I lost my commuter bike today. It was a Diamondback hybrid that I had set up with SKS longboard fenders, rear rack and the Walden(?) foldable racks. And I had just put new lights on it! There is a chance that a maintenance person just moved it somewhere, or one of my neighbors just "borrowed" it for the day, but all I know is it isn't where I left it.

So now I am considering my options to replace it. I currently have an older Peugeot road bike that I don't have any fenders or commuter features on, meant to be my good weather/recreational bike. I like having a separate "utility" bike, but I don't know much about them right now. My old hybrid was a gift and is the bike that got me into biking, so I didn't do any research when I got it.

I'm hoping to get some advice on good reliable makes/models that I could look for on craigslist. I'd like to get a base bike for up to $200 that I could then add on things like fenders, racks, etc as I get the money for them. I'd rather not get a mountain bike, although I know those can be found very cheap. I'd like a more commuter/comfort type bike. At some point I want to get a dynohub and light, so something that that would look appropriate on. What I'm imagining is a newer-equivalent of the old sears 3 speeds.

Thanks for any advice you guys can give!

Was your bike locked with a good quality lock when it got stolen ?? If it wasn't ,then maybe you should buy a good lock before anything else, that way your next bike has much less chance of getting stolen.

No, it was not locked. It was sitting with about 20 other unlocked bikes in my building's underground garage. None of the other bikes are missing. If it came to it, I would just store the bike in my apartment. I felt like the bike was safe in the garage that only residents have access to, and I store it in my office at work, so I don't lock my bikes unless I'm stopping at a store (where I do use a kryptonite mini-u lock)

If it was in a place with restricted access, that kind of narrows the suspect list.

Keep an eye on Craigslist. A lot of the bikes that show up there are stolen.

Sorry about your stolen bike!

Get the GT ZUM CITY BIKE from performancebike.com for just about $280 with the 20% discount.

Also, get a New York Fahghettaboudit U-Lock and always lock your bike.

Thanks for the recommendation.. I'll check that one out.

My other option is to fix up an old sears 3 speed. The wheels are worthless (don't spin) but I'm going to stop by my LBS to see how much I'd need to spend to upgrade it to modern lighter wheels, maybe with a 7 speed IGH and a dynohub on the front.

As for the garage situation, someone could have slipped in behind a car to get in, but it has always seemed very safe. It's an upscale building and the people who are much richer than me leave a lot of storage bins, bikes, etc out and unlocked. Like I said there are about 20 other bikes all sitting around unlocked, so I felt pretty safe.. some of the bikes are a good bit more expensive than mine. The nice thing is that all access points in and out of the garage and building are under video surveillance, so if it was someone from the building I should find out tomorrow when the property manager checks the tapes.

post an up date after you see the video... hope your bike is safe

Will do..

Anybody else have advice on good commuter/comfort/utility brands? I think updating the wheels on the sears 3 speed could be a pretty good option. That bike is a tank but a lot of the weight seems to be in the steel wheels. Would buying a very cheap new bike, or cheaper newer-used bike be significantly better? I had planned to give this old one to a co-op before this happened.

Also checkout Nashbar's Aluminum Road bike at only $500. It has Sora componentry!

www.nashbar.com

What kind of wheels are currently on the bike? It's difficult to answer your question without knowing what is on the bike. I think I would bring the bike to your LBS and ask them what options are for inexpensive wheel replacement. They will also have an estimate for getting the bike in good working order. Why not take the bike and join the co-op you were going to donate the bike to? Learning basic bike maintenance is a valuable skill.

start with buying a good lock.

i recommend an ABUS Bordo as they offer very good protection and are much less hassle than a U-lock to carry around.

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_no...rds=abus+bordo

Sorry to hear that your bike was stolen, always lock your bike or if you can take it to your apartment and keep it safe there is better.

I always hear that Trek Commuters or Hybrids are the best, I use to have a Specialized Hybrid and it was an awesome bike ever. I think you can find a Trek used in a good prize but you have to shop around, check the prize, check the bike and off you go.

Good luck on finding your bike, hopefully in the surveillance video you will have answers. I also suggest that you report your bike stolen to the police.

