Recommend me a commuting/week-end bike - budget €600

ZV Yoda

Hi folks,

Newbie to cycling here. Haven’t owned a bike for 20 years. I’m looking to spend up to €600 (retail) for a bike via the B2W scheme. I can be flexible on the budget, but can’t justify going up to the €1k limit at this stage. I’ve tried a few out over the last few days and was relieved to find that I got back into the swing of it straight away. I suppose it’s just like riding a bike really (sorry).

I’m looking to improve general fitness & plan to commute as much as possible, so I need a bike suitable for my 12km round-trip (all good roads). Also want something sturdy enough that I can get out & about with the kids at the w/e (although I doubt I’ll be doing anything too extreme on roads or trekking).

I’ve been reading through the archives here & also got advice from some biking friends/colleagues. Based on the various road bike vs. hybrid vs. MTB discussions, I think a hybrid is the most suitable for my needs.

I’ve come up with a few options & would appreciate feedback. Some of the bikes below have front suspension & disc brakes. Some people advise to steer clear of these features at this price point (because they’re not very good & will add weight). But others suggest that some suspension is better than none – and that even entry level disc brake are better than callipers.

Carerra Crossfire 3 Hybrid (€499) I was leaning towards this one. I had a look at it in Halfords, but haven’t taken one for a spin yet. Seems to tick all the boxes & is well-priced. Having said that, most purists seems to suggest steering clear of Halfords.

KTM Life Track (€589) I took one of these out for a spin at my local bike shop & really liked it. The sales guy told me the're hand built in Austria & are very popular on the continent (but not so much in Ireland). He reckons they're very well spec'd and have actually come down in price to compete with bigger brands like Giant. I also like the fact that it's from my local bike shop, so I'll have peace of mind & good after sales service.

These were also suggested to me:
Giant Escape 1 (€590) Doesn’t have disc brakes or suspension, it is an aluminium frame and carbon composite fork which I’m told will make it quite light/efficient. I actually tried one of these in my local bike shop & it felt/looked a bit flimsy – but maybe that’s the idea?
Lapierre Shaper 100 (€595)
Scott Sub 30 (€660)
Scott Sub 40 (€510)

Any advice on which is the best bike to suit my needs?

Walnutsink

I have one of these, great bike and bullet proof!

http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=32&idproduct=48955#details

Lumen

I would stay away from disc brakes and suspension on a hybrid, particularly a cheap one.

petethedrummer

Lumen wrote: »

I would stay away from disc brakes and suspension on a hybrid, particularly a cheap one.

+1

ZV Yoda

Thanks for the responses. I'm getting the message loud & clear about disc brakes & suspension at this level (a lot of bikes in this price range have one/both of these features). Even the Giant Seek 3 recommended by Walnutsink has disc brakes.

In that case the Giant Escape 1 looks like the best of the bunch below. Any other thoughts/recommendations at this price?

Much appreciated!

studiorat

I'd stay away from suspension, it adds needless weight, but I would consider disc brakes. Preferably hydraulic, they require much less maintenance, but they are fiddly to work on when they do.

This is a good bike from available at Halfords ticks the boxes and comes in under budget.

Jawgap

ZV Yoda wrote: »

Hi folks,

........although I doubt I’ll be doing anything too extreme on roads or trekking......

You say that now

have you thought about a Boardman - €625 gets a fair amount of bike and if you have a policy with Axa insurance they'll knock 10% (I think) off that price.

Just pick the Halfords you buy from carefully, some of them can be a bit less knowledgeable than others.

dave_o_brien

ZV Yoda wrote: »

But others suggest that some suspension is better than none – and that even entry level disc brake are better than callipers.

It's not, and they're not.

Lumen

My ideal commuting hybrid would have:

- Dynamo hub and lights
- Full mudguards
- No suspension
- Caliper brakes

Unfortunately this combo is really hard to find, at least at sane prices. Cube and Rose both do dynamo-equipped bikes in their Touring ranges but they tend to have suspension forks and are expensive.

I don't see why this is impossible at €600-700, since bikes of that spec but without mudguards and dynamos are available at €400.

studiorat

+1 for the Boardman JawGap suggested too...

smacl

The KTM linked is listed as having suspension without a lockout option, which makes it a very poor choice for the roads. I've a similar enough hybrid, with lockout on the suspension, which is a great general purpose bike albeit a bit heavy and way slower than my road bike.

