mdf26

Hello all. I'm a new member from Middle TN. I am wanting to get into riding. I'm 6'2" and weigh around 265 in boxers. I want to get into riding as a fitness tool and to start a new hobby. I am have a heck of a time trying to find out where to begin. My initial thought was that I want to get into mountain biking. The more that I think about the more I realize I may be better off with a road style bike until I loose the weight. I really see 90-95% of my time spent on the road with the occasional opportunity to hit a trail. I am still very much wanting to get into trail riding but I think I may be better off waiting until I loose some weight. What are your thoughts? I know at my current weight the bike will take a beating. So, should I lean towards a road style/hybrid type bike or should I get a hardtail mountain bike and put a rigid fork on it? My budget will be my biggest obstacle of all. I currently have around $600 to put into my first ride. I know that's not much but it is what I have currently. If I can get into a bike and ride it for a year or so I will feel comfortable making a bigger investment. I know that everyone says to pay more upfront and you'll be happier but that just isn't going to be possible for me unless I put it off for several months from now. If I do that half of the summer will be gone. I am just looking for guidance basically. Would you start off riding road or mountain? I know that I will run into problems such as wheels not being strong enough etc but I think it should be realistic to find something ride-able (new word) that is within my budget. Once I ride and diet and loose the weight I will definitely make a much better investment which will hopefully give me years of service. Thank you for taking the time to help a complete noob out!

vesteroid

your going to be in the 58 cm size range (this varies by bike but close enough for craiglist searches)

I would try and find a decent used road bike in your size in your budget and get on the road. Little things like getting a different stem to adjust for fit, are actually pretty cheap and easily changed (even with little to no experience) Most shops have some laying around they will sell for 20 bucks or less.

I also wouldnt worry too much about the wheels...more spokes are better, but if you can find something with 24/28 on it, I wouldnt worry about buying the bike. Its not ideal, but its not like your going to fold up going down the road.

If you have a very limited budget, then dont get all picky about what bike. find a used bike that fits more or less and get on it...get riding...after a month or two and 500 miles, then start seeing what you need want to replace, and whether it is even worth replacing, or saving to buy new...but at least you are riding. I see way too many people stress about what bike to buy, and what wheels to get, and 4 months later they still arent riding.

markm109

When I got into riding about 10 years ago, I had an Gary Fisher Tassajara - a decent quality bike. It had a suspension fork and off road tires. I am 6'1" and was around 270. That first year that was the only bike I had and rode it on paved roads and trails mostly. I took off the mtb tires and put on some smooth tread tires for better road riding. A mtb is built to handle heavier loads. And you can find more used and cheap 26" mtb on craigslist than decent road bikes.

It will get you started and you pay less than your total budget. A mtb will work on paved and dirt. Put the money you save away for a road bike next year.

mdf26

Thank you so much for a quick response. What are some general things to look for in a used road bike? I see ones online ranging in price from $75 up well past the $1000 range. Many look like 80's models some are new. Will the very small wheels support me? I have never ridden a true road bike before. The only bikes I've ever owned have been the Wally World special mountain bikes. Most all of the road bikes I'm seeing have drop down bars like the ones that swoop down below the other part, is that what I want? Very very new to all of this. I just don't want to get a bike and break it because I'm too big.

jsigone

I'd get something like this to start, looks clean and ready to ride https://nashville.craigslist.org/bik/3626180695.html
Only things I'd change is saddle, new bar tape and pedals.

Use the rest of your budget and get some nice $100 shoes w/ carbon/FRP soles, $75 shimano 105 pedals, $60-100 bibs, couple $20-40 jerseys, $80-100 helmet. Simple gloves and a saddle to match your sit bones. Sure that's allot more then the bike, but if you're comfy on the bike you will ride it more. And all of which can be used on a bike a yr down the road or whatever.

matt from pa

I certainly agree with buying used. You will get much more bike for what you have to spend.

mdf26

Thank you! I will definitely keep looking online! I like the looks of that bike but it's almost 3 hours away from where I am located. I could see if he would be willing to be meet any closer. I'm not sure if he would or not. I may post a few links on here and see what you all think! I want to find something this weekend and hit the road running or cycling I should say.

mdf26

Here's a silly question. On the road bikes are the handles that face forward the gear shift or the brakes? This is a learning curve for sure, I'm certainly behind that curve.

mdf26

https://chattanooga.craigslist.org/bik/3630109959.html

This one is only 1 hour 47 minutes from me. Any input? It is a trek which is 58cm

