vickster
Legendary Member
As long as it's legal (around here there's no pedalling by most delivery riders
)
Need a bike for commuting
- Thread starter bkulacs0410
- Start date
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)bkulacs0410
Active Member
Of course. As I said it’s only 250w and pedal assist so it won’t even go faster than 15.5mph…. I used to ride an electric skateboard and police kept stopping me around here so don’t want to risk it too much plus I see many of the riders getting stopped nowadays by police. All I want is a nice and smooth peaceful ride 😃As long as it's legal (around here there's no pedalling by most delivery riders
I’ll take a look at the bikes you mentioned previously, but I’m not a big fan of Decathlon made bikes to be honest.
What are you riding yourself?
vickster
Legendary Member
Ummm drop bar roadbikes (double/triple chainsets) and nothing that cost under £1500 new
I wouldn't use / leave any of them regularly in Central London!!
I'd have the cheapest 2nd hand bike I could find that is comfortable to ride in such a circumstance (or a Boris bike!)
bkulacs0410
Active Member
😵🙈😄👍🏻❤️Ummm drop bar roadbikes (double/triple chainsets) and nothing that cost under £1500 new
I wouldn't use / leave any of them regularly in Central London!!
I'd have the cheapest 2nd hand bike I could find that is comfortable to ride in such a circumstance (or a Boris bike!)
Cycleops
Legendary Member
- Location
- Accra, Ghana
vickster
Legendary Member
He didn’t actually say anything about budget in the OP.
He last said he’d decided to rent one of these at £25 a month.
https://www.buzzbike.cc/
That’ll soon add up to the cost of a Brompton and he’ll have nothing to show for it. Whereas Bromptons may cost a bit to buy but they hold their value extremely well if looked after
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Cycleops
Legendary Member
- Location
- Accra, Ghana
If you're going to use it for delivery work I'd suggest getting a old but good mountain bike with a rigid frame and fork, or come to that any used bike with straight bars and gears. Steel frame preferably as going to come in for a bit of abuse and you need something as un- nickable and unattractive as possible.
Get with Gumtree and eBay and see what you can find.
Get with Gumtree and eBay and see what you can find.
You can still get 5 speed freewheel derailleur setups but not on new bikes. You probably need to use friction shifters. Nothing smaller except for oddball vintage stuff.
I use Shimano 8 speed hub gear with a thumb shifter. My unit is 14 years old with tens of thousands of miles on it.
I use Shimano 8 speed hub gear with a thumb shifter. My unit is 14 years old with tens of thousands of miles on it.
SkipdiverJohn
Deplorable Brexiteer
- Location
- London
Steel frame, 36 spoke wheels, square taper crankset, Schwalbe Marathon tyres. No exotic or expensive parts and accessories. Cheap, basic, and functional.
I think that Shimano 8 speed freehub is probably optimum in terms if reliability and parts availability. Freehub is much better than older screw-on freewheel. If you want a 1x8 setup use a plain chainring with no shifting ramps or pins. You may need a chain guide or old front mech to keep the chain from bouncing off. You can fit one ring on a double chainset.
Square Taper cartridge is also a good choice for reliability and long life in a work bike.
Square Taper cartridge is also a good choice for reliability and long life in a work bike.
bonzobanana
Guru
Simple 1x derailleur systems start at 6 speed nowadays for new and would use a freewheel. A good option for a basic commuting bike that isn't very desirable to thieves.
3 speed hub gears can be really good though. They often have a 1:1 gear for super efficiency, more efficient than a derailleur system and they are super reliable and low maintenance. As for the shifter you can have a twist shifter or thumb shifter. The bikes are far more abuse-able if they get a few knocks in a bike rack. There are no derailleur hangers to bend or external derailleurs to damage. If you are really into low maintenance you can fully enclose the chain so you rarely have to clean it and if you buy a 3 speed hub with a coaster brake you will have a very dependable and low maintenance brake system at the rear. So you end up with only one cable going to the rear for the shifting and one cable to the front for the front brake. Ultra simple low maintenance bicycle. You can have the twist shifter on the right side and the brake lever on the left, great simplicity for urban cycling and not having to think about what you are doing with regards the bike when mixing it with HGVs etc. So a lot of positives with 3 speed hub gears especially as they are incredibly reliable and weather proof.
3 speeds make for good pub and station bikes, ideal as a clean grab and go bike for short, easy journeys. I find that the gear spacing is too much for efficient pedalling over longer distances when I want a gear in the gap.
bkulacs0410
Active Member
I actually found a Boardman Hybrid 8.6 2021 in quite good condition for £250... I am not familiar with those fixed handlebars though. Will, I b able to raise or replace them with others in order to raise it a bit?
Cycleops
Legendary Member
- Location
- Accra, Ghana
You’ll have to buy a stem with the height/extension you need.
SkipdiverJohn
Deplorable Brexiteer
- Location
- London
I've ridden many thousands of miles over decades on bikes equipped with 5 or 6 speed freewheels, and I do not consider them fragile or inferior to freehubs. There is some issue with rear axle loadings when freewheels are used, but in all that time I have never broken an axle, even though I am no lightweight rider.
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