Buying a bike

Haggis McMutton said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer. Now I
don't know the first thing about bikes, I just got it because it was a
good deal.

This is a 26" frame bike. When I pedal and my leg is stretched out the
furthest it is still nowhere near being straight. I know that I'm not
getting the full force behind the bike because of this.

Forget that, just realised 26" isn't the frame size.

Haggis McMutton <[email hidden]> typed:

Quoted message said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer. Now I
don't know the first thing about bikes, I just got it because it was a
good deal.

This is a 26" frame bike. When I pedal and my leg is stretched out the
furthest it is still nowhere near being straight. I know that I'm not
getting the full force behind the bike because of this.

I've started using my bike a lot more than I thought I would, I hate going
in the car to make the 10 minute drive to work now. So, I'm thinking I
should buy a bike that is the right size for me.

I'm trying to figure out what bike size I should get, some website says I
should measure my inside leg, and the frame I need is 2/3 of that. My
inside leg is 33", so that means I should get a bike 22"? This would leave
me with a bike smaller than the one I have... have I missed something
here?

I think you mean it's a 26" wheel. Invariably the Tesco bikes will be
either an 18" or 20" frame size. I'd suggest you extend the seat post a
tad, but be careful not to over-extend it. There should be a line marked on
it which should remain hidden, or just barely visible.

IMHO don't worry about the actual numbers for sizing as many manufacturers
use different systems for measurement, just check that the bike fits you OK.

--
Paul - [censored]
ebay 140130737796
Wheelchair PowerPack

Haggis McMutton said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer.

Quoted message said:

Now I don't know the first thing about bikes,

.... and

Quoted message said:

I just got it because it was a good deal.

Given that you know nothing about bikes how do you know it was a good
deal? 🙂

Quoted message said:

This is a 26" frame bike. When I pedal and my leg is stretched out the
furthest it is still nowhere near being straight. I know that I'm not
getting the full force behind the bike because of this.

I've started using my bike a lot more than I thought I would, I hate going
in the car to make the 10 minute drive to work now. So, I'm thinking I
should buy a bike that is the right size for me.

I'm trying to figure out what bike size I should get, some website says I
should measure my inside leg, and the frame I need is 2/3 of that. My
inside leg is 33", so that means I should get a bike 22"? This would leave
me with a bike smaller than the one I have... have I missed something here?

(It's a 26" wheel, not frame, as you now know.)

Bikes come with all sorts of frame geometries these days, and it's
really hard to know what size frame you need of a particular model
without actually riding it.

"Haggis McMutton" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer. Now I
don't know the first thing about bikes, I just got it because it was a
good deal.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but Tesco bikes are not good deals. My
local Tesco sells such things and I wouldn't touch them with a bargepole.
Sorry.

Read this, it explains why you've not got a good deal:-

http://www.southcoastbikes.co.uk/Articles.asp?article=NO_BSO

Haggis McMutton said the following on 20/06/2007 00:23:

Quoted message said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer. Now I
don't know the first thing about bikes, I just got it because it was a
good deal.

Uh-oh! This is where cyclists come across as being all snobbish about
cheap BSOs, but we're not really! Supermarket and Sterling House bikes
generally never work out to be a good deal - I've just seen one of the
latter and as delivered it was virtually unrideable.

Quoted message said:

I'm trying to figure out what bike size I should get, some website says I
should measure my inside leg, and the frame I need is 2/3 of that. My
inside leg is 33", so that means I should get a bike 22"? This would leave
me with a bike smaller than the one I have... have I missed something here?

It all depends on what sort of bike and what sort of riding. For a 33"
leg you would be looking at somewhere around 24" frame size for a "road"
bike (what you might call a "racer"😉 or anywhere between 18" and 21" for
an MTB. At 6ft, I have a 21" MTB and a 24" tourer.

Sitting on the saddle, keep raising the seatpost until your leg is
straight with your heel on the pedal in roughly the 5 o'clock position
(crank arm in line with the seat tube). If you find that the seatpost
is now past it's safety mark, the cheapest option is a new seatpost
(check the size). DON'T ride the bike if you have gone past the safety
mark. I hesitate to recommend a longer seatpost though because this
will put a greater stress on the frame than it's designed for.

