dk85

Hi everyone,
I want to start biking to work, both to save some money and to get myself fitter. I have not ridden a bike (for any significant duration) since highschool. Hence I am a complete novice to biking.
I live in Philadelphia and have a ~6mile ride each way. The terrain is fairly flat except for a hill near my home (about 1/2 a mile).

Since I have no idea if I will stick with this in the long run and due to monetary concerns, my budget is just $300-350.
Reading through the forum, it's clear I cannot get anything fancy for this price. So I thought of buying online from amazon/bikesdirect, but most forum members do not recommend it.

So with more time on the internet, I found some bikes at Performace Bikes (there's a store in Philly and I can ship site to store), which fit my budget.
The comparison page is here : Performance Bike - Road Bikes - Product Comparison

What would you guys recommend, considering my budget and requirements? I would appreciate any and all feedback.

Thanks alot!!
Dan

Leisesturm

Confiscated, abadndonced and/or stolen Commuter bikes turn up in Police auctions by the ton (and given what bikes weigh that's a lot of bikes) and bike stores and bike co-ops bid for them and re-sell them to the general public. That's where you should look for a bike. You can get a bike, new, from an LBS for $350, but $500 would be better. You can get a bike for $350 online but since you don't have wrenchin' skillz you will have to pay someone to get it set up for you and you will be near $500 anyway.

Because of its simplicity, people often think they can just buy a bike and head out into traffic. Not advisable. You wouldn't do the same thing with a car. Driving a car is pretty simple as well. The first time I ever sat in a drivers seat and pressed a gas pedal in anger I was about as in control of the beast as 40 years later. You take driving lessons to learn how to conduct yourself and your vehicle on the road and to learn how to play nice with the other road users and pedestrians.

Much of it is common sense and none of it is rocket science, but a mistake, in the early weeks in a car, is not usually fatal. On a bike you have neither an instructor with duplicate control equipment, nor a unit body protective shell. Be careful. Read a motorcycle safety publication, a lot of the advice transfers well to bicycles. There weren't any bike riding manuals that were street oriented when I started out, but there may well be some by now. Find them. Grok them.

fietsbob

Philly likely has Used Bikes passing Through the Bike shops ..

there even an 'As Is' Bike , they can tell You how much more it will cost, to make it road warrior ready...

bikemig 

The u brake on the fuji absolute 2.3 seems an odd choice. The other fuji and the diamond back look fine. Performance will put this together for you so those are good choices. You can save money by buying from craigslist or a police auction but you need to have some basic wrenching skills (or you are willing to learn). You can buy a decent quality commuter used between $100-$200 fairly easily. If you decide to go the used route, you can link the CL ads to the C&V valuation forum to get some feedback on whether the bike is a good choice for you or not. Then you'll have to go over it to work right which will teach you some basic wrenching skills which will come in handy when commuting.

mr geeker

I know I'm going to catch all sorts of crap for this, but, since you're not sure if you'll stick with it why not get a big box store bike? Not only will you get an ok bike, but you'll get it on the cheap. Then take your big box store bike to you local bike shop to iron out the "kinks", that is of course if you don't know how to do such things your self.

old's'cool

If you're willing to take your time getting started and first develop some proficiency at doing your own wrenching, you will save a TON of money vs buying new bikes and/or paying someone to wrench for you. If that sounds like an option for you, come on over to the C&V forum and post a thread, we will guide you on how to select and prepare a suitable, older (or, if necessary, new online) bike well suited to your needs, within your budget.

jfowler85

This is like asking "what car should I buy?" No can answer this question for you, and the only way you can know for sure is to get on some bikes and ride. Are you into going fast? Going comfortably? Going off-road? A combination of all three? Ride some bikes and buy the one you like the best. The cheaper you start, the more you will have later when/if you decide you want to move into another style or level of bike.

I bought my last car because of the cabin space, split folding seats, actual geared transmission (damn CVTs...) and future resale value. I bought my last road bike because I was looking for the brand, components, frame material, geometry, and projected usage. If you basically don't know what you're looking for then you'd do yourself a huge favor by getting off of bf and hitting an lbs to sit on some bikes

dk85

Thanks for all the suggestions guys. So basically, my best option is to go the used route?
I thought about this a lot initially and perused the local craigslist postings, but I simply couldnt figure out what was a good bike and whether the asking price was reasonable.
I didnt want to end up with a 'lemon' bike after all that trouble.

But as bikemig and old's'cool suggested, i will post these craigslist adds in a thread to get some feedback.
In the meantime, I am gonna head over to the performance bike store to check out those bikes in person.

Thanks again for all the input
Dan

mstateglfr 

The diamondback insight you linked will be fine for what you want to do. After a few months, you can then keep going with it, sell it to get something which will better suit your wants/needs, or sell it because you hate cycling.
You could probably sell it for half the purchase price, give or take, so you would be out $150ish which would be the cost of trying something new for an extended period of time. $150 is nothing to cough at, but its also not exactly a huge loss either since you got something for that cost(experience, exercise, etc).