In my experience, the suspension is vaguely useful on steep downhills on unpaved bohereens and forest tracks, but of no real value outside of that. If you compare the Lapierre shaper or Boardman linked to the KTM or Carrera you'll see it's a full 3kg lighter, and will be faster and less work over distance as a result. Of those two, the Lapierre is much lower geared so would be easy to use even on steep hills, whereas the Boardman has a compact gear set closer to what you'd see on a road bike.

ZV Yoda

Ok, so I shouldn’t just write Halfords off altogether? Liffey Valley is my closest branch. The sales assistant I spoke to there was a mountain biker & did seem to know his stuff.

Unsurprisingly, when I asked my local bike shop how their KTM compared to Halford’s Carrera, he said that all Halford’s bikes were rubbish. He claimed most of his repair business was fixing bikes that were bought in Halfords. Having said that, he also told me that the KTM had hydraulic/fluid suspension, but I just checked the KTR website - it only has coil sprung suspension.

I’d much prefer to support a local Irish business, but nothing bugs me more than sales guys who mislead a customer (either intentionally or unintentionally).

I like the look of that Boardman. I’ll check it (and the VooDoo Agwa) out in Halfords.

Thanks all

Jawgap

Halfords are very hit and miss - some of them are very good, some are pure rubbish. It depends who is working there and what their background is.

Based on my own experience, I'd say it's best to go in during the week. The weekend sometimes means it's part-timers (some of whom are pretty good) which probably increases your chances of running into the well-intentioned but perhaps knowledgeably limited assistant.

The other problem is staff turnover - my own local Halfords had a very good mechanic there until he left - which can mean a 'good' Halfords goes to being a bad one overnight - unlike local bike shops where staff seem to be more consistent.

It's a while since I was in, but Halfords in Carrickmines was pretty good.

lennymc

i think its 15% discount in halfords with an axa insurance policy discount card, which would be the guts of 100 quid of that boardman. Ive been happy enough to purchase a couple of bikes from halfords, with no problems, but im handy enough with spanners and do my own servicing. I did give the bikes a check over before i went out on them, but i would do that with any bike, just in case.

ZV Yoda

We don't have insurance with Axa, so I won't get the 15% Halfords discount. Based on all of the feedback/research so far, I think I've narrowed it down to:

Giant Escape 1 It's light & has carbon forks (but no uneccessary disk brakes or suspension). I can get it for €579 from my local bike shop. Turns out it was the less expensive Giant Escape 3 that I had tried out with them previously.
Boardman Performance Hybrid €625
Lapierre Shaper 100 (€595)

Will try them all out & go with my gut at that stage.

Thanks for all the advice - very useful. I'd prob have gone for the Carerra Crossfire 3 if I hadn't stopped by here first.

Pj!

This should save you €62 if you go with the Boardman

budgemook

I have a Specialized Sirrus Sport which cost around 615. I wanted it for pretty much exactly same reason as you and am very happy with it.

Caliper brakes (standard), mudguards, cat eye lights and a decent lock. You'd be pushing 800 will the extras.

ZV Yoda

Pj! wrote: »

This should save you €62 if you go with the Boardman

Cheers for that - I'm using the BTW scheme, but it looks like I can't use the 10% voucher in conjunction with BTW.

Good find though!

Pj!

Ah missed that.
Someone might use it.

Lumen

How bad can this be?

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/gt-traffic-20-2011/

ZV Yoda

Had a look at the Boardman & Voodoo in Halfords. The Boardman was nice & light, but felt like it might be a bit too flimsy. Just wasn't mad about it for some reason.

The Voodoo felt more solid. My main reservation on that one was the fact that it had disc brakes. Almost everyone on here suggested keeping away from disc brakes/suspension at this price point.

So, looks like the Giant Escape 1 is what I'll go with. I tried out the cheaper Escape 3 in my local bike shop yesterday (they'd no Escape 1s in stock) & it seemed like a good fit. It's heavier than the others, but I'm assurred the Escape 1 will be significantly lighter thanks to the carbon forks & lighter fittings.

It takes 3 or 4 weeks for our payroll dept to process the BTW stuff, so I hope to pick up the bike around mid-May (just in time for the perfect summer we're gig to have).

Thx again for all the advice.

smacl

Lumen wrote: »

How bad can this be?

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/gt-traffic-20-2011/

Pretty funky looking frame. Is it a bike or a BSO?

ZV Yoda

Finally got the Giant Escape 1. Really like the bike. May have to make some adjustments as I get used to it, but finding it very comfy so far.

Started off with a 14Km spin (commute practice run) & then did a 27Km spin yesterday.

I was very surprised at how much I enjoyed it. I'm already plotting out some longer routes to try out over the next few weeks.