Thanks for the Nashbar suggestion. I don't want another road bike,, very happy with the old Peugeot, but I did find essentially a newer version of the sears 3 speed for $350!

https://www.nashbar.com/bikes/Product...07_-1___202396

With an 8 speed IGH wheel that's about $150 on its own on amazon. After adding the front wheel and a new rack I think I could just barely upgrade the old Sears for that price.

Also, a good lock wouldn't have helped me; there's nothing to lock a bike to in the parking garage below my building. I figured with 20+ other unlocked bikes around, if anything ever happened I'd at least have decent odds of it not being mine. I'll keep my road bike in my apartment now (have some convincing to do with my fiancee). There won't be enough room to have both bikes in our small apartment, so whatever I get is going to have to be kept in the garage. There is a side room down there with a door that is pretty well hidden from view, I think whatever I get will be kept in there (a few people keep some very nice bikes in there).

But anyway, this Nashbar cruiser looks like exactly what I had in mind! It doesn't have the dynohub but I can add that on later when I get some more money. Even if I do get the old bike back, I'm excited enough about this new one that I'll probably sell it and use that money to get it.

2 Things Here:

1) Ask or petition the apartment manager to install a formidable indoor bicycle rack.

2) Meanwhile install a bicycle wall rack inside of your apartment somewhere.

Do you have a balcony?

I knew someone in a similar situation who filled a big bucket with cement and embedded a loop of steel rod in it. He locked his bike to that. Not completely safe since a thief could still carry off both the bike and the bucket - but it was very heavy and would certainly make any of the other bikes much more tempting targets.

+1

This sounds like a great idea! However, you'd have to keep some kinda lock

attached at all times in order to reserve your spot!

$200 for a decent bike you need a used older bike, since inflation ticks onward, upward .
double that for new.

What brands are in your LBS?

Folding bikes are good
because then you can stow the bike in small apartments , without it occupying much space.

That's also a good idea . And one thing I like about this Nashbar bike is that it looks very non-descript. No logos, looks like an old bike that someone might have spray painted a plain color.

Personally I would love to put in some sort of pulley system where the bikes could be lifted up out of the way (we have very high ceilings). I saw something like it on TV once. Other than that, our apartment is very small and there really isn't anywhere I could install a wall rack that would pass the fiancee test.

I'll be in contact with my apartment manager about putting in bike racks. I will only be here for a few more months, but it would be nice for the people who have all those other bikes in our garage to have a safer way to store them down there.

The LBS I go to tends toward more high end bikes. I have seen some Fuji road bikes there for around 450-500 though.

I like the idea of a folder for my situation.. although hopefully in a few months I'll have a safer place to store 2 bikes when I move.

Anybody have experience with these cheapy Nashbar bikes?

Most Nashbar bikes are of great quality. Of course, I wouldn't buy anything under $300, unless it was a single speed...

The bike in which you're interested is a great bike for certain!

My apartment has racks, but they're mounted to the wall and I just can't lift my bike up there. My solution was to get a giant cable (8 ft) and lock my bike to one of the concrete support pillars. So far nobody's complained.

I have also seen one of those pulley systems, though the one I saw looked like it was a long term storage solution. I wouldn't want to deal with it every day.

Yeah I might be able to swing the long cable and lock up to a pillar. Space is very tight down there though and I'd probably be in someone's parking spot.

For the pulley system I'd have to get something really nice, hit a button and it comes down and back up on its own Maybe someday when I have a lot more money haha.

I think the Nashbar bike is so cheap because it's only available in 52cm and 60cm. I'm worried the 52cm would be a little small, but I think comfort bike sizes are a little smaller for the same size person than road bikes. I suppose if it came down to it I could send it back.

The geometry chart indicates that 56 is also there, though it may be out of stock at the moment. Did you get a look at the surveillance tapes yet?

Not yet, I couldn't find the manager this morning.. will have to try tomorrow morning.

They only have 52 and 60 in stock. I talked to someone on their help chat and they said that they did have 56cm but weren't planning on getting any more. I'd hate to wait and then have the price go up from the 350 that it is now..

Since you are considering online retailers, have you seen this?
https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/windsor/oxford.htm
or
https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/...ord_deluxe.htm