Raleigh Glide

kennedmc

Thinking of getting a new mountain bike to use a couple of times a week for fitness / lesurely cycles of between 15 - 30 kms

I was in a store today and they were offering Raleigh Glides at half price €250 instead of €500 - are they a decent bike for a beginner? Don't want too spend too much on a bike starting off. Are they a hybrid?

Also the frame size is 18in and I'm 6'1 - is this too small? I did a search on the forum and web but from what I read its hard too tell about proper frame sizes.

Any help appreciated!

ScottStorm

It's a low end raleigh mountain bike, I have a similar one that I use for commuting and has seen better days.

If you have your heart set on it I would buy it up north. They are selling it for £149. Which works out at about £170 euro and the saving would pretty much cover the fuel costs from anywhere in the country.

kennedmc

ScottStorm wrote: »

It's a low end raleigh mountain bike, I have a similar one that I use for commuting and has seen better days.

If you have your heart set on it I would buy it up north. They are selling it for £149. Which works out at about £170 euro and the saving would pretty much cover the fuel costs from anywhere in the country.

THanks - wouldn't say I have my heart set on it - it just seems good value at half price so thought it would be good for a starter bike?

Not looking for anything too fancy at the moment

Enduro

Are you going to be using it for mountain biking?

pburns

Frame size seems a bit small for 6'1''?

I have a 21'' and am 5' 10''/11''

Enduro

pburns wrote: »

Frame size seems a bit small for 6'1''?

I have a 21'' and am 5' 10''/11''

Jaysus, that's probably waaaaay too big for you, if its an MTB you use for MTBing. I'm 5'10 and the very biggest I'd go would be 18".

kennedmc

Enduro wrote: »

Are you going to be using it for mountain biking?

haven't decided yet - if I was it may be on one or two off road trails / paths but certainly nothing too adventourous.

kona

DONT BUY THIS BIKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

for a start they are fooling you, at best they are worth e170, never e250 and at e500 thats a pisstake. not good value in any form.
Go up to the counter and ask them whats the best MTB for under e300, they wont take you near that junker.

They are extremely bad here is what the issues are

Wheels are made of cheese so are buckled out of the box.

brake levers are plastic, brake arms are crap.

Plastic cranks

Poor parts.

Build quality is ****e.


If you are going to buy from halfords and are looking to spend that much you should go for the carrera range. The only carrera MTB at that range is the vulcan V-spec and its light years ahead of that piece of junk from raleigh. Id also hold out for the weekend, halfords usually have a bank holiday sale(not the usual oh look heres a bike half price, but its not really)

lazy-biker

i think halfords are takin 10 percent off everything for the bank hoilday weekend

don't hold me to this

kennedmc

kona wrote: »

DONT BUY THIS BIKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

for a start they are fooling you, at best they are worth e170, never e250 and at e500 thats a pisstake. not good value in any form.
Go up to the counter and ask them whats the best MTB for under e300, they wont take you near that junker.

They are extremely bad here is what the issues are

Wheels are made of cheese so are buckled out of the box.

brake levers are plastic, brake arms are crap.

Plastic cranks

Poor parts.

Build quality is ****e.


If you are going to buy from halfords and are looking to spend that much you should go for the carrera range. The only carrera MTB at that range is the vulcan V-spec and its light years ahead of that piece of junk from raleigh. Id also hold out for the weekend, halfords usually have a bank holiday sale(not the usual oh look heres a bike half price, but its not really)

Thanks for the advice lads

Kona you seem VERY sure of what you are talking about and to be honest if there is only €50 in the difference than it makes sense to go for the Carrera Vulcan...

Am I right in thinking that Frame size isn't too important in MTB? I.e 18in will do the job for me, as looking at the website the vulcan is available in only 17/18?

Enduro

Frame size is important in MTBing. Too big and it will restrict your ability to comfortably ride technical terraine. But if you're 6'1 then that won't be a problem with an 18" frame.

If you're not going to be using it for MTBing then it is questionable whether a MTB is the right type of bike to be buying, to say the least. In MTB terms the bikes you're looking at are pretty poor quality. You'd probably be better off getting a different type of bike, such as a hybrid.

kennedmc

Enduro wrote: »

Frame size is important in MTBing. Too big and it will restrict your ability to comfortably ride technical terraine. But if you're 6'1 then that won't be a problem with an 18" frame.

If you're not going to be using it for MTBing then it is questionable whether a MTB is the right type of bike to be buying, to say the least. In MTB terms the bikes you're looking at are pretty poor quality. You'd probably be better off getting a different type of bike, such as a hybrid.

cheers - I suppose I was used to using a mountain bike up until I was 23, cycling in and out of college etc. That why I would want 1 now - would also allow me to take it down towpaths / light trails if needs be...I would not be doing any heavy duty MTBing

Really just want an all rounder at a decent price. Any hybrids you think could do the job for that price?

kona

6ft1 id go with a 20 inch frame, Im smaller and on a 18 and my saddle raised a good bit. The main thing with the frame is to get the length right because its the one thing you cant really adjust.

