Fifty Plus (50+) - What makes for a good beater bike?

Curious what others think constitutes (hey, he used a big word!) the ideal beater bike. My beater is an old steel Peugeot hardtail MTB, and what makes it a good beater is:


I got it for free.
It's pretty reliable.
There's not much on it worth stealing, except my pump and perhaps the bag.
It has a rack on the back.
It's a weird color (orange) that doesn't call attention to itself.
I would be irritated, but not blown out of the water, if someone DID steal it.


What do you like about your beater bike, if you have one? Perhaps we should have a thread for pics of our beater bikes?

I think the definition of a good beater bike is like the definition of pornography- hard to define, but you know it when you see it.

Much like beater cars in the NE., every beater bike was at one time a jewel in the
eyes of its original owner. Now it just serves as basic, reliable transportation.
Go ahead, start the thread. It would be interesting to see the beaters. I'm
willing to bet though that some of the beaters will be very nice mounts where
as others will be butt ugly, rag tag, beat up, rusty hulks.

Mine I bought new in '88 for $400+ and started winter commuting with it,
riding my old '71 Varsity in the warm month(s). The frame's finish is actually
in relatively good condition, though most of the bolt-ons are well weathered
making the bike look really rough. Full very rusty steel fenders, an old rack
buried under a metal crate, lotsa road grime, very weathered wheels
complete with rusty spokes, a torn sadle and a lot of rusty fasteners
round out a very distinct "I wouldn't be caught dead on that thing" look.

The wheels on the beater go round an' round.
Round an' round
Round an' round

I have a bike at the back of the shed that I was given. A 50's Mixte with a Shimano 3 speed internal hub. Think the 3 speed was fitted at a later date. It is not a bad bike- if you want to ride very upright and slow. Only ever ridden it up the road and back to see if everything works and it does.

Only problem is that whenever I ride- I want a decent set of wheels under neath me so the OCR is set up with platforms so I can just jump on it and ride- Except I can't. It is also the loaner bike so the saddle has to be adjusted and no quick release's on any of my bikes. And it is such a long time since it went out- The tyres will need pumping up and the pump will be somewhere in the shed (Wherever the son in law left it). So I always find it easier to take the first bike in line and a good lock and ride that instead. I have even been known to take the Tandem out on my own- just to see if it still works.

This may be too high falutin', but a good beater bike is still a "good" bike underneath its beater-ness.

In other words, double-butted tubing; cotterless cranks; alloy rims. Good enough brand-name components that you can actually ride the bike without having to stop to adjust it every few miles.

I don't mean to be so picky, but there are plenty of "beaters" available on Seattle Craigslist for $50 to $100 that are really very good bikes underneath it all, and more than meet the requirements I've listed...

.I just stopped by a bike shop near the Univ of Washington today and a young woman walked in with her "mom's bike" -- an 80's Univega Specialissima just like the one I used to own. Well worn, definitely a beater to a casual observer, but a true gem of a touring bike under the scratches (Tange tubing, SR crank, Suntour Cyclone derailleurs; Suntour hubs; Araya allow rims; etc. etc.). With a little TLC, you could ride that bike across the US, but it likely wouldn't bring much more than $100 on Craigslist, less than that at a yard sale...

Tough enough to survive the crash that kills its owner,
Ease of maintenance,
Reliable in all climactic conditions,
Sufficiently ugly (to all but its owner) to bubble to the bottom of the "steal me" roster, and
Attains "friendship" status with owner.

Here's one. . .

http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/qq227/PontifexMaximus/TREK930SingleTrack91I.jpg

Curious what others think constitutes (hey, he used a big word!) the ideal beater bike. My beater is an old steel Peugeot hardtail MTB, and what makes it a good beater is:


I got it for free.
It's pretty reliable.
There's not much on it worth stealing, except my pump and perhaps the bag.
It has a rack on the back.
It's a weird color (orange) that doesn't call attention to itself.
I would be irritated, but not blown out of the water, if someone DID steal it.


What do you like about your beater bike, if you have one? Perhaps we should have a thread for pics of our beater bikes?
The definition of a good beater bike is controlled by the job the beater is intended to do. My definition is an older bike I use as a gopher. I think three of your 6 items are good descriptors, and another is in the ball park, I don't think the other two are important. IMHO:
1 "free" it doesn't matter if it was free, cheap or a couple hundred off CL.
2 "Reliable" good one, it must meet this requirement. My current beater has friction shifting just to eliminate the index shifter as a potential problem.
3 "Not much worth stealing" Again, good one, a beater is bike that will be parked while the owner is not watching it. Locks are only a deterent. I bike that most thieves will overlook is a plus.
4 "It has a rack on the back" well of course!
5 "It's a weird color" Maybe yours does, mine is a beautiful burgundy and it's about to be replaced by a silver bike. I've rarely heard of anyone looking for weird color.
6 "irritated if stolen" Well sort of, I'd be more than irritated and I'd report it. My current beater will flip for about $100. It will be replaced by a bike worth over $150. Yeah I'd be upset, but you are right, it should not be a valuable bike.

All my beaters eventually get upgraded to the point they don't look ratty and I would feel a loss if it was stolen. I just can't help it. Any bike I own turns into an improvement project.

My Peugeot UO-8 qualifies, although it was not free.

My beater sounds much like the OP's, it's an old Bianchi Nyala hardtail MTB. Runs like a top, climbs like a goat, has a rack, and sometimes even a basket. I actually put a kickstand on it so I can take it places that don't have a good parking spot.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/susan_cyclist/2915702107/

I would be truly peeved if it were stolen.

Here's my beater, an '84 Trek 500 I picked up at a garage sale for $5.00. I've since added a rack and a grocery bag, hence more investment. Does this qualify?

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c195/texraid/Picture003.jpg

It may be too pretty.

A Trek 500 for $5 is quite the deal!!

I'd definitely have a road bike in my stable if I stumbled on something like that.

I got it for free.
It's pretty reliable.
There's not much on it worth stealing, except my pump and perhaps the bag.
It has a rack on the back.
It's a weird color (orange) that doesn't call attention to itself.
I would be irritated, but not blown out of the water, if someone DID steal it.


Every point listed matches mine, even the color...
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3126/2571690928_e1a79794c3.jpg

I think the definition of a good beater bike is like the definition of pornography- hard to define, but you know it when you see it.

:lol:

my beater in college could have been a very respectable bike to race on. It was very ugly though

Curious what others think constitutes (hey, he used a big word!) the ideal beater bike. My beater is an old steel Peugeot hardtail MTB, and what makes it a good beater is:


I got it for free.
It's pretty reliable.
There's not much on it worth stealing, except my pump and perhaps the bag.
It has a rack on the back.
It's a weird color (orange) that doesn't call attention to itself.
I would be irritated, but not blown out of the water, if someone DID steal it.


What do you like about your beater bike, if you have one? Perhaps we should have a thread for pics of our beater bikes?

Your list is pretty good. In my case the bike is black and the pump goes with me in the backpack.

I'd also add, it's a streetified mountain bike so it can take abuse, and has fenders.

http://www.pointhappy.com/gcf/BikeParked.jpg