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Brands to avoid?

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2

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    #32
    italodisco
    Registered Users Posts: 1,426 ✭✭✭italodisco


    I've got a new trek FX 7, can only say good things so far.

    There's a disc version on adverts for sale, good price and the guy has receipts etc

    https://touch.adverts.ie/mountain-bikes/trek/15929282


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    #33
    CramCycle
    Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 24,927 Mod ✭✭✭✭CramCycle


    Wishbone Ash wrote: »
    Looks like only 2 tiny sizes remaining - hence the price probably.

    They always only have the two sizes, and it is always quite cheap, just the end of year getting it reduced more. I had the 19 single speed version and it fits quite a range of heights.


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    #34
    kal7
    Registered Users Posts: 351 ✭✭kal7


    Have had a lapierre for nine years no issues. I am sure there are better bikes around. Cost me 1000 euro

    I have not put up serious miles on it, but have done say ring of kerry an Ironman and several halves.


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    #35
    07Lapierre
    Registered Users Posts: 8,248 ✭✭✭07Lapierre


    Qrt wrote: »
    Has anybody had any experience with Lapierre bikes? Local store is selling a city bike for around €425.

    I’ve had mine since 2007.. ;)


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    #36
    Type 17
    Registered Users Posts: 2,730 ✭✭✭Type 17


    italodisco wrote: »
    I've got a new trek FX 7, can only say good things so far.

    There's a disc version on adverts for sale, good price and the guy has receipts etc

    https://touch.adverts.ie/mountain-bikes/trek/15929282

    I presume that you meant FX 2 :)


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    #37
    italodisco
    Registered Users Posts: 1,426 ✭✭✭italodisco


    Type 17 wrote: »
    I presume that you meant FX 2 :)

    LOL sorry, I've the FX 7, I see the other is a fiff model but certainly a decent bike for the price as long as the bike is in top condition.


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    #38
    Type 17
    Registered Users Posts: 2,730 ✭✭✭Type 17


    italodisco wrote: »
    LOL sorry, I've the FX 7, I see the other is a diff model but certainly a decent bike for the price as long as the bike is in top condition.

    Yep, it's a 2018 FX 2 Disc (model years start in August, so it was available in November '17). Decent bike, and the brakes are hydraulic (not always the case at these price points).


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    #39
    saccades
    Registered Users Posts: 1,261 ✭✭✭saccades


    Crank brothers, always avoid crank brothers.


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    #40
    Qrt
    Registered Users Posts: 1,638 ✭✭✭Qrt


    I've done more scouring and I've come across the Trek FX, basic enough for what I'd use it for like. I assume pannier racks and lights and so are standardised so I could just get any set?


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    #41
    Qrt
    Registered Users Posts: 1,638 ✭✭✭Qrt


    Does anybody have experience with Ridgeback bikes? I've not heard of them before.


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    #42
    CramCycle
    Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 24,927 Mod ✭✭✭✭CramCycle


    Qrt wrote: »
    Does anybody have experience with Ridgeback bikes? I've not heard of them before.
    My office mate and partner both have one. Nothing fancy but seem decent and solid. They both have been putting 15km a day commuting onto them for over a year and they both appear in nearly as new condition.So long as the components and wheels are OK, they are probably a reasonable commuter.


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    #43
    Weepsie
    Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 20,437 Mod ✭✭✭✭Weepsie


    Last year's Ridgeback Panorama was a beautiful of a frame. Nearly bought one myself


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    #44
    8valve
    Registered Users Posts: 976 ✭✭✭8valve


    Go to a reputable bike shop, tell them what you need the bike for, and they will advise you accordingly. Trek, Giant, Ridgeback, Raleigh etc, all make decent machinery in this price bracket.

    For your budget, there is a nice range of basic but reliable hybrids which will suit your cycling needs exactly. They're all much of a muchness but look for an aluminium frame for lightness with Shimano drivetrain/gears etc.