Yes 100% sure DONT get the raleigh glide, or any other raleigh, they are now built in taiwan and are unbelievably **** on par with the worst supermarket bikes IMO.

The vulcan comes in a 20 and a 22, just make sure you get the mens one;)

pburns

kona wrote: »

6ft1 id go with a 20 inch frame, Im smaller and on a 18 and my saddle raised a good bit. The main thing with the frame is to get the length right because its the one thing you cant really adjust.

Yes 100% sure DONT get the raleigh glide, or any other raleigh, they are now built in taiwan and are unbelievably **** on par with the worst supermarket bikes IMO.

The vulcan comes in a 20 and a 22, just make sure you get the mens one;)

Aren't most bikes made in Taiwan even some of the better brands? My Trek has a 'made in Taiwan ' sticker on the frame.

DePurpereWolf

they are build everywhere because they consist out of many different parts. They might be put together in Taiwan.
Many PC's and laptops come from Taiwan, but the CPU still comes from the US.

Somebody mentioned Halfords here, I would never ever buy from that place, crazy overpriced.

I've driven a lot of piece of **** bikes in the past, when you are a big guy, you will break a cheap bike just by peddling it.
Go to a good dealer and pay at least E350,- it's worth it.

Something like this would be a good investment in my opinion:
Giant Expression DX

Lumen

DePurpereWolf wrote: »

Somebody mentioned Halfords here, I would never ever buy from that place, crazy overpriced.

The Boardman range looks great for the money.

DePurpereWolf

Lumen wrote: »

The Boardman range looks great for the money.

I wouldn't really know. Whenever I fool myself to go inside I get shocked by the prices for regular stuff such as bike lights and helmets and pumps and stuff.Like twice the price as it should be. ( I believe)
That doesn't give me much trust in the business.
It might not be for their whole range of products, but that's where I base my preference upon.

kona

pburns wrote: »

Aren't most bikes made in Taiwan even some of the better brands? My Trek has a 'made in Taiwan ' sticker on the frame.

Thats true but Trek has higher Quality assurance standarf
ds, also their bikes are designed in USA.

Raleigh are cheap crap designed in taiwan built in taiwan to the cheapest bidder, with no QA

kona

DePurpereWolf wrote: »

I wouldn't really know. Whenever I fool myself to go inside I get shocked by the prices for regular stuff such as bike lights and helmets and pumps and stuff.Like twice the price as it should be. ( I believe)
That doesn't give me much trust in the business.
It might not be for their whole range of products, but that's where I base my preference upon.

so basically your another halfords basher talking out of their hole.:rolleyes:
If you have actually bought a overpriced bike then your entitled to say it but you havnt, youve just been shocked by their prices, but if you understand the model their business is built on you will understand that while the lights may be expensive one month, they will be cheap the next. Offers move around the shop. They do 3 for 2 of all tools every so often.

I Got a 2007 Kona firemountain in there for e250, got a carrera banshee for e160. Extremely cheap...you just have to know how and when to get the bargains.

DePurpereWolf

That's all nice and dandy, but I don't know the value of every item in their shop. And I don't expect other people to do neither. So if half of the items in the shop are overpriced, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

You can say I don't understand their business model. But I just don't like their business model.
Because of their business model I would not buy a bike there. I don't trust them.

And, I've never seen anything for a good price in the Mahon point halfords in Cork. I've never seen sales. Only cheap bikes and overpriced extras.

kona

DePurpereWolf wrote: »

That's all nice and dandy, but I don't know the value of every item in their shop. And I don't expect other people to do neither. So if half of the items in the shop are overpriced, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. .

How can you call something overpriced if you claim to not have a clue about their value???

DePurpereWolf wrote: »

You can say I don't understand their business model. But I just don't like their business model.
Because of their business model I would not buy a bike there. I don't trust them..

Thats fine, its your call, but giving sombody advice based on that bull**** that you just dont trust them is crap.....im sick of people bashing every shop at any chance they get, and most just dont have a clue what they are on about or even had a bad experience, they are just jumping on the bandwagon.

DePurpereWolf wrote: »

And, I've never seen anything for a good price in the Mahon point halfords in Cork. I've never seen sales. Only cheap bikes and overpriced extras.

Halfords are the ONLY authorised dealer of Rocky mountain cycles in Ireland.
Halfords sell, Kona, Van nicholas, Saracen, Boardman, Voodoo all of which are far from cheap bikes:rolleyes:

They do sell **** bikes for the cheapskates and ironically this is where they make their money.

You must be blind if you have never seen a sale in halfords, there is ALWAYS somrthing on sale, weather or not its good value is another matter but there is good value to be had.

