buy or upgrade? newbie has q's?

Roger Zoul wrote:

Q. wrote:
:: "Bernie" wrote in message
:: ...
:::
:::
::: David L. Johnson wrote:
:::
:::: Used hybrids will be scarce, and of uneven quality. New ones,
:::: however, can be had for $400. Personally, I think they fall
:::: between the cracks of usefulness. Too heavy and clunky for road
:::: riding, not well-adapted to off-road. They are best on suburban
:::: bike paths.
::::
::: Your reply strikes me as a roadie opinion. I think a decent rigid
::: frame hybrid equipped with fenders and rack makes a fine commuter.
::: Very well suited to streets and decent footpaths, easy to adjust
::: the fit, middling fast - faster than most mountain bikes - quite
::: comfortable and affordable. In fact hybrids can be quite decent
::: utility bikes, rivaled only by good rigid mountain bikes set up for
::: city life with fenders, racks, slicks.
::: I may get another one yet.
::
:: I have to agree. I have a nice road bike and I love riding it but
:: for all around usefulness I have an old, good rigid mountain bike
:: with a delta rack, semi slick tires and zefal fenders. If I had to
:: choose only one bike for everything it would be that one. It's far
:: from falling between the cracks of usefulness.

Just curious....what do you mean by "all around usefulness?"

Well, the way I see it, a bicycle should be a practical machine, as well
as fun to ride. A decent hybrid rigged as noted above, is both useful
and pleasant to use. It's comfortable enough to ride all day, light
enough to be fast and generally a pleasure to ride. It will come stock
with good vee brakes, tires wide enough to take bumps, rack and fender
mounts, sturdy wheels, a really wide gear range so you can ride up all
the hills...
All around useful? You can load it with groceries, or just go for a
spin. I had a hybrid (rigid frame) for a few years before it got
stolen, and used it daily and year round. They are not dedicated road
bikes, nor are they dedicated mountain bikes. IMO they are more bikes
for "everyman".
So in conclusion, if you are not a purist roadie or mountain trail
rider, the right hybrid could be just the ticket. It's more of an
everyday ride than an extreme machine, and suitable to many urban and
suburban riders.
That's been my experience, and I commuted daily on mine for nearly 3
years. In the balance, there were more pros than cons.
Best regards, Bernie

"Roger Zoul" wrote in message
...
Q. wrote:
:: "Bernie" wrote in message
:: ...
:::
:::
::: David L. Johnson wrote:
:::
:::: Used hybrids will be scarce, and of uneven quality. New ones,
:::: however, can be had for $400. Personally, I think they fall
:::: between the cracks of usefulness. Too heavy and clunky for road
:::: riding, not well-adapted to off-road. They are best on suburban
:::: bike paths.
::::
::: Your reply strikes me as a roadie opinion. I think a decent rigid
::: frame hybrid equipped with fenders and rack makes a fine commuter.
::: Very well suited to streets and decent footpaths, easy to adjust
::: the fit, middling fast - faster than most mountain bikes - quite
::: comfortable and affordable. In fact hybrids can be quite decent
::: utility bikes, rivaled only by good rigid mountain bikes set up for
::: city life with fenders, racks, slicks.
::: I may get another one yet.
::
:: I have to agree. I have a nice road bike and I love riding it but
:: for all around usefulness I have an old, good rigid mountain bike
:: with a delta rack, semi slick tires and zefal fenders. If I had to
:: choose only one bike for everything it would be that one. It's far
:: from falling between the cracks of usefulness.

Just curious....what do you mean by "all around usefulness?"

It's the bike that I take when I'm not sure what I'm going to run into.
When I'm not sure if it's going to rain, or when I'm not sure if the park
we're going to is going to have paved roads or hardpack, or when I'm not
sure if I'll stop at the library and pick up 3 books or not. It's the bike
equivalent of my pickup truck and it's the bike that can get me more places
comfortably than my other ones.

In fact, it's this bike right he

http://tinyurl.com/yt6fw

http://tinyurl.com/3e8h9

It's the bike I take when I want to explore an old WWII Naval munitions
factory (c:

C.Q.C.

