Recommend a hybrid bicycle - £300ish

thescouselander

tbourner wrote: »

Are you saying the 700c are the worse choice? I thought larger wheels are better for road riding ease?


I would have agreed until I saw loads of reviews:
http://www.reviewcentre.com/reviews140731.html
saying the hub gears need adjusting all the time and then break etc. I know nothing about hub gears so would be stuck.

I dont know if they've changed the spec but the latest version comes with Shimano Alfine gears (I think the old spec was Shimano Nexus) - I've heard the Alfine gears are OK and a big improvement over the Nexus model. Personally I'd quite like hub gears as Derailleur gears can get gunged up pretty quickly in the winter which can stop them from working properly.

tbourner

I've now been told by someone on another forum who owns a bike shop not to get hub gears!!! arrggghhhhh!!! I'm leaning towards the Boardman more and more but even with that the mechanical discs that everyone's warning me off are a concern.

TiTheRev

Have you tried BikeRadar?

http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/search.php?mode=results

deaddog_2003

tbourner wrote: »

I'm now thinking £300 bike with 700c wheels, but need to buy mudguards, or £400 with 26" wheel but mudguards included (as well as other better stuff)!

Can someone clear something up for me I understood that 26" and 700c were merely diameters of wheels - not width

Thanks

geri1965_2

When I had my bike stolen, my insurers wanted to use Halfords to replace it but they couldn't source my bike (a Marin).

I use a mountain bike for commuting, Bristol is very hilly and has a lot of broken glass on the roads. I use Schwalbe tyres which are smoother in the middle but knobbly at the sides.

I did recently look at changing over to a Hybrid and I fell in love with this:

http://www.tredz.co.uk/prodimg/34211_1_Zoom.jpg

Trouble is that I have to carry my bike upstairs, so the bigger wheels would make this more difficult.

thescouselander

deaddog_2003 wrote: »

Can someone clear something up for me I understood that 26" and 700c were merely diameters of wheels - not width

Thanks

That's right 700 and 26" refers to the diameter although 700 wheels tend to be smaller in width.

Basically, if your journey is mainly on road then go for the 700 size wheel - if there is off road involved you might want to consider the 26" wheel.

jaffacakegal

oh no, I need a hybrid as cheap as possible, know nothing about bikes, thought reading this would be helpful but it's all getting very technical for me!!! Does anyone know if it's possible to get a half decent hybrid less than £200?!

TiTheRev

This thread may also help!

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3130352

It does depend what the bike will be used for though, miles/terrain etc.

tbourner

I'm getting all confused now as well, I was thinking the Boardman would be the best option if I could justify the cost - but now I've read reviews of the Maxxis Detonator tyres saying they explode randomly!!! If I can afford it I'd love the Boardman as it's under 11kg rather than the 14 odd of the others (and more on the Subway 8), but I don't want to have tyres bursting as I'm screaming down a hill! The VooDoo would probably be the next choice but the wide 45c tyres are putting me off, maybe just get some 28s for it?

TiTheRev

Detonator's explode...surely there's a joke in there somewhere???

If you're that concerned about the tyres, ask for them to be changed as part of the deal. Halfords will be able to sell the detonators and switch for equivelant value off the shelf in theory.