ClydesMoose

On most newer bikes, they're both. The levers move side to side to shift, and in to brake.

jsigone

pretty decent but if it was me, I'd go through the entire bike. Bar tape, tires, clean cassette, replace chain, trim all those long white cable housings after fitted, new cables while in there. I'd pass on the riding pants, jersey and helmet eewww

mdf26

What would be a decent offer for that Trek. It's a 2009 model (I txt the guy). It originally retailed for $880 (from what I can find online). He says txt with an offer. I don't want to lowball him but I also want to get the best deal I can.

goldfinch

I wouldn't text an offer. I would ask to look at it first and try to get a feel for how good shape it is in. Do you know any cyclists you can take with you who can go over the bike when you go look at it?

I am not as squeamish as jsigone. Clothes are washable.

Price? I have no idea. Something less than his asking of $500.

CraigB

I'd take a close look at the size of that bike. I know Vesteroid said a 58 would be a good ballpark to look in, but IME, someone your height would probably need something larger than a 58. Correct frame size is a combination of frame geometry, personal preference, physical limitations and proportions, and all kinds of other things thrown into the mix, not the least of which is how exactly the manufacturer measures their frames (they're not all alike), but in my 35+ years of riding a 56 is about ideal for a male of my height (5'-10") and generally average proportions (disallowing circumference, anyway). I don't think two additional centimeters of frame (3/4" +/-) is sufficient to account for the additional 4 inches of height between me and you.

But, as with just about everything else in this sport, it's all rules of thumb, and the smart people only use such info as a starting point and go from there. If you think the bike will work for you, go for it. If it was $880 new and it's in good shape, I'd maybe offer $400 without the clothes. They can only say no.

mdf26

Very true, I would definitely have to check it out in person. I was just generally trying to get an idea of how used bikes hold their value. I'm guessing it is similar to vehicles and a name brand may hold value better than a cheaper brand. I could be wrong. There is a website I found called bicyclebluebook.com but I have no idea if that is very reliable or not. I guess I'm really just too new to the sport. I will look around these next couple of days and see what I can find. I'll try to contact some sellers and spend maybe friday evening and saturday looking around. I work graveyard shift in a tire factory so I won't get any free time until Friday afternoon. I will continue my search and I'm hoping by Saturday I will find something. If I do I will surely post pics to show it off. Don't expect anything too fancy! lol I do not have any cycling friends to take with me. I was a mechanic in the military so I have an idea when something is worn out but not much else bike related. Hopefully I can find something that'll get me on the road without breaking the budget. Also, how old is too old? I've seen some bikes listed as "road-ready" but yet these bikes are from the 70's or 80's. Would that be opening a can of worms? I know bikes are simple for the most part but I guess it would be stupid to buy a $80 bike and have to replace $300 worth of parts.

contango 

Where size is concerned you may have to make tradeoffs. My cross bike is a 58cm and it's a little too short for me. The trouble is going to a 61 means the top tube is a little high which means it's going to seriously hurt if I have to jump off the saddle in a hurry - basically it means I can't stand over a 61cm bike. So I put up with a little toe overlap on the front wheel and remember to make sure the relevant foot is towards the rear if I have to turn hard enough for it to matter. Sometimes it's a real pain but basically I get to deal with it.

If you're buying a used bike you can get a storming bargain but if at all possible take someone with you who knows more about bikes and the things to look out for. Some people sell used bikes because they stopped riding, or upgraded to a newer or better one or whatever. Other people sell used bikes because they are stolen, crashed, made up of cobbled together parts from a number of crashed bikes or whatever else. Needless to say you don't want to buy something that's crashed and bodged, or made up from random bits of a dozen different bikes where nothing quite works the way it should.

gunner65

If you are wanting to eventually get into mountain biking why not buy a mountain bike and put a set of slick hi pressure tyres on it? Then when you want to go trail riding just swap out your tyres. That is what I did in the begining.

vesteroid

Not arguing with you Craig, as I agree fit is personal, but just for reference I am a solid 3 inches taller than he is and I have one that measures 60 and one that measures 59.5 on the tt...both say size 60

So I suppose if the TT is close to the stated size it may be different if the tt is really 56 even though the bike is sized at 58....just random thoughts.

mdf26

Yeah I wouldn't buy any bike if it doesn't feel right. I know your legs should be fully extended when you are at the bottom of the pedal stroke while seated. I also know the top tube should be an inch or two below you if you stand over it. That's about the extent of my knowledge regarding fit.

