New bike advice.

I haven't bought a new bike in many years and am looking for one for my
wife. She will be riding it mostly around our neighborhood streets. I want
something light enough and with narrow enough tires that it will be
comfortable for riding longer distances if she wants. I went to a couple
bicycle shops today and was disappointed in what I found. Everything seemed
like it was either a pure touring bike in the $600+ price range or a
so-called hybrid bike that looked more like an off-road bike than a road
bike. All of the hybrids in the $350 price area were really heavy. Can
anyone recommend a road bike with slightly wider than average tires, a
fairly lightweight frame, and a price tag of between $300 and $400?

Thanks!
Joe Meyer

In article . net,
says...
I haven't bought a new bike in many years and am looking for one for my
wife. She will be riding it mostly around our neighborhood streets. I want
something light enough and with narrow enough tires that it will be
comfortable for riding longer distances if she wants. I went to a couple
bicycle shops today and was disappointed in what I found. Everything seemed
like it was either a pure touring bike in the $600+ price range or a
so-called hybrid bike that looked more like an off-road bike than a road
bike. All of the hybrids in the $350 price area were really heavy. Can
anyone recommend a road bike with slightly wider than average tires, a
fairly lightweight frame, and a price tag of between $300 and $400?

There's not much in the way of new road bikes in quite that price range,
though the Fuji Ace is close (about $450), and the Fuji Finest is only a
little more. You would probably get better quality in that price range
by buying used.

--
Dave Kerber
Fight spam: remove the ns_ from the return address before replying!

REAL programmers write self-modifying code.

To find a bike in your price range, you're either going to have to find a
used bike, or buy one online.

http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/mercier/galaxy.htm

http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/...ane/super.html

http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/...ane/mirage.htm

On Sat, 29 May 2004 22:03:22 +0000, Joseph Meyer wrote:

I haven't bought a new bike in many years and am looking for one for my
wife. She will be riding it mostly around our neighborhood streets. I want
something light enough and with narrow enough tires that it will be
comfortable for riding longer distances if she wants. I went to a couple
bicycle shops today and was disappointed in what I found. Everything seemed
like it was either a pure touring bike in the $600+ price range or a
so-called hybrid bike that looked more like an off-road bike than a road
bike. All of the hybrids in the $350 price area were really heavy. Can
anyone recommend a road bike with slightly wider than average tires, a
fairly lightweight frame, and a price tag of between $300 and $400?

Thanks!
Joe Meyer

Try looking for a nice used ride from the eighties when "touring" type
bikes were more popular--if you're fortunate, you might make a $15 dollar
thrift store discovery--add $50 worth of fresh tape and tires, and you've
got a bike for less than a 100 bucks that's closer to what you actually
need/want than the 600 smacker alternative "modern" variant...

Thanks to everyone for the thoughtful advice. I did a little reading on the
Internet and decided that a steel-frame bike is the best thing for my wife.
I want one sturdy enough for her to bang around with bikes she hauls around
in the back of our van for our 4-year old and 6-year old kids. And, it
needs to be sturdy enough to withstand a crash or two since she's a
beginning rider. In other words, I would hate for her to total a $600
aluminum frame . But, I want a bike that is light enough and has thin
enough tires for her to be able to joyfully ride it around for fun when she
needs a break from the kids in the evening when I get home from work.

I looked around a bit more today and found a place that sells the Fuji
Finest, which another poster recommended, for $599. That's a little more
than I wanted to pay, but it's the closest thing to what I've been trying to
find for my wife. In fact, I like it about a billion times more than the
29-pound Giant hybrid bikes that I was looking at a couple of days ago and
think it's the best steel-frame bike for the money that I've seen so far.

I guess nobody makes bikes with lugged frames, like the Peugeot that I
bought for $200 about 30 years ago. But, the components on the Fuji Finest
are actually nicer that was my Peugeot had on it. What is the consensus
today about the strength of the Fuji steel frames without lugs? Are they
just as strong as the old lugged frames, or close at least? They aren't as
pretty, I can tell you that for certain. The only other thing I don't like
about the the Fuji Finest is the goofy looking decal on the rear forks that
says "simply the finest". Maybe I can scrape that off!

