Bike question (the kind you peddle)

You just made me feel like a stud . I rode 25 miles round trip to and from work today and feel pretty good about it. It certainly isn't an everyday option yet though. I'm also lucky and have showers at work and a bike trail almost the whole way.

In reply to 4cylndrfury: Those are all good looking bikes 4cylndrfury. My coworker has yet to bring his bike in so one of these might be a good plan b.

ryejeff wrote: In reply to dankspeed: I doubt it is worth $70. Depends on brand and condition, of course. But, X-mart bikes have been sold with 18, 24, or even 30 gears for many years. A 6-speed is either really old, or the chainrings bit it. If the chainrings went, it begs the question how the bike was (or wasn't) taken care of.

Or it could be a more basic hybrid. My DB Kalamar was 7 speed, all on the wheel.

Coworker brought his bike in. Its a mongoose xr-75. Has front and rear shocks, shimano gears. Looks a bit weathered but should clean up well. Thinking I should give him $50 ? He's leaving the price up to me.

Full suspension tends to absorb energy that would otherwise go towards moving forward. The Googles seem to think it's a Wal-Mart special...but for a 3.5 mile one way trip that probably shouldn't matter much. For $50, even if it ends up being a starter bike you can't much go wrong.

The only concern I would have is about the ability (or lack thereof) to put a rack on it. I've found that I HATE having a backpack on my back, and much prefer being able to hang a pannier off a rack.

for road riding and soft trails.. most you need is front suspension. Should be off the seat in the tough stuff anyway.

Not sure if it will accept a rack or not. He said he bought it at a higher end bike shop a few years ago although I too saw the Walmart when Googled. Anyway to mod the shocks to disable them?

not very well. It will be an energy sponge and make you work twice as hard to get where you're going, not least because cheap suspension bikes are HEAVY. I had a Wal-Mart Front sus Mongoose about a decade ago, aluminum frame, low end shimano components...and it weighed over 40 lbs.

you'll hate the ride if you get something like that.

I agree with ultraclyde. You'll probably not enjoy having the full suspension. Too heavy and will take away energy that should be used for forward motion. A rigid bike will be more satisfying.

It's a decent deal at $50 if it doesn't need any work, but then so is any bike. If it needs any real work, the cost of upgrading will quickly approach that of buying a really good bike in good condition.

Personally, I always think the answer is a rigid steel mountain bike from the 90s, preferably with friction shifting thumbies on top of the bars. You should be able to find one in good shape for $50 if you give it time.

This bike needs nothing but I'm changing the tires and seat. Ill keep an eye out for a rigid

bastomatic wrote: It's a decent deal at $50 if it doesn't need any work, but then so is any bike. If it needs any real work, the cost of upgrading will quickly approach that of buying a really good bike in good condition. Personally, I always think the answer is a rigid steel mountain bike from the 90s, preferably with friction shifting thumbies on top of the bars. You should be able to find one in good shape for $50 if you give it time.

having gone to SiS.. (shimano Index Shifting) I would -never- go back to friction shifters.

i know in '90 or '91 they went away from the thumb shifters and went to thumb push/push shifters... and even as early as the late/mid 80's the shimano thumbies were index shifting... shimano thumbines are a great part for simplicity and function, if I was to build a touring bike it would be either gripshift or old shimano thumbies for the simplicity... thumbies have the one up that they can index if something happens though.

Yeah, my shifting tastes are a bit outmoded. Suntour friction barcons on the cross bike, Dura Ace thumbies on the touring rig. My wife does prefer the indexed though. She runs an old Dura Ace brifter setup on her road bike.

Gripshift is underrated!

I had a bike with gripshift.. I hated it.

Gripshift blows offroad. Gripshift on a bumpy climb produces the equivalent of Jeff Goldblum leaning against your shifter and dropping your jeep into 3rd when a Tyrannosaurus is chasing you. But for the streets, I suppose it is nice that the shifter is right there under your hand the whole time.

Personally, I prefer indexed downtube shifters on my road bikes - keeps the bars clean, and cables short and tidy. If I were on a hybrid, Shimano indexed is really the way Id go.

I used to commute by bike for a couple years when I lived across the Puget sound from Seattle. I used an old Trek mountain bike with 1" wide slick tires most days. Some days I rode my real mountain bike and took the longer way home through the woods on some singletrack and then the rest of the way on gravel roads. Other days I rode my road bike and took the real long way home and got in 20-25 miles before dinner.

These days, I put my bikes on my car and drive to the trail when I ride....but I'm older, fatter, wiser, and spend way more time at work than I did back then.

I'm about 35 miles from work now. I really wish I lived 10 or less and would ride in just for the exercise and peace of mind. Next job I take I will live within biking distance of the workplace.