steel_is_real

It's been 9 years since I was last here, but I may be getting back into back into biking again, since my commute will be a short 3.2 mile round trip in a few months when my company moves to a new location.

I am looking to spend as little as possible at this stage, and upgrade later if I want to.

I was wondering what you think about the below Gary Fisher bike that is selling for $60. Apart from the price I like that it already has the fenders, rack, and handlebar extensions. My commute to work is mostly paved sidewalks and a bit of road. It starts with 1/2 mile hill that is about 13 degrees at it's steepest and maybe around 10 degrees for the remainder. After that it is a flat ride. Coming back it is obviously going to be a bit harder with the hill to climb. However I am fit so it should be ok.



Another one I am looking at is a Specialized Hardrock, below. I am interested in this as it is steel, so probably is a good ride. I am wondering whether this can take fenders. Also are those mountain bike tires?



Are these both good options to try? Also are both of these bikes mountain bike frames?

Thanks.

J.C. Koto

Yeah assuming they fit, are in good mechanical condition and you're willing to pay that price. Early-mid '90s mountain bikes are pretty nice for commuting, IMO.

That Specialized probably has 26x1.95 knobbies, might want to switch to something like 26x1.5 slicks or semi-slick, and this goes for either bike if you're not going to be riding in mud. The Specialized will indeed take fenders, I've had two Hard Rock bikes, a '92ish and a '96ish, both had eyelets for fenders and a rear rack.

steel_is_real

Thanks. Are they road tires on the Gary Fisher bike? If so I might keep it as is until they need replacing.

CliffordK

Your tires appear to be smooth enough in the middle, so they should be fine until they wear out.

The old MTBs are a popular choice for short distance commuting.

Are you riding on sidewalks or designated bike paths? There is a lot of discussion about sidewalks which are generally designed for PEDESTRIANS. Be very careful around driveways and street crossings.

markii

The Gary fisher with fenders, rack, and hopefully road ready tires for $60 seems like a good price, assuming nothing wrong mechanically. I've purchased a couple older mountain bikes for pretty cheap - but they did not have fenders or racks - I can never find fenders or racks that easily second hand ( craigslist) - and paying retail would come close to the $60 price of your bike - so getting a bike with everything is very nice. And if it doesn't work out you should be able to sell for the same price pretty easily I would hope.

What's the specialized selling for?

Darth Lefty 

I guess that's a Marlin? DB frame and ok components. It'll do nicely. Absolutely worth $60 to me if it's sound, new you'd probably be looking 10x that money. The Hardrock is a lower spec bike with straight gauge tubes, a bit older too (canti brakes and level top tube)

bikemig 

Agree with the others; this bike will make a fine commuter and the price is certainly right.

steel_is_real

Thanks. I'll be mostly on sidewalks, but it's in an industrial area which I drive past every day, so I am very familiar with the area and there are hardly any people walking there, or vehicles pulling out of the driveways.

The specialized is going for $80.

Great, thanks for the info. You guys know your gear

Darth Lefty 

We cheat.
1998 Gary Fisher Marlin - BikePedia

I have a special interest in Hardrocks, for some reason. I'm not sure the year of your example but it's typical for the 90's. They were pretty good to begin with but a strange thing happened in the 2000's, the frame got better (it had a chromoly triangle and hiten fork, went to hydroformed aluminum and threadless headset to mount suspension fork) but at the same time the components got worse. They had 200 or Altus or Acera components, but later on even though they got an aluminum frame, they also got the no-damping flexy suspension forks and later the Tourney group, yuck.

bmthom.gis

I like the Gary Fisher. Except for parts wearing out, I can't think of a single reason to have to upgrade the bike at all for a <4 mile commute. If it is as clean as it looks, you should be able to get decades out of it. The nice thing about using mtn bikes is their gearing is already suited for hills.

steel_is_real

Thanks, I was just wondering about whether a mtn bike would be ok for going up the .5 mile hill vs a road bike.

bmthom.gis

yup! Chainrings are smaller and cassettes are bigger, generally.

RubeRad

That Gary Fisher is absolutely ideal, and at a great price (IF IT FITS YOU!). Given that it has smooth tires, fenders and rack already on it, I bet the current owner has commuted with it already. Another nice plus is that, even though it's quite an old vintage mtb (rigid fork), it has v-brakes instead of cantilevers, so you should have plenty good stopping power, with very little hassle of fine-tuning brake setup.

Johnny Mullet

Mountain bikes with smooth tires make awesome commuters. Especially non-suspension.

iseemoneey

I love riding old rigid mtbs as commuters. They're what got me into commuting. I used to commute on a 94 khs montana trail with high tensile frame and a Bridgestone mb4 cromo, 18 to 23 miles a day and i can't really tell a big difference with my higher end cromo and tange infinity/prestige frames. Even if you pay double, i think it's still worth it.

shafter

I can vouch for the quality of Gary Fisher bikes of that era. I own a 98 Kaitai and it is amazing. Sturdy, good parts, I dont have to worry about things breaking, just enjoy the ride.

GOv

For $60 i'd chew the hand off if i could find a ready-to-go commuter. The GF will do nicely indeed imo. I have 2 Hardrocks which i find good/reliable for everyday riding.

DiabloScott

I rode this booger to work for about 3 years. Lots of handlebar real estate for lights and bells. Easy fender mounts, nice ride. Sold it because I wanted a fixed gear.

joeyduck

I say yes to them. As long as they in sound physical condition and they fit then get one, hell get BOTH!

As others have said 90's rigid MTBs are great to get commuting. I am returning after an injury and I just bought a 1997 Kona Hahana.

Good luck and post photos of what you get.

By the way where are you to get such cheap options?
Most here are double that price!

tjspiel

The first bike I commuted on regularly was a '96 Specialized RockHopper. It then became my winter bike. I replaced it with a '92 Bianchi Project 3 (sort of an early 29'er). Borrowed that to my son for awhile and then it got stolen. Replaced the Bianchi with a modern equivalent of those 90's rigid framed MTBs, an aluminum monstercross/29'er.

steel_is_real

Well, I went and tried the bike. It's at a used sports goods store. The first thing I noticed was that the chain looked like it hadn't been lubricated for a long time. The attendant said the bike needed a tune-up, so was priced accordingly. Also one of the wire attachments on the front fender was broken off and missing, so I will have to get a new set of fenders. It looks like bike wasn't maintained very well.

I took it for a test ride and noticed the gear levers seemed to be stiff. After a few minutes the gears stopped engaging with the wheel. It turned out to be a problem with the hub on the rear wheel. The shop attendant said he would fix it. So I told him I would think about it. I may go back, or just keep looking.

Darth Lefty 

Well that definitely explains the price!

PaulRivers

Either bike looks fine, biggest question is whether they are the right size for you.
Buying a bike that's the wrong size is a lot like buying pants that are the wrong size. :-)

Also putting slick tires on the bike would make it faster, but you don't have to do it either, for 3 miles it's probably not a huge difference.