$200 could get you a nicer level bike thats used, but craigslist can be tough to navigate if you dont know what to look for and what to ignore. Find your proper bike size, thats step1 and will eliminate 50% or more of craigslist offerings.

PaulRivers

You can buy a decent straight bar "hybrid" bike for around $400 from a bike shop. That's what I recommend for my friends who want to try bike commuting. You might also spend a little more to have them put higher quality flat resistant tires on it as well. It's not quite as fast as a road bike, but it's a lot cheaper, and it's also more comfortable for a lot of people as well. Be sure the tires you get are smooth - tread is not useful for road riding plus it's a lot slower.

The biggest mistake people do when buying a bike is buying the wrong size bike. It's like buying the wrong size of pants - it doesn't matter what a great deal you got on it, it's not going to fit you. That's why it's difficult to suggest to people to buy something online or on craigslist, if they end up with the wrong size bike it's not going to work for them no matter how good of a deal it is.

rmfnla

And justifiably so.

By the time he buys the POS and finds a shop that will reluctantly try to make it functional he will have spent close to what he would have for a bike from the shop and still have an inferior bike with no warranty or shop support and little re-sale value.

There's an expression that applies: The poor man pays twice...

mr geeker

I felt the need to mention going the the box store bike route. Call it my lack of bias against "low quality" bikes. Is a Huffy going to be of the same quality as something like a Trek or a Giant or any other of a plethora of bike shop brands, no. But it will get the job done, and with a cheap tune up they do tend to be rather reliable bikes.

dk85

I went to the LBS to see if they have any used bikes in my price range.
They had a Raleigh c40 (probably 2004 or 2005) for sale on consignment for $225.

The bike was in good condition and felt good riding around the block.
However, I felt it was a bit expensive.
(Fyi they charge a 35% selling fee from the actual owner. So the actual bike should be around $150).

do you guys think its a good buy?

Bikerdave222

Bicycling Street Smarts - Table of Contents

Bikerdave222

People have mixed feelings about bike blue book but here it is.

2004 Raleigh C 40 - New and Used Bike Value

dk85

Thanks Bikerdave222 for the links. I saw the valuation earlier. So I guess I'll pass on this.
No point paying $225 for a bike that is valued at $60. The valuation cannot be that off.
And thanks a lot for the hand book.

Velocivixen

One thing to consider with a budget is funds for things like a helmet, lock (get a decent U-lock), and a way to carry stuff. Initially a backpack may work, but you could find that your back gets sweaty, etc. The point being that you will perhaps want to think of a way to carry things. Plus front headlight (to help cars see you as well as you see things), and a tail light.

Its understandable to want to buy new, since you will be certain to get something that hasn't been abused, etc. Plus service support from the shop. That's how I started out. Eventually I decided I wanted to know how to do basic maintenance myself, etc.

Are there any bike co-OP's near you? They often have bikes which are either fully overhauled or "as is" for the do-it-yourselfers.

Robert C

Sure, you should look more; but if the shop will give you a discount on the accessories you will need to add (fenders, rack, and potentially a light) than it is probably ok, but not great.

I did look at the Bike Blue Book link; you are not going to get that bike to $50-60. I do feel that, as a new rider, that you limit your search to shops or a co-op. The problem with buying used, from owner, is that to the non-expert, nearly all bikes look the same. As such it is easy to over pay or get one that is just not suitable.

Of the ones from performance look ok, just keep the necessary accessories in mind.

valleyrider

I would go with the Fuji 1.9 or Diamondback, if you decided to go with Performance. For resale value, the Fuji would be nice because somebody new to biking would see disc brakes and be willing to pay a premium on it, whether they are worth it or not (I did... not sure it was worth it yet, but I do like adjusting disc brakes a lot more than linear pull). I think it would be more enjoyable if you ever wanted to go out for pleasure rides as well.

I was in your shoes last year- hadn't ridden much since high school and decided to start biking to save money and weight. I rode a couple practice runs on a friends bike on the weekends just to see if I would be up to it before I decided to purchase a bike. I read a lot of forums about how one should conduct themselves on a bike while sharing the road with cars (and, in my case, a lot of semis since I work in the industrial section of town). I learned that there are a lot of varying opinion on what is the safest way to do it. The best advice is just to do what is most comfortable to you. And buy a mirror. A lot of "roadies" think mirrors are dumb, but I think mine has saved my life (or at least my limbs) a couple times by being able to see the semi swinging wide behind to turn. I also almost always act like a car (i.e. not running red lights, claiming the lane for left turns and when there isn't a bike lane). I never ride on the sidewalks. And after reading a lot and practicing, I am now almost full-time bike commuting (I still have to get groceries with the car one day a week). I have a 7 miles one-way commute, so similar to you. A year later I have a lot more confidence on the road and love my commute. I hope you do as well.

