acidfast7

Situation:

I'm looking at living about 1.5mi north of the large regional train station in Darlington and I'm looking for a bike that I could chain up outside of my flat in the evenings and at the cyclerack at the station (with CCTV and plain clothes personnel monitoring).

Price:

I'm looking in the £50-100 range as nice bikes with dynamos/racks/fenders/lights can be had £350 or so new. In addition, in a month or so, I'll bring over all of my stuff from Germany, including regular commuter. So, I am really just looking for a 1-2 mile commuter (rusty old city bikes would be fine) that would live outside when I didn't want to chain the nicer bike up in the city.

Example of a new £350 bike that would meet my needs in case people demand too much for a secondhand bike:

https://www.cyclesurgery.com/pws/Uniq...s&siteid=29553

Questions:

Everywhere I've lived, there have been useful webpages for second-hand bikes:

US: https://maine.craigslist.org/bia/
Germany: https://www.ebay.de/sch/Fahrraeder-/177831/i.html and the weekly fleamarket in Frankfurt.
Sweden: https://www.blocket.se/stockholm/cykl...1&cg=6060&st=s
Denmark: https://cykler.dba.dk/

So, what about northeast England? Should I start at the local bike shop or eBay or what?

Thanks in advance!

acidfast7

kinda answered my own question here with GumTree:

https://www.gumtree.com/bicycles/county-durham/bikes

can anyone from the UK chime in with an answer to whether all of these bikes are stolen?

contango 

No way of knowing from looking at an ad if a bike is stolen.

If you suddenly find a high end bike offered for sale with few if any details and a seller who doesn't seem to know what it is or anything about it, I'd say that was a good warning sign. If the serial number underneath the bottom bracket is removed that's a good warning sign as well. Other than that you pretty much need to be aware of the "if it's too good to be true..." concept.

Even then it's possible someone is selling a bike after someone has died and truly doesn't know anything about it. Hopefully in that kind of situation they would have a copy of a receipt, give you a receipt with their name and address on it (and it would be the same address you went to look/collect it) etc.

acidfast7

Missing rear wheels, etc...

Where would you look for a second hand bike with a 1-2 week window?

Also, I've got to say that the housing stock is quite bleak in the northeast ... although it is dirt cheap.

contango 

Hard to say where to look with that short a window. You could try ebay and restricting your search to bikes close enough to go and collect. Or if you've got a local bike shop they may have something available - my LBS doesn't do second hand bikes as a rule but every once in a while they'll take something in as part exchange against a new bike and when that happens they have a used bike to sell.

If you're looking at spending £50-100 then the chances are as long as what you're looking at doesn't leave you thinking "all this for £50?" you'll probably be OK. Realistically at that end of the market the chances of the seller having their original receipt are pretty slim - my bikes would probably be worth £3-500 or so as used bikes and I don't know that I've still got receipts for any of them because they all date back to 2009 and are well out of warranty. Unfortunately the chances of picking up a stolen bike are one of the risks you have to take whenever you buy used, although if you can get something from a bike shop or a cooperative or something you'd hope they had done basic due diligence to avoid reselling stolen goods.

acidfast7

Yeah, I understand.

I have a nice daily commuter that will come over in a month or two.

I'm think of doing the continental European thing and having a total junker that keeps air in the tires (don't care if it shifts or fits really well) and chaining it up at the rail station. Also, it's great when friends are in town so that we'd have a pair of bikes.

If I'm spending over £100, I might as well just £350 in that case

acidfast7

but thanks for your input

please keep it coming.

treadtread

If its 1-2 miles, for 1-2 weeks - walk!

contango 

Or, depending on how far you're travelling by train, spend more on a decent bike and cycle all the way to wherever you're going (presumably work?) and save money on train fares.

I used to pay £140/month for a season ticket in London - in six months that was £840, or in other words enough to buy a respectable commuting bike at least twice a year.

acidfast7

That's the long-term plan. It's 40km RT and once the bike comes from Germany, I'll bike it year-round.

I just don't want to drop the money on another bike.

I want a solution for having two bikes when guests come and visit.

rykard

cheap folder?

acidfast7

I've thought about this as well.

Actually, I think it will depend on where I want to live (detached house, flat, terraced flat) and what storage comes with it.

The UK is much different than the continent with regards to housing.

rykard

or even a not so cheap one, think decathlon do one, but you wouldn't necessarily need to lock it up outside the station either..

acidfast7

Decathlon had a super nice folder but it's sold out.

It was folding with 6 speeds, fenders, lights and rack for €199.

rykard

is there another near you in germany? or near darlington

kinkicycle.com

In the UK the police often hold auctions of stolen bikes they have recovered that they have not been able to locate the owners of. I know in London where bike theft is an massive problem the police often hold these auctions, not so sure about the rest of the country. You could try the CTC forums for more local information.

Beany

Hi all, my first post.

There's a bicycle recycling charity in Darlington that might be what you're looking for:
https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/fea...n_s_Bike_Stop/

I've not been to that one, but I can recommend Recyke-y-bike in Byker if you ever come up to Newcastle:
https://www.recyke-y-bike.org/buy/

acidfast7

Hi!

Thanks for creating an account to post. I'll be in Newcastle a few times while I'm getting settled in.

Not related to the question ... but what would you think of living in Yarm? Seems like a small village with some appeal, especially if I can rent one of those old English cottages.

Thanks again for your post. I'll check out both places.

Also, would you happen to have any links to cycling resources (online maps, clubs, etc...) for the northeast?

acidfast7

just wanted to say thanks again as that exactly what i'm looking for, so don't need to spend the money in CPH and can keep it in NE England

Beany

I've never been to Yarm, I'm afraid.

Darlington council have some cycling maps: https://www.darlington.gov.uk/LocalMo...tesandmaps.htm
Newcastle/Gateshead/Sunderland too: https://www.tyneandwearltp.gov.uk/maps/

Not sure what kind of club you are looking for- there are several roadie clubs in the NE, and I think there's a local CTC (https://www.ctc.org.uk/) group.