Stuffstuff1

Hey guys (First post)

I was curious. Do i have the right bike for my needs?

My name is Adrian i am a certified Computer Technion who work primarily off of craigslist.

Normally i will have to travel 3-6 miles to reach my customers home / Business and i wanted to know do i have the right bicycle?


I went to a bicycle shop (Last September) and i was looking throught there selection and ended up getting the Giant Bolder (2010 / white). I thought it was a good choice because it seemed to be doing everything right.

What do you guys think did i make the right call or is there a better bicycle i should get?

10 Wheels

Nice Bike......

Stuffstuff1

So i guess i got a good bike?

n8ked_rider

Absolutely! Great bike. For 3-6 miles I know some who commute on long boards (skateboards) that far. I think you did well. If you have no intention of taking the bike off road, may I suggest down the road replacing the knobbies tires for some skinnier, smoother, higher psi road tires like the Specialized Armadillos or something of like. Also I think you should be able to turn the knobs on top of your front shocks to the right which will make them as stiff as possible. This will assist in minimizing your loss of transfer energy (poor description). If you stick with commuting and really enjoy it, you could switch out the shock someday for a cheap rigid fork.

Don't get discouraged by the many nice commuter specific builds and purchases you see posted here. I rode from the age of 13 - 28 on mountain bikes with a backpack all over Phoenix, logging thousands of miles a year. Never new anything different until the internet and bike forums.

Good luck, get a good lock, and be safe!

Jeffrey

Stuffstuff1

Well i do like ripping up the soccer fields every ones in a while.

I was going to ask about getting road slick tires. And part of the reason i got this bicycle is because i thought it was a good combination of both.

But what kinda of road slick tire would fit my bicycle?

Captain Blight

Any slick tire in a 26-inch "decimal" as opposed to 'fraction' sized pattern will fit fine. There are three different 26" sizes out there-- mountain, English, and Schwinn. You have the mountain 26, and those tires are sized in a decimal format. You'll be well-served by something like the Kenda K838.

Please, for your safety and the safety of others, get rid of that abortion of a fork ASAP. get a "suspension-corrected fork" like the Surly 1x1 or the Salsa CroMoto. You'll be about two and a half pounds lighter and worlds happier.

Stuffstuff1

Ah! I like those tires. The price Suits me to

Abortion of a fork?

you mean i should get rid of the suspension?

I mean i do like going of road sometimes...

531phile 

Do you have to carry a lot of stuff? Do you have to lug their computer back to your place? If so, get a rack and panniers or even a trailer. If not just use a backpack. 3-6miles isn't much so almost any bike could work.

Since this is work related, get the most flat resistant tires you can afford. You'll loss customers if you show up late because of a flat. I recommend specialized armadillo 26 x 1.5 tires. Good peace of mind knowing you ride one of the most flat resistant tires on the market. It may seem expensive but it is worth it in the long run since you won't have to replace tubes as often (almost never, these tires are tough)

Stuffstuff1

Trailer might be to much but a rack may seem reasonable.

I been using a back pack (North face bigshot) but some times the load doesn't become over whelming. No so much the weight and my performance but the stress on my shoulders.

So which are good panniers for the $?

I have been lucky so far. in the past 6 months i have only had 1 flat!

531phile 

Ortliebs are great panniers, waterproof too which could be a good thing for electrical items. Sorta pricey at about $160/pair. Before my Ortliebs I used Performance grocery getters as makeshift panniers. They work fine. Sometimes I would hit one with my heel and it would fall off. I still use it for my groceries. I'm sure you can wrap something around the handles and secure it to your rack so it doesn't fall off. They go for sale sometimes at Performance.com for about $25 each. Not bad. I got one that is 6 years old. Has a small hole in it, Sags a little and the metal hoops that secure it to the rack is a little bent out of shape, but it is still functional. Cheap way to lug stuff. If you got big feet, heel clearance could be an issue. I'd go to a Performance bike shop and put it on your rack before buying it.

earth2pete

buying a bicycle is like buying clothes. it depends on what you like, what you are using them for, and your physical build. sometimes it's trial and error. i've commuted on just about everything except a single speed or a fixed gear bike. most will get the job done. once your'e addicted, you will ride anything as long as it's a bike!

but anyway, sounds like the boulder is a nice choice.

like my ex-wife asked me once while i was buying a new bike, 'is this the last bike you are going to buy?' the guy behind the counter spoke up before i could. 'it doesn't usually work that way,' he said. he was right.

by the way, my most recent bike, which is my favorite so far, is the trek 7.3 fx, very similar in design to the giant boulder, except the trek has street tires for the road. but the boulder looks like an excellent bike for the price! i think you may love it.

remember to take it for a test drive. also, ride several other brands of the same type of bike before you buy. you may find something similar you like even better. sometimes just a tiny little difference in a bike can really be important to you, so test ride!

monsterpile

A trailer would be a pain for most runs, but if you ever need something bigger to pick up a bunch of computers a trailer would be great. Look around on Craiglist for a cheap used one that was a kids trailer. Maybe you will happen on one at a garage sale or thrift store. I have bought 2 of them each were $5 but I got pretty lucky.