    Mudguards make a bike usable and keep you clean, even on wet days, or even on a fine day when the roads are still wet/mucky; carriers are handy for fitting bags if you have stuff to bring with you on your travels.

    Spend at least 50 on a lock to discourage thieves; remember no lock is unbeatable, but some take more time than others to beat; it's a bit Macchiavellian but a good lock will make the bike next to yours more nickable than your bike if its got a cheaper lock!

    Try to negotiate puncture-resistant tyres into your purchase price and keep them inflated near to (but not over) the max pressure marked on the side of the tyre; as a bike mechanic for three decades, I've fixed more flats caused by underinflation than by foreign objects sticking in the tyres!

    Service it twice a year....don't be that guy who cycles a bike for four years solid without washing it or lubing it and then gets angry and effs me out of it over the phone when someone like me rings to tell him his bike needs 250 quids worth of work to replace all the worn out parts!


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    #45
    Type 17
    Registered Users Posts: 2,730 ✭✭✭Type 17


    Qrt wrote: »
    Does anybody have experience with Ridgeback bikes? I've not heard of them before.

    A UK brand, made in the far east, like most stuff these days, but surprisingly good value in many small ways - they always use a Shimano rear hub with a cassette, even on their kids' bikes (most cheaper brands use a cheap hub with a screw-on freewheel, which can lead to a snapped axle), and the brake pads' threads are greased (which means you can tighten them without them swivelling in their slots).
    Downsides are brake cables that seize up at the first hint of damp (strip them out, wipe down the wire with steel wool and lube the housing, and it's fixed) and slightly some orange-peel paint finishes, but these are minor. They are our shop's economy brand, behind our main brand, Trek.


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    #46
    Qrt
    Registered Users Posts: 1,638 ✭✭✭Qrt


    Riiiiiight so I'm awful at putting things off but have revisited this, and I have narrowed it down to these two:

    https://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=125364

    https://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=124945

    any opinions would be great :)


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    #47
    AndrewJRenko
    Registered Users Posts: 29,059 ✭✭✭✭AndrewJRenko


    You'll need lights and mudguards anyway, so add in that cost on the Giant, and they're both about the same price.


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    #48
    bingobars
    Registered Users Posts: 156 ✭✭bingobars


    Bought a Cannondale synapse Alu2017 with Maddox wheelset. Frame is nice, 105-FSA mixed group, TRP spyre disc brakes all going good and nice but man are those wheels brutal. Popped 5 spokes in sucession, bearing are rotting and the hoops are no longer round. Absolute trash. That’s the trend now I believe. I hear Giant also skimp in the wheel department


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    #49
    Type 17
    Registered Users Posts: 2,730 ✭✭✭Type 17


    Broken spokes on Giants are like brexit stories in the press…


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    #50
    c.p.w.g.w
    Registered Users Posts: 4,994 ✭✭✭c.p.w.g.w


    Type 17 wrote: »
    Broken spokes on Giants are like brexit stories in the press…

    Don't Giant use Shimano wheels?


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    #51
    Type 17
    Registered Users Posts: 2,730 ✭✭✭Type 17


    c.p.w.g.w wrote: »
    Type 17 wrote: »
    Broken spokes on Giants are like brexit stories in the press…

    Don't Giant use Shimano wheels?

    Probably on their higher-end stuff, but where they use their own spokes (and tension them themselves), it’s very noticeable…


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    #52
    rubadub
    Registered Users Posts: 32,381 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    I would avoid oxford locks, very poor design on the ones I had, and keys broke in them.

    I have the yellow krypotnite, if going again I would have got the 18mm diameter motorbike version.

    ON guard make very good value locks. Keys are very good too.
    Amazon have lots. https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=on+guard+locks

    I think there best is below the standard of kryptonite and Abus's best, but is on a par with maybe their second best locks, but much cheaper.

    I got my kryptonite online pretty cheap, nearly half what shops here charge.


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    #53
    Effects
    Registered Users Posts: 9,760 ✭✭✭Effects


    Qrt wrote: »
    any opinions would be great :)

    Don't get the one with front shocks.


