Choosing a new bike ...

Ive been out of the biking scene for a lonnnnng time but recently been
thinking about going the cycle route again.

My last encounter was me as a single dude in my late 20's doing down hill
and maxin' it out ;-)

Now about 10 years later, with a wife and 2 year old kid plus and some spare
luggauge around the mid section, I'm looking for something a little less
extreme and more sedate.

Cycling for me now is more about general fitness, fun and taking my daughter
out for a ride along the river etc and not so much about downhill/racing
cars in rush hour.

Ive got about £200-£250MAX to spend ... and have been looking at some
Carreras in Halfords i.e.

http://tinyurl.com/3b94xb

I would preferably like something with disc brakes as I've always hot high
preference for good stopping power.

Can anyone suggest any other bikes or comment on the Carrera one linked
above?

Cheers

iPleb

Can anyone suggest any other bikes or comment on the Carrera one linked
above?

Mechanical[1] disc brakes tend to be a bit of a gimmick if it's not going
to be used in oodles of wet mud. I'd go for something with V-brakes -
they're just as powerful as mechanical disc brakes, and free up budget to
be spent on the rest of the bike (or on beer).

The Specialized Globe Sport range is pretty good - nowt flashy at the entry
level but the budget has gone on the right stuff, and they're quite
versatile bikes.



[1] As opposed to hydraulic disc brakes

--
Mark T

Am Mon, 13 Aug 2007 19:51:45 +0100 schrieb iPleb:


Ive got about £200-£250MAX to spend ... and have been looking at some
Carreras in Halfords i.e.

http://tinyurl.com/3b94xb

I would preferably like something with disc brakes as I've always hot high
preference for good stopping power.

Good disc brakes can have a better grip in wet conditions and are very
useful in muddy off-road conditions. I'm not too sure though about the
cheapy ones on the Carrera, which are not run by hydraulics but by ordinary
bowden cables. In that price range V-Brakes are equally good and maybe the
better value for money. The other thing I don't like about disc brakes is
that as soon as the disc is slightyl bent you have to change the whole
part. This can simply happen by the bike falling onto something or by
someone kicking it intentionally when it's parked somewhere.

Can anyone suggest any other bikes or comment on the Carrera one linked
above?

It's difficult to recommend specific models. It's most important that you
feel comfortable on the bike when cycling. It's a bit like buying shoes -
there's no one-fits-all solution. It can be difficult in some Halfords bike
huts to get a test ride. So I would also consider going into a local bike
shop - even if that would mean to eventually stretch the budget up to £300.

The Carrera 1 might be a good alternative as well - with V instead of
Disc-brakes. You can find similar ones in the Evolution Range of Edinburgh
Bicycle. What I would miss on most of these bikes is a mudguard and a rack
to carry things around. Also a good lighting system is IMHO a must as you
can always end up in the dark. Hub dynamos are great for this and not
anymore that expensive.
There's one bike like that on offer at Wiggle at the moment for 240:
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetai...dID=5360027000
or for 270 with 7 speed hub gears:
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetai...dID=5360027206
Although the big disadvantage of ordering online is that you can't do the
test ride before.

Andreas

On 13 Aug, 19:51, "iPleb" wrote:
Ive been out of the biking scene for a lonnnnng time but recently been
thinking about going the cycle route again.

My last encounter was me as a single dude in my late 20's doing down hill
and maxin' it out ;-)

Now about 10 years later, with a wife and 2 year old kid plus and some spare
luggauge around the mid section, I'm looking for something a little less
extreme and more sedate.

Cycling for me now is more about general fitness, fun and taking my daughter
out for a ride along the river etc and not so much about downhill/racing
cars in rush hour.

Ive got about £200-£250MAX to spend ... and have been looking at some
Carreras in Halfords i.e.

http://tinyurl.com/3b94xb

I would preferably like something with disc brakes as I've always hot high
preference for good stopping power.

Can anyone suggest any other bikes or comment on the Carrera one linked
above?