I guess the other option is buying a used bike as some have suggested. But,
I'm a little nervous about buying a bike that may have a bent frame or rust
on E-Bay. There's a Bianchi out there for a little over $100, but it's
missing a couple of cable stays and is old enough (15 years+) to be rusty.
If I can't find a used bike in excellent condition in my local area, I will
probably go for the Fuji Finest.

Thanks!
Joe Meyer
Austin, Texas (Kerry Democrat)

p.s. Do they call those hybrid bikes Giant's because they weigh so much?


"David Kerber" wrote in message
...
In article . net,
says...
I haven't bought a new bike in many years and am looking for one for my
wife. She will be riding it mostly around our neighborhood streets. I
want
something light enough and with narrow enough tires that it will be
comfortable for riding longer distances if she wants. I went to a
couple
bicycle shops today and was disappointed in what I found. Everything
seemed
like it was either a pure touring bike in the $600+ price range or a
so-called hybrid bike that looked more like an off-road bike than a road
bike. All of the hybrids in the $350 price area were really heavy. Can
anyone recommend a road bike with slightly wider than average tires, a
fairly lightweight frame, and a price tag of between $300 and $400?

There's not much in the way of new road bikes in quite that price range,
though the Fuji Ace is close (about $450), and the Fuji Finest is only a
little more. You would probably get better quality in that price range
by buying used.

--
Dave Kerber
Fight spam: remove the ns_ from the return address before replying!

REAL programmers write self-modifying code.

Joseph Meyer wrote:

I guess nobody makes bikes with lugged frames, like the Peugeot that I
bought for $200 about 30 years ago.

They do, but they're not so common outside of the custom bike market.

But, the components on the Fuji Finest are actually nicer that was my
Peugeot had on it. What is the consensus today about the strength of the
Fuji steel frames without lugs? Are they just as strong as the old
lugged frames, or close at least? They aren't as pretty, I can tell you
that for certain.

I vastly prefer lugged frames from an aesthetic point of view, but I don't
believe there is any significant strength or functional difference.

--
Benjamin Lewis

Gravity brings me down.

In article .net,
says...

....

I looked around a bit more today and found a place that sells the Fuji
Finest, which another poster recommended, for $599. That's a little more
than I wanted to pay, but it's the closest thing to what I've been trying to
find for my wife. In fact, I like it about a billion times more than the

They didn't have a Fuji Ace on the display floor?


29-pound Giant hybrid bikes that I was looking at a couple of days ago and
think it's the best steel-frame bike for the money that I've seen so far.

I guess nobody makes bikes with lugged frames, like the Peugeot that I
bought for $200 about 30 years ago. But, the components on the Fuji Finest
are actually nicer that was my Peugeot had on it. What is the consensus
today about the strength of the Fuji steel frames without lugs? Are they
just as strong as the old lugged frames, or close at least? They aren't as

Yes, welded steel is just as strong as lugged steel, as long as it's
done properly.

pretty, I can tell you that for certain. The only other thing I don't like
about the the Fuji Finest is the goofy looking decal on the rear forks that
says "simply the finest". Maybe I can scrape that off!

It shouldn't be difficult to remove...


I guess the other option is buying a used bike as some have suggested. But,
I'm a little nervous about buying a bike that may have a bent frame or rust
on E-Bay. There's a Bianchi out there for a little over $100, but it's
missing a couple of cable stays and is old enough (15 years+) to be rusty.
If I can't find a used bike in excellent condition in my local area, I will
probably go for the Fuji Finest.

See if some of your LBS' have used bikes for sale. Many around here do,
though there's not a wide selection.




--
Dave Kerber
Fight spam: remove the ns_ from the return address before replying!

REAL programmers write self-modifying code.

On Mon, 31 May 2004 19:50:29 GMT, "Joseph Meyer"
wrote:
Thanks to everyone for the thoughtful advice. I did a little reading on the
Internet and decided that a steel-frame bike is the best thing for my wife.
I want one sturdy enough for her to bang around with bikes she hauls around
in the back of our van for our 4-year old and 6-year old kids. And, it
needs to be sturdy enough to withstand a crash or two since she's a
beginning rider. In other words, I would hate for her to total a $600
aluminum frame .

Aluminum frames are fine. Some people claim to have experienced more
long-term, high-mileage (tens of thousands) issues with al frames
than with steel; and any idiot with any old welder can fix steel.

