£60 for commuter tyres? Yes, hardcase Gatorskins.
Commutes tend to be done in all weathers, unlike fun rides which tend to be warm and sunny, and I like the reliability of them, late for work -3, pissing it down and hissssss... No thanks. Commuter bikes don't have to be rubbish, at least for those of us who can leave them inside the office, especially if it's a long commute.
I'd say the one way to make a mediocre commuter bike better is with decent tyres. I had Specialized Armadillo something or others,sucked the life out of the journey and occasionally scared the shite out of me. A switch to GP 4Seasons had me enjoying myself again.
The depreciation in one year on a new family sized car will keep you in the bike of your choice for years….
Nobody needs a new family sized car for commuting only. A plastic asian supermini can be yours for under £150/month + fuel. My old banger cost me around 1250 a year including tax and maintenance, and drank more in fuel than said supermini would cost me.
I would suggest that the extra over to get yourself a family sized car (which is what? Golf, S-Max, Discovery?) because at the weekends you need to transport half a kids footy team, take your bike to trails and make yourself feel rich needs chalking up onto the child/bike/vanity budget, and not the car budget, to make it comparable to having a bike that is what most of the country calls high end.
If £60 on a set of tyres gives you confidence of not getting a puncture - then good luck with that!
I pretty confident of not puncturing as long as the tyres are quite new, and I avoid riding over glass/gravel.
so cheap tyres are great for a month, as long as you avoid any UK cycle path? Think I'll pass ta.I pretty confident of not puncturing as long as the tyres are quite new, and I avoid riding over glass/gravel.
If you can wear a new tyre out in a month I imagine it would be cheaper to get the train because you must be doing some serious mileage. And if you only riding cycle paths - then I`m wasting my time talking to a know it all Rapha wearing newbie cyclist.
My 2006 Allez cost £275 new, its done 10yrs fair weaher commuting, a few events and winter riding and turbo sessions probably amounting to 2000k per year on average so 24000 kilometres.
Its had few sets of tyres and one set if wheels and a bottom brackets, cassettes etc so say another £400 in bits.
So thats about 3p per kilometre and a hell of a lot utility over 12 yrs.
It is also now as functional if not more so than the latest 1k model.
I doubt you will find any better value item.
This month
Two new tyres £80
Bottle of Stans £10
3 trips to the Lakes £90
Service to Hardtail £13 for bb
Service to full bounce inc forks oil ,reverb bleed ,new bb bearings £60
New boots for riding £130
And to be fair that's all its cost since December and some 900 miles
My commuting bike is a steel 1980's Raleigh Racer which I bought for £70... but then promptly spend about £150 sorting out. Cost me nowt more so far after the 12 months where I actually commuted on it (10k/day round trip).
Mountain biking, for fun - i'm a cheapskate but I once set myself a £50/month budget (with rollover option). Nowhere near enough, and that was just maintenance, not upgrades...
I try not to think about it! For me its either go out and ride and have a blast or stay at home and be bored. Rather spend money on fun things and/or fixing toys than sit at home going mad!
The commuter about £200 a year in tyres chain cassette and pads for 4000km. The play bike I’m not adding up 🙂