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    #54
    Gorteen
    Registered Users Posts: 1,012 ✭✭✭Gorteen


    Qrt wrote: »
    Does anybody have experience with Ridgeback bikes? I've not heard of them before.

    A good reliable bike. I bought second hand a couple years ago and it has had lots of use since then with no issues


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    #55
    Qrt
    Registered Users Posts: 1,638 ✭✭✭Qrt


    Effects wrote: »
    Don't get the one with front shocks.

    Are front shocks an issue or did you just use it to describe it?

    I’ve ordered the Lapierre one, not paid for though so I’m under no obligation to pay for it.


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    #56
    CramCycle
    Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 24,927 Mod ✭✭✭✭CramCycle


    Qrt wrote: »
    Are front shocks an issue or did you just use it to describe it?

    I’ve ordered the Lapierre one, not paid for though so I’m under no obligation to pay for it.

    Front shocks on any bike that is mainly for road or commuting is a bad idea as you lose alot of energy through them. They increase the weight, slow you down, and generally add in hassle without benefit in regards bikes for road use.


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    #57
    Qrt
    Registered Users Posts: 1,638 ✭✭✭Qrt


    CramCycle wrote: »
    Front shocks on any bike that is mainly for road or commuting is a bad idea as you lose alot of energy through them. They increase the weight, slow you down, and generally add in hassle without benefit in regards bikes for road use.

    Oh right, I didn't realise they were that heavy. I had a look at the one I used in Germany and it had none, so I should probably rethink this I guess.


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    #58
    CramCycle
    Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 24,927 Mod ✭✭✭✭CramCycle


    Qrt wrote: »
    Oh right, I didn't realise they were that heavy. I had a look at the one I used in Germany and it had none, so I should probably rethink this I guess.

    Some are not too bad but they will still add on close to a kilo in many cases. The suspension bit, while comfy, means you lose alot of energy overcoming it. It's one of the main reasons mountain bikes are so slow compared to road bikes in regards commuting.

    Out of the two you have linked, the Trek Escape is the better bike. You may need to invest in a set of wheels in a year or two, but you'll get OK ones for a reasonable price, maybe even second hand here.

    Whats your upper price range though, for a little more, you could probably get a lot more. Also are you restricted to CSS or will any bricks and Mortar shop in Dublin do?


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    #59
    Qrt
    Registered Users Posts: 1,638 ✭✭✭Qrt


    CramCycle wrote: »
    Some are not too bad but they will still add on close to a kilo in many cases. The suspension bit, while comfy, means you lose alot of energy overcoming it. It's one of the main reasons mountain bikes are so slow compared to road bikes in regards commuting.

    Out of the two you have linked, the Trek Escape is the better bike. You may need to invest in a set of wheels in a year or two, but you'll get OK ones for a reasonable price, maybe even second hand here.

    Whats your upper price range though, for a little more, you could probably get a lot more. Also are you restricted to CSS or will any bricks and Mortar shop in Dublin do?

    I chose that because it's relatively close, and I've never really cycled on the road before...ever. Mind I did see a Trek FX for sale, although my whole plan for getting it from Dublin2Bikes was to bring it on the train to Adamstown and cycle home from there, but the Phoenix Park Tunnel services are still peak-only, i.e. IÉ wouldn't let me bring it on the train from Pearse.

    The fella in the shop directed me towards a Cube for €600, but it was quite a visibly good bike, so I'd rather not have the exacerbated theft worry.


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    #60
    triggermortis
    Registered Users Posts: 2,684 ✭✭✭triggermortis


    07Lapierre wrote: »
    I’ve had mine since 2007.. ;)

    If only there was some way to incorporate that into a username....


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    #61
    Qrt
    Registered Users Posts: 1,638 ✭✭✭Qrt


    Update: I FINALLY got a bike, Giant Escape 3, grand tbh, saddle is a tad high but that’s easily fixed. Got a kryptonite D/U lock, just wondering if the D/U part is meant to wiggle a bit when it’s in the lock part?


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