New Kid About

[krisgoss]

Hi all, my name is Kris, i'm 21 and I live in South Wales.
I recently (a month ago) bought a back of the shed special off my other halfs' dad to ride to and from work on (3.5 mile each way)

I only got it to see if I would stick with it, see if I enjoyed it and all that. It turns out that it is great!! For the last year I have walked the route, and it saves about an hour a day by having a bike on the go.

So now I am after something a bit better to ride on.
At the minute I have:

Problem= it is a bit heavy and doesn't seem to like going very fast.

The other problem is that I don't have a lot of money to spend on a new one (£150 at a push )

At the moment, I jump between pavement, cycle tracks and road as it seems to be very hard work to go very fast constantly with this, i'm blaming the bike and not my fitness! lol
I'm open to all ideas really, always had suspension bikes when I was a kid too, so no idea what a rigid would be like or anything like that.

Any ideas, suggestions or links would be much appreciated!
Thanks!

 

[rusky]

to the forum

For that sort of money 2nd hand is probably the only way you'll get something that isn't crap.

 

[Sittingduck]

Hi

For an simple and v cheap speed increase - why not fit some slick tyres and pump them up hard. Should make a big difference (on the road anyway). Then start saving for a nice new bike Rigid forks are a better bet and will handle light off roading fine.

 

[krisgoss]

Thanks for the help guys, there doesn't seem to be much going around my area 2nd hand at the minute, but I will keep my eyes peeled for when there is!
And i'm off to look at slick tyres now! Thank you very much!

edit- Just had a quick look, and does it matter about tyre sizes? My wheels are 26" but that's all I know.

 

[Banjo]

Welcome to the forum .Slick tyres will make a huge difference to the rolling resistance of your bike and generally speaking the narrower the tyre the quicker it will be on tarmac but less good on rough surfaces.

This site should tell you what size tyre will go on your rims .

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/tire_sizing.html


Chainreaction are a good internet store for tyres .They are here http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/?PartnerID=3306

As someone else has said for speed you need the tyres at near maximum pressure so you need a decent pump with a pressure gauge as well.

 

[mcshroom]

Hi Kris

The tyres you want are 26" and will probably be between 1.5" and 2.1" wide. If the number says 26 x whatever it's probably going to be fine, if it says 700 x something then it's for a road bike wheel.

Some ideas would be: -
Michelin City - £10 each (I'm running the 700c size ones of these on my hybrid)
Schwalbe City Jets - £12 each which get good reviews on here from lots of people

Whatever tyres you buy, make sure you can pump the tyres right up to their maximum pressure to get the least rolling resistance.

In fact until you decide, try pumping up your current tyres as high as they say they can go and it should help a bit

 

[krisgoss]

Thank you again for speedy, helpful responses!
I found them Michelin City ones whilst waiting for a reply, and they seem pretty sound!
Just been out for a nose now, and the tyres on the bike already have 26x2.00 written on them, the Michelin City only have 26x1.85 and the City Jets have 26x1.95.
Will they both fit anyway?

Sorry Banjo, but that Sheldon Brown link just confused me! The other link was great stuff though! Thanks

Is there any actual markings on the wheel I should be looking for? As I am just going by the tyre.
Do I need inner tubes for these tyres? I have no idea about it at all see, cars are my field, but can't afford one of them either! lol

Cheers for all the help so far!

 

[Sittingduck]

Yup - as long as it's 26xsomething If it's a speed boost you're after probably makes more sense getting the most narrow ones you can. I would suggest something like 26x 1.5 or 26x3/8. The Michelins are probably pretty good value the £

 

[krisgoss]

Thank you very much for that! Great advice all round!
Will be back on and post how much difference it has made for me!
Cheers,
Kris