New bike suggestions?

"Theo Markettos" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Posting for a friend. She writes:

So, last week, my bicycle stopped steering. I borrowed mum's for the week
and took the bike to the shop yesterday. They reckoned that it would be
silly to spend 80+quid on it given its age and condition; they thought I
could buy a second-hand bike in better condition for less than that. They
did spray the headset so it steers again. So my trusty steed of 12 years
needs to be replaced :-{. I've been thinking about doing so for a while
but
was hoping to delay it a bit longer having just spent money on moving.

If it's just the headset that wants replacing, they're taking the mickey in
a serious fashion. Think more like £15 for parts and not a lot for labour at
a good LBS.

Quoted message said:

My current bike is a mountain bike which is non-ideal as I rarely go off
road and bike is my main form of transport, though my daily commute has
just
halved from 8 miles a day to 4.

What recommendations, thoughts, ideas on what to look for, avoid etc in
bicycles?

I intend to get hub dynamo because I'm sick of flat batteries/forgetting
lights etc (I already have the light set but not the dynamo). Considering
dropped handlebars though I've never used them before but have often
thought
I might like them.

Dropped handle bars are only moderately useful IMO. I commute to uni on a
road bike with drop bars, and I rarely actually get down on the drops, and
braking from the tops of the bars is very inneffective, even with well
adjusted dual pivot brakes. This can be a pain in the neck around town.
Unless she intends to go fast down hills, I wouldn't really bother.

I've never ridden with a hub dynamo, but I get the impression that they can
be problematic - output is proportional to speed, so you can end up needing
circuitry to stop overvoltage at high speed, and some sort of standlight
setup so you still have lights when stationary. I find organising myself
with the lamps in the same place every day, and having several lamps, so as
not to be stuck if one breaks, helps immensely.

Quoted message said:

Any suggestions for where she might start to look? She's in Cardiff. Her
LBS seems reasonable, so that's an obvious place to start, but any
suggestions on other places she should look? I thought Edinburgh Bicycle
Coop had a good own-brand range, but they seem to have stopped doing them.
Annoyingly their website lists sections for 'MTB', 'hybrids', 'tourers'
and
'women's bikes' without considering that women might want to select by
type
too! Budget is about 200-300quid.

Ridgeback and Edinburgh make some very good value bikes. Ridgeback produce a
lot of stuff that's pretty comprehensively kitted up, with full mudguards
and a rack as standard etc.

Quoted message said:

I'm suggesting something in the road/tourer/hybrid area. For some reason
bottom-end hybrids are about half the price of bottom-end tourers. Any
particular reason - just lack of demand? What are the things to look for
in
these types?

I'd go for something with 700C wheels if possible, as the selection of tyres
for the road is far better than for 26" wheels, IME giving far better grip
and less resistance. V-brakes or Mini V-brakes are also far easier to keep
in adjustment than any other type, and generally more powerful. I'd say a
set of well adjusted dual pivot brakes is as good, but it's also a hell of a
lot more work to adjust, where as a chimp can set up V brakes properly.

A nexus hub may be an idea as it allows the fitting of a chain guard,
avoiding oily clothes with chunks ripped out of them.

Quoted message said:

Would it be worth keeping an eye for a good quality secondhand bike and
getting it done up - if so where's the best place to find one? (And how
to
spot it from the trash?)

Second hand bike buying is a bit of a minefield IMO. Unless you've got some
mechanical aptitude and experience, it's difficult to find a decent bike,
and a hell of a lot of people are selling bikes they consider to be "fine"
but are in fact needing a lot of new mechanical parts, due to the mechanical
ignorance of the seller.

I recently bought a fantastic second hand bike, from a bloke who was a keen
cyclist and had kept it pretty much pristine. The problem is those sort of
people are 1 in a hundred. I've also bought second hand bikes very cheaply
(£10 road bike for commuting), but once a set of tyres was fitted, a new
headset, mudguards, new bar tape, new cables, new front wheel, new brakes
and so on, a fair whack was spent. Fortunately I managed to get a few bits
as a swap for a hanging basket which saved me a fair few quid.

Quoted message said:

My current bike is a mountain bike which is non-ideal as I rarely go off
road and bike is my main form of transport, though my daily commute has
just
halved from 8 miles a day to 4.

What recommendations, thoughts, ideas on what to look for, avoid etc in
bicycles?

I intend to get hub dynamo because I'm sick of flat batteries/forgetting
lights etc (I already have the light set but not the dynamo).

