What bike recommendations

[Alison]

My son's girlfriend wants a bike for riding round Leeds, while she is doing a placement there. She has a budget of £300-400 and was looking at new hybrids. I'm not entirely convinced by such things, I just see them as cheap, heavy, low level city run abouts, which maybe what she wants. I'm sure she can do a lot better than a new hybrid maybe a bit more retro

What would your recommendations be? hybrid, mountain on slicks, touring?

Alison

 

[The History Man]

Mountain on slicks. See nasty Gt in sig!

 

[MikeD]

http://www.specialized.com/gb/gb/bikes/globe/work/work3 - £500 though. There's a Work 1 which is £300, I like the hub gear on the 3.

 

[pigman]

MTB with slicks, used, repainted unattractively. My pubber is mechanically good, but everyone laughs at it cos of the paint job (done a few years ago by my kids). Thing is, i leave it anywhere in town, even overnight and its served me well.
She needs reliability, theft proofability, puncture proofing, mudguards- in short a workhorse

 

[Exeter Man]

Most people on here are always itching for an excuse to start a new project, hence the high number of unused 'partner' builds - surely you're missing a trick here Alison?

Whatever she gets, I'd sling a set of Schwalbe Marathons or similar on it.

Regards

 

[David B]

MTB with slicks, used, repainted unattractively. My pubber is mechanically good, but everyone laughs at it cos of the paint job (done a few years ago by my kids). Thing is, i leave it anywhere in town, even overnight and its served me well.
She needs reliability, theft proofability, puncture proofing, mudguards- in short a workhorse

Indeed - making it unattractive to bike thieves is to be recommended. Might seem a shame to ruin a perfectly good paint finish but there's much to be said for slathering the frame in Hammerite applied as though it were HP Sauce! Endless wrapping in PVC electrician's tape is good too.

I must admit that I haven't done this to my commuter, although it looks sufficiently old fashioned and un-flashy to be quite low on the criminals' radar compared to some all-singing, all-dancing Specialized MTB. Plus I live in an area which isn't known for astronomical bike theft rates anyhow. I did once leave my best CX bike locked up in Oxford city centre (a real hot-spot for bike pilfering)....only for about 10 mins, but long enough to have me worried!

David

 

[xerxes]

Whatever she gets, I'd sling a set of Schwalbe Marathons or similar on it.

Got a set on my "shopping bike", haven't had a puncture in about 2,000 miles, but they're not light, a pair of 26x1.75" Marathon Plus weigh in at over 4lbs, more than some steel frames. :shock:

35lbs of Claude Butler, Schwalbes, mudguards and rack:

 

[The History Man]

City jets are nice too

 

[stewlewis]

How tall is she?

http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewto ... p;t=272649

 

[Alison]

How tall is she?

http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewto ... p;t=272649

Probably too big she's 5'4

Alison