Hey all,

looking to get my lady into biking, she has expressed interest in a single speed (NOT FIXIE) and doesn't really like biking (yet) so I don't want to break the bank on something she might not use much...

https://cgi.ebay.com/55cm-TRACK-BIKE-...ayphotohosting

there are 3 bikes from this seller that look "appropriate" also in contention is the SE Draft

comments, thoughts, snide remarks?

my girlfriend just bought a used SE Draft. Every review i've read of it has been bad and the store that sells them around here says the wheels break down but shes a small girl and got it for 100$ so shes happy.

quando hubs are serious garbage. i'd get a mercier kilo for slightly better parts and most likely a nicer frame that you can resell if she ends up not liking it.

the SE bikes aren't bad, but use those weird 4 bolt, small BCD cranksets that are hard to find rings for.

Just buy her this:

https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/.../messenger.htm

The hubs on that are crap and the other parts are going to be just as bad. The Draft is also kind of junky and hard to upgrade.

^^

Mercier Kilo TT is fairly inexpensive but it's a very good bike, should last a very long time and with good resale value if it ever came to that. Other than that I would just do a conversion. I bought a Miyata touring bike for my girlfriend for $30 and just spent money on a chain, freewheel, and some maintainence. I also got a top tube pad for good measure but you certainly don't need that.

If you have any questions about doing a conversion yourself there are tons of threads in here, just use the search. If you don't find your answer you can always ask.

thanks all! appreciate the insight, i'll hold off on that ebay deal then, perhaps the motob. but after talking with her, she would rather I wait till next spring instead of getting 1 month on it, then shunning the beast too the back patio/porch for winter


(i.e. wait till end of year deals and get one for her for chirstmas!)

I know a guy who bought that bike recently and described it as "the cheapest piece of crap he'd been on," but I believe that he secretly loves it, since I see him riding it constantly.

If you guys remember ElmoLove from Ebay or bikesnobnyc it's him.

i'd get the kilo from BD for that ballpark price if i were you.

I think the Messenger is much better suited for your GF than the Kilo TT or the Hour, since it has front and rear brakes.

get her a windsor and be done with it or build her a conversion for cheap

ixney on the no name quando bike. i'd either do a conversion to a used road bike with a chain tensioner(25 bucks for a full spacer/tensioner kit that works on a freewheel) or go with the motobecane messenger bike.

Man I totally know what you're saying. I got this stock varsity...

Just find an older bike and slap a BMX freewheel on it.

seriously, if your girlfriend can fit a 55cm, this should be cake. just find a sweet old bike, take everything off it but the brakes, slap on a 17 dollar freewheel, shorten the chain, and go for a ride.

does she have a helmet? get her a helmet that matches it.

What's hard to upgrade about the SE draft, besides the bottom bracket?
Which isn't really hard at all.

it's hi tensile stregth steel so that can't be upgraded. it's always going to be heavy and flexy.


other than that, nothing. it's got a 1 1/8" threadless fork and stem so the front end is pretty upgradable, and everything else is bolt-on... though that one piece crank is crap and expensive to upgrade... it's just that you can buy a lot more frame than that for 200 so it makes very little sense to get one and upgrade it.

I saw one of the ebay bikes at the co-op last night. The guy had only had it for a few weeks and he was having bottom bracket issues. He also claimed that before he removed them, the brakes were really crappy and more plastic than metal. I think he just needed an excuse to go brakeless.

I would highly caution you against trying to get a girlfriend who "doesn't really like biking" to start riding. Seriously, you are entering rough waters for the relationship.

Having been through this both with friends who don't ride and a girlfriend who had been off the bike for almost 2 years after she was hit by a car on her hybrid, start with a cruiser. Keep an eye on CL over the next few months and see if you can find an old Raleigh 3-speed, or really any classic cruiser. They have a killer look, and they're super low pressure for a non-cyclist because you can't go that fast, it feels just like sitting in a chair because you're so upright, and you still look cool doing it. Also, you can get a great bike on CL for $75; a small fraction of what you'll pay for a new bike, but you can still probably flip it for profit.

i can echo this sentiment.

you'll be pissed she's not liking it more/going faster, she'll be pissed you're not having more fun with her, you'll both feel like the bike is being underused and it will lead to bad juju.

Get her one of the new Kona Paddywagons. It's $50.00 cheaper than last year, comes with good durable components, looks good and is comfortable for the street. If she doesn't like it then you have it, but she'd probably like it.

It's a few bucks more than the offerings on ebay and ebay stores etc, but it'll be good for resell if she doesn't like cycling, and a real plus, doesn't look like a cheap bike off ebay. Cheap crap advertised as "track bike" (no one would let that hunk of **** on a track) and crap from bulk dealers has 0 resell value, cause that's just a step down from initial value. Those bikes are good for people with initiative and a budget, but if you're trying to sell your girl on cycling you better consider the aesthetic. A bike with a good look may cause her to give it a bit more of a try.

edit-be sure to change the bars, they're functional but could look better, the hoods are where it's at for this bike with drops, many put a straight bar or risers on it

i'd like to think my cheap ebay bike has the aesthetics to sell people on biking... then again i could have a paddywagon for what i spent getting mine together.

I don't know any girl who is worried about aesthetics and will like a Kona Paddywagon.

Seriously, please consider going the used bike route and not wasting the money.

Well they were hugely popular before the 2008 paint job, which many seem to think is a very much improved paint job, I certainly do and I have a 2007.

But I see the draw of those ebay "track" bikes, especially now that they've upgraded to "alloy" by the infamous "No-Name". Gotta wonder what they used before "alloy", and Go used if you don't find a good entry level bike, the specs for those ebay bikes say it all.