Commuting - Hybrid with disc breaks

I've found that I want a hybrid that has disc breaks. I go down a lot of hills and live in an area that rains constantly for 8 months. I am trying to find a bike in the price range of somewhere around $600 I'll be using it for commuting to college and will be locking it up for a good ammount of time. I've tried to find a bike in the 500-600 range and have found them but the bike dealers around me don't carry some of the bikes I've been looking at. One of the shops carries the kona dew series bikes which I like the specs but the reviews are not too good on it.

I also looked and found a trek Urban / SU 2.0 at $549. That bike would be perfect but I don't have a dealer that carries it.

I am just stuck and looking for advice, hope someone can help.

One of the shops carries the kona dew series bikes which I like the specs but the reviews are not too good on it.

What reviews where? I just got a Dew Plus and have been very happy with it these past two weeks.

BRAKE= Thing on a bicycle that stops/slows you.

BREAK= I am on a break.

lol as you can tell my grammer is horrible :-). I have heard when you turn on a dew your feet can hit the front tire. What model do you have and do you see any downsides? I was loving the bike and I know my dealer sells it but the reviews discouraged me.

I don't know about the others, but I bought a Giant Sedona with disk brakes from the Cycle Center in Renton. It was in you price range and has been my daily commuter for 2 years. This year I've got about 6K miles on the thing.

lol as you can tell my grammer is horrible :-). I have heard when you turn on a dew your feet can hit the front tire.

That's called toe-overlap. Happens with alot of bikes. With geared bikes you learn to position your cranks. Fixies are another matter.

I don't know about the others, but I bought a Giant Sedona with disk brakes


Had one. Used it as my commuter/bad weather/polo bike for a year and a half. Nice sturdy bike,but too heavy and slow.

I just ordered a Trek Soho 3.0 for winter commuting, partly due to the disk brakes. Should have it just after Christmas, can't wait to try it out! Have you tried the Trek website to locate a dealer? They have a handy search tool that lists them and even shows a map of their locations.

I was asking the same question here this summer, and made a spreadsheet with specs and prices of a few: http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pwDGkNlS5ESXGkSl9re1gRA

I eventually got the Brodie Ocho which is great, but out of your price range. The discs in the rain (more or less the same area as you) work great.

The Novara (REI) Buzz and Big Buzz are hybrids with disc brakes. I know a couple people who have had each of them and been happy.

That's called toe-overlap. Happens with alot of bikes. With geared bikes you learn to position your cranks. Fixies are another matter.

Yup.

kmac27, go ride a Dew. It's a fine bike.

I also looked and found a trek Urban / SU 2.0 at $549. That bike would be perfect but I don't have a dealer that carries it.

I am just stuck and looking for advice, hope someone can help.

You don't have a local Trek dealer? How is that possible?

Or do you mean that you don't have a dealer who stocks it?

I have plenty of local trek dealers, None carry that many hybrids, MTB's are the most common bikes from one shop and roadies are the most commin in the other.

My price range was 400-600 not because money limited me but because I would be locking it up on a college campus. Is it worth it to go for the 800 range bikes? or does it become too much of a target for thieves?

The Novara (REI) Buzz and Big Buzz are hybrids with disc brakes. I know a couple people who have had each of them and been happy.
Haven't ridden my Big Buzz much since I got a 'bent, but rode it a lot for 3 years and love the mechanical disc brakes. Bought replacement pads early, but they are still in the package.

They should be able to order what you need if they don't have it in stock. No one in town had the Soho I was looking for, so my LBS sized me on a similar geometry bike, and then ordered the Soho in the proper size for me.

Sounds like there aren't many models with disc breaks in that price range, so that alone may push you up in price a bit.

I do know that, would you leave a $700-$900 bike locked up on a college campus while you were in several classes?

I work on a college campus, and no, I won't be parking my bike outside. I would guess any bike you get with disc brakes, regardless of cost, is going to stand out in that bike rack, making it a target.