I have experience of Halfords with a number of my purchases and IMO they are no worse than any other bike shop.

If you are going to go on and advice sombody against a shop and say that its ****, please actually have a reason to.

kenmc

kona

kenmc wrote: »

can i have some?? is it butter?:D

pburns

kona you're very wound up! Have you shares in Halfords or something? I get what you say about shop-bashing though and have been guilty myself. The internet makes heroes of us all. It's like when I'm looking at hotel reviews and someone gives a cheap hotel a one star rating 'cos there's a slight crack in a tile or the remote control batteries were flat:rolleyes:...

I considered buying a Boardman in Halfords but decided against it after hearing the horror stories about teenager 'mechanics'. I've got them to do minor tune-ups and (when I'm feeling lazy) puncture repairs. I've also bought car stuff there. They're not all that bad.

kenmc

kona wrote: »

can i have some?? is it butter?:D

No you won't like it, I didn't buy it in Halfords.

kona

pburns wrote: »

kona you're very wound up! Have you shares in Halfords or something? I get what you say about shop-bashing though and have been guilty myself. The internet makes heroes of us all. It's like when I'm looking at hotel reviews and someone gives a cheap hotel a one star rating 'cos there's a slight crack in a tile or the remote control batteries were flat:rolleyes:...

I considered buying a Boardman in Halfords but decided against it after hearing the horror stories about teenager 'mechanics'. I've got them to do minor tune-ups and (when I'm feeling lazy) puncture repairs. I've also bought car stuff there. They're not all that bad.

I just dont see the point in bashing shops, Ive used many of the shops people are bitching about and Ive only ever had good experiences in them all really helpful.
Im sure some halfords stores have "teenage mechanics" but so do other bike shops, age doesnt have anything to do with the ability to fix a bike, experience only comes in when your dealing with obscure bike parts that you may not regularly work on.
Having said that, I can understand that not all halfords will have decent bike staff.
Halfords shares?? Im not mental:p

People talking **** about stuff they dont have a clue about winds me up!LOL

kona

kenmc wrote: »

No you won't like it, I didn't buy it in Halfords.

Must have been good value so and cooked by a adult chef:p

DePurpereWolf

I know what a pump should cost, or a bike light, or a bike cover, not as much as it costs there. Walking through the store I really only saw Carreras and Raleighs. Trust me, the Halfords at Mahon Point in Cork would not impress you.

Anyway. The OP is not as amazingly knowledgable as you are, nor am I.

Resting my case that if the OP is not as knowledgeable as you, he shouldn't shop at Halfords.

kona

DePurpereWolf wrote: »

I know what a pump should cost, or a bike light, or a bike cover, not as much as it costs there. Walking through the store I really only saw Carreras and Raleighs. Trust me, the Halfords at Mahon Point in Cork would not impress you.

Anyway. The OP is not as amazingly knowledgable as you are, nor am I.

Resting my case that if the OP is not as knowledgeable as you, he shouldn't shop at Halfords.

Im far from amazinly knowlegdable:o

however If you arnt knowledgable as is the case with 95% of people when it comes to bikes, perhaps asking the sales advisor in the shop would help, or even post a thread here?

Enduro

kennedmc wrote: »

cheers - I suppose I was used to using a mountain bike up until I was 23, cycling in and out of college etc. That why I would want 1 now - would also allow me to take it down towpaths / light trails if needs be...I would not be doing any heavy duty MTBing

Really just want an all rounder at a decent price. Any hybrids you think could do the job for that price?

A hybrid shouldn't have a problem with towpaths and suchlike (Hell, I've done it on my roadbike :eek:), and will probably be better on the roads than an MTB. But, just to be clear, if you think that there's any chance you'll be doing real MTBing (as opposed to towpaths etc) then only an MTB (and a decent one) will do.

My advice would be to visit some real world shops and have a look at what they have, and get some advice from them. Examples would be the cycle superstore in Tallaght (Where they'll recommend a LaPierre or Giant, both good bike ranges), Arnnotts (where they have KTMs, very nice bikes), Cycological on the quays (They're quite upmarket, but have Konas on sale at the moment, I think), Cyclways on Parnell street (They'll probably recommend a specialized... good bikes). Thats if you live in Dublin. IMHO you're better off doing this rather than ordering over the internet if you're not very experienced with bikes. You can also try out bikes for size on the spot, so less chance of getting it wrong.

neilled

DePurpereWolf wrote: »

they are build everywhere because they consist out of many different parts. They might be put together in Taiwan.
Many PC's and laptops come from Taiwan, but the CPU still comes from the US.

Yes but in relevant bike terms Giant and Merida are both Taiwanese manufacturers with excellent records and products, whilst a host of others like trek and KTM have their manufacturing done there. In the case of the former two, both do their own design as well. Of course cheap lowest common denominator supermarket crap is built there as well but those days are numbered as cheaper manufacturing bases become available.