It's good that you now have a bike and enjoy riding it. Can I make a
suggestion? Ride it as much as possible. You will then start to get a
better idea of what you really want from it or why it doesn't feel
right. At that point you might decide to spend a bit more on a better
bike. Find a good local bike shop (ask here for recommendations in your
area) and they will make sure you walk away with the right bike.

--
Paul Boyd
http://www.paul-boyd.co.uk/

Haggis McMutton said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer.

So, I'm thinking I should buy a bike that is the right size for me.

Apart from carping about how bad supermarket bikes are, well done!
You've dipped your toe in the water and now you want to get a proper
bike that fits.

Don't try to buy a bike on the basis of your inside leg measurement.
Get down to a proper bike shop and talk to the folks there. Tell them
what you want to use the bike for. Sit on a few. Take some test
rides.

wafflycat said:

Read this, it explains why you've not got a good deal:-
http://www.southcoastbikes.co.uk/Articles.asp?article=NO_BSO

That was a really good article.
They seem like a funky outfit - I wish I lived near a place like that.
Loved the "specialbikes" section too.

Haggis McMutton said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer. Now I
don't know the first thing about bikes, I just got it because it was a
good deal.

Define "good deal"... If you mean "cheap", yes, but that's not
necessarily the same as "good".

Quoted message said:

I've started using my bike a lot more than I thought I would, I hate going
in the car to make the 10 minute drive to work now. So, I'm thinking I
should buy a bike that is the right size for me.

Yes, absolutely.

Quoted message said:

I'm trying to figure out what bike size I should get, some website says I
should measure my inside leg, and the frame I need is 2/3 of that. My
inside leg is 33", so that means I should get a bike 22"? This would leave
me with a bike smaller than the one I have... have I missed something here?

I very much doubt the Tesco bike is 26", that will be the wheel size.

But that aside the best thing to do is go to a good local bike shop and
try a few things out with some expert guidance (i.e., that which is
totally lacking at Tesco!). Where are you, so folk might make
suggestions of a good shop (local bike shops range from sublime examples
of the retail trade to pointless cowboys and everything in between).

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

"Haggis McMutton" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer. Now I
don't know the first thing about bikes, I just got it because it was a
good deal.

This is a 26" frame bike. When I pedal and my leg is stretched out the
furthest it is still nowhere near being straight. I know that I'm not
getting the full force behind the bike because of this.

I've started using my bike a lot more than I thought I would, I hate going
in the car to make the 10 minute drive to work now. So, I'm thinking I
should buy a bike that is the right size for me.

I'm trying to figure out what bike size I should get, some website says I
should measure my inside leg, and the frame I need is 2/3 of that. My
inside leg is 33", so that means I should get a bike 22"? This would leave
me with a bike smaller than the one I have... have I missed something
here?

Hi.

The 2008 bikes range come in towards the end of the year. This is an
excellent time to get a quality bike at a bargain price. The money saved can
go towards getting quality locks to suit.

Cheers

Peter.

Am Wed, 20 Jun 2007 07:14:40 +0100 schrieb Paul Rudin:

Quoted message said:

Bikes come with all sorts of frame geometries these days, and it's
really hard to know what size frame you need of a particular model
without actually riding it.

And it's even more difficult to find a frame that suits you without the
direct comparison and test rides of other bikes. Finding the right frame is
a bit like buying shoes. The frame size is a rough estimate but it can take
a while to find the right model. It does also depend a lot how you adjust
the seatpost and the handlebar. Even half an inch change can make a huge
difference.

Andreas

wafflycat said:

"Haggis McMutton" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer. Now I
don't know the first thing about bikes, I just got it because it was a
good deal.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but Tesco bikes are not good deals. My
local Tesco sells such things and I wouldn't touch them with a bargepole.
Sorry.

After I bought my bike I got some lights and a cheap lock for it, these
cost more than the bike itself. It might not be a good bike and I don't
know what a good bike is but I've had no problems apart from the size so a
good deal for what I wanted it for.

