Circulating

Hi guys, I've never really commuted on bike, or ridden bikes since I was a kid, but I really want to get into riding more often.

I"ll be using it to sometimes ride to the gym (5 miles one way) to the store (3 miles one way).

I'm going back and forth between fixed gear/road/hybrid style, and hardtail front suspension only mtb.

I know the mtb would be more heavy usually, and slower due to thicker tires. But you'd be able to through fields and other stuff for shortcuts. For a road/hybrid, you'd obviously be faster, but less options. I was wondering if you guys could help me choose!

Here are two local bikes i believe are good value I'm looking at. They are both asking only $100

https://imgur.com/a/K2s08

Maelochs

I don't see anything when I click the link. In any case a written description would tell us much more about a bike than a small, fuzzy photo ever would.

Also, everyone here will tell you that the most important question is, "Does it fit?" if you can ride it comfortably you might or might not ride it, but if you cannot you will not.

After that, well, for $200 buy them both and sell whichever you don't like ... or just ride them both.

In all likelihood you will either buy one and be happy and tool around town occasionally for the rest of your life or you will discover how much joy can be had from cycling and will spend considerably more on a bike which really suits you not a very long time from now.

Starting cheap is the way to go ... but we cannot possibly advise you on a specific bike without a lot more information. All anyone can say is, ride it around, see if it is comfortable, see if everything seems to work and doesn't wobble or rub or make funny noises.

10 Wheels

Get The Specialized if it Fits...Looks as it is a very small bike.

How tall might you be?

Circulating

The pictures were pretty good quality I figured a pro could spot out good or bad parts or something hehe. But yeah that's good advice. Thanks!

Circulating

I am but a 5'8" man

kevindsingleton 

Pass on the GT. The Specialized is worth taking a look at. It's an older hybrid style, but I don't know which model. It looks like there is enough clearance for larger tires, so you can put some bigger tires on it, and ride it almost anywhere. As Maelochs said, fit is more important than just about anything else. If the Specialized doesn't fit you, though, you might just buy it, anyway, and see if you can trade it for something in your size. That's what I would do.

Maelochs

Got the pics to open---hey, we all have challenges. Anyway, tjhe Specialized looks tiny. The GT has a front shock, which is likely very old and very cheap and more just dead weight than useful suspension, and since you said the harshest thing you would likely be doing isd crossing a field---no jumps or rock gardens or such--then likely the shock would be not just useless but a detriment--and one of the first things to break.

Any hybrid/cyclocross bike would work well, and any road bike which could handle slightly wider tires---a lot depends on how much time you planned to spend riding roads versus paths versus fields. I'd steer clear of a suspension mountain bike unless you were planning to really push for speed off-road on a regular basis. For an all-around commuter which could handle any terrain, a rigid fork would be fine. In fact, my first mountain bike was rigid. I couldn't slam it hard over rocks and roots like I could my later full-suspension bike, but i could still ride absolutely anywhere I wanted to ride, pretty much.

Circulating

I agree the specialized looks small in the photo, the dude says it's a 54cm frame. Which should be perfect considering my height.

ColaJacket

From what you're describing about how you would be riding, I'd look at either hybrids or road endurance bikes.

Go to an LBS, and road test a few bikes. They should do a very basic fit for the road test. But then you'll know what to expect in fit and comfort if you road test a CL bike.

GH

Circulating

Should I feel bad about testing their bikes, getting a fit, and then not buying from them though? I mean, I'd be back for services, extra parts, etc, but I wouldn't be buying the bike from them and that makes me feel trashy haha.

Circulating

What do you guys think about this schwinn instead?

https://imgur.com/ZHo496u

jon c. 

I take the Specialized over the Schwinn. If the Spec fits you. The Schwinn doesn't look any larger. I'm 5'8" and ride a 54. I wouldn't go to anything smaller. If the Spec is really a 54 and feels good, I'd go for it. (It doesn't look like a 54, but with the hybrid frame style it's harder for me to gauge size visually.)

I've tested many bikes I didn't buy, but I might have bought them. They were at least under consideration. If I knew I wasn't going to buy it and was just riding to test size, I'd feel bad wasting their time.

Maelochs

If the folks at the local bike shop are decent, helpful people, tell them what's up and see what they say. Maybe they won't mind if they are going to get the rest of their business. otherwise, thank them and come back whenever to drop a few dollars --- maybe for a tune-up when needed.

Really, though, basic bike fit isn't rocket science. You want a slight bend in your knee when seated comfortably with the pedal at its farthest down and forward point in its rotation, and you don't want to feel like you need to put most of your weight on your arms because the bars are so far forward. Saddles slide for and aft, stems go up and down (only a little, nowadays) and can be replaced with longer, shorter, and even adjustable angle stems (which are great for new riders so they can learn what fits and adjust as they get more fit.)

It is probably easier for a flat-bar bike because you know you will want a more upright posture---with a road bike like the Schwinn with drop bars (the curled bars) you tend to want to ride lower, and it can be hard to tell what will be comfortable after half-an-hour or so.

The Schwinn look okay--where are the shifters, thumb-shifters on the bars? But for the kind of riding you have described, a more upright bike might be more comfortable. Again, it depends on how much of the time you will be riding on-road versus off-road.

ramzilla

Get a hybrid/fitness style bike. Don't bother with drop bars. They're bad for your back.

MRT2

BlazingPedals

Ya gotta be careful about Schwinns these days; their models range from middle-OK to crappy. The stem shifters on that one tell me it's one of the bottom-end ones from a local dept store. Avoid.

MichaelW

Almost any bike will do for low millage utility riding. It helps if the bike fits you, and has rack/fender eyelets and sufficient tyre clearance (for med tyres).
Consider any extra uses. Do you fancy off-road, road endurance events, touring, club runs. Do you want a low maintenance, grab and go bike? I would avoid suspension if possible, even for occasional tracks and trails.
Budget for accessories, helmet, lock, lights, rack, fender, pannier bags as required. Upgrade to well protected tyres such as Schwalbe Marathon.