Commuting - Help me decide - which bike to sacrifice?

I recently rearranged my bike stable. I used to have one decent bike for recreational riding on weekends and a beater to commute on (usually a road bike or cruiser frame stripped to single speed, or an old english three speed).

I now purchased a few better bikes and ditched the heavy clunkers. I have one nice late model road bike for weekends and two decent older bikes, one of which I want to dedicate to commuting. Need some opinions and advice on which to choose. Keep in mind I am in NYC, so theft and vandalism as well as bad roads and general wear and tear are high. I take good care of my bikes but they look pretty beat up after a year or two of utility riding in these parts.

Bike One is a 1986 Trek 500 road bike : 12 speeds, drop bars, Shimano 600 non-indexed (downtube shifters), Reynolds 531 main tubes and Tange straight gauge fork and stays.

Bike two is a 1993 Marin Pine Mountain, 21 speeds, bar ends, XT and LX with rapid fire shifters, double and triple butted oversized Tange MTB frame and (rigid) fork. I use 1.25 slicks on the bike for street use.

Both bikes are very good used condition. Bling factor is about equal in my eye with slight edge to Marin. Both weigh about 24 lbs (marin slightly heavier). By my estimate either bike is worth about $150ish on ebay or Craig's List. Both are geared low to climb equally well (the Marin has a triple crank but I never use it on street).

The only other variables I would offer are:

1) the Trek is easier to lock up (I have a four inch chain which passes through both wheels and the frame). The Marin requires a second lock or removing the front wheel. I can park inside my building but still need to lock up (we have had thefts and muggings inside).

2) the Marin, being a MTB, is more sturdy feeling on rough surfaces and easier to manuever through tight traffic. The straight bar mounted brakes/shifters are nicer in traffic as well.

3) I have a higher sentimental value placed on the Marin (bought it new) but I feel the Trek will hold its value better (was more or less 99% stock original when I got it)


Any thoughts?

I have a hard time giving up bikes, unless I give one to a friend. I'd get rid of the MTB, but that's just me. Why don't you keep it as a SS?

If storage space is not an issue, I would keep both commuting bikes. If you have a problem on commuting bike you can always use the other bike. From past experience I once had 3 out 4 bike out of commission at the same time. Just my 2 cents.

Sorry, I should have been more clear - I intend to keep all three bikes.

Newer nice road bike for tours & maybe racing.

decent bike (for shorter rides, loaner to friends) in good shape

commuter/lock up on street bike - I'd keep it indoors at night and at work, but I do need to lock up outside a few times per week.

One scenerio I'd envisioned was using the mtb as the commuter and turning the Trek into a fixed gear. All I'd need is a fixed rear wheel and a new chain. I kinda hate stripping a perfectly good, well functioning 99% original road bike though.

Assuming you were keeping both the Trek and the Marin, would you consider one more expendible or better suited for commuting?

If storage space is not an issue, I would keep both commuting bikes. If you have a problem on commuting bike you can always use the other bike. From past experience I once had 3 out 4 bike out of commission at the same time. Just my 2 cents.

You're absolutely right - that's why I want to keep both. I went from a heavy cruiser to a nice beater road bike a few years ago. Then I got a flat one morning - Sept. 11, 2001 to be exact. I went back to the cruiser immediately, feeling more secure on bullet proof kevlar 2.2" wide knobbies. It's always nice to have a spare and I've needed to switch at times due to flats, break-downs, etc.

One reason for dedicating a commuter is the need for fenders, etc. In a crime-ridden city add security chains for the seat, tape for uglification/paint protection and other unpleasantries.

Assuming I wanted to keep one in-between bike (nice enough to ride and enjoy but usable as a commuter in a pinch), I guess I am wondering which of these two most of you would pick for which role.

Unfortunately storage is always an issue in an apartment (when we had a house on Long Island I never had less than 10 bikes in the garage!! :D I had commuters, shopping machines with huge baskets, rain bikes with fenders.......sigh. I miss those days.

Sorry, I should have been more clear - I intend to keep all three bikes.

Newer nice road bike for tours & maybe racing.

decent bike (for shorter rides, loaner to friends) in good shape

commuter/lock up on street bike - I'd keep it indoors at night and at work, but I do need to lock up outside a few times per week.

One scenerio I'd envisioned was using the mtb as the commuter and turning the Trek into a fixed gear. All I'd need is a fixed rear wheel and a new chain. I kinda hate stripping a perfectly good, well functioning 99% original road bike though.

Assuming you were keeping both the Trek and the Marin, would you consider one more expendible or better suited for commuting?


I'm using my roadbike, so far, for commuting. The ride is barely over 6 miles, but I prefer the extra couple mph anyway, plus the wind can be stiff at times & I like riding the drops. However, my commute is 90% bike paths that are pretty well maintained. I do go off a couple curbs, but not enough that I get careless & trash wheels.