I handle my aluminum-framed road bike roughly, it seems to survive.
I've crashed my aluminum-framed mountain bike a million times, it
remains unbroken.

But, I want a bike that is light enough and has thin
enough tires for her to be able to joyfully ride it around for fun when she
needs a break from the kids in the evening when I get home from work.

Similar aluminum and steel frames weigh similarly. Thin tires, while
more aerodynamic, have more rolling resistance than thicker tires at
the same pressure.

Better priorities would be finding a bike shop that will fit her
_properly_, and offer good service.

I guess nobody makes bikes with lugged frames, like the Peugeot that I
bought for $200 about 30 years ago. But, the components on the Fuji Finest

Rivendell does. There are probably others around too.
Inflation-adjusted, that $200 is worth some $850 now; you can
probably find a lugged steel bike for $850 -- although your reduced
variety of choices will mean that you probably won't get as much
bike for the money.

I guess the other option is buying a used bike as some have suggested. But,
I'm a little nervous about buying a bike that may have a bent frame or rust
on E-Bay. There's a Bianchi out there for a little over $100, but it's

I'd probably only buy used bikes locally, preferably from a
knowledgable bike shop.

p.s. Do they call those hybrid bikes Giant's because they weigh so much?

Giant is a huge company that manufactures many other companies'
frames, as well as a hue variety of their own. I suspect their sheer
size is why they call themselves Giant.

I have a Giant TCR2 racing bike that weighed under 20 pounds when I
bought it.

Since they are really into compact frames, they name their sizes
rather than numbering them; so you could have a "small Giant".
--
Rick Onanian

"Rick Onanian" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 31 May 2004 19:50:29 GMT, "Joseph Meyer"
wrote:

I want one sturdy enough for her to bang around with bikes she hauls
around
in the back of our van for our 4-year old and 6-year old kids. And, it
needs to be sturdy enough to withstand a crash or two since she's a
beginning rider. In other words, I would hate for her to total a $600
aluminum frame .

Aluminum frames are fine. Some people claim to have experienced more
long-term, high-mileage (tens of thousands) issues with al frames
than with steel; and any idiot with any old welder can fix steel.

I handle my aluminum-framed road bike roughly, it seems to survive.
I've crashed my aluminum-framed mountain bike a million times, it
remains unbroken.

I've crashed my Al frame road bike, too, a few times in my life. I've also
had it rammed into the garage while on top of the station wagon (= new
carbon fork), had it fall over from being leaned against a tree/curb/sign
etc. about 50,000 times, had it face horrible weather while on the bus bike
rack week after week in the winter, and I hate to think what happens to it
at the community rack at work when other people are fetching/parking their
bikes and I'm not around. The frame has, golly, at least 16K on it, and I
see no signs of any problems.

I tend to be hard on my bikes (and cars, and clothing, and...) in general.
In fact, part of the reason why I went aluminum was because I felt like I
didn't have to sweat the dings in the paint job as much as with a steel
frame -- no rust worries.


--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
Please replace earthlink for mouse-potato and .net for .com
Home of the meditative cyclist:
http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm
See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky

Joseph Meyer wrote:
I haven't bought a new bike in many years and am looking for one for my
wife. She will be riding it mostly around our neighborhood streets. I
want something light enough and with narrow enough tires that it will be
comfortable for riding longer distances if she wants. I went to a couple
bicycle shops today and was disappointed in what I found. Everything
seemed like it was either a pure touring bike in the $600+ price range
or a so-called hybrid bike that looked more like an off-road bike than a
road bike. All of the hybrids in the $350 price area were really heavy.
Can anyone recommend a road bike with slightly wider than average tires,
a fairly lightweight frame, and a price tag of between $300 and $400?
Thanks! Joe Meyer


I really enjoy my Gary Fisher hybrid which is 24#, aluminum, w/ rack
bar ends. It has 35c tires w/ little tread, and I toss it in the va
with my daughter's bike ... it goes pretty well ... the longest I'v
ridden it is about 2 hrs and short of 30 miles. I like being able t
look all around easily when riding with kids. My saddle and handlebar
are at about equal ht. The one overlooked question in this discussio
seems to be what does your wife want and what does she find comfortable
There are alot of "city bikes" around that are road bikes w/ fla
handlebars. Prices seem to range from $300 to $800 on the regula
configurations of these

Good Luck and let us know what you find


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