Cheers

iPleb

I have a Carrera bike as well. It's okay. However the disk brakes are
nothing special and they squeal like banshees when wet. I'll be
changing mine soon for some hydraulic ones. The frames are study
enough and light enough considering what you're paying (okay, its
heavy compared to my Giant OCR) and spare mech hangers can be bought
off ebay if you ever do drop the bike. The standard tyres are usually
completely unsuitable (far too knobbly). Decide what type of cycling
you'll be doing - deep mud, firm tow paths etc, and look to budget for
buying a set of tyres which are more suitable for those conditions.

If you are as unfit as me, and there are hills where you live it may
be worth looking at a bike with a granny ring such as the Carrera
Vulcan.

Steve

iPleb wrote:

[...]

Ive got about £200-£250MAX to spend ... and have been looking at some
Carreras in Halfords i.e.

http://tinyurl.com/3b94xb

I would preferably like something with disc brakes as I've always hot high
preference for good stopping power.

Can anyone suggest any other bikes or comment on the Carrera one linked
above?

I see others have already passed comment on cable disk brakes ...

As an alternative, the own brand bikes that the Edinburgh Bike Shop have
are generally very good value for money

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/ebwP..._SortOrderID=0

or

http://preview.tinyurl.com/yqnthm

They are not just based in Edinburgh.

For your budget the Cuillin Sport, Courier, Pathfinder, Trailfinder,
Streetfinder all fit depending on your preferred style and some even
come with mudguards and racks as standard.

Disclaimer: I have no connection to EBC, other than I spend too much
money there.


--
Don Whybrow

Sequi Bonum Non Time

You guys got something against spam? (Vriess, in _Alien 4_)

Andreas Schulze-Bäing said the following on 13/08/2007 22:31:

The other thing I don't like about disc brakes is
that as soon as the disc is slightyl bent you have to change the whole
part. This can simply happen by the bike falling onto something or by
someone kicking it intentionally when it's parked somewhere.

This seems to be the new urban myth. If a disc rotor bends within reason
(that means not doing a taco impression) then you can bend it back. It
might take a bit of patience, but it does work - I've done it.

If it is doing a taco impression then you can take it off and ride back
to base carefully which you can't do with a taco-shaped wheel. I've
never had to do that yet though (wheel or rotor!)

--
Paul Boyd
http://www.paul-boyd.co.uk/

On 13 Aug 2007 21:02:55 GMT, Mark T wrote:

Can anyone suggest any other bikes or comment on the Carrera one linked
above?

Mechanical[1] disc brakes tend to be a bit of a gimmick if it's not going
to be used in oodles of wet mud. I'd go for something with V-brakes -
they're just as powerful as mechanical disc brakes, and free up budget to
be spent on the rest of the bike (or on beer).

....assuming that all you care about is the 'power' (whatever that
might be) of the brakes. If other things interest you (ease of
maintenance, rim life, performance in shallow water for example) than
cable-operated disks may be an improvement over Vs. In some rare
cases (wheels on cantilevering axles for example) disks are very much
better.

regards, Ian SMith
--
|\ /| no .sig
|o o|
|/ \|

Paul Boyd wrote:

If it is doing a taco impression then you can take it off and ride back
to base carefully which you can't do with a taco-shaped wheel. I've
never had to do that yet though (wheel or rotor!)


I followed (briefly) someone yesterday with the back brakes disconnected
and the back wheel wobbling side to side by about an inch. I got the
impression it was a semi-permanent state of affairs.

Tony

Tony Raven said the following on 14/08/2007 08:03:

I followed (briefly) someone yesterday with the back brakes disconnected
and the back wheel wobbling side to side by about an inch. I got the
impression it was a semi-permanent state of affairs.

An inch of wobble isn't a taco :-)

--
Paul Boyd
http://www.paul-boyd.co.uk/

Paul Boyd wrote:
Tony Raven said the following on 14/08/2007 08:03:

I followed (briefly) someone yesterday with the back brakes
disconnected and the back wheel wobbling side to side by about an
inch. I got the impression it was a semi-permanent state of affairs.

An inch of wobble isn't a taco :-)


Neither can you ride a bike, disc braked or not, if the wheel is really
shaped like a taco ;-)

Tony