Advice for buying a bike needed.

[CND]

I am looking to buy a bike and could use some advice.

Don?t plan on racing or heavy mountain/trail riding. Rather just general cruising for fun and exercise. I live in the city.

What should I look for and what should I stay away from? Also should I go the bike shop route or scout the discount retailers?

Thanks in advance.

[Lrn]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.

get a bmx bike and ride the ymca park in sd

[Troklo]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.

Get A Scott bike there a bit expensive but are worth every single cent!

[Kobe]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.

Bike shop is always better, but since you live in the city, you may not want to spend too much on this as it could get stolen. If it is for tranportation I think anything will do. If you have a fitness goal get something quality from a bike shop that will set it up for you. Most bike shops also offer some type of free adjustment plan, so if you go that route cross shop them and see who gives the best deal.

I mountain bike (XC) and highly reccomend it, great sport. Good luck with you decision.

[geoffgulley]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.

First and foremost an indy bike shop... buying bikes at Dicks or Target is something I don't recommend. Second, ask yourself; are you truly limiting yourself to an urban/street setting or do you have any plans whatsoever of taking this on a trail? And lastly understand the price point for bikes. Your top end XC (cross country) bikes are for serious trail riders who value weight and performance. Your high end "hybrid's" combine some XC attributes such as a suspension fork, but lesser components (your brakes, shifters, rims, cranks etc..) than your "pure" XC bikes while keeping, for the most part, the exact frame. Finally we have your off the shelf "recreational" bikes for people who just want some exercise but may take the bike "off road" on a dirt road or easy trail.... What makes a bike expensive are the components... A super light fork, seatpost, cranks, bottom bracket, rims and hubs etc will drive the price of a bike up significantly. You can take an off the shelf $700 bike that would fit the needs of 90% of people looking for a mtn bike and drive up the price thousands of dollars on components alone. You'll hear names like Shimano, Chris King, Rock Shox, Manitou and then things like LX, XT, XTR that describe levels of Shimano's brakes, cranks, hubs and shifters... You don't need top end components on your bike but rather reliable stuff that will service you well and that you won't have to worry about adjusting all the time or might break down. Hit your local independent shop and tell them exactly what your looking to do and the money you have to spend. Take a few out for a ride to see how they feel but don't feel pressured to buy then and there.... get the details and then post it here with the price. I've been doing this (yeah I know.. something else I do) for a long, long time.You should be able to find a reliable and fun ride for around $500 that you'll be totally happy with and will last you for many years...

[daveman]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.

i've been living downtown and bought a bike a year ago. althought companys like klien make some real nice bikes, for your situation i wouldn't recommend them. you'll never feel comfortable locking it up anywhere. i went with a mountain bike with dual suspension. the suspension weighs more, but makes jumping curbs a lot easier. i would avoid street or racing tires because they get really slick when the roads are wet.

there are a couple of different manufactuers that make decent moderately priced bikes that carry shamino gears. they are one of the better gear makers and they won't break easily. i also don't recommend any bike with the gear shift where your thumb wraps around on the handlebars. as you hit a bump you tend to shift gears and eventually the pins within that part will get outta whack.
oh, and buy a helmet , and look out for people opening car doors.

[Jenks]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.

Cannondale!! but they're not exactly cheap.

[Jibgolly]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.

not sure who makes titanium bikes but those things are sweet. you can pick them up with one finger they're so light. first off, since you live in a city, buy a bike thats not made for the mountains. my sister got me a bike shortly after i moved back to tampa. its nice, but its for dirt not cement. it has all kinds of shock absorbers on it. which is nice, but i dont need that for riding to work. make sure you get something with street tires too.

[geoffgulley]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.

^^^ There are several titanium bike makers.... Moots (the absolute best imo), Lightspeed, Airborne, Titus and Seven off the top of my head.... I've been out of the bike loop for about 3 years now so some of those companies may have closed shop or been bought by much larger brands. CND, you don't need a titanium bike... your frame will either end up being aluminum or steel.... what ever you do don't get a bike with a chromoly frame.... It will be heavy and prone to internal rust issues... If you give me an idea of exactly how much you want to spend I'll put something together for you.... not the actual bike but what to possibly get.

ahhh, me in the olden days:

[JoeY2k]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.



2006 cannondale bad boy lefty (at least for the european market)
around 2000€ here

looks like a hot buy for the town. but i already got 2 bikes and can´t afford another one hehe

[maddlingo]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.

You might want to look into some entry level bikes from specialized or GT. They make some good quality bikes for not so much cash. Also invest in a really good lock so you don't get it stolen.

[Yao]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.

Jeez...come to holland and ask a junkie to steal you one. €15,- tops.

[Kobe]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.

You might want to look into some entry level bikes from specialized or GT. They make some good quality bikes for not so much cash. Also invest in a really good lock so you don't get it stolen.

Specialized

[JoeY2k]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.

Jeez...come to holland and ask a junkie to steal you one. €15,- tops.

haha..but u might ask 3 times a week because they fall apart very quickly and every single repair in this crap is already too much money spend

btw the usa is wicked when i comes to prices for bikes. especially cool frames, forks and stuff. it happens alot that u pay twice as much here.

maybe its the best to build the bike yourself.. u save alot of money in the end and achieve good quality though

[Lrn]

Re: Advice for buying a bike needed.

if your looking for a mountian bike, get a santa cruz (keep it in califorina) there nice and people seem to really like them

but seriously, ditch the gears and get a bmx