How often do you change/buy a new bike and why?

My full sue bike is 6 years old, on 26 inch wheels. It works, yes it could be upgraded and a shiny new one with bigger wheels would be nice, but the old one does what I want it to do.

The road bike I bought 4 years ago. Aluminium frame to see if I liked the idea of road cycling. And I do!! So I aim to upgrade it to a carbon model this year, but still keep the old one as a spare! Also I see the carbon upgrade as a long term bike.

Mountain bikes have a hard life, so how often do you buy a new one ?

About every 12 months. My wife just asks “it’s been a while since you last bought a new bike, hasn’t it?” – which I take as a green light.

Normally 12 – 18 months, however I have had 5 in the last year. Need to keep the latest for a while otherwise I run the risk of being homeless.

Not very often, the newest bike I have is my 2008 Santa Cruz Heckler which I’ve had from new. Still going strong and still love it.

Seems to be once a year now, the frequency with which I buy a new bike seems to have been increasing in inverse proportion to how much I actually ride which is depressing, between injuries and just being too busy for the long weekends away I used to enjoy on the road bike I’m rarely getting out.

I think the ideal is a nice wee run-around for commuting and messing about, and a big weekend away bike, that way I could keep the nice bike for several years while updating the run-around on bike-to-work every year.

2010 was my last purchase, my next one will be a self build with as much scavenging from the classifieds as I can 🙂

I’ve had my HT (steel, 26″, 2011 frame bought used) about 2 years, I think. It’s not going anywhere. I’ll change bits as and when they wear out but I’ll be keeping the frame as long as I can. I’ve chopped and changed FS frames over the last year, mainly because I wasn’t convinced I ‘needed’ one (I’m still not convinced!) but as it’s 26″ as well and everything can be swapped over between it and my HT (both 20mm front, 10mm QR rear & same disc sizes) if I need to, it’s going nowhere either.

I tend to buy second hand stuff that I find interesting rather than shiny new stuff. My runaround shopper bike is a £20 Giant hybrid from BITD that I think I paid too much for 😆

Not as often as I’d like.
More often than I can afford.

Whenever I see/try something I really like.

1 in 2012
2 in 2013
4 in 2014
None in 2015
Just ordered the first of 2016

I like to buy a full new bike when technology has moved on enough to make an actual difference. I regressed to a steel hardtail after the last encounter with a bike covered in snake oil.

I am not the main market here I fear. Last MTB bought new – 1998. Last MTB bought s/h – in around 2008 (a 1995 Kona).

Trying to work up to a new bike this year but choices, choices!!

About every 6 months, they keep getting stolen. 👿

Generally only when they wear out or get stolen.

So that’ll be 4 in the last 2 years 2 months then…

One last year (October) and first one in 2016 now on order, mainly because I got a hardtail in 2015 and then discovered bike parks and trails so wanted something better, so gone full sus

I had the last one for two years, current one is three months old, I’m not liking it much so on the lookout again.

Used to be every 2mins. Then I bought a Meta V4. I’ll wait until Commencal release its replacement.

used to be all the time, then i had kids, and i actually started riding the things a lot more than fanny about swapping frames/forks

Cannondale Supersix Hi-Mod – bought 2012 – just about to replace with a Giant Defy
Santa Cruz Tallboy Carbon – bought 2012 – just replaced with an Open O-1.1
Surly Krampus – bought 2013 – sold, didn’t use it enough to justify keeping it

My mountain bike I bought 7 years ago. It doesn’t get a massive amount of use these days though, to be honest. I don’t think so much in terms of wear and tear really. Bikes last a long time if you give them some love. Just need to replace a few bits and pieces now and then.

I buy a bike when I get it into my head that I need something different, better, or better suited to the riding I want to do. Have never replaced a bike because it’s worn out. In the past 3 or 4 years I’ve bought 2 road bikes (summer and winter of course), built a touring bike, a singlespeed commuter, and a CX.

I build all my bikes. Once I’m settled on a bike genre (i.e. sure of wheel size, bike use etc), I usually keep a frame for 2-7 years.

However, when trying out a new genre or wheel size, I’ve swapped a frame as soon as 7 months.

MTB groupsets usually last me 3-4 years, but commuter groupsets last closer to 2 years. Finishing kit and wheels last 5-8 years.

Main bike frame is 3 years old and the components much much older – similar with my DH bike. These are the ones which get ridden the most but that said there’s always an additional project on the go, sometimes older retro stuff and sometimes based around a brand new bike which gets stripped, customised, briefly ridden and then moved on in parts – keeps my ebay account active and everyone loves a fettle, right?

Tend to buy and keep, so N+1 when the mood takes me. CX bike last year and raced this last season. Just bought a fat bike.

Currently n=7, will finally have to sell a bike due to limited room, and I never ride my HT as truth be told it’s too small for me. Main MTB is 4 years old, main road bike 3, both get upgraded/refreshed regularly (new wheels on road bike last summer, going 1x on MTB this spring).

