Keep or Sell my Bike--advice for a new rider?

Hi, I'm new the the forum.

I've having a problem with my new Biria (2009) bicycle. It is a 3-speed road bike. I bought it in October, and rode it a half-dozen times on some hilly, paved trails while I was living on the East Coast. Once while going up a steep hill, the bike made a funny noise and I suddenly lost my top gear. I took it back to the shop where I bought it, they adjusted it for about a half hour and it seemed all fixed. I moved here to Chicago shortly after that. I started to attempt my commute with my bicycle, and stayed in one gear for the most part. One day I bumped my gear shifter, the bike went into 2nd gear and would not shift back into 1st (lowest). I tried shifting up and down a few times and finally it went back into 1st. Again, everything seemed okay, but every couple of blocks, my pedals would suddenly lose thier grip for a rotation or two (like I was coasting), and then go back to normal. This freaked me out a bit, so I took it to a bike shop, and they told me I needed a new derailleur. Fortunately, the bike was still under warranty, so the part was replaced and it didn't cost me much. After that, everything seemed fine, until the other day, only a week or so after the repair, when I switched between 1st and 2nd gear a few times and now it's doing the freewheeling pedal thing again. Is this normal? I haven't ridden a bike since I was 12, except for some rented bikes on vacations, and my husband insists those bikes did the same thing. Am I doing something wrong? Do I have a lemon? A friend who rides regularly said I should sell it and buy a cheaper used bike instead.

I would greatly appreciate more experienced riders input.
Thank you.

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by cutifly on August 12, 2009 at 5:26pm
It just needs an adjust, keep the bike or give it to someone (like a broke friend). You did ask for advice. Don't list to M.A.R.K. either until he tells us his real name.
Permalink Reply by Andy K> on August 13, 2009 at 12:23am
It sounds to me like you have an internal hub, and as far as I can tell that's all Biria sells. With such a setup you have to stop pedaling, shift, then begin pedaling again. This is the complete opposite of external gears where the bike won't shift unless you are pedaling. With either system, if you try to shift while doing the wrong thing you can do some minor damage to the system, commonly fixed by cutifly's adjustments. Really it's difficult to saying thing certain without more details on the bike. MARK has a good point too about most shops standing behind their work, it's worth bringing it to them a second time.
Permalink Reply by Tony Adams on August 13, 2009 at 6:14am
I spent the first 15 years of my biking in Chicago life with one (working) bike at a time. I don't know why it never occurred to me earlier to get a second bike for when the primary is having problems, but it just never did. