Bike Forums - Chosing a Commuter Bike

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Hachi (Post 6998003)

So I visited 3 bike shops yesteday and looked at the kona smoke (18 in) The seat was simply too low and the bike was way too small for me I have a hard time believing it's actually an 18 in bike.

The shops i visited stocked Raleigh, Giant and Scott bikes. The cheapest bike of All the shops was the Raleigh Sport. The first shop was pretty good but had a terrible selection (only like 5 bike lines total, and 4 used mtb's).

The first shop had the Raleigh Sport at $520 the second shop showed me a fairly nice Giant bike for $950 as their "entry level" bike, and the cheapest bike in the shop was on sale for $650 the salesman there was more pushy than helpful though. The third shop was the most dangerous, as I really really fell in love with the scott bikes. Particularly the Scott SUB 10. Unfortunately, it is double my budget. I test rode a Sportster P4 (that the salesman did a fantastic job of setting up for me) but unfortunately that was also out of my budget by at least $200.

What I felt like was that none of the bike shops really had any bikes IN my price range and I guess that's obvious if my price range is $300-400.

One thing I'm interested in looking at or getting is a Scott SUB 30. On their website they list it at $579 and most of the bikes in store (and at REI.com) were selling for around $100 less than retail. Unfortunately, REI doesn't seem to carry the SUB 30 and I didn't see any at the bike shop that carried it. Is it common practice for shops to order bikes? If I could get the SUB 30 for $470 I'd be sold. But I foresee that maybe being impossible.

A couple of things:

1. Giant makes some pretty value oriented bikes. What was that $950 'entry le vel' bike, anyway? I mean, the OCR3, which is the entry level road bike can be had for $650 around here. Sounds to me like that the shop was trying to sell you what they had, and not neccessarily selling you what you wanted/needed.

2. Bike shops can/do order bikes all of the time. Ask the Scott shop if they can order you a SUB 30, and how much it would cost.

Quote:

Originally Posted by no1mad (Post 6998565)

It looked like the OCR 3, Red / Silver, but the wheels / seat tube / head tube were the fancy low spoke or carbon fiber parts. Yeah they guy was kind of full of **** imo, so I wont be going back there.

Thanks for the advice on the sub 30... I hope it's a good bike and I wont be shooting myself in the foot for purchasing it.

The Scott SUB 30 looks like a fine bike to commute on. Were you looking at one with 26" or 700c tires?

Quote:

Originally Posted by dmckean44 (Post 7001049)

The Scott SUB 30 looks like a fine bike to commute on. Were you looking at one with 26" or 700c tires?

I think they come standard with 26in but the stock tires on the SUB 10 were fairly narrow slicks. The 30 lists Maxxis Colombiere tires 26x1.3 tires, but I cant seem to find any existence of those anywhere other than on the SUB 30.

Is there any real problem with riding on 26 in tires?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hachi (Post 7001979)

Not really. Some people prefer them to 700c's. And it's easier to find replacement tires for 26 inch wheels.

Quote:

Originally Posted by no1mad (Post 7002152)

Not really. Some people prefer them to 700c's. And it's easier to find replacement tires for 26 inch wheels.

Even in terms of slick road tires?

HELLO
there are "SCOTT SPORTSTER P4" in the shop with 28 inch rims but i cannot find frame size on bike.can you help me where can i find size writing on the frame?and i am 115kg 2m03cm tall man and are that rims stronger enough for me?
please help ok
thanks

Don't over-think it, all these options may seem important, but since this is just a bicycle to start out with and you have no opinions you can get whatever.

My advice, buy used.. $500 range, something with flat bar, upright seating, eyelets for racks and fenders. Save the cash for other stuff you'll need, spare parts, panniers or a different saddle. Then go buy a nice lock, the crappier your bicycle and the better the lock the longer you can let it stay parked in one spot while you do your stuff.

thanks but
its for 350$ and i only want to know are the wheels strong enough for me and frame size,for me its must be xl or xxl.

To the OP; one suggestion is to save your money until you can afford the bike you really want, like the Sub 10. In the meantime, used rigid (no suspension) MTB's make great commuters with the addition of fenders, lights, slicks, and a rack. By doing this you could likely get started for less than $200, and then next year buy your dream bike. That would also give you an extra year of research and test rides. BTW this is pretty much what I did and now I do have my dream bike.

You could start with something like this: http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/bik/1869223385.html

Of course that's just a suggestion; the Sub 30 is a nice bike if you can find a way to swing the finances. Just remember to budget at least $100 for accessories!

To COGGIOLA: The frame size is usually written on the seat tube (the part of the frame in which the seat is placed). Look down near the bottom bracket (where the pedals are). Failing that, just ask a salesperson at the LBS. The P4 looks to me like it would be able to handle a person your size without a problem.