Approx every two years – I find that the 2nd hand value doesn’t depreciate too much at around this rate. Usually I just swap frames though – not the full bike.

How often do you change/buy a new bike and why?

1) When it is worn beyond economical repair.

2) Because it is worn beyond economical repair.

My Specialized FSR XC Pro lasted 10 years before the bearing mounts in the frame wore away.

Too often!

I’ve been trying, and failing, to find what I think are the perfect bikes.
I think I’m there with the road bike, my Pivot is definitely the perfect hardtail for me and so far the Kite seems to be the perfect do-it-all bike for me. I may look for a new FS frame/bike some time in the future but not too sure.

No plans on changing anything in the near future.

Probs every 2 years, plus a shuffle of random bikes here and there. I get bored. No DH or DJ bike any more, just an enduro bouncer and a 29 hardtail, both of which i doubt I’ll still have in 2 years!

A lot less since I realised that the best upgrade would be me being fitter and more skillful..

Rarely, last one was 2010 though I did buy an ex demo last year. I upgrade bits (frame, forks, wheels, etc) when the fancy takes me so I’m not actually riding any of that 2010 bike today.

1 per year 😳 I always say “This is the one” than I see something that makes me feel faint.
I give the old bikes away to try to gain some Karma points ( not working)

Boardman Hardtail bought in 2010 – still got it as my only MTB.
Boardman hybrid bought in 2012 (to see if I liked roadbiking) sold last year.
Giant Defy bought early 2014 – current ‘summer road bike’
Pinnacle Arkose bought Dec last year.

Next move will probably be a new roadbike in 2017 (with hydraulic discs) most likely to be another Giant Defy.
Would love a new MTB but the Boardman did 120 miles last year so can’t justify it.

All the above have been bought on C2W which works well for me for tax reasons.

So I guess I buy a new bike every 18-24 months

Usually I have one bike that’s kind of “under review”, I went through a real phase of replacing hardtails literally every couple of months, because I’d had a Soul that ruined me for anything less. But then that got sorted and I had the same big bike for 5 years so I went downhill bike-rigid XC bike- other dh bike- other rigid xc bike- suspended XC bike- fatbike.

And now that I have a fatbike that I love, and a big full suss which is fab, I’m looking at the hardtail and going “You- watch it”. But I’d still change the full suss for a remedy 29 in a heartbeat, that’s always been the deal there.

All in all, I am a tart.

I’ve had 7 bikes in 25 years, 3 of which I still have.
Saracen Tufftrax.
Alpine Stars Mega (or summink)
Old steel hardtail that I still have.
a Stumpy FSR
Merida TransMission
Orange 5 (still have)
Specialised Allez Road bike (still have)

I am the odd one out or am I easily pleased?

Oh yeah, why? I like buying bikes. It’s just another part of the hobby for me, I like riding them, spannering them, tweaking them and planning new ones or figuring out things about bikes to influence that.

Roughly annually. It’s a pity, there’s never anything much wrong with them. But circumstances or what/how I’m riding changes, and I get the itch when I’m not quite riding enough.

🙂

depends…
My current 2 are doing well and will be with me till I get more cash. On the 26″ bike it’s too long in the tooth to be worth selling and still good at what it does. Though I tried the 2 current versions/replacements and they are very good 🙂
The 29r is just over a year, it will stay until I want a new one, there is a decent market for 29r XC bikes here so should sell when I want to.
Before that rode till the died which took about 2-3 years per bike.

Maybe every 9-12 months, I get the itch, possibly saddle related?

I really wish I was buying bikes as often as some of you guys! i think i’m about one new bike every 3 years at the max. Just sold my full sus and i suspect that will not get replaced until I move back to the UK next year at the earliest. And its going to be fighting with a 29er / 650b steel hardtail for that spot!

Was gonna say y’all have too much money.

Then I realised I’ve had 10 bikes in the last 5 years, 6 new, 4 secondhand.

Got to stop. Don’t even find time to ride them.

Whenever something comes up 2nd in my size (XL) that I really fancy. This way if I don’t like it I can sell it on without huge losses. Sometimes I buy a new frame if the price is discounted. I’ve currently got 4 bikes and I ride them 3 times a week.

Main bikes are 22 and 15 years old. The MTB (15yo) nearly got replaced when the rear triangle cracked a couple of years ago, but I got it fixed ok. Apart from that, they keep on working.

I do have a uni that’s less than 5 years old though.

It’s funny cos we used to turn up to events on this shiny new state of the art machine. Now it’s rare to see anything from the same decade.

The last bike was 3.5 years ago.My fave mtb is 6y/o this year,the other one is 12 y/o and starting to get lippy.
So not very often and only when they need replaced – damn you bicycle standard meddlers – 26″ wheels and 1 1/8 headset..pah.

Next one will probably be another gnarmac type , but the new P7 is soooo tempting.