Hello, I don't know anything about bikes, and I'm looking for one to ride to and from classes on campus with. I'm not sure if this is the right subforum; I'm still not clear on exactly what the difference is between road and commuter bikes. I looked around the forums a bit, but I still feel completely lost. Do you have any recommendations? I heard a few mentions of the Kona Dew, any others out there? I've been looking around the bikes on campus and haven't seen any Kona's... Anyway, my price range is around $400-$500 or so, I'll want gears because there are some hilly parts on campus, and the bike will be stored outside (but I live in Southern California, so maybe weather isn't a problem for durability?). Thanks in advance...

Go to as many local bike shops (LBS) as you can. Ride as many bikes as you can. The road bikes will be out of your budget, but ride them anyway. By doing this, you get an idea of what size bike that will fit. Then you can always keep an eye out for something on CL.

Second day of classes during my Freshman year in college... My roommate leaves his $1000 bike locked up on the bike rack outside the lecture hall. One hour later after his class ended, he returns to his bike to find the seatpost and wheels GONE.

Yeah, he should have quick-released his front wheel and looped a cable lock through all the removeable parts to prevent theft, but who has the time to do that when rushing to class?

I'd say buy the cheapest $100 Walmart piece-of-crap bike for use on campus. If it gets ripped off, it's not a big loss.

This is a very good point, but I think my school is fairly safe. It's in one of the most crime-free cities in the U.S., and I do see a lot of expensive-looking road bikes around. Sometimes I even see them lying around outside buildings without any chains or other forms of security. So I think that a bike in my price range might be the good balance between a good bike and a bike that will attract far less attention that a lot of other bikes. Also, my dorm room is positioned so I have a full view of the bike rack outside. BTW, what is quick-releasing of the front wheel?

Quick release skewers allow the wheels to be removed without using any tools. Makes it easier for you to remove the wheel to change a flat, but it also makes it easier for a thief to steal your wheel.

Since the budget question was already answered in the OP, as well as the hill/topography question, I got one that needs to be asked- What else do you foresee yourself doing via bike beyond just getting to class? Are you wanting to start doing longer rides on the road? Go offroading? Touring?

OP, get a POS beater. Especially if you're leaving it outside.

I looked around a little more, and want to know what your opinions on the following are: Kona Dew Plus, Trek FX 7.2, Bianchi Camaleonte 1 and Iseo. I'm a little confused on the differences between the bikes... I think I'll be using it primarily for road use, but I don't want to completely rule out offroad yet, so I'm looking at hybrids. I like the disc brakes on the Dew Plus, but other than that, I'm having trouble discerning a difference between the bikes other than looks. What are the advantages to each? Thank you...

Linked it for you. Will make it easier for you to get feedback on your models if people don't have to hunt them down for themselves. That said, you did not specify if you were looking at 2009 or2010 models...

If you're going to leave the bike outside full time on a college campus, get a single speed coaster brake bike and pedal harder on the hills- you'll get a good workout, and impress the ladies with your awesome quads.

Seriously, leaving any bike outside is not good for it, even in southern California. It even rains in SoCal once in a while in spite of what they tell you, and your chain will rust and the chain lube will wash away. When that happens, the chain links and pins start to wear rapidly, and your derailleurs won't sift gears properly.

Any college campus is a magnet for bicycle thieves, just because there are so many bicycles around. If they can't steal the whole bike, they'll take the wheels, seat, or whatever else they can find, until they've stolen enough stuff to make a complete bike that they can sell for the price of a fix. The best defense is to ride a crappy bike that isn't worth stealing, and park it next to the nicest bike you can find when you leave it somewhere.

A single speed coaster brake bike will require much less maintenance than anything with gears, so you'll have more money for textbooks, partying, and maybe even buying a nice bike when you have a safe place to keep it.

I smell fashion bike propaganda. You're talking about maintenance costs, what about her back tire with a coaster brake?

If she's not putting in at least one hundred miles a week, there is no maintenance cost related justification for going with a single speed with a coaster brake on it.

I had a twenty-one speed Raleigh M80 with unmaintained stock parts for thirteen years. I still do, actually, I just don't ride it much since I drank the Surly kool-aid. Anyway, I rode it a few miles a day every week the entire time. I did so in Cincinnati, Atlanta, Chicago, Milwaukee, Grand Rapids, and Southern California. It experienced all climates and road conditions. It wasn't until I started riding much longer distances for fitness (upwards of 150-175 miles a week) that the cassette and chain started to finally wear out, so I replaced them. Forty bucks total after thirteen years of continual use.