I wouldn't. They're a nuisance. Get a set of cheap LED 'flashing' lights -
they weigh nothing and a set of batteries lasts ages. (Watch out...very
often the front one of a set doesn't flash, which drastically reduces
battery life..make sure you get flashers front & back.)

Considering

Quoted message said:

dropped handlebars though I've never used them before but have often
thought
I might like them.

Can you borrow a bike to try before yyou buy? Personally I wouldn't ride
anythung else, but it's obviouly a personal thing.

Quoted message said:

Any suggestions for where she might start to look? She's in Cardiff. Her
LBS seems reasonable, so that's an obvious place to start, but any
suggestions on other places she should look? I thought Edinburgh Bicycle
Coop had a good own-brand range, but they seem to have stopped doing them.
Annoyingly their website lists sections for 'MTB', 'hybrids', 'tourers'
and
'women's bikes' without considering that women might want to select by
type
too! Budget is about 200-300quid.

I'm suggesting something in the road/tourer/hybrid area. For some reason
bottom-end hybrids are about half the price of bottom-end tourers. Any
particular reason - just lack of demand? What are the things to look for
in
these types?

Would it be worth keeping an eye for a good quality secondhand bike and
getting it done up - if so where's the best place to find one? (And how
to
spot it from the trash?)

Loads of people seem to have a real downer on ebay, but it's certainly
served me well. As to spotting the trash, in my (very extensive) ebay
experience, the overwhelming majority of people are absolutely honest. You
can judge the seller by the ad. This, eg
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Ladies-Mountain-Bike-Marin_W0QQitemZ150146644682QQihZ005QQcategoryZ33503QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

isn't a bike I'd personally want..but I've no doubt it is exactly as
described. (It's within 25 miles of your friend too.)

Personally I'd never buy new unless I was in a real hurry. I'd always go
second hand..carefully. You get so much more for your money.

Anyway, hope your friend finds a steed that suits.

Quoted message said:

Thanks
Theo

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

Quoted message said:

I've never ridden with a hub dynamo, but I get the impression that they
can be problematic - output is proportional to speed, so you can end up
needing circuitry to stop overvoltage at high speed, and some sort of
standlight setup so you still have lights when stationary.

Tee hee - your impression is somewhat enormously wide of the mark, IME -
they're the least problematic lights I've ever had. They're there, all the
time, ready for use whenever you want them, and don't need any organisation
to keep working.

Re overvoltage - yes, you'll want to protect against that - but any decent
lamp or switch (ie the shimano switch or any lamp sold for use with a SON)
has it built in. Ditto standlights - though personally I don't bother.

And no, output is not proportional to speed at all. They're designed to give
pretty much full design output at a fairly low speed (*). I think they're
then normally set up to saturate something magnetically, so they
self-regulate - they're a fairly good 0.5A constant current source.

(* with an extra switch/lamp, you can get more output at higher speeds if
you want)

Quoted message said:

I'd go for something with 700C wheels if possible, as the selection of
tyres for the road is far better than for 26" wheels, IME giving far
better grip and less resistance. V-brakes or Mini V-brakes are also far
easier to keep in adjustment than any other type, and generally more
powerful. I'd say a set of well adjusted dual pivot brakes is as good, but
it's also a hell of a lot more work to adjust, where as a chimp can set up
V brakes properly.

Odd - the standard length (aka long arm in modern style) Tektro (ie
cheap-ish) dual pivots on my main bike have always been trivial to setup and
adjust. Put pads on - there's not that many ways you can get that wrong
(unlike old cantis :-( ). As the pad wears, turn the little round thing to
take up the cable. That's it. Dunno where you're getting your faff from.

(however if I was getting a flat bar bike, I'd get one with V brakes.
Actually, this is a bit of a lie, as the only reason I'd be getting a flat
bar bike would be an MTB, so probably discs these days. But in the
theoretical world where I changed how I ride and decided I wanted a flat
barred commuting bike, it would be Vs)

cheers,
clive

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

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I intend to get hub dynamo because I'm sick of flat batteries/forgetting
lights etc (I already have the light set but not the dynamo).

I wouldn't. They're a nuisance. Get a set of cheap LED 'flashing' lights -
they weigh nothing and a set of batteries lasts ages. (Watch out...very
often the front one of a set doesn't flash, which drastically reduces
battery life..make sure you get flashers front & back.)

