What Hybrid to Buy

nickyjacob

I am looking to buy a hybrid for about 600 euro. I need something that will get me in and out of work about 7 mile round trip (roads are fairly good on the route) and something that I can do some fitness work on (not really long spins more interval training e.g. 4 mins fast 2 mins slow etc).
I will need to be able to put mudgaurds and lights on it for cycling to work.
I have looked at 3 bikes and I am unsure of what one to go for. Giant FCR, Specialized Sirrus & Trek FX 7.3 see links for specs and details.

http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=38&idproduct=23601
http://www.trekbikes.com/uk/en/bikes/bike_path/fx/73fx/
http://citybikes.com/itemdetails.cfm?id=13366

The Sirrus seems to be more of an upright riding position, does it matter that the frame is a different shape.
Can mudgaurds & lights be put on FCR.
The tyre size on the 3 bikes are different FCR 25mm, Sirrus 28mm & Trek 32mm what difference will this make besides the speed you would get on the bike, e.g more punctures etc.

Any feedback would be great

D!armu!d

Got a sirrus comp recently & very happy with it, runs very smooth & fast. You can flip the handlebar stem over if you find you are riding too upright.

All 3 would be fairly similiar, so get a test ride of them to decide. Would be worth your while moving up from the basic level to get carbon forks.

BostonB

Which is the lightest. I don't think a lot of hybrids are that light.

kenmc

nickyjacob wrote: »

Can mudgaurds & lights be put on FCR.

yes

nickyjacob wrote: »

The tyre size on the 3 bikes are different FCR 25mm, Sirrus 28mm & Trek 32mm what difference will this make besides the speed you would get on the bike, e.g more punctures etc.

no difference for punctures as long as they are at the correctpressure . thinner tyres will be faster though but slightly less shock absorption.
FWIW i'm on fcr and 23mm tyres, 8km each way commute, but also did wicklow 200 and ring of kerry on it. it's a racer with flat bars (though i have changed it to drops since i got it)

ec101

Hey,

I picked up the Giant FCR 2.5 a few months back and I must say that I am delighted with it. I got the guys in Sean Duffs to put on mudguards and lights and they did a great job.

They made sure that anything added did not make the bike look silly. So my mudguards are very slim - mot much wider than the tyres. I also added a small saddle bag and the lights a removable.

I have a lock but I leave it in work so I dont need to worry about carrying that around on the bike. Apart from that I got a decent backpack in Decathalon for carrying all my gear to and from work.

Overall I am delighted with the bike. It makes my short commute very easy and quick.

By the way, if this bike is for commuting why not wait until January for the new scheme to kick in. That way you could probably afford to upgrade the bike model.

Anyway, all the best with the cycling.

blorg

All are good options; the Trek and Sirrus are MTB leaning while the Giant is a bit more on the road bike side. I have had Trek 7.2 and 7.3 FXes as well as a Sirrus Elite and very happy with all of those; have a Giant fixie and very happy with that also. Best bet is to try them out and see which one you prefer. One of the biggest differences you will find will probably be the tyres but bear in mind these are easily swapped in any case. Make sure to get a rack and mudguards if commuting- close-fitting full length SKS Chromoplatics or similar are the best for the latter.

Shifters on the Sirrus are twist-type which would put me off but it's a personal thing.

Components on the Trek are a bit better than the Sirrus.

Now the Giant is noticably more "roadie" with road gearing (faster but more difficult) and thinner tyres than the other two, worth bearing in mind. Giant also has a carbon fork. Quite importantly, the Giant uses road-style caliper brakes- this may limit your options with regard to full-length mudguards. Race blades are however OK if you can't fit traditional ones.

If you think you might want to run bigger tyres at any stage I would consider that, there may not be so much room both with frame and fork and the brakes on the Giant.

Personally I would probably go for the Giant if it fitted OK but that is because I would be looking for faster over more comfort, depends on your priorities.

Tails

I picked up a sirrus a couple of months back when I decided to start commuting to work, its a 10km ride and I have to say im very happy with it. Saying that I dont have any experience with any other models, but I have no complaints so far. I do around 60km spins on the weekend aswell, I was thinkking of upgrading to a road bike when i start heading out with a mate but for the moment, this is doing the job for me.

alentejo

I bought a Ridgeback Genesis Days 00,3 years ago. Absolute great bike. I believe that Genesis is now branded. Great for commute and for out and about

patspost

I got a sirrus during the summer great bike, very light and easy to pedal, the shifters are not the twist type as stated below.
I use the bike for exercise, maybe 20 k spins etc and it fits the bill, best thing is to try out the 3 bikes if you can, good luck with it.

blorg

My own Sirrus Elite didn't have twist-type shifters either; however the 2009 bike the OP linked to does. The bikes change from year to year; the Sirrus has shifted a fair bit away from the roadie-leaning hybrid it used to be (not that this is inherently a bad thing mind, it depends what you want.)