Q. wrote:
:: "Roger Zoul" wrote in message
:: ...
::: Q. wrote:
::::: "Bernie" wrote in message
::::: ...
::::::
::::::
:::::: David L. Johnson wrote:
::::::
::::::: Used hybrids will be scarce, and of uneven quality. New ones,
::::::: however, can be had for $400. Personally, I think they fall
::::::: between the cracks of usefulness. Too heavy and clunky for road
::::::: riding, not well-adapted to off-road. They are best on suburban
::::::: bike paths.
:::::::
:::::: Your reply strikes me as a roadie opinion. I think a decent
:::::: rigid frame hybrid equipped with fenders and rack makes a fine
:::::: commuter. Very well suited to streets and decent footpaths, easy
:::::: to adjust
:::::: the fit, middling fast - faster than most mountain bikes - quite
:::::: comfortable and affordable. In fact hybrids can be quite decent
:::::: utility bikes, rivaled only by good rigid mountain bikes set up
:::::: for city life with fenders, racks, slicks.
:::::: I may get another one yet.
:::::
::::: I have to agree. I have a nice road bike and I love riding it but
::::: for all around usefulness I have an old, good rigid mountain bike
::::: with a delta rack, semi slick tires and zefal fenders. If I had
::::: to choose only one bike for everything it would be that one.
::::: It's far from falling between the cracks of usefulness.
:::
::: Just curious....what do you mean by "all around usefulness?"
::
:: It's the bike that I take when I'm not sure what I'm going to run
:: into. When I'm not sure if it's going to rain, or when I'm not sure
:: if the park we're going to is going to have paved roads or hardpack,
:: or when I'm not sure if I'll stop at the library and pick up 3 books
:: or not. It's the bike equivalent of my pickup truck and it's the
:: bike that can get me more places comfortably than my other ones.
::
:: In fact, it's this bike right he
::
:: http://tinyurl.com/yt6fw
::
:: http://tinyurl.com/3e8h9
::
:: It's the bike I take when I want to explore an old WWII Naval
:: munitions factory (c:

Makes good sense....Thanks!

On 26 May 2004 17:21:31 -0700, (Jeff Starr)
wrote:
Hi Rick, yup, you are correct, but a new FD is not the deal breaker.

Agreed. In fact, the FD is generally the cheapest part of the whole
damned drivetrain.

Even at retail, Sora derailleurs are quite reasonable. The Sora STI
levers and labor are where the cost will become questionable.

More importantly, the fact that the STI levers will probably require
replacement of the remaining drivetrain. I forgot what the OP
already has, but I think it will.

My idea of "friction brifters" would be great here. Modolos Morphos
brifters might work for the OP...I forgot that until just now. They
support a million different drivetrains.

Hopefully, one our fellow posters will know of a good shop in Seattle
or be willing to help out Melissa directly. I'm in Wisconsin, or I'd
be willing to locate and install the parts. I think it would be fun,
but that's just me;-)

It is fun. I've been doing it for my own bikes as much as possible.
I know that it'd be a bad idea to do it for somebody else, though.

Did you get your bike's FD to trim in both directions? Since my last
adjustments, mine has been working flawlessly. I'm still a little
amazed, as FDs have always been an aggravation for me.

Thanks for asking! I keep forgetting to post my results. The other
day, in a hurry, I took the whole thing apart and started fresh.
Being in a hurry, I did a terrible job, and came out worse than
before. Gotta study that Barnett's again, and give it the proper
effort. My levers _do_ offer trim as I requested, and like you said,
my tension was too high.
--
Rick Onanian

:: What brand/model shoes, and uncomfortable in what way?
On Wed, 26 May 2004 22:09:06 -0400, "Roger Zoul"
wrote:
http://www.specialized.com/SBCEqProd... aa4yab.j27002

Perhaps using them without cleats makes them more uncomfortable. It's a bit
hard to describe how they feel, but it is bascially some kind of foot
fatique around my toes that shows up after I'm been pedalling for several
hours. Typically, they feel fine. I have no problems walking in them and
they have stiff soles.

Those shoes look reasonable. I suspect the discomfort may relate to
the flat-adapters that are clicked into your pedals right now, or
may be a fit issue or related to your pedalling style. Or, the shoes
may be the wrong size, or you're not lacing them sufficiently tight,
or maybe too tight...eek, a million possibilities.
--
Rick Onanian