Valid point. Kids all around the world ride SS w/coaster brakes without any problem.

I would find a cheap older road bike on Craigslist. I commute on a 1989 Bianchi Brava. It only cost me $100 and after fixing it up, it runs really well. I would be sad if it got stolen, but not as bad as if my race bike was stolen. You may also want to look at hybrid bikes with flat bars. They usually allow for more clearance than road bikes and have places for fenders and racks if you decide to really get into commuting... My commute is only 4 miles so I just use my road bike with 700x28c tires and wear a messenger bag.

I'd suggest the Kona or the Trek for practicality - both are proven machines with quality components for their price range. The steel forks and fatter tires will provide a more compliant ride. The Kona's disc brakes will work well in all weather conditions if you plan to commute while it's raining. The Camaleonte, however, cannot be beat in this group for its sex appeal. That is a good-looking bike!

That being said, I have to agree with the other posters about finding a used bike. Use the extra money for quality locks, lights, and gear.

I also think you should buy used. Craigslist has some awesome deals, but if you do not know what you are looking for, find a friend who does or stay away. I recommend seeing if any local bike shops have used bikes. This gives you someplace to bring it back when it breaks, and a place to get the helmet and lock you will also need.

Regardless of how safe your campus feels, buy a good lock. I ride to school every day, and park my bike 50 feet from the building I spend 95% of my time in. I feel safe on campus, and have neither heard of nor experienced crime there. I see multi-thousand titanium and carbon bikes with varied locks on them. One guy routinely "locks" his $800 mountain bike up by looping the cable lock he keeps on the rack around the handlebars. Seriously. The campus police tell me bicycle theft is the second most prevalent crime on campus, after laptops.

At a minimum, buy a U-lock and a cable-lock. Take the U-lock with you during the day when people will be around. When locked overnight, use both, with the cable lock securing both wheels if able, or minimally the other wheel and the frame.

Bike theft is pretty much nonexistent here (penn state) - if its not near a major city, I wouldn't really worry about it. I have friends with $450, $550 and $900 bikes who lock the frame only with kryptoloks or Bell U-locks, and cheaper bikes with just a cable. There's also this 105-equipped Trek I always see in front of buildings locked with just a cable, and it hasn't vanished yet.

If you want some flexibility to wear skirts or dresses and not worry about getting on and off while so dressed, you might consider a step-through model. Giant makes a department store bike for Target that's named Forge. They've got 2 geared, step-through models called Athena. The price is right at $199 for the pink model (I don't like the color, but some money from each sale is donated to breast cancer research) or $249 for the blue model. They get good reviews and have decent components. Good luck.

Thank you again for the replies. Used is looking like a more and more practical option... but since it would depend on what the bike shop has, I'd also like to find a couple of new options to fall back on. The Bianchi looks amazing, I agree, but I take it that it doesn't have any practical advantages over the Kona? The Kona seems like it has everything I want without looking so good that it screams "steal me." Also, thank you for taking the time to make the recommendation, but I'm a guy, so the skirt/dress thing won't be an issue. Don't worry, a lot of people mistake my username for "Tsujigirl" instead of "Tsujigiri" on other boards, too.

On a side note, is rain the only thing I have to worry about as far as weather is concerned for the bike? Or would dew (ironically) also damage the bike?

All moisture will, in time, damage the bike. If it is to be an outdoors bike, it will be worth it to get a bottle of lube, many brands work well, and hit the chain, pivot points on the brakes/shifters and a drop or two down the cable housings periodically.

And another nudge to lock it well. I had a cheap, beat up mountain bike locked with a cable lock stolen off my front porch in college. I went to a small school in a small town in the foothills of the Rockies. I would have never believed there would be crime there.

This is a good time to starting checking around campus for used bikes. If your university is like most finals are almost upon you and some students will be graduating and moving on and looking to sell their bikes so now is a great time to be looking. My University has a great program where they buy bikes from students for $20, fix them up and then re-sell them for the same price. Yours might have something similar ask around. Check the bulletin boards in the dorms. You could also put up some bike wanted signs.

For people new to commuting I do not recommend using craigslist if you can help it. However if you do shop used see if you can find someone fairly knowledgeable to help you out. You might wan to try LBS that sell used bikes or just ask questions on what they have available.

My suggestion would be to find something cheap that fits. Once you get time in the saddle you will have a better idea of what type of bike you want. Also, you never know if you will keep up with it. And regardless of how safe your campus seems, you should always lock up your bike properly.