Buying a more...practical Bike

Cabaal

So I have a road bike and I'm happy with it but I'd like to buy a more practical bike for day to day, down to shops etc.

When in Amsterdam a few years back I was struck by the fact they appear to have far more practical bikes than us, so while we opt for hybrids and mountain bikes they generally don't have mud guards unless they are the crappy plastic attachments or chain guards or anything like that.....but thats just not practical with the weather they get and its the same here in Ireland.

So with that in mind, I wanted to use the biketowork scheme again to buy a more practical bike, perhaps something like below (not gone on the carrier at the front though..but I suppose I could always remove it)

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/ie/en/creme-caferacer-solo-mens-7-speed-bike-2017/rp-prod151809

So, what do people suggest along these lines?

peasant

If you like Dutch bikes...why not buy a Dutch bike...eg:
http://dutchbikeshop.ie/gazelle-orange-c7-gents/

martyc5674

I bought a pashley roadster sovereign about 7 years ago for exactly what your on about.
It's been great.., used to carry the 2 kids on it when they were younger.
Coat guards, proper mudguards dynamo hub, hub brakes and hub gears make it pretty low maintenance. Built in lock and stand is great too.
I still use it daily and it's great for a bit of shopping and your up so high youve great vision in traffic.
http://www.pashley.co.uk/bikes/bicycles/roadster-sovereign.php
Get whatever floats your boat, one thing I don't live about it is that the gears are really gappy... you'd rarely ever use 5th or 1st.
Marty.

tomasrojo

If you're going for hub gears, get a full chain case, if you can. The chain lasts for an insane amount of time with one of those, and you're probably going to fix punctures in situ anyway.

I have been using a bakfiets for over a year now. I haven't had a puncture yet, so I'm still not sure how difficult it's going to be to deal with.

rflynnr

tomasrojo wrote: »

If you're going for hub gears, get a full chain case, if you can. The chain lasts for an insane amount of time with one of those, and you're probably going to fix punctures in situ anyway.

I have been using a bakfiets for over a year now. I haven't had a puncture yet, so I'm still not sure how difficult it's going to be to deal with.

I ran a bakfiets for a couple of years and the one thing (in fact pretty much the only thing) that got me about it was the whole palaver over fixing punctures. The simplest thing ended up being the purchase of the most bullet-proof tyres I could find: Schwalbe Marathon Plus if memory serves.

tomasrojo

Yeah, think the bike came with Marathons. Would explain the thousands of km without a puncture (not sure how many at this stage; 8000km maybe?)

Cabaal

martyc5674 wrote: »

I bought a pashley roadster sovereign about 7 years ago for exactly what your on about.
It's been great.., used to carry the 2 kids on it when they were younger.
Coat guards, proper mudguards dynamo hub, hub brakes and hub gears make it pretty low maintenance. Built in lock and stand is great too.
I still use it daily and it's great for a bit of shopping and your up so high youve great vision in traffic.
http://www.pashley.co.uk/bikes/bicycles/roadster-sovereign.php
Get whatever floats your boat, one thing I don't live about it is that the gears are really gappy... you'd rarely ever use 5th or 1st.
Marty.

I must say I do like this, but I'd say I won't be able to buy it as I'm very much doubting the retailer is covered by the setup my work use for biketowork

Cabaal

I'm curious what make/models of bikes did people go for along this theme, whats your experiences with them?

Currently looking at either of these two
http://dutchbikeshop.ie/gazelle-puurnl-gents-2/

http://dutchbikeshop.ie/gazelle-puurnl-gents/

maybe http://dutchbikeshop.ie/gazelle-tour-populair-t3-gents/

Is there any suggested features people recommend I should be looking at hub brakes , chain case etc

martyc5674

Cabaal wrote: »

I must say I do like this, but I'd say I won't be able to buy it as I'm very much doubting the retailer is covered by the setup my work use for biketowork

I got mine in a bricks and mortar shop so if you are keen you might be surprised who sticjspashley.
Actually marathon plus tyres on it aswell... haven't had a single puncture.

Cabaal

martyc5674 wrote: »

I got mine in a bricks and mortar shop so if you are keen you might be surprised who sticjspashley. .

I had a check, it seems the stockist for Ireland for pashley is covered so between that and the Dutch bike shop I guess it'll be a trip to Dublin to properly check them out.

py

Cabaal wrote: »

I'm curious what make/models of bikes did people go for along this theme, whats your experiences with them?

I've been eyeballing some of the Cube touring range, with a particular interest in the Cube Travel range. https://www.cube.eu/en/2018/bikes/trekking/tour/

Pigeon Reaper

I went for a cheap(€75) second hand Popal. It's single speed, has a basket,bell, stand, carrier ,lights, full mud guards, back pedal brake, and an enclosed chain. It weighs so much that the back wheel lock is all I've ever used as it's too much hassle to nick by lifting. It's slow, rattles, and is so heavy that it's like having a baby hippo sitting on it. I've managed to put 20KG+ of shopping on it and you can wear anything when using it. On occasion the pedals fall off but that only makes it faster.

Put my dog(lab/collie thing) into the crate on the carrier and it becomes the coolest bike ever. You may have a Bianchi Pantani special or a Pinarello but my bike has a dog!

Cabaal

I forgot about this old bike, half tempted to try make an attempt at fixing it up from what I gather is over 40 years old. I might give it a shot before I shell out on a brand new bike



Any suggestions for how to approach it?

martyc5674

Cabaal wrote: »

I forgot about this old bike, half tempted to try make an attempt at fixing it up from what I gather is over 40 years old. I might give it a shot before I shell out on a brand new bike



Any suggestions for how to approach it?

Try www.highnelly.ie they sell all the bits you'll need, think the purist approach is not to replant the frame, just clean it up as best you can.
Marty.

magicbastarder

do you collect old brass musical equipment?

Cabaal

magicbastarder wrote: »

do you collect old brass musical equipment?

knew somebody would comment about them, nope, its not my shed the bike is stored in