Should I get a second bike?

[Big John]

I used to have numerous pairs of running shoes too but when I look back they were all for particular terrains - track, cross country, fell running, road running and lightweight ones to race on the roads. They all got used but over the course of the year.

 

[DCLane]

I recently bought a second hand steel tourer which rides like a dream. My old bike is now used as the utility bike for shopping trips etc, in fact I don't mind locking it up at the station at all. When it was my only bike I was much more cautious. There's a lot of positives in having runabout bike that I wasn't really aware of before.

Or make sure they don't grow too big. That's how I'm getting son no.2's Cervelo

 

[BoldonLad]

I noticed this thread in the "new posts" list. I was fascinated that it had over 30 replies, over 30 ways to say YES!

 

[Scotty55]

Still kidding myself that I am undecided, when I’ve seen a bike I really like. LBS getting stock in later in summer so will see it for real then.

 

[Grant Fondo]

Still kidding myself that I am undecided, when I’ve seen a bike I really like. LBS getting stock in later in summer so will see it for real then.

Good stuff, as others have said, the more the better, usually 3 or 4 for me. Gravel gets most use summer and winter

 

[Lovacott]

Sure you might get buyer's remorse but think of this...

Owning two bikes costs the same as owning one bike.

If you ride the same bike all of the time, parts will wear out more quickly. If you own two bikes and ride each for 50% of the time, parts will last twice as long.

Free bike.

 

[Scotty55]

Checking my MoT status today I saw that I covered 4,000 miles in the car from May 2020 to May 2021, and 3,000 by bike. The fuel saving on the miles will pay for the new bike. Man maths.

 

[Mrs M]

Still kidding myself that I am undecided, when I’ve seen a bike I really like. LBS getting stock in later in summer so will see it for real then.

Go for it
I have three very different bikes.
All ridden and appreciated in different ways.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Man maths.

No, it's just maths. Women don't need troubling with all the details. Keep it vague and keep it simple.

 

[Lovacott]

Checking my MoT status today I saw that I covered 4,000 miles in the car from May 2020 to May 2021, and 3,000 by bike. The fuel saving on the miles will pay for the new bike. Man maths.

I had one bike a year ago, now I have three. I too started last spring and I've also commuted just over 4,000 miles.

I bought a CF road bike for weekend use and I've just bought a Voodoo hybrid for fine weather commuting. My normal commuter is an old Apollo Hard tail MTB which is cheap and easy to work on and can take a fair beating. Having three bikes at the same time is no different cost wise to owning one bike until it wears out and replacing it. The three bikes will last three times longer because I will only be riding each of them for a third of the time.

It's not like owning three cars at the same time. There are no holding costs to owning a bike like tax, insurance and MOT.

When you buy a second bike, you are simply buying your next bike a bit early whilst pushing back the date you would need to buy the next bike after that. Your current bike will last longer because you won't be using it all of the time.

 

[Paulus]

Still kidding myself that I am undecided, when I’ve seen a bike I really like. LBS getting stock in later in summer so will see it for real then.

Go on go on go on, you know you want to. N+1

 

[Scotty55]

Go on go on go on, you know you want to. N+1

I do. And I (probably) will.

 

[battered]

I bought a CF road bike for weekend use and I've just bought a Voodoo hybrid for fine weather commuting. My normal commuter is an old Apollo Hard tail MTB which is cheap and easy to work on and can take a fair beating.

That sounds rather masochistic, my experience of Apollo bikes is that they are BSOs and good for 2 weeks or 20 miles, after which they are sources of spares. I did manage to rebuild a free broken one using bits from a truly horrible BSO, a pal now has it in his shed and I think it last saw daylight about 5 years ago. It's, hmm, *all right* as a bike to take to the pub or the shops. Is yours one of the few Apollos that is a reasonably OK bike?

 

[vickster]

Friend of mine has done thousands of miles on an old Apollo MTB, including the London to Brighton in a credible time (given the congestion that happens). With little to no maintenance (a lot in the hilly Chilterns too)

 

[Lovacott]

That sounds rather masochistic, my experience of Apollo bikes is that they are BSOs and good for 2 weeks or 20 miles, after which they are sources of spares.

I've got it running very well now but the original build and drivetrain were pretty crap TBH.

The only original parts are the frame, front end and wheels.

Everything else has been changed out.