First bike..

[JonnyFive]

So, I'm looking to get into abit of cycling.. Love doing it in the gym, and want to get out on the roads.

I've been looking at Hybrids around the £500 area, as a starter. I went into Evans Cycles (Below our gym) and spoke to the chap in there, he showed me a few, 'Pinnacle' is their own brand, around the £400 mark, did look pretty decent though. It had lock out front forks, which he was saying is a good feature to have.. But looking on their website, alot of the hybrids don't have suspension at all. Is front suspension good/worth it? I imagine i'll be mostly doing roads/country lanes/maybe light trails etc..

This is what he was showing me (I assume they get commission on selling their own bikes..)

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/pinnacle/cobal...

I quite like the look of this though..

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/cr...

[Jimbo.]

If you're spending the majority of your time on the road, then front suspension isn't necessary.And even with the occasional foray onto anything vaguely dirty, it's still not a necessity. TBH, most/all of the suspension you find on such "hybrid" bikes is heavy and ineffective.

[McFsC]

Carbon forks can do most offroad so forks aren't required unless you are going to be doing serious trials offroad.

Get a road bike if that's all you will be riding on. Not practical to nip to the shops or whatever but for the commute/fitness reasons they are the way forward.

[JonnyFive]

Thanks guys.. Won't be too bothered about having to get one with them then.

anonymous said:

[redacted]

[CoolC]

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/felt/qx-75-201...

A chap I work with has recently bought (on Ride2work) one of these.

It's a very nice "starter" bike indeed. As already said, don't worry about front suspension forks, you don't need them.

[JonnyFive]

CoolC said:

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/felt/qx-75-201...

A chap I work with has recently bought (on Ride2work) one of these.

It's a very nice "starter" bike indeed. As already said, don't worry about front suspension forks, you don't need them.

Looks pretty good.. I don't know anything about bikes, all the technical talk/brands etc

[anonymous-user]

Mrs Pablo bought a Pinnacle Neon Two recently which is really quite a nice bike for the money. not much in the way of branded drivetrain components that people seem to look for but the frame is really nicely welded and it is quite subtle rather tha nthe usual garish designs and colours . It weighs about 23lbs which is pretty good for a rigid hybrid costing £450 but I'm going to see what can be lost over time, I reckon a better wheelset would sabve at least a pound but MrsP likes the 36 spoke set it currently has.

[JonnyFive]

I quite liked the look of the Pinnacle bikes, bright bright white looks good.

Think it's between this;

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/jamis/allegro-...

And this;

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/cannondale/qui...

Although I'm not a fan of those saddles, they've got some of that style in our gym and they're horrible (Beginner I guess.. When I'm more practiced I'll probably try one) - Are all saddles universal fit?

[Gizmoish]

This looks pretty good. http://www.evanscycles.com/products/kona/dew-plus-...

But anything with 700c wheels, aluminium frame and forks, and in the right size will do you nicely.

Until you need to spend £1k on a road bike.

[Gizmoish]

JonnyFive said:

Are all saddles universal fit?

One size fits no-one.

The key thing on saddles is your "sit bone width" - the gap between your arsebones. It's independent of arse size and will dictate whether you sit "on" or "either side of" the saddle which will mean it pushes up into the soft bits.

[anonymous-user]

Gizmoish said:

JonnyFive said:

Are all saddles universal fit?

One size fits no-one.

The key thing on saddles is your "sit bone width" - the gap between your arsebones. It's independent of arse size and will dictate whether you sit "on" or "either side of" the saddle which will mean it pushes up into the soft bits.

Also saddles vary in length to alieviate pressure on the pubic bone, for a hybrid its probably not an issue based on the more upright riding position but its quite useful for long rides spent on drop bar bikes though.

The Charge spoon saddle is universally loved and £25, its a good starting point if you dont get on with the saddle on the bike but spending time moving any saddle for and aft, up and down a few mm at a time can sort out most problems.

[JonnyFive]

Gizmoish said:

One size fits no-one.

The key thing on saddles is your "sit bone width" - the gap between your arsebones. It's independent of arse size and will dictate whether you sit "on" or "either side of" the saddle which will mean it pushes up into the soft bits.

Ah sorry, I meant the actual fitting onto the bike being universal

But thanks for the advice also, I find the ones at the gym pretty comfortable.. They're the wider style ones, not these thin style. Should I be looking to get on with this thin style, or is using one of the wider ones fine too?

Gizmoish said:

Until you need to spend £1k on a road bike.

I'm hoping to get properly into it, so maybe one day..

[wiggy001]

In a similar position to you, with practically identical requirements. From my own research (on here and elsewhere):

Forget about shocks - they're not necessary
Try all the bikes you are considering - get the one that feels the best
At this price range, there won't be too much between them.

I am currently getting the Specialized Sirrus Elite (£500) through our Bike2Work scheme. Reasons being:

Carbon front forks, as already mentioned, will act as a dampener to some extent
The bike felt right for me (some, such as the Marin Belvedere, have a longer frame meaning your cycling position is less upright, which didn't suit me)
Visually looks good (in my eyes) including better welds than some equivalents.
Not sure if this is the case with all hybrids, but it will take wider knobbly tyres if I required the change at a later date.

I'd say go for what feels right.

In terms of the spec of the components, it's a nightmare for a beginner to know whether Shimano Alivio is better than Acera (especially when they use codes in the specs half the time. Just remember that the components can be changed later, the frame is the expensive bit that needs to feel right.

[JonnyFive]

Thanks for the post Wiggy, much appreciated.

How did you try out each bike you looked at? Just down at a cycle shop?

[ED209]

Evans recently totally cocker up my trek fx7.3 order so i cancellend and went to halfords instead.

After discount and cashback just under £500 will get you a boardman hybrid comp, Only had mine a week but done about 50 miles on it and its great. Also after looking at loads of similar bikes i think its by far the best looking.

The girlfriend was so impressed with it, she went out and bought one too, so we now have his and hers bikes (sad)