Need Advice on Buying a Hybrid
 

Hi all!

So I'm in the market for a Hybrid bike, and I pretty much know little to none about bikes (other than riding them). I want the bike to ride around towns, 5 mile radius probably, doing so about 2-3 times a week. And to go on some bike trails as well once a week. That being said I'm going to be a casual rider. I'd like to spend about $200, at max. I know thats a low number, but I'm going to be a casual rider and I feel like I will not get use out of a more expensive bike.

With the information I have provided, can you guys (and girls) help me out?

Thanks :)

The two things you are going to get told are:

FIT first. Make sure you get fitted properly. THe next thing the divinely wise sages on this board will say is stay away from X-mart bikes and hit a real bike shop or try the CL/used market.

They may also tell you to raise your budget just a bit for quality.

I ride a $450 Trek 7.2 2007 for utility/around town. I ride a $450 Fuji Newest 3.0 2008 (close-out special) for distance. I bought the Fuji at a Performance bike shop, which with your budget would be my recommendation, and the Trek from my local Trek dealer.

Well, I just picked up a Schwinn Tourist hybrid bike at Target on sale for $234 (regularly $249) and I am very pleased with it. You might want to take a look at it if the Target near you has one.


.

Thanks for the responses!

i bought a Diamondback Insight One back in December....and love it. Very Light weight and easy to use. Got it at Amazon for $349. Dicks sporting goods store had it for $399.

The Fuji Newest 2.0 mentioned above is on sale right now at Performance for $499 for the 2009 model. And the 2009 3.0 is $349.

If I were in the market for a hybrid, I would seriously consider one of those. I was in the Performance store today and saw a 2.0 as I walked in the door. It seemed quite nice.

EDITED: I had the 2.0 and 3.0 backward. Fixed.

I say the following as someone who has several years of experience working at a bike shop as both salesperson and as a wrench. (Full disclosure, currently working at a Trek dealer)

Spending a bit more on the front end will save you a lot of time, money, hassle, frustration, disappointment, and problems later on.

LBSs regularly see bike from Target, WalMart, Toys R Us, etc that are less than a month old and in dire need of repair because they were never set up properly before being sold. A basic tune-up at my shop runs about $60. Even after being tuned by a very experienced mechanic, it still won't run great because the parts are of such poor quality that things don't (can't) move into place properly.

So now you've saved $150 versus a quality bike then spent $60 to get it sort of working right, have little to no warranty, probably still need the wheels straightened and new brake pads so that you can stop in the rain...

I hope you see my point. If you're stuck at $200 for your price point, I would say search the used market for a decent quality bike rather than spend $200 on "new"

I say the following as someone who has several years of experience working at a bike shop as both salesperson and as a wrench. (Full disclosure, currently working at a Trek dealer)

Spending a bit more on the front end will save you a lot of time, money, hassle, frustration, disappointment, and problems later on.

LBSs regularly see bike from Target, WalMart, Toys R Us, etc that are less than a month old and in dire need of repair because they were never set up properly before being sold. A basic tune-up at my shop runs about $60. Even after being tuned by a very experienced mechanic, it still won't run great because the parts are of such poor quality that things don't (can't) move into place properly.

So now you've saved $150 versus a quality bike then spent $60 to get it sort of working right, have little to no warranty, probably still need the wheels straightened and new brake pads so that you can stop in the rain...

I hope you see my point. If you're stuck at $200 for your price point, I would say search the used market for a decent quality bike rather than spend $200 on "new"

If I decided on that budget I would look for a good quality used bike that fit me. There are a ton of them around and you can get a lot of bike for the money with a used bike.

Find your local craigslist, search it and see if you cant find used. I see good deals on there all the time. You could buy a $200 bike from Target and its going to need a $60 tune up, in which case you would be better off spending a little more at a bike shop to begin with.

Also, before you know it if you buy a nicer bike, your 5 miles will become 10, then 10 will become 15...etc.

Remember that even a used good bike may need a tuneup. Sometimes you might be better off buying a brand new bike from the bike shop. That way, you know the history of the bike :)

Yeah I see everyone's point. And very much appreciated.

It goes back to "you get what you pay for."

My reasoning for not wanting to spend a lot of money is pure use out of the bike. I will be a novice rider, using it a couple days out of the week. Winter season will be totally out (I live in PA). So if I did spend more money, and it doesn't get a ton of use, I'd feel like the extra money spent would be for nothing. Also at the same time, I don't want to buy a piece of garbage bike. Catch 22?

One thing to bear in mind - is that if you do buy a more expensive bike but don't get on with it, you'll still be able to sell it on as used on ebay etc.