This advice is probably one of the worst bits you've had in this thread.
Cheap flashers have long battery life for good reason : they don't give out
much light. For the front lamp, you want a steady lamp - that way you can
actually use it to see where you're going, and people can see you properly
rather than a randomly positioned moving object.
As for hub dynamos being a nuisance, see my reply to Doki - they're the
least nuisance of lights I've ever had. I think you're on the right track
there, but then I'm biased - I got my first one 10 years ago, and have never
regretted it since - all our on-road bikes have them now. SON is nice and
expensive, but even the worst Shimano hub dynamo (the original NX-10) isn't
too bad at all, and you can get the modern equivalents for not much money if
you look around, particularly at German mail order.

(you can supplement the steady with a flasher if you want - but I wouldn't
bother).

cheers,
clive

"Clive George" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

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

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I'd go for something with 700C wheels if possible, as the selection of
tyres for the road is far better than for 26" wheels, IME giving far
better grip and less resistance. V-brakes or Mini V-brakes are also far
easier to keep in adjustment than any other type, and generally more
powerful. I'd say a set of well adjusted dual pivot brakes is as good,
but it's also a hell of a lot more work to adjust, where as a chimp can
set up V brakes properly.

Odd - the standard length (aka long arm in modern style) Tektro (ie
cheap-ish) dual pivots on my main bike have always been trivial to setup
and adjust. Put pads on - there's not that many ways you can get that
wrong (unlike old cantis :-( ). As the pad wears, turn the little round
thing to take up the cable. That's it. Dunno where you're getting your
faff from.

The fact that dual pivots have to be kept adjusted very close into the rim
so as not to lose power, whereas V brakes are much more forgiving in terms
of being left to their own devices a bit.

"Clive George" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

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

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I intend to get hub dynamo because I'm sick of flat batteries/forgetting
lights etc (I already have the light set but not the dynamo).

I wouldn't. They're a nuisance. Get a set of cheap LED 'flashing'
lights - they weigh nothing and a set of batteries lasts ages. (Watch
out...very often the front one of a set doesn't flash, which drastically
reduces battery life..make sure you get flashers front & back.)

This advice is probably one of the worst bits you've had in this thread.

Cor. You make it sound like I spoke absolute tosh through the entireity of
my post.

Doki said:

"Clive George" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

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

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

V-brakes or Mini V-brakes are also far
easier to keep in adjustment than any other type, and generally more
powerful. I'd say a set of well adjusted dual pivot brakes is as good,
but it's also a hell of a lot more work to adjust, where as a chimp can
set up V brakes properly.

Odd - the standard length (aka long arm in modern style) Tektro (ie
cheap-ish) dual pivots on my main bike have always been trivial to setup
and adjust.

Quoted message said:

The fact that dual pivots have to be kept adjusted very close into the rim
so as not to lose power, whereas V brakes are much more forgiving in terms
of being left to their own devices a bit.

How long does it take to twist a plastic cable adjuster? About ten
seconds, IME. Now if you'd been talking about the need to keep
perfectly-true wheels then I'd agree with you - V-brakes are much more
forgiving of slightly buckled wheels, due to the aforementioned
distance 'tween pad and rim.

--
Ace in Alsace - brucedotrogers a.t rochedotcom

Doki said the following on 30/07/2007 00:01:

Quoted message said:

I've never ridden with a hub dynamo, but I get the impression that they
can be problematic - output is proportional to speed, so you can end up
needing circuitry to stop overvoltage at high speed, and some sort of
standlight setup so you still have lights when stationary.

Wrong impression! I have a hub dynamo, and it just, well, works! I
don't have to worry about organizing lights or anything - if I feel the
need I just reach down to the lamp and turn it on, or if I'm feeling
really lazy I just let it turn itself on when it's dark. Any kind of
dynamo can produce a higher voltage, but any dynamo lamp worthy of the
name has a zener built in to prevent damage. Mine also has standlights,
but legally a bike that's stationary against a kerb does not need to be
lit :-)

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

Theo Markettos said the following on 29/07/2007 23:14:

Quoted message said:

Posting for a friend. She writes:

So, last week, my bicycle stopped steering. I borrowed mum's for the week
and took the bike to the shop yesterday. They reckoned that it would be
silly to spend 80+quid on it given its age and condition;

Stopped steering? Presumably that's just a seized headset if spraying
unstuck it, and that doesn't cost £80 to fix!

