Is it possible to get an 'ok' bike for about £100?

elverson · 17 July 2017 at 10:14AM

£100 for second hand - yes. For brand new - as above, very likely to put you off riding it. Look at Halfords or Decathlon as a minimum level.

scd3scd4 · 17 July 2017 at 10:41AM

fred246 wrote: »

Some people just carry on riding a bike without adequate maintenance. When the chain is stretched, the cassette worn and the chainrings finished they buy a new bike. The old one is sold as 'used' on ebay. Some people buy a new bike with good intentions of taking up cycling but they never do. They use it two or three times. These are sold as 'used' on ebay. Obviously the canny purchaser will search out the latter.

I agree completely and thats why in my experience and advice you may have to build a little extra in a £100 budget. If you know what you are doing then fine. However it sounds like the OP knows little about bikes and what is the sense in saying you have purchased a £100 bike and then spent £50-£100 on parts and labour a few weeks later............many will need a little care. And decent bike parts and maintenance push a budget up fast when you dont. So read the reviews/information on Ebay well. See a number in a day, weekend or maybe take a friend who knows.

Hence why a £100 budget maybe not a £100 budget. Learn from others bad experience. There is a reason why there are so many bikes for sale. :rotfl: No advice is wasted when from experience believe me. My companies bike shed is a living testament.. :cool:

Good luck and tell us how you got on..

ratechaser · 17 July 2017 at 4:23PM

Ok thanks everyone and sorry it's taken so long to respond. All right, thematically, I got rather what I suspected here. I get that £100ish is really not going to get me anything particularly good, but as I have no intention of riding more than *very* occasionally during the summer months, I'm just struggling to justify the outlay, especially given it would actually be 3 bikes in total needed (across the family). Right now we tend to go for long walks, and the bike idea was really a means to extend our range to a few pubs that were further afield...

Anyway, food for thought. Given that Decathlon was the first place I looked, perhaps I would have got lucky-ish if I'd never even asked this question!

parking_question_chap · 17 July 2017 at 4:31PM

Go for it.

I paid about £100 for a bike this time last year to save wear and tear on my car as work is only 5 miles away.

Its going just fine and I find I use it more than I thought, and even do rides on my own now and again for fun. As it happens I did over 20 miles on it a few weeks ago. Bike is basic but it handled it just fine, it was the riders fitness that dictated the length of the ride. I think the bike would have been comfortable enough for a good 35 miler!

Just make sure you also budget for three good crash helmets.

glasgowdan · 17 July 2017 at 6:54PM

As I said, I'm happy to look at the used pages for something in your area if you like. Got a keen eye for decent bikes.

vikingaero · 19 July 2017 at 5:37PM

I would recommend the Decathlon BTwin Rockrider 340 for £159.99. It's a lot more than your budget but I honestly couldn't recommend any other new bike. Some of the no-name Chinese brands can be had for under £100 but they can be really poor.

Hedgehog99 · 19 July 2017 at 5:48PM

If you can (learn to) do your own maintenance, that'll save you a fortune in the long run and you could spend a bit more in the first place if you know you'd save on upkeep in the long run.

I'm not trying to do good workshops out of business - if there's one near you, treasure it, but so many have closed down and then you're at the mercy of the rest. My bike was left unfit to ride by a supposedly reputable independent repair shop, such that when I took it to another, he thought I'd been trying a clueless amateur DIY job on it.

elverson · 20 July 2017 at 10:37AM

vikingaero wrote: »

I would recommend the Decathlon BTwin Rockrider 340 for £159.99. It's a lot more than your budget but I honestly couldn't recommend any other new bike. Some of the no-name Chinese brands can be had for under £100 but they can be really poor.

That's a mountain bike, a bit overkill for the OP's requirements.

andrewf75 · 20 July 2017 at 11:07AM

macman wrote: »

But the cheapest Boardman hybrid is £400 new! OP's budget is a quarter of that. The cheapest Decathlon B'twin hybrid is £149: and the spec is dreadful. Welded one piece bars and stem, plastic pedals, plastic brake levers, only 8 gears, scaffold pole frame...need I go on?

The Decathlon B’twin hybrids are very highly rated for the price. I have a higher spec one (£240 odd) which I use just to ride to the station on weekdays and its great. Yes the plastic pedals and brake levers feel a bit cheap but they do the job. Only 8 gears is an advantage in many ways and I have been led to believe from keen cyclist friends that this kind of gear set up with just one cog at the front is increasingly popular and seen as more modern.
Given the quality of the higher spec B’twin riverside, I imagine the basic £119 one could well do the job for the OP.

scd3scd4 · 23 July 2017 at 7:59PM

andrewf75 wrote: »

b. Only 8 gears is an advantage in many ways and I have been led to believe from keen cyclist friends that this kind of gear set up with just one cog at the front is increasingly popular and seen as more modern.
Given the quality of the higher spec B’twin riverside, I imagine the basic £119 one could well do the job for the OP.

I use the middle gear ring only. The rest are in mint condition. :beer:

Is it possible to get an 'ok' bike for about £100?

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