Options for a Sub £650 Hybrid Bike

Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.

QUIK

Regular
Hi All,

Newbie here looking at his first Hybrid bike.

With my £650 budget, 80% which will covered by my employer I have shortlisted the following Specialized and Boardman 2021 bikes.

Either the Specialized Sirrus 2.0 or Sirrus X 2.0 (Do really like the look of the X model with fatter 42mm tyres)

Or the Boardman HYB 8.6 and Boardman URB 8.6.

Usage will be mostly weekends or spring/summer evenings with mixture of roads and country lanes.
I'm not sure if I really need all the extra gearing of the Sirrus 2.0 and Boardman HYB and the Boardmans do seem to use better components in the entry level bikes than Specialized.

Could I not get best of both worlds by adding 42mm tyres to the Boardman URB, would they even fit.
 

Cycleops

Legendary Member
Location
Accra, Ghana
Hello and :welcome:to the forum.

I think the URB would be an excellent choice (if you can find one in stock). You’re right you’ll probably get better VfM from Halfords own brand than one of the big names.
42mm tyres will likely fit but won’t give you much of a advantage over the stock. Might be worth doing though as OE tyres have poor puncture resistance at this price point.
 

sleuthey

Legendary Member
80% which will covered by my employer ...... Usage will be mostly weekends or spring/summer evenings
I’m glad I don’t work for the same employer!

In my experience Boardman are good but offer less value than other brands. The Sirrus is available in nice range of colours.
 
OP
OP
Q

QUIK

Regular
So these are two I have shortlisted and their specs:

https://www.boardmanbikes.com/gb_en/products/2345-urb-8.6-2021.html

https://www.specialized.com/gb/en/sirrus-x-2-0/p/171181?color=274044-171181&searchText=92420-8000

Which do you feel is better spec'd for my intended use which will as said a mixture of road and countryside trails.

Also which of the two would also offer the best gearing rations for cycling on both flats and slight decents/uphill.

Will also check with Boardman if I can fit 42mm tyres on the URB 8.6.

Hoping to get order placed next week.
 

vickster

Legendary Member
What else did you consider?
have you looked at Whyte For example?
if the trails are rough, then fatter tyres would be better, but less good for speed on road potentially
The Boardman only has 3 gears...will that suffice for the terrain you’re riding?
 
Last edited:

SkipdiverJohn

Deplorable Brexiteer
Location
London
The Boardman has hub gears, which means minimal maintenance and long chain life. That by itself would swing it for me, before you even consider that it's considerably cheaper and has decent puncture-resistant tyres. Gearing whilst decending is completely irrelevant unless you are riding a fixed gear. a 3 speed will cope with modest gradients if the bike is not heavily loaded. I get a 40 lb 3-speed Raleigh up gradients without any fuss, it just doesn't go up them very fast and requires a bit of leg effort.
My view of Spesh is that they charge a premium for the name then cut corners on things like tyres, hoping the customer will be oblivious.
 
Last edited:

Bonefish Blues

Banging donk
Location
52 Festive Road
Even lower-maintenance would be the Cube Hyde Race, perhaps, with an honourable mention for the Whyte Whitechapel/Carnaby.

Actually, scratch the Cube, it's gone up in price by a goodly chunk for 2021
 
Last edited:
OP
OP
Q

QUIK

Regular
What else did you consider?
have you looked at Whyte For example?
if the trails are rough, then fatter tyres would be better, but less good for speed on road potentially
The Boardman only has 3 gears...will that suffice for the terrain you’re riding?
Always open to other options, I see the Whyte Whitechapel/Carnaby are also sub £650, both are 9 speed so better than Boardman and Sirrus X.

Will check if they have a dealer near to me in Birmingham.

Please do keep coming with suitable alternatives.
 
Top Bottom