PaulRivers

From a quick search, an adult sized Target bike costs about $190:
Schwinn Mens Ranger 26" Mountain Bike- Red : Target

A tuneup at a local shop costs $70:
Tune-Up Packages - Freewheel Bike Shop - Minneapolis - Twin Cities - St. Paul

$260 total - but that does not include any parts the tuneup might require.

An entry level hybrid bike from a local shop costs $380:
Trek 7.0 FX - Freewheel Bike Shop - Minneapolis - Twin Cities - St. Paul

So for $120 less, plus the time and hassle of taking the bike to a second shop for a tuneup...that's not worth it to me at all. Better to buy an entry level bike from a real bike shop - it comes with far better components, a tuneup after 100 miles to readjust the cables which will need it for shifting, you're more likely to get properly sized, etc.

It doesn't seem worth it to me at all.

rmfnla

Don't forget warranty coverage...

mr geeker

Well, I just did a quick search after reading your post this morning and found this bike at walmart for $100. So add in a cheap ($70) tune up and your at $170 or about HALF the price of that theft magnet trek you showed off. Again, will it be of the same quality as the theft magnet you linked to, no, no it will not. Will it do the job until the op decides if they will stick with bicycle commuting, yes, yes it will.

PaulRivers

Thanks for the link.

I would point out that with 30 reviews, the bike gets a 3/5 review rating. Now a lot of those could be fixed with the tuneup you suggested, other could not - tires failing, parts failing (that wouldn't be fixed with adjustments), very hard seat.

I'd say to have an equivalent you'd also have to at least put flat resistant tires on it, which is probably at least another $40. So $210 vs $380.

It's an interesting argument. Being that the OP lives in Philadelphia that probably bumps up the theft risk.

JeffBrown

I would check out craigslist (as long as they have pictures and good descriptions) or your local bike shops for something used that you can get for quite a bit cheaper since you don't know if you will stick with it or not. You really don't need a fancy bike with mainly flat paths and going only 6 miles each way.

old's'cool

FWIW, I'm a seasoned amateur bike mechanic and I can fully tear down and overhaul any part of a bike besides a derailleur that's riveted together. There were circumstances that lead me to acquire a new GMC Denali from Walmart, with my eyes wide-open to the widely reported quality and durability issues. When I assembled the bike and dialed in all the adjustments, it worked as well as could be expected, i.e., more than adequately, but not by much. However, over time, one issue after another has arisen, fully as I expected and was prepared to deal with. For instance, I decided proactively to service the bottom bracket, very early in its life, and found the notorious paucity of grease, and unwanted metal shavings in the bearings. The headset brinnelled (not sure if false or actual) very early, and I replaced it with a surplus vintage Japanese headset. Recently, I wanted to remove the freewheel for cleaning, but with much less torque than I would consider to be normal for freewheel removal, the splines in the freewheel body "stripped", i.e., not that they sheared off, but they rounded off and expanded diametrally, allowing the freewheel removal tool to spin uselessly inside the freewheel body.
Memory fades, but I do believe I overhauled the wheel bearings as well, pre-emptively, and found on teardown that they had just the bare minimum of grease (if that), which I remedied, of course.
Hence, I have already acquired a high quality vintage wheelset at low cost, to replace the entire, depressingly cheap original wheelset (actually, the low-end Shimano rims are fine, but the pressed steel hubs are nasty). The runout on the freewheel threads is appalling (judging by the freewheel wobble as the wheel rotates), the worst I've seen (it certainly doesn't help with dialling in the RD adjustments). The RD is a monstrosity of plastic and pressed steel; it too will be upgraded with a modest but decently made, used Shimano Alvio, acquired at low cost, of course.
The brakes were awful from the beginning, but I had a nice surplus vintage brakeset that made a nice upgrade.
I'm not writing this to complain about my experience, since I was fully prepared for exactly such issues when I made the purchase, and had a plethora of vintage parts on hand with which to make the upgrades at little or no cost; only to warn that if you intend to put a lot of miles on a low priced, big box store bike, issues will arise, and if you can't deal with them yourself, it will tend to be costly, much more costly than a decent bike, in the long run, is my guess.

IMO the best bang for your buck is a used bike of the right type that is already in good tune. Of course this is hard to establish if you are not experienced in evaluating a bike, but in that case you need a buddy to do this for you, or else purchase a used bike from a reputable business or seller.

I should mention that I enjoy working on bikes, whether maintaining well made components, or replacing lousy ones with better ones, but I detest and try to avoid having to do "roadside" maintenance, as I'm sure anyone does. That is probably the biggest argument for making sure your bike is adequately spec'd and maintained for the use you expect to get out of it.