Then again, I've used more feeble excuses to justify buying something
shiny and new :-)

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

Clive George said:

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

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I intend to get hub dynamo because I'm sick of flat batteries/forgetting
lights etc (I already have the light set but not the dynamo).

I wouldn't. They're a nuisance. Get a set of cheap LED 'flashing' lights -
they weigh nothing and a set of batteries lasts ages. (Watch out...very
often the front one of a set doesn't flash, which drastically reduces
battery life..make sure you get flashers front & back.)

This advice is probably one of the worst bits you've had in this thread.
Cheap flashers have long battery life for good reason : they don't give out
much light. For the front lamp, you want a steady lamp - that way you can
actually use it to see where you're going, and people can see you properly
rather than a randomly positioned moving object.

I agree, I got some cheapish flashing lights from Halfords which are good
for making myself more visible. But, late last night I was cycling down an
unlit lane and those lights did sod all to help me see where I was going.

I don't think there's much need for flashing lights at the front although
I tend to find when using unlit roads if I'm not using them cars often
don't notice me and blind me with their full beam headlights. 🙁

Haggis McMutton said:

Clive George said:

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

Quoted message said:

> I intend to get hub dynamo because I'm sick of flat batteries/forgetting
> lights etc (I already have the light set but not the dynamo).

I wouldn't. They're a nuisance. Get a set of cheap LED 'flashing' lights -

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

This advice is probably one of the worst bits you've had in this thread.
Cheap flashers have long battery life for good reason : they don't give out
much light. For the front lamp, you want a steady lamp - that way you can
actually use it to see where you're going, and people can see you properly
rather than a randomly positioned moving object.

I agree, I got some cheapish flashing lights from Halfords which are good
for making myself more visible. But, late last night I was cycling down an
unlit lane and those lights did sod all to help me see where I was going.

I don't think there's much need for flashing lights at the front although
I tend to find when using unlit roads if I'm not using them cars often
don't notice me and blind me with their full beam headlights. 🙁

You want something with a decent power output. I've got a twin-set of
(10-y-o) lumicycle 12v lamps, currently equipped (cos these are the
only bulbs I can find in the shops) with one 20w spot and one 20w
flood. Anyone who blinds me with main beam is in for a shock, I can
tell you.

--
Ace in Alsace - brucedotrogers a.t rochedotcom

Haggis McMutton said:

I agree, I got some cheapish flashing lights from Halfords which are good
for making myself more visible. But, late last night I was cycling down an
unlit lane and those lights did sod all to help me see where I was going.

I don't think there's much need for flashing lights at the front although
I tend to find when using unlit roads if I'm not using them cars often
don't notice me and blind me with their full beam headlights. 🙁

Its a mistake to confuse the two functions a light can fulfil. One is
being seen in which brightness, a diffuse beam and flashing are helpful.
One is seeing in which brightness, a directed beam and steady light
are helpful. They are best fulfilled by having two different lights and
not mixing the purpose of each IMO. A flashing light and most (not all)
LED lights are positively unsuitable for seeing where you are going
especially with the strobe effect of the flashing light but on lit
streets they are very good for getting you seen.

I use a Luxeon LED or a HID light depending on conditions for seeing and
a cheapish Smart brand flashing LED light to get myself seen.

Tony

Haggis McMutton said:

Clive George said:

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

Quoted message said:

> I intend to get hub dynamo because I'm sick of flat batteries/forgetting
> lights etc (I already have the light set but not the dynamo).

I wouldn't. They're a nuisance. Get a set of cheap LED 'flashing' lights -
they weigh nothing and a set of batteries lasts ages. (Watch out...very
often the front one of a set doesn't flash, which drastically reduces
battery life..make sure you get flashers front & back.)

This advice is probably one of the worst bits you've had in this thread.
Cheap flashers have long battery life for good reason : they don't give out
much light. For the front lamp, you want a steady lamp - that way you can
actually use it to see where you're going, and people can see you properly
rather than a randomly positioned moving object.

I agree, I got some cheapish flashing lights from Halfords which are good
for making myself more visible. But, late last night I was cycling down an
unlit lane and those lights did sod all to help me see where I was going.