Sounds like for you the roads are in worse condition, which to me says "use the mountain bike." Personally, I'll prolly use that if I ride in the rain, as my mtn bike has fenders, while the roadie does not.

On the merits of trek vs marin, seems like there's a bazillion 500s out there, I'm not sure that the "hold its value" argument is very practical. If its only worth $150 now, how long will it take to appreciate to a value that makes it worth having as a collector's bike? A looong time, I'd bet.

I hear you on the value - I certainly don't expect either bike to be major collectors' items anytime soon. But occasionally people ooh and aah over old steel bikes. It seems having a rigid fork butted cro-mo mtb is getting rarer too.

I think on paper the mtb is obviously the more appropriate commuting choice for me. I think my blocks are the slight sentimental value (I'd hate to see my old friend trashed or stolen) and the fact that the Trek is 7 years older than the Marin. In my NY state o' mind, commuter = beater = old bike.

I hear you on the value - I certainly don't expect either bike to be major collectors' items anytime soon. But occasionally people ooh and aah over old steel bikes. It seems having a rigid fork butted cro-mo mtb is getting rarer too.

I can dig that. My mtn bike is an early 90's bianchi osprey. Lugged though, not butted. Same thing on the fuji roadie.

I have to give up one of my project bikes......the wife set a 3 bike/frame rule in the house. And she found the extra frame the other day....BUTSED!!!!!

Good bikes and framesa are so hard to part with. So off to ebay it goes.

Is number of bicycles written in stone? I am just amazed at all the people here that needs to be dictated to in how many bikes one should own. I have already solved that one a long time ago. It is "as many as needed at any given point in time." Only a particular cyclist can determine the needs and the riding style he/she chooses to participate in. I keep 2 bikes now since it is the number that works for me. I do not need to act like a little girl for my husband to give me permission about this personal activity I engage in. If he needs a bike, he can always use mine-the ultimate way I choose to express my love for the man is to let him use my bikes-since we were in high school together using my bikes I had then.

Keep the MTB. Reason? It sounds from your posts that it's the one you really like the best.

Plus--down tube shifters suck, especially in traffic.

MTB vs Road bike? Sounds like personal preference to me. However, your friends might like riding the mountain bike more. However, if you have a lot of pot holes, you might need the MTB.

For city commuting I don't think I would want down tube shifters. So I'd probably commute on the MTB and keep the Trek as a backup/nice ride. I have an '85 Trek 400 in basically original condition, Before it becomes my commuter it will be fixed. And for winter I will replace the drop bars with moustache for a more upright ride and better handling. I hate to strip a bike in original condition but it will work much better as a commuter once I have done so. And my commute in through Cleveland which is nothing like NYC.
Craig

Thanks Craig,

fwiw I did commute with a road bike in NYC before and with some good kevlar 700x25s I was fine (and I weigh over 200 pounds!). I do try and watch out for glass and potholes. Worst part of skinny tires in traffic are those 'slot' sewer grates which eat the tires. However, I use 1" - 1.25" slicks on my mtb anyway so that's not an issue for me.

I do feel the mtb is a better choice for the urban commuter due to a longer wheelbase and better manuverability, as well as a more traffic friendly cockpit. I know what you mean about downtube shifters, and gripping the hoods to brake in traffic is not as secure a feeling to me as a straight bar with mtb brake levers - I should mention my road bike I commuted on was heavily modded with straight bar, mtb brake levers, thumb shifter (no front derailleur) and bar ends.

I guess my main dilema was, is it more prudent to subject the more sturdy hearty bike ('93 Marin MTB) to the abuse it will get and possible theft, or the slightly older road bike ('86 Trek)?

Again, monetary value is about equal on re-sell....more sentmental value to me for the mtb, but I guess seven years isn't that big a deal at this point - after all, they're both more than a decade old.

And again, I wasn't looking to have only two bikes - I am keeping both (all three actually). It's just that before the commuter was an easy choice - it was one of junkers. Now I no longer own a total POS, just decent and nicer bikes. So I was trying to decide which is least 'precious' and hence least worth protecting from the mean streets.

Basically, the way I look at it is, if you commute/lock up on street around here, the bike will likely be stolen or trashed. Period. Just a matter of time. (as in a short time) I don't mind trashing a bike while having fun, going fast etc.....just hate subjecting a nice bike to dirtbags with no ethics :mad:

"Bike two is a 1993 Marin Pine Mountain, 21 speeds, bar ends, XT and LX with rapid fire shifters, double and triple butted oversized Tange MTB frame and (rigid) fork. I use 1.25 slicks on the bike for street use."