I'm using it on an almost daily basis now, when I only wanted an
occasional thing so I'll probably be getting a proper bike soon.

Haggis McMutton said:

After I bought my bike I got some lights and a cheap lock for it, these
cost more than the bike itself. It might not be a good bike and I don't
know what a good bike is but I've had no problems apart from the size so a
good deal for what I wanted it for.

A good bike will take you further in more comfort with less effort, and
won't need as much maintenance. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised
with how much better a bike can be.

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

"Peter Clinch" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Haggis McMutton said:

After I bought my bike I got some lights and a cheap lock for it, these
cost more than the bike itself. It might not be a good bike and I don't
know what a good bike is but I've had no problems apart from the size so
a
good deal for what I wanted it for.

A good bike will take you further in more comfort with less effort, and
won't need as much maintenance. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised
with how much better a bike can be.

Pete.

Wot he sed.

Haggis McMutton said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer. Now I
don't know the first thing about bikes, I just got it because it was a
good deal.

Everyone else has already been sniffy about cheap bikes. I tend to
the observation that if it has got you as far as deciding you want a
better bike, and hasn't fallen apart before that point, it may well
have served its purpose.

Quoted message said:

I've started using my bike a lot more than I thought I would, I hate going
in the car to make the 10 minute drive to work now. So, I'm thinking I
should buy a bike that is the right size for me.

A decent bike that's the right size should do wonders for your
satisfaction when riding.

One item that I haven't seen anyone mention - if you are going to use
the bike for a high proportion of your journeys to work, there is a
tax incentive scheme that has the potential to get you the bike almost
half price.

You need to be employed (in the strict tax-payer meaning - if you pay
PAYE you are). You need to use the bike for business purposes or for
at least part of most of your journeys to work. The company actually
buys the bike, and lends it to you for free. The company gets its
money back by you agreeing to take a pay cut for a period (a year, or
whatever). The savings arise because the company doesn't pay VAT,
and you don't pay income tax or NI on the pay cut. Eventually, you
get your full salary back, and the company may then sell you the bike
at its second-hand value, which is normally (by then) next to nothing.

The sticking point is obviously that it requires input from your
employer, but there are various schemes around (run by bike shops and
suppliers) that make the process very easy for the company (with the
downside that you might not realise the full potential saving - they
tend to do things like give you the saving from full list price, still
worth having, but not quite as much as if you could buy in a sale and
also get the half-price-tax-deal).

A google for 'cycle to work' should turn up lots of stuff if that's
interesting to you.

regards, Ian SMith
--
|\ /| no .sig
|o o|
|/ \|

In article said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer. Now I
don't know the first thing about bikes, I just got it because it was a
good deal.

This is a 26" frame bike. When I pedal and my leg is stretched out the
furthest it is still nowhere near being straight. I know that I'm not
getting the full force behind the bike because of this.

I've started using my bike a lot more than I thought I would, I hate going
in the car to make the 10 minute drive to work now. So, I'm thinking I
should buy a bike that is the right size for me.

If you are otherwise happy with the bike, it might be worth seeing if you
can just buy a long seatpost first. As many people have already pointed
out, supermarket bikes often aren't as good a deal as they first appear,
but a long seatpost will be cheaper than a better bike. Possibly even
cheap enough to be worth getting one just while you research better bikes
(and to make the supermarket usable as a backup bike).

That assumes you've already got the seatpost it came with up as far as
any limit mark on it. If you haven't, do that first.

in message <[email hidden]>, Haggis McMutton

(') said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer. Now I
don't know the first thing about bikes, I just got it because it was a
good deal.

This is a 26" frame bike. When I pedal and my leg is stretched out the
furthest it is still nowhere near being straight. I know that I'm not
getting the full force behind the bike because of this.

I've started using my bike a lot more than I thought I would, I hate
going in the car to make the 10 minute drive to work now. So, I'm
thinking I should buy a bike that is the right size for me.

I'm trying to figure out what bike size I should get, some website says I
should measure my inside leg, and the frame I need is 2/3 of that. My
inside leg is 33", so that means I should get a bike 22"? This would
leave me with a bike smaller than the one I have... have I missed
something here?

