Another Commute thread

norrie rugger

Sory for doing a thread like this, I nkow that you must al be sick to death of them.

When I lived down home in Cork I used to cycle everywhere. looking to get back into it up in Dublin now.

Commute would be from Tallaght to James's Street.
I have a flexible budget but would not want to go over the €500 mark TBH, seeing as it is my first bike in a few years.

I have been looking around but it seems that biking tech has come on a huge way in the past few years, which all means that I do not have a clue what to get or where to get it.

Can someone here help please?


PS
I have read the wiki and can not find a breakdown of pros/cons for entry level bikes, hence the thread here

TinyExplosions

There's a bit of choice out there. In terms of value for money, I'd suggest going for the LaPierre RCR100 from Cyclesuperstore in Tallaght -it's a good entry level bike and will get you into town no bother. Also areound the 500 quid mark is the Giant FCR 4 -again a good bike.

I'd suggest your best bet is to go into Cyclesuperstore, sit on the LaPierre and Giant, and see which one you prefer!

sure22

Got a Trek FX 7.2 a couple of months back and I absolutely love it. Cost me €475

jollylee

sure22 wrote: »

Got a Trek FX 7.2 a couple of months back and I absolutely love it. Cost me €475

Perfect! Beautiful bike and will be better built than Lapierre and Giant offerings. Trek bikes are solid and won't need as much maintenance either. And that style of bike should be comfortable and reasonably fast!

TinyExplosions

jollylee wrote: »

Perfect! Beautiful bike and will be better built than Lapierre and Giant offerings. Trek bikes are solid and won't need as much maintenance either. And that style of bike should be comfortable and reasonably fast!

Without descending into the whole manufacturer debate, can I ask what leads you to believe the Trek is better built than the others? At this price point, every bike is pretty much put together in a similar (if not the same) factory in the far east, and the main difference is finishing kit and graphics.

Any of the three suggested will do the job, and do the job well

kenmc

jollylee wrote: »

will be better built than Lapierre and Giant offerings.

Care to elaborate a bit?

jollylee

haha I had a feeling that'd rattle the cage a bit, oops!

I've been repairing and building bikes for over six years and I 100% prefer working on treks any day!! Simple things like brake feel and riding position feel better to me. I know that you have to pay that little bit extra for the treks but for me they're worth every penny. Giant bikes are lovely but I find there road bike geometry too relaxed and the lapierre's never get the mix right as regards gear and brake spec. A friend has a lapierre with the same spec as my own racer and even still the feel from the components just isn't the same.

With two trek bikes (racer and hard-tail MTB) I may be a bit biased though

Ghost Rider

Whatever you get, make sure it has mudguards. (I take it you've budgeted for, or already have, locks and all the other bits and pieces you think you'll need e.g. helmet, visi vest, rain gear, toe clips, lights...)

norrie rugger wrote: »

Sory for doing a thread like this, I nkow that you must al be sick to death of them.

When I lived down home in Cork I used to cycle everywhere. looking to get back into it up in Dublin now.

Commute would be from Tallaght to James's Street.
I have a flexible budget but would not want to go over the €500 mark TBH, seeing as it is my first bike in a few years.

I have been looking around but it seems that biking tech has come on a huge way in the past few years, which all means that I do not have a clue what to get or where to get it.

Can someone here help please?


PS
I have read the wiki and can not find a breakdown of pros/cons for entry level bikes, hence the thread here

Collumbo

Take a LUAS out to Dundrum and have a look in Joe Daly's for commuting bikes. Good prices, and top notch service in there. You will get an excellent bike for 450 upwards.... use the 50 quid leftover to get yourself a rain jacket or something.

norrie rugger

sorry guys. Just one more bike into the fray. The giant escape r8. Guy took one look at me and recommended it. I am 6'1" and fairly big (18 stone). The sales guy was recommending this as he said that i would spend the price difference, in maintaining the chain and block of the la pierre and giant road cruisersis. Is he just trying to get me to cough up more money or has he actually got a point