This one is history, mate. The Trek is old but is more bike by miles than the Marin will ever be.
;) ;)

TW - do you mean as mtbs go the Marin is more dated, than the Trek is amongst road bikes?

I've always thought road bikes are kinda timeless - not that they are standing still in terms of technological developments. But a decent old road bike is still a sweet ride, well suited to its purpose.

whereas mtbs are kinda like computers - practically obsolete by the time you leave the shop with a new one. Not that they are useless but there are newer bikes that are so much more developed to off road uses.

My bike was pretty cutting edge when I got it. Within a year no shocks = no wins in XC racing. My wife bought a Specialized Stumpjumper 2 years later ('95) and it seems light years away from mine. (front shock, 8 spd, threadless head set, etc. Every year there was something else - V brakes, rear susp, disc brakes 10 spd, etc......

I still kinda prefer my simple rigid mountain bike (especially for street) but I bought it for off-road use originally (no interest in that now). It does seem more dated next to my wife's mtb which is only two years later, than my 12spd 86 Trek does next to my 18 spd 2002 Orbea.


Is that kinda what you meant? Or that the Trek is a better all around bike than the Marin?

TW - do you mean as mtbs go the Marin is more dated, than the Trek is amongst road bikes?

I've always thought road bikes are kinda timeless - not that they are standing still in terms of technological developments. But a decent old road bike is still a sweet ride, well suited to its purpose.

whereas mtbs are kinda like computers - practically obsolete by the time you leave the shop with a new one. Not that they are useless but there are newer bikes that are so much more developed to off road uses.

My bike was pretty cutting edge when I got it. Within a year no shocks = no wins in XC racing. My wife bought a Specialized Stumpjumper 2 years later ('95) and it seems light years away from mine. (front shock, 8 spd, threadless head set, etc. Every year there was something else - V brakes, rear susp, disc brakes 10 spd, etc......

I still kinda prefer my simple rigid mountain bike (especially for street) but I bought it for off-road use originally (no interest in that now). It does seem more dated next to my wife's mtb which is only two years later, than my 12spd 86 Trek does next to my 18 spd 2002 Orbea.


Is that kinda what you meant? Or that the Trek is a better all around bike than the Marin?I know what you mean about MTBs becoming obsolete for off-road cycling. Every year they come up with new features, some useful and some just gee-whiz gizmos.

However, for urban commuting, I think old mountain bikes are fantastic. An old cro-mo rigid frame with slicks is almost as fast as a road bike on city streets, Also nimbler, tougher rims, more heads-up posture, better braking, and less attractive to thieves.

TW - do you mean as mtbs go the Marin is more dated, than the Trek is amongst road bikes?

I've always thought road bikes are kinda timeless - not that they are standing still in terms of technological developments. But a decent old road bike is still a sweet ride, well suited to its purpose.

whereas mtbs are kinda like computers - practically obsolete by the time you leave the shop with a new one. Not that they are useless but there are newer bikes that are so much more developed to off road uses.

My bike was pretty cutting edge when I got it. Within a year no shocks = no wins in XC racing. My wife bought a Specialized Stumpjumper 2 years later ('95) and it seems light years away from mine. (front shock, 8 spd, threadless head set, etc. Every year there was something else - V brakes, rear susp, disc brakes 10 spd, etc......

I still kinda prefer my simple rigid mountain bike (especially for street) but I bought it for off-road use originally (no interest in that now). It does seem more dated next to my wife's mtb which is only two years later, than my 12spd 86 Trek does next to my 18 spd 2002 Orbea.


Is that kinda what you meant? Or that the Trek is a better all around bike than the Marin?


I commute on a Marin Muirwoods. It's a steel, rigid fork hybrid. I really like the way the fatter slicks and the steel fork soak up potholes. I have to say though I am starting to wonder how wierd it would be to put drops on a bike with 26" fat slicks :) I am really getting tired of the default riding position and it's lack of aerodynamic love :)

I agree with both of you guys - Roody, you totally nailed what I meant, for off road they're always raisiing the bar, but older mtbs are still great set up with street tires for zippy commuting. I got my wife to put 1.25" slicks on her stumpjumper and she likes it too, and has done a few half centuries on it. I will say nice as her bike is (and THOSE bikes only fetch $100 on ebay amazingly - that's a LOT of bike for the money!), I don't like the front shock on the road. feels nice on the big bumps but too mushy when you sprint or stand and honk.

Re: drop bars on mtbs, I've seen a few threads here on that, and I do see guys using them in NY, if your bar/stem combo is high now, why not try it? I've thought of trying one with my brake/shifters slid up to the normal straight bar positions (on either side of the stem), no road brake levers. However, my mtb's top tube/stem are pretty long so I am almost as aero as a road bike juts using the bar ends.