Well if I worked on a college campus too I would not lock it up. Are you saying I might as well ride a beater to college?

I do know that, would you leave a $700-$900 bike locked up on a college campus while you were in several classes?

I could leave it in my office most of the time -- but yes, I actually do/did that and know others who do the same, I would never leave mine for longer than 3 hours in one spot though, some people I know leave theres locked @ the library all day. Only people who end up getting their bikes stolen are the dumb****s with cable locks.

Lol, So a preventative measure would be to move the bike inbetween classes every class.

Woops I forgot I have a cable lock, almost useless and a huge chain lock, nothings getting through that one. When I head off to college on a more expensive bike I'll use a U lock with it.

[QUOTE=jpfieber;5809323]I just ordered a Trek Soho 3.0 for winter commuting, partly due to the disk brakes. Should have it just after Christmas, can't wait to try it out!QUOTE]

We just got these in at my shop. They are fantastic.

The waiting is killing me! I'm dying to take it out, and I'm constantly thinking about what modifications I'll make so it suits my commute perfectly. I'll definitely post some info on it once it arrives.

Check this out.
http://www.bianchiusa.com/07_backstreet.html

Small but minor point ....... it's spelled 'BRAKE' not 'BREAK' . I am hardly the spelling police, but I have seen this a few time here tonight.

I think this will be my final descicion. Its in the range I want and the components I want.

http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/2008/urban/sport_urban/su20/

I work on a college campus, and no, I won't be parking my bike outside. I would guess any bike you get with disc brakes, regardless of cost, is going to stand out in that bike rack, making it a target.

Why do people think disc brakes make bikes targets for thieves? If you use good locks and do it properly,you don't have to worry about ametuers. And pro's know what they can sell. Disc-equipped hybrids are uncommon,and road,touring,and cross bikes with discs are rare. Steal a Coda Elite or Poprad Disc,at they'll stick out like sore thumbs on CL or at a pawn shop. And parting them out will be a pain. How many bikes run 700cc wheels with discs? 26" disc wheel sets are easy to get rid of because most MTB's use them,but not many folks will be interested in the 700's. If anything,I'd think they would be a slight theft deterrent because the bikes/parts are hard to flip.

Get good locks and you won't have to sweat it. Replace QR's with bolt-on's. Put ball bearings in stem and seatpost bolts,or got with locking ones. Make it a little trouble for a thief,and they'll mess with the myriad other bikes that aren't secured properly.

How many bikes run 700cc wheels with discs? 26" disc wheel sets are easy to get rid of because most MTB's use them,but not many folks will be interested in the 700's. If anything,I'd think they would be a slight theft deterrent because the bikes/parts are hard to flip.

Pardon me but I see 700cc tires all the time. I have no idea what that means. Is that width? How many inches are they usually? Pretty new to this stuff.

Check this out.
http://www.bianchiusa.com/07_backstreet.html

Damn that's pretty. Makes me want to go buy one. The echo returned from my wallet when calling out president's names makes me sad.

I called up my lbs and they siad that the bianchi was out of stock and discontinued...

My Giant Cypress SX has disc brakes. I love it, but it's a scoshie bit past the six hundred mark. That Sedona sounds good, too.

Pardon me but I see 700cc tires all the time. I have no idea what that means. Is that width? How many inches are they usually? Pretty new to this stuff.

http://sheldonbrown.com/tire-sizing.html

I called up my lbs and they siad that the bianchi was out of stock and discontinued...

It looks a LOT like my Bad Boy Disc.

I got mine for $600 on the dot, buuuut, it was from the previous year and, basically, the shop had ordered one too many of that bike and was looking to get rid of it. It normally retails for a grand, though.

Oh yeah -- for college? Yeah, get a ratty POS. I'll agree that disc brakes are eye-catching, but maybe if you make the rest of the bike look like it's trashed, it'll get less attention.