Hi Everyone! This forum has been a great resource over the years so wanted to say Thank you! as well as ask some advice...

Like many I started off with used Bikes first BMX's as a kid then cheap mountain bikes, until I was given a Hybrid about 5 years ago that was on the cheap side but an upgrade from my Raleigh MTB, thats when the affair truly started.

First it was a Pannier rack, then a new seat, bar grips, rear wheel (2) Armadillo tyres, brake's, bike computers, oil, clean, set ups, every LBS I went to said I should get a new bike but I never listened, no-one would steal the bike let alone look at it, They didn't nor could they understand... I would look at other bikes but I couldn't bring myself to even try one every time the idea would arise I would look at other bikes online and then realise that all I needed to do was buy another part for Frankenstein.

She was called her Frankenstein, not just because of her colour (British racing green) but the fact I kept "upgrading her" we went everywhere, last year on daily commutes, weekend rides a long 90 mile ride last year.

Then this year, I noticed things where not as they used to be, I became more aware of my riding posture I wasn't sitting on the bike properly, I wanted to sit further back than the seat would allow, she began getting on my nerves (literally, feet would go numb, lower back would cave in etc.) I wanted to go further and travel to new places, try new things but it seemed like she was holding me back.

I'm not taking her out as often as I should, we don't seem to match properly anymore, I need more but she is just happy sticking with what she knows.
I know it's time for me to finally buy a new bicycle and get a proper fit but telling old Frankenstein she is surplus to requirements does break my heart, just a little.

She needs new parts but I feel it is wiser to make the break and try something new... Oh the guilt!

Anyways...

New bicycle vs old

Buying a new bike is a bit of minefield, I've done a lot of searching but still a little confused.
I'm pretty certain I need a Hybrid but am you never know, I will be commuting, shopping, long rides (would like to go on a really long ride (40 miles +) again soon and build from there, I'm in a city but also ride offroad quite often, nothing too crazy, just Canal paths/trails.

Frankenstein needs a new seat, front wheel, probably cables soon and I'm pretty sure the frame is a little too small for me (I'm 180cm) so I feel it's time to make the jump.

I've been looking at bikes like the Trek 7.5 but am a little concerned at the it's ability to go "missing" is a cheaper model like the 7.3 (or any other brand) suitable for all the things I need, the price range of the 7.3 is more desirable but then buy cheap buy twice as my Grandmother would say.

Any help/advice would be great, even if it means patching things up with Frankenstein!!

(just to add I'm not adverse to tinkering about with bicycles so I am not bothered if I get a cheaper option if the fit is right, I had originally planned to upgrade all the parts on Frankenstein and then get a new frame (and switch those parts over) but at the rate I'm saving/replacing/riding I'm not going to be able to afford that anytime soon or if it's worth it again is the fit mor important at this stage)

Welcome, frankly, about Frankenstein, I'd have to say that at least every other thread in the hybrid section asks the exact same question. Just simple surfing would yield thousands of answers to your question "what new bike should I get"?

I would agree if it was as simple as to what bike should I get but this is more of a dilemma and I thought a funny story on how attached some of us can get to something that no-one else see's much value in, maybe you missed that part or you were too busy coming up with bad puns?

It is that simple.

I bought a new bike last year and went through something similar. All the test rides were nice but just not the same as my old bike.

I still have that old bike and brought it out this past winter. It felt strange, familiar yes, but I realized it was too small. After that ride I hopped on my new bike and it had that nice familiar feeling.

So your new bike will eventually become 'your bike' and Frankenstein will have its place as your old bike.

ps, go for the 7.5

Thank you Derf36!
I'm sure I'll end up keeping Frankenstein and maybe indirectly upgrading it, as I upgrade the new bike I'll put those "old" parts onto Frankenstein and then go with my original plan of getting a new frame for it (family hand me downs never hurt anyone) building something quite different from what I end up buying.

Makes me feel less guilty about putting it away, your idea about winter is a good one, I know how much mud and dirt Frankenstein has picked up over the winters, so I could put her to use on particularly bad days and short runs, I guess.

Hey Derf36, I do have a question for you about your old bike...
In what way did you notice it was too small for you compared to the new bike?

I ask because in an effort to save money and also I hate it when I see bikes thrown away as trash when they are perfectly usable in some way or to someone else, so have riden it long after it's sell by date... anyways I find I'm always wanting to sit back further than the seat will allow (it's already been adjusted to go as far back as possible) this is what leads me to think the frame is too small for me, plus my knees sometimes give me some trouble another thing making me feel as if the old thing is too small.

I had gotten into a somewhat similar situation with my 86 RockHopper.
I don't have a car, so I needed the RH for everything from simple transportation to hauling groceries.
After putting on a rack, baskets & fenders it got heavy enough it simply didn't appeal to just go ride for fun. I turned it into a 3X9 speed with skinnier tires, to make it "less miserable" to ride, but it was too much work to simply ride for fun!
I picked up a 2008 Specialized Globe. I put on skinny tires and changed the gearing to suit and now have a great bike for fair weather fun riding. I rode FAR more many miles last year than I ever had! I was feeling guilty about the RH, only using it to haul stuff.
Starting around the first of October, the Globe didn't get used until about 2 weeks ago.
Foul weather meant all my riding was "utility" type that needed fenders. That's 7 months on the bike that had been relegated as the "back up"!
I now appreciate BOTH.

I do the same as Bill. I have a very light and fast bike and I have a very sturdy utility bike. Between they, they cover the bases beautifully.

Hey Guys
Thanks for the replies... I'm keeping hold of Frankenstein and doing some small mods (new bar stem to extend my reach) and then going to put my money into a steel frame instead and build a new bike from there and save Frankenstein as back up.
.
I had a chat with my LBS and the guy did say that considering I've always rode a steel frame I may find a jump to an Aluminium frame a step down and that I would have to spend twice my budget for a new bike to get anything near comparable and recommended a a bar stem, talked me out of spending cash with him!!

Thanks again, your comments have been a great help clearing my head. I can now see the Steel for the Aluminium
Funny it was what I planned to do a year ago but obviously got starry eyed looking at new bikes.

I'm completely the opposite. When riding one of my very old bicycles I think to myself, wow, what a hunk of junk this is.. why do I still have it? and then I get on my newer bikes with great anticipation.

If there are things you don't like about new bikes you need to put your saddle and pedals on it. If you still don't like a new bike and instantly feel the superiority over your old bike...

well, I just don't know what to say about that, except that you shouldn't buy a new bike.