bike riding

[devil34uk]

i may get some s**t for this but hey i dont give a ****. its worth a try

me & the misses are looking to get some mountain bikes or similar and start going on bike rides etc just to get fit and get out and about. my problem is i only have my bmx from years back and she has nothing so we both need bikes. we are looking for something simple and easily maintainable but yet fun to ride, but not goin to halfrauds or the local shitty bike shop and buying 2 £200 top of the range bikes (worth only about 50p) that will need fixing in a day or so.

so im after 2 decent bikes not top spec light bikes with £1000s spent on mods. we just need someting decent but i dont no were to start. i wouldnt mind spending a couple of hundred £ to get 2 nice bikes but havent got a clue were to start

any help or advice from cyclists, freeriders, downhillers, even street jumpers/tricksters would be much appricated.

cheers

[checkmybadself]

As a rule of thumb, anything less than £300 new won't really take a beating, so if you want to get them off road then look at that price point upwards. Obviously the more you spend the more (better) you get - but you can get a bike that will be perfectly good enough for battering over the moors, forest trails and even a bit of jumping for £300 - although avoid cheap full suspensions bikes, as they'll be truly awful at that price point

If you're unlikely to get more adventurous than canal paths and such, then maybe go a bit lower - decathlon have some good deals although won't be open to haggling as much as an independant shop, even if you're buying two bikes.

Post up links to what you have in mind so far and get peoples opinions.

Whatever you do, DON'T go for a hybrid - they're rubbish on anything other than tarmac, so limit where you can go straight away.

Hope that helps!

[barwell1992]

go for brands with some backing like specialised, but you will be looking at about £300 per bike, but its worth it if ure going to get in to it, also parts are easier to find as they will mostly be branded and not some cheep cr&p

dont be hell bend on disc brakes especialy not the cable type, usually the v or cantilever rim brakes are better

if you do want disc's then once again its more £££ mine cost the wrong side of £200 per brake so best to stay clear when on a budget

the most important part of any push bike is weight and size, if a bike is to small it will be a killer to ride for any good distance, and the same with weight, the more weight the harder it is to ride and if ure not throwing it down trails every weekend then it dosn't need to be super strong

all ways go for an ally frame is possible, T6 is good enough

the second most important thing is drive train, gears are what can make and brake a otherwise decent bike, most cheep bikes will be using bargain basement parts, shimano and shram are the most well known and the best, look for something in the mid range ish, but saying all that i ran deor stuf that was low range on my Free ride bike and it took the abuse well

post up some bikes and ill take a look if you want

[devil34uk]

i would be looking at getting a hard tail anyway as a youngster i used to wheelie around everywere and a hard tail seemd to be more comfy for me, unless a nice full suspension bike come my way. we wouldnt be looking at doing anything too major maybe a bit of offroad if i can tempt the misses otherwise ill have a crack if i can find any decent trails near me. its just a case of finding some decent bikes at the mo. ive been looking on ebay at bikes but there anything from £200ish - 3/4k and i cant decide what i want let alone what my misses wants, she'll just say i bike i can ride, its just finding something i like the look off. theres so many to chose from but there all about doing diffrent things its so confusing now

[devil34uk]

i kind of have in my head i want something with front suspension(nice and chunky or the sort that goes nearly up to the handle bars) not too heavy & gears so i can wheelie and nice strong wheels and wide tyres so i can do a few jumps and thats about what i got in my head at the mo

[LeeM]

saw a couple of the new claud butler hybrids today when i went to get the wheels on my racer looked at, they looked very good and were less than £300 i think

[Mochachino]

Contact IM Axles if you want a decent bike of the 1k sort of price range. Martin will be able to give some good advice and he competes in National Downhill and abroad.

[matt_vtr_15a]

tell your girlfriend to f**k off and buy her own and spend £400 on yours... simple really..

[devil34uk]

tell your girlfriend to f**k off and buy her own and spend £400 on yours... simple really..

yeh but when the misses wnats to do something these are the sacrifices we have to make.

i supposed i could tell her hers was £300 n it wernt n spend £400 on mine she should/better appricate it

[barwell1992]

triple clamp forks are cr&p specially at that price, chunky tyres are rubbish for distance and are heavy

wheels wont be that strong at the lower price end ether

the problem is these bikes aren't bmx's and arn't designed to be pounded time after time unless you throw a bit of money at them

[matt_vtr_15a]

yeh but when the misses wnats to do something these are the sacrifices we have to make.

i supposed i could tell her hers was £300 n it wernt n spend £400 on mine she should/better appricate it

get her one of these, my girlfriend was estatic... she is 8 though...

http://www.jejamescycles.co.uk/product-images-large/giant-puddin-girls-pink-bike-54107.jpg

and spend more on yours

[devil34uk]

are there any decent trustworthy online bike shops? or any decent ones around northampton or mk or leicster area??? ideally i need to go and have a look and try some out first

[barwell1992]

leasurelake's

chain reaction cycles

evens cycles

[devil34uk]

lesure lakes thats in daventry right???

i used to go there all the time and check out them bikes when i was younger. ive been trying to think of the name for ages. cheers mate

[Ryves]

Leisure lakes is real good for bikes. If you tell them what exactly you want and what your price range is, they will be bound to find something for you. I live right next to it, they are proper :)

[Mochachino]

Not sure if its any different but Leisure lakes used to be as bad as halfords for RRP Prices, is this not the case anymore?

Chainreaction aint the cheapest from what I remmeber but the service is A*

Whoolyhatshop
Winstanlys
Chain Reaction

they were where I used to shop, good prices

[Ryves]

Leisure lakes are quite bad for RRP, but they do have deals for certain things. And if they say you have got £300-400 quid to spend, theyre bound to find you something, theyre not gonna turn down money.

But i suppose thats the same for everywhere. Just ring places up and seeing what they can offer is the best :)

[jeffchiz]

i work at rutland water cycles not far from you, we sell our ex hire bikes off at the end of summer, and they will be done up to be like brand new, they get a free service 6-8 weeks after you buy and will be like new just with a few scratches

in your price range you will be looking at our kona lani's

if you want to buy new jsut keepo it simple, no discs, no rear suspension, definitely not triple clamp farks as they would just be there for looks, bascially in my eyes they are the lexus lights of the bike world, and u dont want chunky tires, as already said if you tired to do any tricks at all you will fuck the bike up really isnt meant to hold up to abuse

stick to kona lani's, giant boulders, Specialized hard rocks etc

do not buy raleighs, appolos etc

http://www.rutlandcycling.com/

[Mochachino]

lol Apollo ftw GeoffJizz.

Specialized would be my choice out of them, but cost a lil bit more for what you get. I guess you are paying more for better frame. Lower range Giant are heavy, Kona are good, but just seemed average years ago (about 2004ish) might be different now.

[jeffchiz]

http://www.rutlandcycling.com/26604/Kona-Lana-I-2011---Hardtail-Mountain-Bike.html

that is a good bike would be about £190 ex hire

[jeffchiz]

lol Apollo ftw GeoffJizz.

Specialized would be my choice out of them, but cost a lil bit more for what you get. I guess you are paying more for better frame. Lower range Giant are heavy, Kona are good, but just seemed average years ago (about 2004ish) might be different now.

giants are best for money as it doesnt have a fashionable name so you get more for your money,

we have about 200 kona lana'i's on the hire fleet really good :y:

[Ryves]

Also, look on ebay. If you look for bikes that are about 3-4+ years old, you can get them dirt cheap compared to what they were when they first came out. Especially as makes like specialised are continuously bringing out new models ;)