I don't think there's much need for flashing lights at the front although
I tend to find when using unlit roads if I'm not using them cars often
don't notice me and blind me with their full beam headlights. 🙁

even on the rear they can make it harder to gadge disance and speed,
fine as accompany to a solid or if you allways drive under street
lights.

roger
--
www.rogermerriman.com

Theo Markettos said:

Posting for a friend. She writes:

So, last week, my bicycle stopped steering. I borrowed mum's for the week
and took the bike to the shop yesterday. They reckoned that it would be
silly to spend 80+quid on it given its age and condition; they thought I
could buy a second-hand bike in better condition for less than that. They
did spray the headset so it steers again. So my trusty steed of 12 years
needs to be replaced :-{. I've been thinking about doing so for a while but
was hoping to delay it a bit longer having just spent money on moving.

My current bike is a mountain bike which is non-ideal as I rarely go off
road and bike is my main form of transport, though my daily commute has just
halved from 8 miles a day to 4.

What recommendations, thoughts, ideas on what to look for, avoid etc in
bicycles?

well like others that doesn't sound like a end of the bike life job.

that rather depends what you value. a mountain bikes tires soak up a
fair bit of potholes and such. but are slow. ie do you want a speed
machine comfort etc.

Quoted message said:

I intend to get hub dynamo because I'm sick of flat batteries/forgetting
lights etc (I already have the light set but not the dynamo). Considering
dropped handlebars though I've never used them before but have often thought
I might like them.

do seem like a good idea might make a fair dent in the budget though.

Quoted message said:

Any suggestions for where she might start to look? She's in Cardiff. Her
LBS seems reasonable, so that's an obvious place to start, but any
suggestions on other places she should look? I thought Edinburgh Bicycle
Coop had a good own-brand range, but they seem to have stopped doing them.
Annoyingly their website lists sections for 'MTB', 'hybrids', 'tourers' and
'women's bikes' without considering that women might want to select by type
too! Budget is about 200-300quid.

well that gives you mountain bike based types or womans bike plus basket
types. the cheapest road is just under £400.

if her heart is set on road/tourers probably best up the budget.

Quoted message said:

I'm suggesting something in the road/tourer/hybrid area. For some reason
bottom-end hybrids are about half the price of bottom-end tourers. Any
particular reason - just lack of demand? What are the things to look for in
these types?

cheaper parts based on mountain bike etc.

you get plenty of cheap mounatin bikes for the challange of the park but
a tourier is higher spec machine, as are proper mountain bikes.

if it is just A to B cardiff is fairly flat as most sea side cities thus
most will do. suspention is probably best avoided though my pop to the
shops has front spring, and the bike does what i ask of it, though it's
a very uninspiring ride then again when lugging stuff around in paniers
is not normally a inspiring ride any way.

Quoted message said:

Would it be worth keeping an eye for a good quality secondhand bike and
getting it done up - if so where's the best place to find one? (And how to
spot it from the trash?)

others have said but quite a mind field.

Quoted message said:

Thanks
Theo

roger

--
www.rogermerriman.com

Doki said:

Dropped handle bars are only moderately useful IMO. I commute to uni on
a road bike with drop bars, and I rarely actually get down on the drops,
and braking from the tops of the bars is very inneffective, even with
well adjusted dual pivot brakes.

In which case they are not well adjusted at /some/ point in the chain.
I used to get perfectly acceptable stopping on old Weinman sidepulls
from the tops of the hoods, so something seems wrong if you've got
decent dual-pivots not stopping you properly.

Quoted message said:

I've never ridden with a hub dynamo, but I get the impression that they
can be problematic - output is proportional to speed, so you can end up
needing circuitry to stop overvoltage at high speed

Which is built into any decent dynamo specific lamp, so it's a non-issue.

Quoted message said:

and some sort of
standlight setup so you still have lights when stationary.

Easy enough to just buy along with the over-voltage stuff.

The hub dynamo is one of the least problematical things I've ever
experienced for bike lighting.

Quoted message said:

I'd go for something with 700C wheels if possible, as the selection of
tyres for the road is far better than for 26" wheels

Maybe, but I've never found a problem getting a decent 26" for the road.
If the person it's for is petite then it's possible that a 26" wheel
needs a less compromised frame design than a 700c to reasonably
accommodate her, but overall I'd say it's not really much of an issue.
One will work fine, so will the other.

Quoted message said:

better grip and less resistance. V-brakes or Mini V-brakes are also far
easier to keep in adjustment than any other type, and generally more
powerful.

/any/ other type? No. Good hydraulics are easier to use with better
modulation, more powerful, easier to fettle pad clearances and the
cables don't degrade with time. While they're not at all necessary on a
bike it's just wrong to say Vs are easier to adjust than HS-33s.

Quoted message said:

A nexus hub may be an idea as it allows the fitting of a chain guard,
avoiding oily clothes with chunks ripped out of them.

