a different take on the which bike should I buy topic...
 

ok,
I am sorry to do this. There are a hundred posts on what biek to buy, how to build etc etc etc. But none of them address my questions...so here goes another post.

I have a Mt Bike...It is a pretty decent little bike. hardtail Treck 3700. I am starting to use it to commute to work and back, but I can not really turn it into a commuter. My son loves to MT Bike, and this is my bike to spend time with him etc. I cant put racks, and fenders and all of that on this bike. I have been using it to commute (5.5 miles each way) a few times...this week I am doing more. I want to continue to do this as much as possible, but that means getting a new bike.

I really dont think that I am going to convince my wife to let me get a new bike...esp by time I get racks, fenders, etc etc etc added on. Plus it is still 30-45 days before I would have money to do that anyways. The pawn shops around here have TONS of bikes....mostly walmart/Target bikes....but occasionally a schwinn 10 speed, or some other nice but older bike. GoodWill around here just gets some old Murry and Huffy 10 speeds that are always rusted chains, and look REALLY rough. And Garage Sale season is over. So I am thinking that pawn shop is prob best place to look right now.

My ride is 5.5 miles, small neighborhood streets, and about 1 mile of asphalt bike/walking trail around part of a lake. It is all Up hill, Down hill. I am not in that great of shape right now, so I am constantly changing gears over and over to get up and down them. There is no off road, and nothing that is really hard other than the hills. I am leaving cloths at work, and ridding in shorts and t-shirt and changing at work....but there is NO shower place, so I am taking it easy on the way TO work, and ridding a little harder the way HOME. Me and my son HAVE gone on a couple 30 mile rides on the trails around here, and may do some more of that.

I know if I get another MT bike, I need to get no shox front OR rear...but then I need to get smoother tires, and other than that, should be OK...but ridding position wont be maybe AS comfy...but 5.5 miles is not that long...but it would not be much better than what I have now for the occasional longer ride.

I could get an older 10 speed or similar road bike. would be good for longer rides, but I dont know if they accomodate the racks and fenders as easily. and I know tires are sometimes a bigger issue as far as flats etc...and then I hear that alot of people put on Mt Bike type handle bars...why?

I cant really use the "cruiser" type bikes, because they are all single speed, adn I dont think that I can do that...so that leaves all the hybrids etc etc...adn I guess I dont really understand them much...so any ideas on which bike I should look at most, and anything else that I should think of? advice, tricks, tips, etc.

If you can dig up an old 10-speed road bike, check to see if the fork and the area around your dropouts have eyelets for mounting stuff, and check to be sure that there's enough brake clearance to fit fenders (should be okay on most older bikes provided they haven't been refitted with contemporary short-reach brake calipers...trust me, you'll know when you see them!). If so, you're in business. Other big thing to look out for if you're looking at a road bike: make sure the bike doesn't have a one-piece crankset (where the left crank arm goes through the BB and comes out the other side as the right crank arm). These are heavy (not just in the "weight-weinie" sense of the term!) and can be a bigger pain in the butt to service than is necessary.

Flat tires? Well, yes, road tires are more vulnerable. Low-pressure MTB tires kinda moosh down around debris, whereas high-pressure road tires don't. Generally, if you can keep your eyes open and manage not to roll over broken glass and the like, road tires are fine. The benefit of higher pressure tires is less rolling resistance: if you like to ride fast, or if you get into a situation where you need to go really fast, they'll serve you a bit better. Note that I said a "bit", and I mean it. It's probably not going to be a huge difference unless you're in a race for your life, against time, or both. :)

Handlebar-wise, it's largely preference. Some folks like the upright riding position, either because they find it more comfortable or because it's what they're familiar with. Some folks like dropbars because of less wind resistance from the less upright position. Others (myself included) like dropbars because they give you a better variety of places to put your hands and avoid numbness or serious nerve damange.

EDIT: It's important to note that most people commuting with drop handlebars don't tend to use the drop section proper, and thus the riding position is better described as "not quite upright" than totally crouched down. It's not an insane difference.

I wouldn't necessarily say that the single-speed nature of a cruiser is going to make it less of an option for you. Cruiser gearing isn't usually that high and is pretty easy going for most people. The more deciding factor is that most cruisers are crazily heavy...think 50+ lbs. They're fun to tool around on and are good for a once-in-a-while ride and maybe a short daily jaunt, but 10+ miles a day on that might get old fast, especially with the moderately hilly terrain with which you seem to be dealing.

Hybrids are way expensive for what you get. My call is to get an old steel roadie, give it a tuneup (or get someone to do it for you), and add on the fenders and racks you need for your commute. You can do all this for well under $500, and you're going to pay way more than that for a decent hybrid bike geared towards commuting.

But as always, these comments are based on personal experience and personal preferences. The only universal truths remain "don't get hit" and "have fun". :)

EDIT: Also, if you've already got a MTB, why get a hybrid? Get something vastly different and change it up according to weather conditions and the like.