Buying a ladies bike for commuting

achan891

Hi there,

I'm hoping for some help with choosing a new bike. I've been cycling to work for a couple of years now but my old bike isn't worth fixing (or so I've been told) so I need a new one (or a second-hand one).

I know the best thing to do will be to go into some local bike shops, but I'd like to go armed with a little bit of knowledge!

I'd ideally like something under £200 but not sure if that is unrealistic - would probably manage up to £250-ish if that would make a big difference to what I'd get.

I'll be using it mainly for commuting to/from work, a fairly flat 20-ish mins each way on cycle paths/roads, though sometimes will need to go up a big nasty hill to my other work site.

My key concerns are:

- I think I'll want a hybrid ladies' bike with mudguards/chainguard.

- it needs to be suitable and safe for a baby seat on the back as I'll be taking my baby to/from nursery.

- I don't have a lot of time/skill for maintaining it, and also don't have anywhere to store it out of the weather, so it needs to be low maintenance (though I'll try to get it serviced regularly - how often should this be done?).

- I've read somewhere that hub gears are more reliable/low maintenance than derailleur but I don't really know what that means or whether it is worth the extra expense (also extra expense of getting it serviced!). Also they seem to often be only 3 speeds - is that likely to be OK?

- I'd prefer something light as I'm not terribly strong and with baby on board it's going to get heavy anyway!

After a bit of research, I've found a few online which seem possibly interesting:
http://www.ukbikesdepot.com/products.php?show=11221
http://www.ukbikesdepot.com/products.php?show=8136
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/300930655786

Can anyone give me any advice!? I'd be very grateful.

gardner1

well first off what's wrong with old bike

Avoriaz

achan891 wrote: »

Hi there,

I'm hoping for some help with choosing a new bike. I've been cycling to work for a couple of years now but my old bike isn't worth fixing (or so I've been told) so I need a new one (or a second-hand one).
.

As above, what is wrong with it?

You may be able to get it decently road worthy for a lot less than £200.

Can you post details and pictures of it.

If you do go ahead and get a replacement bike, I would strongly encourage you to buy second hand. There are plenty of decent used bikes on Ebay and Gumtree etc for £200 and less. You will struggle to get a decent new bike for £200.

achan891

The old one cost me ~£120 (new) and - I confess - hasn't been terribly well looked after. My work takes part in a bike service/repair scheme whereby labour is paid for by the employer (so employees only pay for parts) and the folk who run that service told me that it would cost at least £80 to fix it, but I don't think they were very keen to do that. It needs some simple, inexpensive work like new brake cables, but the chain frequently slips off and the gears have never really changed smoothly. Having now done some more research, I think basically I think I bought something that was never going to last very long! I'm also rather more concerned about safety now that I will have a baby on board, so I'm willing to spend a bit more on a replacement that I look after better and keep for longer.

I am very happy to buy something second hand, and I don't doubt that your advice to try that is sound, but my problem is knowing what to go for. If I knew more about what I was doing, I'd be confident of getting a good deal, but getting advice about what is a good bike for my needs and what is a resonable price from ebay/gumtree is tricky! Hence wanting to go for new where at least I can get advice from a shop.

gardner1

just because the bike cost £120 doesn't mean its knackered, brake cables cost a few pounds and the reason the gears and chain slip and don't run smoothly may be solved by minor adjustment/oil
Which would make it just as safe as a new one
what make is the old bike

Avoriaz

achan891 wrote: »

..I am very happy to buy something second hand, and I don't doubt that your advice to try that is sound, but my problem is knowing what to go for. If I knew more about what I was doing, I'd be confident of getting a good deal, but getting advice about what is a good bike for my needs and what is a resonable price from ebay/gumtree is tricky! Hence wanting to go for new where at least I can get advice from a shop.

You are as likely to get bad advice as good from a shop, especially as they will be keen to part you from as much of your money as they can.

You can get good advice on here and on otehr forums.

Maybe consider second hand from a shop if you are nervous of a private sale.

At a quick glance, that first Ridgeback for £209.99 looks a good deal.

Avoriaz

achan891 wrote: »

The old one cost me ~£120 (new) and - I confess - hasn't been terribly well looked after. My work takes part in a bike service/repair scheme whereby labour is paid for by the employer (so employees only pay for parts) and the folk who run that service told me that it would cost at least £80 to fix it, but I don't think they were very keen to do that. It needs some simple, inexpensive work like new brake cables, but the chain frequently slips off and the gears have never really changed smoothly. .

Can you post some pictures.

As above, all that could be sorted out for a tenner or so.

achan891

Yes, I am hoping for some guidance from more knowledgeable people here, that's why I'm posting! :-) Then I hope to go into a shop (a local independent one, rather than a chain - I'm fortunate to be in an area where there are several such shops) with some idea of what I want and, IF I am comfortable with their advice and decide to buy from them, I can then get their help with adjusting everything to suit my body etc.

The old bike is a Hawk and like I say, I was advised by a bike mechanic that it wasn't worth fixing (and he would have had no vested interest in telling me this as he couldn't sell me another bike - only repair this one - so was doing himself out of a job by saying it wasn't worth fixing!).

Johnmcl7

There are different models of hub gears ranging from two or three gears up to 11 for the top end ones, you may be able to squeeze a Shimano Nexus with seven or eight gears into your budget if you're looking second hand.

As with most things in life, there are advantages and disadvantages of hub gears. On the plus side they are generally less maintenance and you don't need to be pedalling when you want to change gear so if you've stopped at traffic lights and you're in top gear you can drop down a few gears ready to move off.

On the downside though while they are lower maintenance, they are more difficult to sort when they go wrong and they make it more difficult to remove the rear wheel which makes changing the rear tyre a lot more awkward. There's not that many standard bikes available with hubs and they add quite a bit of weight to the bike.

I bought a bike with a gear hub (Shimano Nexus 8) as the idea appealed to me for a bike I intended to commute daily on. The gear range is fine as hub gears are further apart so eight gears is more it sounds and after a couple of years cycling it including through the winter it's not needed much maintenance although the first one was replaced under warranty (it had never been right from the start). The gears have always changed well as when you shift it cleanly moves into the next gear.

Thankfully I haven't had any issues with punctures but I'm finding the weight of the hub more of an annoyance as I've been cycling on a road bike a lot of this year - both bikes are aluminium frames and carbon forks but the gear hub on the hybrid adds a noticeable amount of weight.

John

Wi88le

Does your work do the cycle to work scheme?

A commuter bike doesn't need that much maintainance to help it last a long time, regular oiling of the chain in the right places is probably the main thing you need to do and keep an eye on the brakes for them wearing out after a while, initial setup of the bike matters though, as far as braking and gear changes go, (sounds like your current bike may not have been perfectly setup)

achan891

Johnmcl7 - thanks for that advice, I had wondered why hub gears weren't more common, given what I'd read about their advantages. Can you give me some idea of how much extra they might add to the weight? Given that I'll be carting round a ~10kg baby as well as myself, I'm not sure that a few hundred grams would make much difference.

Wi88le - Yes, I think my work does participate in the cycle to work scheme. I always thought it wouldn't be worthwhile for a bike of my budget though...?

Edited to add: Actually, I've just discovered that they only offer "interest free loans", not "salary sacrifice" - which isn't helpful in my case as I have the money available now, so there would be no real benefit.