Indeed. Or even without the chain guard it means less maintenance and
fiddling to keep gearing in trim.

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/

<snip>

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I intend to get hub dynamo because I'm sick of flat batteries/forgetting
lights etc (I already have the light set but not the dynamo).

I wouldn't. They're a nuisance. Get a set of cheap LED 'flashing' lights -
they weigh nothing and a set of batteries lasts ages. (Watch out...very
often the front one of a set doesn't flash, which drastically reduces
battery life..make sure you get flashers front & back.)

<snip>

Why all this worry about hub dynamos?

My first big bike (around 1963 IIRC) came with a hub dynamo which never gave
a moment's trouble.

The front light also had a 3 way switch underneath - on, off, battery.

The optional extra (which I was bought after a while) was a metal tube which
fixed to the frame and held three U2 batteries - now called 'A' I think.

The technology has been around for (at least) decades and is much more
practical than having a bottle dynamo rubbing against a tyre.

I don't recall any noticeable drag when the lights were on or off, either.

Embrace old technology ;-)

Cheers

Dave R

Quoted message said:

What recommendations, thoughts, ideas on what to look for, avoid etc
in bicycles?

If you stay on tarmac and just use it for getting about town, I'd go for:

-Slick tyres. More grip, particularly in the wet.
-Flat bars, a fairly upright riding position. Easier to look behind to
check for cars, cheaper.
-Proper mudguards
-A rack and panniers
-Budget for a big naff-off D lock, and a second lock for the front wheel.

Specialized's Globe City range is excellent, though you do pay for the
quality. I'd budget at least £200 for the bike. It sounds like you'll be
using it a lot, so it makes sense to go for something good, unless you keep
it outside.

Quoted message said:

I thought Edinburgh
Bicycle Coop had a good own-brand range, but they seem to have stopped
doing them. Annoyingly their website lists sections for 'MTB',
'hybrids', 'tourers' and 'women's bikes' without considering that
women might want to select by type too! Budget is about 200-300quid.

Edinburgh Bicycle Coop changed the name of their own brand bikes to
'Revolution'.

Quoted message said:

I'm suggesting something in the road/tourer/hybrid area. For some
reason bottom-end hybrids are about half the price of bottom-end
tourers. Any particular reason - just lack of demand?

Economies of scale, price of integrated brake/shifter levers for drop bars
(can be 20% of the cost of a cheap bike!)

Quoted message said:

Would it be worth keeping an eye for a good quality secondhand bike
and getting it done up - if so where's the best place to find one?
(And how to spot it from the trash?)

Kind of. If it needs no work and is cheap then go for it. If it needs
work then it'll likely not be worth it - labour is expensive, and so is
buying replacement parts at retail prices. If money is tight and you don't
mind trundling around on a heap of trash it's a good idea, and there are
real bargains in excellent condition out there if you get lucky.

"Doki" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

"Clive George" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

"spokes" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

> I intend to get hub dynamo because I'm sick of flat
> batteries/forgetting
> lights etc (I already have the light set but not the dynamo).

I wouldn't. They're a nuisance. Get a set of cheap LED 'flashing'
lights - they weigh nothing and a set of batteries lasts ages. (Watch
out...very often the front one of a set doesn't flash, which drastically
reduces battery life..make sure you get flashers front & back.)

This advice is probably one of the worst bits you've had in this thread.

Cor. You make it sound like I spoke absolute tosh through the entireity of
my post.

Eh? Or are you "spokes"?

(but yes, you were a bit wide of the mark on a couple of things :-) )

cheers,
clive

Quoted message said:

Its a mistake to confuse the two functions a light can fulfil. One is
being seen in which brightness, a diffuse beam and flashing are helpful.
One is seeing in which brightness, a directed beam and steady light are
helpful.

Indeed. And as an urban-only rider I was doubtless remiss in neglecting the
second. But isn't 'For the front lamp, you want a steady lamp - that way you
can actually use it to see where you're going' making just the same error?

People who are into hub dynamos seem to be a bit prickly about it - I wonder
why? Anyway, my 'worst advice' stands, with the caveat 'for urban riding'.
If you need a front light to *see*, a flasher is not for you. If you don't,
tho', then spending of the order of a hundred quid on a lump of metal to
haul around for the next x,000 miles seems bonkers to me when you could get
something a twentieth the weight and at least as effective (in *being seen*,
nb) for a fraction of the cost.