I used the Marin on a half century one year, and a road bike on the same course the next year and didn't notice a big difference in aero drag. I did feel I went faster on the road bike, and climbs were easier, despite the road bike being only a few pounds lighter (It was a beat up 1981 Miyata "One-ten" a lowly 'sport' 10-spd bike - I LOVED that bike!!!! :) )

The more I think about it the more sense it makes to commute on the Marin. I'm just so lazy about taking off that front wheel everytime I need to lock up....or carry an extra u-lock for the wheel .....ugh!

a few years ago I commuted on a KHS cro-mo cruiser (my post 9-11 bike) and I used to drag that 30 pounder, a 10 pound mssngr bag (clothes, tools, etc) and TWO kryptonite chains w/locks over the 59th street bridge (I needed to lock up outside the building at that job, near Times Square. When I asked the cops outside the bldng how bad bike theft in that neighborhood was, they just looked at each other and started laughing.....)

TWO 3 foot chains.....sometimes I carried an additional lock for each chain (in case they defeated one, there'd be a backup) That's about 55-60 pounds of crap in addition to my own 220 pounds......how did I not have a CVA???
:eek:

I commute on a Marin Muirwoods. It's a steel, rigid fork hybrid. I really like the way the fatter slicks and the steel fork soak up potholes. I have to say though I am starting to wonder how wierd it would be to put drops on a bike with 26" fat slicks :) I am really getting tired of the default riding position and it's lack of aerodynamic love :)


do you have bar ends? you might want to try a different (lower) stem too. But why not try a drop bar? Whatever works.

btw, supposedly, it's the flat bar that makes mtbs attractive to theives. The stolen bikes are rumored to be sold mostly to restaurants who use them for delivery bikes (the bags of food can be hung on the bar ends)......sounds ludicrous, but there are several places near me in Queens that constantly have minty fresh looking old hybrids and mtbs. I'm talking NOS looking bikes!! Unless they keep hiring and firing different delivery boys who all happen to own and use beautiful old bikes, I'm willing to bet these bikes have been swiped from people's homes or "safe" parking, and resold through some sort of nefarious bike theft ring......then they are prolly stolen from the reastaurants again!! Back to the fences for a 'new' bike. nasty shiite, no? I'd be curious to know what they pay for them.

I basically NEVER see guys delivering food on a drop bar bike. So that mod , in addition to getting you more aero, may help prevent theft!! :)

"Or that the Trek is a better all around bike than the Marin?"

Exactly. For long lived quality the Trek has the edge. No bike is perfect it's
just that the Trek ROAD bike will travel more miles with less effort by design.

If you prefer a mountain bike......ride a mountain bike. Just be aware that
the physics here gives the edge to LESS rolling resistance which the Trek has.

I don't own a MTB but I do like the old cruisers for fun.......I just don't own either.

I think the argument here is that with the short commute that most New Yorkers have combined with the absolutely horrific state of the roads here that an MTB with slicks would probably hold up better and rolling resistance isn't as much of an issue. My commute is only 14mi. round trip.

Of course tons of people ride road bikes for commuting here. Especially with the Fixed Gear as a fashion statement we have in these parts. I want to make a fixie, but I don't think I can afford the haircut ;)

dude - I don't even have the hair!! :o

It is seeming I should stick with common sense - since I own a mtb and it's most likely better suited to the rough and tumble on urban asphalt (and my commute is only 6 miles each way - Jackson Heights to Penn station vicinity via the Queensboro bridge), I guess it makes more sense to use the Marin.

Thanks for all the thoughts; any other opinions, I'm all ears.

It is seeming I should stick with common sense - since I own a mtb and it's most likely better suited to the rough and tumble on urban asphalt (and my commute is only 6 miles each way - Jackson Heights to Penn station vicinity via the Queensboro bridge), I guess it makes more sense to use the Marin.

Thanks for all the thoughts; any other opinions, I'm all ears.


It seems all of us commute to somewhere near Penn Station :)

It seems all of us commute to somewhere near Penn Station :)


I did it for three awful years on the LIRR - it's much more fun on a bike :D

Of course, you can't fall asleep on the bike....well, you COULD but not a good idea!


okay - weird.....I said the heck with it and pulled out the ol mtb and rode to work Friday - BANG! front flat about one mile from home.....so much for staying out of the subways. grabbed a nice AC ride the rest of the way and fixed the flat at lunchtime.

As I rode home I thought about flats - I have probably averaged less than 1 per year - about 12 flats in 20 years of (adult) riding - mostly commuting, some touring and plenty of off-road a decade or so ago.

Rode the Marin HARD yesterday for 30 miles on a paved trail in Westchester; no probs (Had ridden about 20 miles to Central Park & back on it last weekend no probs).

This morning (monday), easing along about 2.5 miles from home - BOOM - rear flat! Is my Marin trying to tell me something about using it as a commuter????? ;)