How many "Commuter bikes" is too many?
 

I have about 4-5 bikes that I commute on,although most of the time it is my Jamis Commuter in the summer months a Claud Butler Majestic or a Healing(NZ Made) ten speed, I have a couple of MTB type builds in process too.
The Jamis has been my go to bike more often than not because of the puncture resistance tyres, and I think I like the ITG hub more than my external Mech set ups.
With the Claud I am trying to get the ride feel right, I will then use it for some Retro touring, weekend type trips. It is a beautiful bike
My question is how many bikes is "normal" in a commuter fleet. How may bikes do you have?

1 commuter is normal in my estimation, though many, myself included, have a winter bike and a summer bike. I also have a mountain bike that keeps knobbies year-round that occasionally sees commuting duty if my other rigs are out of service or I just want to mix things up.

As long as they all get ridden, then you're fine. When you start getting bikes that never see the outdoors anymore, it's probably time to get rid of those.

1 single bike; 1 tandem.

At one point I decided that since most of my biking is commuting, all my bikes need to be set up for commuting duty (a rack and light mounts minimum, plus 2 out of my 3 single bikes have fenders). Therefore, all get used for commuting sometimes. One is mostly just a winter commuting bike. I've never commuted on the tandem, but that has a rack and fenders as well.

What is normal? I would say that if you're really committed to bike commuting, you should have a minimum of two ready to go at all times. I can also drive or take the bus to work, but when I'm planning to bike it's quite a letdown to go into the garage and realize that I have a flat....

I have more than a dozen bikes, three of which get ridden regularly. If I happen to find another bike that piques my interest, I'll buy it so n+1 is the number that works for me. That's yet another advantage of being single... I get to decide correct number. ;)

I have three bikes. That's all I really need.

Catch and release is hard to do once you customized the bike with expensive components.

Commute on Beaters and that threshold is Lower..

I currently have 7 bicycles. Everyone of them has been used for commuting. I've also owned 31 total bikes and everyone of them has been used for commuting.

I am realizing that I love getting new bikes, I think I will need to sort out the shed and maybe get a couple more?! I really like all the bikes I have and get a different feel on each, I think that will be the thing that keeps me commuting when it gets mundane. I want to get some Brahma bars and finish setting up one of the MTB's I have in build stage ATM.

How many angels can dance...etc.

n + 1. Have as many as you want, riding different bikes is fun.

OP: What is the square footage of your garage? :D

Bought an old Trek 720 last week.

Needed a "to work and back" bike.

My favorite lbs had the bike as a recent trade.

Dirt cheap, crappy paint, and a few "needs."

Put on lights, bar wrap, Blackburn mtb racks, longboard fenders and an old set of Schwalbes that they had sitting there.

Should be ample.

I vote for one. I won't ride the nice stuff in the snow.

But any bike you can ride in the snow is the nice stuff!

i have 2. One is a back up incase the main one has problems and if both have some kind of problem then its the car

Up to four with two more planned.

I have two dedicated commuter bikes. Both older Novara Randonee frames, one with flat bars (lock-up-able, main winter ride), the other with drop bars and STIs. My LHT is also perfectly fine for a commuter bike, as is my Motobecane Fantom CXX (Crosscheck clone). I'm currently contemplating buying a tiny 50cm Salsa Vaya Ti that CC has on sale. Do I really need an 8th bike??

1. Full rigid MTB with Nokian Extremes for the really nasty stuff. 2. IGH with nokian W106's for general winter use. 3. hybrid with front and rear racks, fenders for heavy hauling, utility use. 4. CX bike with fenders for above freezing wet days. 5. Waterford for the nice, dry days. 6. Old, lugged steel Schwinn for when I'm going places after work where I don't want to leave a $1,000 plus bike locked unattended.

I figure that gives me six set up with racks that get regular use. There's also several bikes without racks hanging in the garage as well that get used for bopping around with the kids. I agree it is really nice to be able to pick the ideal bike for the conditions.

I also figure that despite having over 200 commuter days each of the last 5 years I haven't saved a dime on commuting - just put together a very nice collection so I do have a choice each day.

I agree and I have 3 always ready to go. My main "Commuter One" is decked out with heavy commuting wheels/tires while the others can be same with a simple wheel swap. I have a spare set of commuting wheels that fit on all bikes.

Let's see.....I have three that I use for commuting: a beater cruiser, a cyclocross, and a fixie. I also use a tandem when I have to take my daughter somewhere. I have a vintage Schwinn Jaguar that I'm overhauling, and soon that will be thrown into the mix. So, I guess I have 5. That's not too many, is it?

Oh yeah....two Schwinn Varsities, as well.

And a Schwinn Traveler that's being customized.

So I guess I have 7.

Um....and a Specialized Allez. I never ride it, though.

Hi. My name is Sprayman, and I'm a bikeaholic.

One road bike is all I need, although I adjust my son's to use in emergency or my wife's mtb in a pinch. But only one is 'committee's.

Two, a road 27" & MTB 26", out of 8 or so in the garage. In a pinch any other bike will work with a backpack.

(1 for now) - I don't have a garage, and not much space in my apartment, otherwise I would own as many as I could afford!

Guys Thanks for the replies and well . . . it would seem I am not alone in my bike addiction
(Sprayman should we set up some bikeaholic meetings??:roflmao2:)

I will post so me pics tomorrow of the bikes I ride.

This bike llife is a lovely ride, isn't it?

I can and have commuted on all the bikes I have (I have lost count) although a few are really dedicated to this as they are kitted out for whatever mother nature can toss at me.

One trek 520 touring bike I use as my main bike for everything, and a mountain bike that is my backup and offroad vehicle.

+1. Keeping two bikes road-worthy is a good strategy. I don't have a car, so my fall back is the city bus... but I haven't had a time when both bikes were DOA.

"Normal" went out the window when we started riding our bikes to work. Only rule should be that you need a minimum of one bike that will comfortably and reliably get you to work and back. :thumb:

25 I just don't sell. When I die someone will have a lot of nice bikes.

**I just bought the Vaya Ti.**