Ok,

My OH has got a job in That London, coming back oop North at weekends / me going down.

I’m thinking of getting a bargain basement hack-around for pootling around the city on at weekends. Looking for something cheap and cheerful with road-friendly tyres on it, that’s not going to get nicked but not going to fall apart in five minutes either. Ideally I want something with standard components rather than weird fittings so I can upgrade it when I’ve a bit of spare money. I don’t get on with drop-handlbars so I’m guessing I’m in hybrid territory? Either way, it’s something I know nothing about.

Budget is probably going to be around the £200-£300 mark I guess. Any suggestions?

Cheers.

RIdgeback comet £329.99 or if you can stretch Ridgeback velocity 399.99

they are like the volvo’s of the bike world – boring to look at, but go on forever!

Yeah, that’s the sort of thing, I think. I’m liking the toxic green of the velocity (-:

Hm, maybe used might be the way to go, thinking about it…

I thought you said you didn’t want it to fall apart? 😛

Good point, well made.

TBH, I’m reasonably happy fettling if needs be; I just don’t want to be doing it continually.

You can usually pick something up cheap from Brick Lane on a Sunday morning…

I’d say buy something ancient and uncool… Old rigid mtbs sell for pennies (unless they’ve been declared officially Retro) and work really well as commuters. Also dirt cheap to keep running- cheap chains etc. But I barely need to bother chaining it up. I’ll leave the winter slime on top of its rattlecan paintjob to make it even more invisible.

Decathlon do town bikes that are spot on for not much cash. Come with extras if you want, dynamos, baskets etc.

I’d say the budget for a BSO would be more round the £50 level! With your budget I like the look of the Vitus bikes e.g. this one at £275.

…or there is a 29r version for £300.

If you are really just looking to pottle around the centre of town though there is always the option of using Boris bikes.

Borris bike – why bother buying? Use it then dump it.

2nd Decathlon, then cover in black insulation tape for that tatty look.

I was using the Boris bikes last time I was down. Problem is,

a) they need to be docked every half an hour to avoid running up silly charges and,

b) there’s none nearby where my OH his staying; I want something we can hop on from the doorstep.

Not sure as I’m quite ready for a singlespeed…!

Anything specific I’m looking for at Decathalon?

If your budget can strech to the £399 mark you could look at the Isla Bikes Beinn 29 here. Makes a good commuter but is also suprisingly capable off road with the right tyres.

I’ve been toying with getting one of those vitus bikes for a bit, i really like the look of them. The lack of disk mounts puts me off though.

Brompton/Dahon type thing – easier to store and you coudl take to/from London on the train when the occasion demands?

I suspect that might be out of my price range (not least because if I bought a Brompton, my OH would want one as well).

Carrera Subway for a 26″ or Gryphon for a 700c would be what I would include in my shortlist. Though 2nd hand off a eBay for the Gryphon as they increased the spec/prices(?) of them since last year (or when I last looked).

BSO < £100 IMO.

If they still do them the Carrera Subway from Halfords is a cracking bike for the money.

Carrera Subway surely? Or a Carrera Crossfire. On offer at Halfrauds at the mo here and here

Is there any great advantage / disadvantage to 700c wheels? Wider choice of road-friendly tyres, I suppose?

BSO < £100 IMO.

If I can get something decent for 100 sovs I’d be very happy…!

BSO?

Bike Shaped Object. I think it was Matt Seaton really coined the phrase

how can you not be ready for singlespeed?

its just like a bike, but you dont have gears to crunch, grind and then fix/maintain.

I’d be searching the classifieds for something like this:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Kona-lava-dome-retro-bike-/190655247682?pt=UK_Bikes_GL&hash=item2c63f03542

then buying some slicks and enough black electrical tape to cover it.

edit: or this:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/KONA-CINDER-CONE-RETRO-STEEL-SINGLESPEED-MOUNTAIN-BIKE-/150780169958?pt=UK_Bikes_GL&hash=item231b32cee6

London’s flat, man up!

Or if you’re really quick then this!

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Kona-Humu-Singlespeed-Retro-Vintage-DMR-Ritchey-Cane-Creek-Onza-/220975987070?pt=UK_Bikes_GL&hash=item337331f97e

CHap at wrok picked up a very nice voodoo marasa from halfords last week, down from 449 to 349 – reasonable weight, reasonable dirveitrain, hydraulic brakes, rigid forks, 29er wheels. Looks perfect for his towpath commute and might suit you, albeit slightly over budget

i’ve got a cotic roadrat i was looking to sell for that sort of money. bit of a mish-mash of parts but just taking up space at the moment.

Carrera Subway’s gone downhill a bit lately. Likewise the Revolution Courier.

But neither were as good an option as a 90s Rockhopper from a skip anyway.

SH all the way, no contest.

If it were me prattling around the big smoke at weekends I’d get a second hand on one single speed, rigid forks and a pair of halo twin rails on (poss for around 300 quid) which gives you the best of all worlds and means you can still bunny hop up a kerb or two to avoid lairy traffic situations and the like.

Holy thread resurrection, batman!

Sorry to be an arse but I’ve been thinking about this, and have come to the conclusion that I’ve asked the wrong question. It was nailed here:

BSO < £100 IMO.

If I was budgeting £100, what recommendations would people have? I’ve found the aforementioned Subway in a “Special Edition” (no, me neither) but it’s £200.

you know youre on stw when a bso is a bike around £300 😆

My last commuter lasted ten years and I pulled it out of a skip and shoved parts from my spares bin on, a Carrera Vulcan. I can say it definitely rode a darned sight better than the Carrera Subway which I absolutely don’t get on with. Something about the front end seems very strange to me when riding it.

If I was budgeting £100, what recommendations would people have?

New, they’re all going to be pretty much rubbish all round at that price. I’d be on Gumtree or at car-boot sales looking for something second hand. Decathlon have a MT style B and a 24″ wheel step through weirdie at that price. They at least have no whistles or bells (actually they probably DO come with a bell) to drag the quality down further.

Update.

I think I’ve found something.

Any thoughts on the Rockrider 5.2 before I pull the trigger at the weekend?

I had a play in Decathlon last weekend, and it seemed about the best ‘bang for the buck’ without paying silly money. Anything cheaper had drivetrains made out of cheese, poxy twist-shifts, forks filled with custard and so on. The 5.2 also has mounts for discs if I want to upgrade in the future (unlikely but nice to have the option, maybe fit hand-me-downs if I upgrade my main HT). I’ve a pair of roadish tyres that I can throw on, and that still gives me the option of doing a bit off-roading (which let’s be honest, is more fun) if the opportunity arises.

I’ve looked for reviews online and struggled to find anyone have a bad word to say about it. BikeRadar frothed about how great it was, but that was like 2007 or something so ostensibly a different bike.

There’s a 5.3 with discs but it seemed too much of a price hike, by that price point I’m into the realms of just getting a Hardrock or something.

Head to decathlon in Surrey Quays.

Funnily enough, that’s where I test-rode it. Why there particularly?

If I buy from there, will it be a ‘display’ model or do they have them in stock as well, do you know? I don’t really want something that’s been roughhandled by the great unwashed for six months.

it seems there are bikes in decathlon, that aren’t on the website.

the sheffield decathlon has a load of white hybrid things, for about £200.

they seem thoroughly sensible.

Any of the Revolution Couriers from Edinburgh Bike Coop

Incidentally,

What are Decathlon like for doing deals? Is there any point to me haggling or seeing if they’ll throw in a few accessories?