was terrible. The bearings in the wheel went in probably under 200 miles, the brakes were nasty, and trying to keep the gears working seemed to be impossible. The only good thing about it was that it started my cycling experience!!

It doesn't have to be expensive just not the lump of lead that that probably is. Thinking about how far I rode that bike and then the subsequent bikes per mile they were cheaper.

 

[simon.r]

It’s £100. It’s going to be used for a mile or two a day.

It’ll be perfectly adequate for its intended purpose.*

*Subject to being set up properly and the addition of mudguards if your daughter’s going to be riding in wet conditions.

 

[Mugshot]

You must have a Decathlon near you

Haha, wanna bet!

 

[summerdays]

It’s £100. It’s going to be used for a mile or two a day.

It’ll be perfectly adequate for its intended purpose.*

*Subject to being set up properly and the addition of mudguards if your daughter’s going to be riding in wet conditions.

It's not if it needs constant maintenance and the components are made of cheese!

 

[Mugshot]

I agree with the general sentiments expressed already. The Argos one will in all likelyhood be shite, but the budget is tight to say the least even if I push it a bit for her.

 

[Rooster1]

omg, no Decathlon in Wales whatsoever!

 

[Mugshot]

It's not if it needs constant maintenance and the components are made of cheese!

Precisely, there's this one in Halfords,
http://www.halfords.com/cycling/bik...da-hydrus-womens-hybrid-road-bike-disc-brakes
I'd push the budget to that, and you think "Hmmmm, disk brakes!" and then you think, "Oh, disk brakes?"

 

[Heltor Chasca]

I was in the same boat a couple of years ago with my OD. She had the choice of a cheap MTB, hybrid or a second hand Dawes Super Galaxy ‘91. She went for the SG without any pressure from me. It cost £100 and I spent about the same again refurbishing it.

She went around the NL on it last summer and Pembrokeshire this summer and it’ll probably be the bike she takes to uni. Smarter than the average she is, even when it comes to bike choice.

 

[Mugshot]

The Decathlon

B'TWIN RIVERSIDE 120 HYBRID BIKE coming in a small. £159.00

I bought one for my daughter and it is well made, robust and cheap.
It is not alluminium but steel framed,

You might have to order it and wait a few days.

Don't ask for the cheaper Riverside 100 as it does not come in small.

A friend has also bought one and they are happy too.

Please don't buy that crap from Argos - please.

That looks better, thank you and personal experience too

 

[Rooster1]

That looks better, thank you and personal experience too

I am a roadie but I actually really like riding it!
Comes with lights too! (Well ours did)

 

[Mugshot]

There is another angle to this of course, and knowing my wily daughter it wouldn't surprise me, and that's that she's banking on me saying "Don't buy that crap, I'll stump up the reddies for something half decent and you can have it as an early Christmas present."

 

[DCLane]

I'd have thought she/you could get a decent hardly-used hybrid for that amount?

And yes, she's possibly banking on your help/ advice.

Just make sure she liked it - SWMBO got a Specialized Globe Daily step-through Dutch-style bike 6 years ago on C2W and must have used it less than 5 times. Myself and the kids have ridden it more!