TrojanHorse

False. Your leg should be at about 150 degree angle when your pedals are all the way down and you're seated. (so a slight bend in your leg). Another way to ball park it is to put your HEEL on the pedal and your leg should be nearly straight that way, but still not quite straight. When you're pedaling your hips shouldn't have to rock back and forth to complete a pedal stroke.

Also for reference, I'm 6'2" and my bike is a 58, and my "cycling inseam" is 35.5 inches. Standover height is less important with compact geometry frames (they slope!) but the effective top tube dimension is what really determines whether the bike will fit you. I would probably be equally comfortable on a 56cm bike because I don't like being really stretched out. You can certainly tweak things with a setback seatpost or longer/shorter stems but it's probably best to get your bike as close to good as you can without any extreme adjustments.

youcoming

I'm 6'1" on a Trek Madone and am using a 120mm stem and a set back seat post, you might want to consider something other than the Trek on your post. I'm sure you could make it work but it might not be the best fit.

cplager

$600 is not a small amount of money. Depending on what you are trying to do, I think you can do very well with that.

Go to a local bike store (LBS) and ride several different types of bikes: mountain, hybrid, road, cross, recumbent...

Figure out which one speaks to you. Don't get an XXX bike because everybody tells you to. In general, more upright (or laid back ) is more comfortable, but it doesn't matter what works in general if it doesn't work for you.

After you have an idea of what type of bike to get, now you can start shopping for one. Used is a good choice (although it helps the more you or a friend understand about bicycle mechanics). In college towns and elsewhere, you can find bike stores that sell used bikes.

Cheers,
Charles

bennybenny

I was new last year and a few thoughts:

-road biking was hard to learn, at times intimidating with traffic, clipping in and out, clothes, repairs etc, and I usually pick up on sports pretty quickly; by the end of the summer, it was a lot easier but it took more time than I thought and I still have much to learn

-I tried mountain biking on a rented bike at the end of the summer on a great trail and I thought, "This is more me than road biking." That being said, its hard to find time to get out to a trail. $600 buys a pretty nice hardtail mtb.

-I still dont feel comfortable on my Road bike just going around town with family etc, so I'm looking into a mtb for trails and to just hop on in the summer around my house, and still use the Road bike for longer weekend rides

-for your weight loss, I commend you on looking at biking; the gym gets so boring, and I tried to get in shape through running and it was also boring AND I kept breaking down at nearly age 40; this biking stuff is for life and either road or mountain, (or both) are so much fun and the scenery is great, the pounds will come melting off

Best of luck.

BennyBenny

contango 

It's worth considering which accessories are essential and which are nice to have but not essential from day one.

If you're going to be out after dark then lights are a must-have.

Personally I regard a helmet as a must-have but others don't wear one.

I regard some form of glasses as essential - at first I didn't but got sick of being hit in the eye by bugs.

A basic tool kit, pump, spare tube etc - not critical but if you have a puncture miles from home and can't fix it you're in for a long walk.

SPD pedals, cycling shoes, padded shorts, jerseys etc - all nice to have but you don't need them from day one and can always add them later. Some folks say there's no point starting cycling without all the right gear but I rode my MTB on the roads for two years wearing regular training shoes, the pedals that came with the bike, the saddle that came with the bike, regular clothing etc. Padded shorts make riding long distances more comfortable, clipless pedals make riding more comfortable, jerseys work better than T-shirts, but none are essential from day 1.

I rode 150 miles in two days twice in regular clothes and stock pedals, did 110 miles in a day with the same outfit, and rode a number of rides up to about 95 miles before I investigated SPD pedals (I did have cycling shorts and a couple of cheap jerseys by then).

digger531

I purchased a Redline D440 as my first bike. It is a hardtail, non suspension, 29er and I still love it. I took a 105 mile trip and averaged 15mph with the knobbies. I believe I only paid around $400. If you find one of these you wont regret it. It has rack mounts (didn't know that when I bought it) even a front low rider mount, steel frame, v brakes, easily maintained 1x8 set up and it looks sweet.

I have moved on to road bikes now but I think you should be looking for something like that Redline. It is as comfortable on the road as off, big tires make for a nice ride, straight bars (I dont use them anymore) are easier to get used to, only one derailleur to figure out. I have at least 15 bikes now but the only one I wont sell is that one..well..and my new Vaya, but I havent even ridden that one yet.

Good luck