MattinAZ

Hi,

I have read excellent and very motivating threads here in this forum, since I am a clydesdale too, I wanted introduce myself here. I am about 5ft10 and 51 yrs young.

I started my life style change, 6 months ago, when I was at 325 lbs.
I am now at 265 lbs. I did not exercise much during that time. My final weight goal is about 180 lbs.

As of yesterday I quit smoking too. I was smoking 20 cigarettes a day. I hope I'll never go back to smoking. It is a terrible habit and is very addictive. Cravings really hurt. Exercise is the best cure for cravings.

So here I am looking for a bike for almost a week now. If I can ride it a few hours each day, I am sure it will help me with my weight loss and also will keep me away from smoking.

Initially I started looking and Walmart/Target bikes. Only bike I found interesting is/was Schwinn Avenue at USD 265.- . After reading more on forums and internet, I decided to go with a hybrid from a LBS.

My 3 candidates are

Trek 7.2 fx
Trek 7300
Giant Escape 1

Both Trek's are offered at the same price 499.-
Giant is a little more expensive, @ $ 530.-

I want to go with a Trek as I heard great things about their customer service.

Main difference b/n 7.2 fx and 7300 is, 7300 has suspension, which can be locked. in return it is heavier than 7.2fx and its saddle (although it is larger and softer) did not feel right. I believe firmer seat of 7.2fx felt better.

I will be riding mostly on roads here, I do not plan to go off road anytime soon, dealer wants to sell me the 7300 (its last years model he has in the showroom).

What do you think ?

Which one should I get (keep in mind the weight of the rider too)

Thanks

Matt

youcoming

I would stay with either the 7.2 or the Giant, may want to stay away from the suspension as you will not require it on the road, no suspension truely looks out.

jethro56 

+1
My 7300 doesn't lock out. Ride some road bikes before you decide.

Neil_B

+1.

Yo Spiff

I agree, for the kind of riding you are going to do, suspension is unnecessary complexity and weight. I don't see any need for it unless one is doing some serious off road riding.

rec3036

take them both for a longer test ride before you make your decision... but I would be leaning towards the 7.2... but YOU are the rider and MUST be comfortable on it, you will be spending alot of time with it.

It took me 3 months and multiple test rides before I made my mind up.

Good luck with making your choice and make sure you let us know what you buy!

Welcome to the Forum!

contango 

You say "mostly on roads" and "do not plan to go off road anytime soon". So what will you be doing during the bit that doesn't fit into "mostly on roads"?

If you're talking about roads or gravel paths or hard flat earth then you won't need suspension for that. If you're talking possibly rutted gravel you'll appreciate suspension although you can do without it (you might want to keep your speed down a little).

Don't buy a bike just because you like the saddle, it's easy as anything to swap the saddle over. If you want a different saddle I'd hope the dealer will do that for you as part of the deal.

If the dealer wants to sell you last year's model make sure there's a good discount on it. I'd expect to see last year's model discounted by 15-20% and maybe slightly more.

MattinAZ

Follow Up

Thanks all for suggestions. I believe I dont need suspension so I'll go with FX series.

One good development I was checking C. List. One guy is selling an 7.3 FX for $ 100.

I went there and ride the bicycle. It seemed OK to me, gears shift w/out problem. wheels seemed to be true. There are may be one or two scratches on the body but nothing major.

He put a new front tire and new front brake pads. He looked like an honest person in a good/highend neighborhood. He seemed to be firm on the price. I do not think he can sell it for 100 bucks but you never know.

Is there anything I should pay particular attention? Are there big NO NO's in the used bike world ?

Other than that I do not feel I am risking much at $ 100 for this bike. As long as I stay quit, I am saving 3 times as much per month..

jethro56 

Is it the right size?

MattinAZ

It is a 20 inch. I am 5 10 - 5 11.

I felt comfortable on it.

At the trek dealer the other day the guy wanted me to try a 17.5
It felt cramped. I mean the handle bars were too close to the saddle. 20 looks like there is more room it felt more comfortable to me.

A brand new 7.3 is about $ 600 incl. Tax at where I live.

I think I'll go ahead and take the risk.

I am sure It'll work for me , if not I'll use it while looking for a perfect fitting bike, and get rid of it then.

himespau 

If it fits, I'd go with the $100 bike. Sure it's used, but that's where the best deals are, but then I'm cheap. Just don't wait too long or someone else might take it. The thing is, buying used means you lose out on all dealer support and maintenance. If something breaks, you'll either need to fix it yourself or take it to a dealer to pay to have it fixed (no warranty). For the most part, that wouldn't scare me, but might be offputting to you. How old is the 7.3? It has higher level components than that 7.2 most likely.

himespau 

Yeah a 17.5 is gonna be too small for you (really sounds like he was trying to push what he had). I'm 6'2-3 and a 22.5 is a bit on the small side for me. 20" sounds like it'd be closer to right for you.

Pistard

20 should right for you, I am 5'11 and ride a 21.

IBOHUNT

Welcome to the forum and congrats on the weight drop so far.

