General Bike Thread (Desiderata, Questions, Pics)

[Luddite]

The current stable:

 

[ianGP]

ermahgerd!

dat Fuji track bike is teh secks!

 

[whiteslashasian]

Nice collection. Kind of surprised at the lack of fenders on the Masi daily ride though.

 

[dron]

my current project:

 

[vm1336]

Looks fun. What brand is the frame?

 

[Fang66]



my current project:

Fun directly ahead.

Deets please

 

[otc]



Nice collection. Kind of surprised at the lack of fenders on the Masi daily ride though.

Looks like pretty tight clearance, at least on the front.

 

[dron]

^^ + ^^^
on one pompetamine.
8,602g fixed gear disc cross bike. currently with cobble cross tyres.
aa-and it's done! :

 

[Fang66]



^^ + ^^^
on one pompetamine.
8,602g fixed gear disc cross bike. currently with cobble cross tyres.
aa-and it's done! :

Sweet

 

[mopes]

Picked up my first 'real' bike: a 1990 steel frame Schwinn Prelude.

Could stand some polishing, but it's miles above my last bike, an old (60's/70's?) Columbia Seville.

nice

 

[Cantabrigian]

Looking for recommendations for a urban / commuting / hybrid bike?

I'll mostly take it the 10 miles to / from work with a few 20 - 30mi rides on the weekends.

I think flat handle bars are the way to go (at least at this point) as I'm very afraid of hitting something and riding racing style hurts my neck.

A friend at work almost has me convinced that hydrolic / disc brakes are the way to go in a place where it often rains - but are they worth it?

Budget is around 500 GBP / 750 USD.

Please assume a fairly n00bish level of knowledge...

Thanks.

 

[Cantabrigian]

Should have mentioned - one specific rec I got that looks pretty good is the Whyte Portabello.

If anyone happens to have any thoughts on that one.

 

[otc]



Looking for recommendations for a urban / commuting / hybrid bike?

I'll mostly take it the 10 miles to / from work with a few 20 - 30mi rides on the weekends.

I think flat handle bars are the way to go (at least at this point) as I'm very afraid of hitting something and riding racing style hurts my neck.

A friend at work almost has me convinced that hydrolic / disc brakes are the way to go in a place where it often rains - but are they worth it?

Budget is around 500 GBP / 750 USD.

Please assume a fairly n00bish level of knowledge...

Thanks.

No specific recomendations from me, but I question your insistence on flat bars.

A bike with road bars and a more upright seating position, won't be any less comfortable than flat bars. Most people spend 90% of the time riding on the hoods which is actually much more natural and comfortable than twisting your hands to grab some flat bars. More hand positions are a better option than limiting yourself to just one.

No need for hydraulic/disc brakes, although nothing wrong with disc (hydraulic is bad if you don't want to deal with brake fluid on a bicycle). A decent set of regular cable pull rim-brakes should have more than enough stopping power when set up right. If they are frequently wet, you can get a little more wet-stopping power if you switch to the salmon colored pads (although I hear they have started making the same compound available in black if you are about that sort of thing).

 

[LawrenceMD]



Looking for recommendations for a urban / commuting / hybrid bike?

I'll mostly take it the 10 miles to / from work with a few 20 - 30mi rides on the weekends.

I think flat handle bars are the way to go (at least at this point) as I'm very afraid of hitting something and riding racing style hurts my neck.

A friend at work almost has me convinced that hydrolic / disc brakes are the way to go in a place where it often rains - but are they worth it?

Budget is around 500 GBP / 750 USD.

Please assume a fairly n00bish level of knowledge...

Thanks.

look for the most inexpensive cyclocross bike with disc brakes. the thing with flat bars is that they are often wider compared to road "drops" handlebars. So you'll actually be able to slip in and out of city traffic easier riding with narrower road drops compared to the wider hybrid/MTB flat bars. Riding on the brake hoods and flats is equivalent to riding with flat bars on a hybrid/MTB.

10miles through london actually sounds like a pretty long tough stressful commute. commuting 10miles through NYC (from brooklyn to the upper west side for me takes about 1hr 10min one way). if the commute is flat you might even consider a inexpensive single speed bike to simplify things (less things to break, less chance of it getting stolen) ect. you also have to consider getting a good lock (which can cost over $100 and you still need a accessory cable to lock up the front wheel/seat/ect).

disc brakes are great, but V-brakes can be just as powerful and cheaper/simpler/lighter.

here's my Redline Metro Classic. and in full commuter mode. . It runs about $1000 stock and they have a version called the metro sport that you can find for under $800 (with lesser specs but still the same set up disc braked cyclocrossed commuter).

 

[Cantabrigian]



No specific recomendations from me, but I question your insistence on flat bars.

A bike with road bars and a more upright seating position, won't be any less comfortable than flat bars. Most people spend 90% of the time riding on the hoods which is actually much more natural and comfortable than twisting your hands to grab some flat bars. More hand positions are a better option than limiting yourself to just one.

That's interesting.

My last (very cheap) bike had drop bars and I was either my neck was sore or I was living in fear that without my fingers right by the brakes I wouldn't reach them in time if I ever needed - and people will just dart out into the street...

[n00b]
When you say a more upright seating position - is that something you can change on nearly any bike or would you look specifically for a bike with that sort of position?
[/n00b]

THanks again