Commuting bike advice

[snowandrocks]

A few months back I started a new job which involves a cycle commute of just over 7 miles. About 50% is on road but the rest is a mixture of cobbles, footpath and fairly rough river bank. At the moment I'm doing it on an early 90s Claud Butler drop bar tourer (£40 on gumtree) which is good on the road but needs a lot of care everywhere else.

I think the time has come to buy something decent (up to £1200 tops) but to be honest I'm not really sure what. I've looked at everything from a Dawes Galaxy to a Genesis Croix de Fer to a Fahrrad Manufaktur Tx400.

I like the idea of the the Tx400 as I plan on doing some long distance tours eventually but don't know if if I'll find it too slow/heavy after the skinny tyres and relative lightweight of my current bike? I'm in Northern Scotland so finding bikes to try is a bit tricky!

Any thoughts?

Jamie

[anonymous-user]

That Fahrrad is 15.8kgs..... I have owned cars lighter than that.

CdF all the way personally, well proven to be a solid and reliable tourer.

[BeeGT]

Try a cyclocross bike from Roux, Boardman, Cannondale or Kona, plenty of choice at £800-£1000.

[Jimshorts]

I've got a Croix de Fer which is ace and would do the job and be good for touring duties. Just to confuse Genesis also make a lower spec version called a CDF so have a look at both.

New Cotic drop bar bike looks good and would do what you need. Depending on your riding style, I'd also have a look at a Cotic Roadrat for the commute you describe.

Actually depending on that riverbank I'd also look at a 29er rigid MTB.

[snowandrocks]

Thanks for the other suggestions, I'll have a look through them and see if anything catches my eye.

Pablo, yeah I had noticed that but I suppose the included steel racks, dynamo hub, hydraulic brakes, lighting, mudguards, pump (?!) etc. must make up a fair bit of the difference when compared to the other choices!

I think a rigid MTB is probably a bit overkill, the river bank is manageable on the old skinny tyred tourer so just need something sturdy enough that I can keep up a reasonable speed without wrecking it.

The Croix de Fer certainly seems like the favourite so far, will try and get into Aberdeen to try one shortly.

Cheers

Jamie

[Barchettaman]

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I would ensure you have:

-clearance on the frame for 28mm tyres AND mudguards
-a dynamo front hub with a basic LED lighting set
-a rear rack and panniers rather than a rucksack

Optional, but preferable additions (for me anyway!)

-Brooks B17 saddle
-drop handlebars, or Ergongrips on a flatbar
-fast rolling Continental SportContact tyres with the reflective strip
-sensible gearing, which for me is 50-34 up front and 12-28.

Groupset and weight of bike are irrelevant. Steel is good (although I´m on an alu cyclocross bike at the moment, go figure).

[anonymous-user]

Pashley Roadster sounds ideal . Strong , mudguards, comfortable no funny clothing required to ride it, great for short distances ..

[BGarside]

'Cross bike FTW. Best way to get something reasonably light and responsive with sporty handling and room for mudguards and bigger tyres.

I'd suggest something with room for 700x32 or 35mm tyres, full length 'guards (so check for eyelets) and ideally also disc brakes, as this will stop your rim braking surfaces wearing out quickly when riding in dirty and/or wet conditions. If you want to carry a bag check for rack eyelets also.

Make sure there's no toe overlap with the front wheel when riding as some frames suffer from this and it's a hazard when trying to manoeuvre at low speed while pedalling, e.g: in traffic.

HTH.

[Daveyraveygravey]

Have a look at Kinesis too. Saw a beautiful titanium number at the Bike Show but their ally bikes are good too.

[Rob_T]

Daveyraveygravey said:

Have a look at Kinesis too. Saw a beautiful titanium number at the Bike Show but their ally bikes are good too.

Indeed. I have just bought a kinesis tripster atr ti which I believe is the bike you are referring to. Essentially a cross bike with discs brakes. Clearance for upto 40 mm tyres with mudguards. I will be using mine as my daily commute and it will also take my winter studded tyres for when there is snow. Agree with brooks saddle comment earlier b17 is the way forward.

I would swap out the tyres on the standard build for 32mm schwalbe marathon plus. It will do everything you require for the terrain you are looking at -essentially the same as mine!

Good luck.

[Rolls]

Rob_T said:

Indeed. I have just bought a kinesis tripster atr ti which I believe is the bike you are referring to. Essentially a cross bike with discs brakes.
Good luck.

Sounds ideal! - cross bikes with discs are PERFECT for commuting imo! - wish my cross bike had disc mounts - i'd have upgraded yonks ago!

[lufbramatt]

Rob_T said:

Indeed. I have just bought a kinesis tripster atr ti which I believe is the bike you are referring to. Essentially a cross bike with discs brakes. Clearance for upto 40 mm tyres with mudguards. I will be using mine as my daily commute and it will also take my winter studded tyres for when there is snow. Agree with brooks saddle comment earlier b17 is the way forward.

I would swap out the tyres on the standard build for 32mm schwalbe marathon plus. It will do everything you require for the terrain you are looking at -essentially the same as mine!

Good luck.

That kinesis looks stunning :-)

[bakerstreet]

Kinesis Cross Light CX bike or the Planet X SLX CX bike. Both are around £1000. The Rose is worth a look too. The Planet X has Carbon Fibre frame too. I've had my SLX for just over two months and have done over 800 mile son it now. I swapped the Contintental Cyclocross SpeedKing tyres for 28mm Gatorskins as most of my commute is on the road. Also, the SpeedKings had very soft side walls, which wasn't great for steering feel.

If you have a mix of road/paths, I would look at something like the Schwable Marathon tyres. Heavy, but about as puncture proof as you can get and they have enough tread for paths ect ect.

[petroleum601]

BTWIN Riverside 3 or Riverside 7. They are very sturdy, and the 3 isn't all that heavy.

[Gargamel]

lufbramatt said:

That kinesis looks stunning :-)

It's £2,500 !

Double the OP's already very generous budget.

[snowandrocks]

Thanks for the further suggestions everyone, although as gargamel says, I don't really want to spend any more than about £1200.

As an interesting aside, I had a load of stuff to take into work today and even loaded up, the journey took almost exactly the same time, so it seems bike weight (within reason) is largely irrelevant over my flat (ish) route.

[Jimshorts]

^^^^. Think Newton said the same about his commute ;-). Depending on your touring ambitions, I've just read a great write up on road.cc of a Pinnacle cross bike. Only got a single chainring but comes with TRP hydraulic brakes which get rave reviews. £900.

EFA. Pinnacle Arkose 2

Edited by Jimshorts on Thursday 8th May 19:31

[TheLemming]

Have to echo the comments about a road focussed CX bike being perfect.
It will take everything on your route, mine served as my winter club ride bike too.

Discs make a huge difference - I'd take them over anything else every time.

My choice was a Boardman CX team - well under budget and 20% off rrp minimum with the right offers. The planet x is a few hundred more expensive but comes in lighter with a better spec. The rose looks good on paper, don't know anything about it otherwise though.

[Jimbo.]

A bit late to the party I know, but how about a singlespeed of some description? So much less faff regarding maintenance.