Yes. Firstly it's extremely unlikely that your supermarket special has a
26" frame - it's not impossible, but that's a VERY large size, and modern
designs tend not to be so large. Secondly, once upon a time all
manufacturers used more or less the same geometry, but that's no longer
true. A 14" frame from one manufacturer may be bigger than a 22" frame
from another. So there's really no option but to go to a shop that stocks
the bikes you're interested in, and sit on a few to establish what fits
you.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

-- mens vacua in medio vacuo --

In article <[email hidden]>, Haggis McMutton
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer. Now I
don't know the first thing about bikes, I just got it because it was a
good deal.

This is a 26" frame bike. When I pedal and my leg is stretched out the
furthest it is still nowhere near being straight. I know that I'm not
getting the full force behind the bike because of this.

I've started using my bike a lot more than I thought I would, I hate going
in the car to make the 10 minute drive to work now. So, I'm thinking I
should buy a bike that is the right size for me.

I'm trying to figure out what bike size I should get, some website says I
should measure my inside leg, and the frame I need is 2/3 of that. My
inside leg is 33", so that means I should get a bike 22"? This would leave
me with a bike smaller than the one I have... have I missed something here?

It's quite likely you can get a reasonable fit from this bike by the
simple expedient of fitting a longer seatpost - be aware that seatposts
come in a wide range of sizes 0.2mm apart, and you'll need the exact
size.
A few rough rules of thumb for setting your riding position:
When sitting on the bike with your /heel/ on the pedal you should be
able to slightly flex and straighten your leg.
The top of the saddle should be pretty much flat, and slid back as far
as it will go on the mounting rails.
With the saddle position set, stand beside the bike, rest the back of
your elbow against the front of the saddle and extend your fingers
towards the handlebars - the bars should be far enough away that you can
only just touch them, or a gap of up to two or three inches.
The bars should be level with the saddle, or up to about four inches
lower. If the bars are the wrong height and there isn't sufficient
adjustment available you could fit a different stem, but that probably
won't help if the reach is far off because it will affect the balance of
the steering and weight distribution.
As I said just rules of thumb, and they won't make your bike any better
quality, but getting the bike to fit you could make quite a difference
to its rideability.

Paul Boyd usenet.dont.work@plusnet said:

Haggis McMutton said the following on 20/06/2007 00:23:

Quoted message said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer. Now I
don't know the first thing about bikes, I just got it because it was a
good deal.

Uh-oh! This is where cyclists come across as being all snobbish about
cheap BSOs, but we're not really! Supermarket and Sterling House bikes
generally never work out to be a good deal - I've just seen one of the
latter and as delivered it was virtually unrideable.

Cheap bikes may not usually be terribly good bikes, but this one got the
OP out of his car and out in the fresh air and keen to find something
that suits him better. That sounds like a pretty good deal to me :-)

Haggis, I hope you won't be put off by the negative-sounding comments
some people are making, because I'm pretty sure it's only because they
want to help you improve the whole cycling experience.

It really is a lot easier with a better quality bike - the first bike I
did any significant mileage on was a big clunky cheapo mountain bike,
which was great at the time, but I couldn't believe the difference when
my husband bought me a Dawes touring bike - much faster and smoother.
--
Carol
"The glassblower's cat is bompstable"
- Dorothy L. Sayers, _Clouds of Witness_

On Jun 20, 7:28 am, "wafflycat" <w*a*ff£y£cat*@£btco*nn£ect.com>

Quoted message said:

"Haggis McMutton" <[email hidden]> wrote in message

news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I got a cheap bike from Tesco just because it was on special offer. Now I
don't know the first thing about bikes, I just got it because it was a
good deal.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but Tesco bikes are not good deals. My
local Tesco sells such things and I wouldn't touch them with a bargepole.

It got him cycling to the extent that he enjoys it and realises he
might want a better bike. I'd rather that, than spend a grand on
"good" bike and really not enjoy the experience for whatever reason.

It's the ones who buy the cheap heavy bike and ride around in blissful
ignorance you should perhaps feel sorry for, but hey, if they're
happy, what does it matter?

MBQ