Stuffstuff1

For my style of riding (Very aggressive) a trailer would get me killed.

ughh bicycles are so expensive.

I need to get my self fenders (My other ones broke)
I need road tires because i know these current ones are slowing me down
And it would be convnet if i can carr stuff around with a pannier...

DGozinya

Bikes are expensive? Add up insurance, gas, maintenance, parking, etc. for your car and re-evaluate. I think you should see it's a good bargain. Especially if you are buying smart items for your bike.

Stuffstuff1

Yea but if i go ahead and buy all these things i want i would have spent almost $150 on the bicycle

n8ked_rider

Spending money on bikes should not produce a frowny..

Stuffstuff1

Its the spending money.

Totaled108

See if they will barter with you. Other then that, if you want a bike that won't let you down, especially since you are hard on them. You'll have to get quality items, and they don't generally come free. That would be like having you build me a computer that have quality parts that add up to $750 and only want to pay you $200.

monsterpile

If you are on a budget look for stuff on Craiglist. I got my rear folding baskets for $5. You can also do a number of DIY type things. Do you have a rear rack? If you do then you can find all kids of ways to attach things too it. Crates are pretty popular and sometimes there are wire baskets you can find cheaply that you and attach as well. you can get alot of your things to you cheaply if you take a bit of time and get creative.

What do you usually carry or what do you want to carry?

Stuffstuff1

I usually carry tools and laptops

On every call i always bring a netbook and a basic tools kit.

And depending on the call i can bring any where from soldering iron, Helping hands heat guns, SATA - USB adapters, Dvd for every operating system, power supply testers, precision tool kits, Multimeter's ETC ETC


In total it could weight me down almost 20 pounds or more.

And more often then not i will have to take a laptop or two back with me.

A average latop weights five pounds.

...

Also what are the difference with a $15 dollar rack and a $25 dollar one?

and what bags should i get?

(I have a $50 budget for this)

Captain Blight

If all you have is $50, then save up until your budget is $100. Seriously. I work at a bike shop, I handle the good and the bad every day, and I am here to tell you that if you cheap out on this, you'll just have to buy it all over again when it breaks. The good stuff doesn't really cost all that much more in absolute terms (a $50 dollar rack is twice the price of a $25 rack, sure; but it's also only $25 more. See?) but it's just so much better done. The difference is in quality of raw materials, the machine work done in the fabrication process, the care taken in assembly. There's a reason why you can buy a Joytech hub for five bucks and why the Campagnolo hubs cost forty times that. The Italian thing is a joy (overkill for your app, though, it'd be like overclocking a netbook to play HALO Black Ops), and the Joytech is good for scrap.

Buy the best you can and buy it once. Buying used good stuff is usually a better option than buying cheap new. Craigslist is your friend.

Oh, and to answer your question about the fork. You really don't need suspension to go offroad. Particularly that suspension. It's flimsy, the seals are made out of recycled wetsuits and the valving is set up for soccer moms who have to negotiate speed bumps on the bike path. It is literally worse than no suspension at all, and will go south on you at the worst possible time. It is the AOL of forks, the Windows Vista of forks. A well-designed, well-made rigid fork like the Salsa or the Surly will provide a surprising amount of compliance, and will be VASTLY more responsive, and weigh less. It also won't rob you of energy on climbs like the noodle you have. Please trust me on this.

Stuffstuff1

But then.... How much is a good fork...

Robert C

Well, it is a bit late to say it; but, no. A Mt. bike is probably not the best bike for a work bike. As others have said, any suspension is unnecessary. Further, it lacks real cargo capacity. My roommate, while I was in grad school, was also an independent PC tech. It was not all to uncommon for him to bring a PC home so he could do a job at his convenience.

I worked as a copier tech for about ten years. I would frequently park my van wherever I could and biked the rest of the way to the client. I also used a Mt. Bike and it was not ideal. I eventually modified a little cart to use as a trailer so I could pack all the stuff I needed with me on service calls. It was never ideal.

There are a number of bikes entering the market that are best described as "cargo bikes;" manufacturers that come to mind are surly, Kona, and I think trek has one. The same effect can be attained by adding an "extra-cycle" kit to what you have; but, it still will not be a single unit designed to work together. I would suggest going and looking at these cargo bikes; they may not look as cool; but, they are a closer to meeting the needs of a tradesman.

LeeG

you got the bike, no need for something different. Do you have a floor pump? Can't own a bike without a floor pump. With fat tires you don't have to pump them to the max listed on the tire unless you're especially heavy.
Those Kendas look like they'd last forever and are inexpensive. If fast rolling tires is a priority the Continental Sport Contact are good.

Stuffstuff1

Well might aswell make the most of it now.

Ill tighten the suspension to the max

I will get road slick tires.

but now..

Is this a good deal?

https://www.amazon.com/Delta-Cycle-Me...642006&sr=1-23