I'm 5'8 on a good day and I ride a 17.5

Hey, if it doesn't fit or ride like you want re-sell it... to me. I'll put some drop bars on it and ride it to death now that I'm no longer a Clyde and prefer to be stretched out

youcoming

The 7.3 is an awesome bike, I started on one at 305lbs in 2007, 80lbs later and thousands of dollars I have 2 roadbikes, one MTB, two sons with roadbikes, MTB's and trick bikes. Welcome to the lifestyle.

VegasVic

+1 on trying some road bikes out before you buy.

MattinAZ

Thank you all for encouragement . .

Ta ta taam (drum roll please)

I am the proud owner of TREK 7.3fx . .

I just bought the bike, already ride it around the neighborhood.
It is an awesome bike.. I think it already has the upgraded components. For example, rear derailleur is Shimano Deore, same as shown on the 7.3 specifications, on Trek web site. I will post detailed pictures later on so that experienced members could tell me what I got.

I like it already.

When I went there to pick the bike, the guy was like, "there are other people called too, if you dont want it you dont have to take it . . . etc etc "

I politely, told him, I wanted the bike, and loaded on the bike rack on my car.

The saddle is not the original though, it is a Bell Memory foam saddle.
It is too wide. I asked him if he got the original. He couldnt find it.
He said it was his wifes bike and she didnt like the original.

Other than that its a great bike.

I'll post some pictures later.

Thank you all for support and help.

lenny866

Good luck with the bike and great job quitting smoking.

tergal

That is a awesome score, lucky bugger, and as some said saddles are easy to change.

great work on the smoking

Ken_onabike

Welcome to the forum.
Congratulations on the weight loss, but especially on quitting smoking. As one who succeeded in quitting only 3 months ago I know how hard this is, so well done. I get around these days on a 7.1 FX which is a great bike so I'm sure you're going to love the 7.3FX. At $100 it's a bargain...

MattinAZ

OK Folks

Almost 48 hrs gone without a smoke. Few more days, then I'll be done with it..

Many many thanks, for support and encouragement it really helps.

My son and I, today did a mini tour around the neighborhood. According to google maps its about 5 miles. It took me (I am the slowest guy obviously) about 40 - 45 mins to complete the tour. I can feel the damages of smoking, especially when climbing.

Anyways, I know myself, I'll just keep on pushing and pushing.

So, Now the fun part.

Here are the pictures of the bike

[IMG]
Untitled by aserdemir, on Flickr[/IMG]
Apologies for the clutter behind the bike.

[IMG]
Untitled by aserdemir, on Flickr[/IMG]

YES Its a 7.3FX

[IMG]
Rear Wheel by aserdemir, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]
Untitled by aserdemir, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]
Untitled by aserdemir, on Flickr[/IMG]
Derailleur

[IMG]
Untitled by aserdemir, on Flickr[/IMG]
Details, Tire
I hope those are good tires . ?

[IMG]
Untitled by aserdemir, on Flickr[/IMG]
HandleBar

[IMG]
Untitled by aserdemir, on Flickr[/IMG]
4 B's
I do not know what it stands for (Brand name for the stem ?)

[IMG]
Untitled by aserdemir, on Flickr[/IMG]
Right

[IMG]
Untitled by aserdemir, on Flickr[/IMG]
Left

The bike rides very smoothly. I think it has the upgraded components. Only thing I noticed is that the derailleur needs adjustment as coming down from 8 to 1 it wants to stay at 5 or 6 for a while and then jump to the next smaller gear. Going up the gears there is no problem it is very smooth.

I have seen some tutorials on the web if it is an adjustment problem I am sure I can tackle it. I have the tools and I maintain and tune up my cars etc.
Otherwise, I'll take it to the local bike shop.

In a nutshell I am very happy with the bike, cant wait to ride it again.

Comments appreciated.

Thanks

Matt

tergal

Looks in very good nic, in regards to tyres i hated by stock bontrager ( look i swear that reads bondage sorry young minds i try to behave) I switched them out as i found them to soft(glass went thought them like provable knife and butter) but mine where 26"s not 700s . Ken should be able to chime in on how the 700s are .

Clutter in the garage is good, along as that circular saw stays away from the bike.

Ken_onabike

Matt that looks like a great bike for $100 ! I'm guessing that saddle will go eventually but otherwise I wish I could have found a deal like that. So far the 700 x 35's on my Trek are OK. One front puncture from a really sharp bit of windscreen glass which I think might have gone through most tyres. When I wear them out I'll get something a little tougher maybe.

After 40+ years of smoking it's my lungs that are limiting what I can do but I'm finding that the more I ride the better the lungs seem to get. So stay off the smokes and keep riding !!

tergal

Don't be like the bloke i saw on the road this morning riding and having a smoke at the same time o.O

MattinAZ

@ tergal

I'll make sure the saw behaves

@ Ken-onabike

I have quit smoking before, physically the hardest part is the first week or so, however psychologically its your brain that does not forget the taste/stimulus. I believe its "chemical dependency" and unfortunately its legal. Older i got, harder it became to quit. I hope I'll never smoke again.

Thanks for support



On the rear gears/derailleur "while going from 8 to 1 trying to stay at 5 or 6 longer and then jumping into lower gear" problem.

I'll try to look at it tomorrow. I have checked a few videos on youtube, I guess I can handle a derailleur adjustment

Do you guys think it is a derailleur adjustment or something else ?

Appreciate your insight, Thanks

Matt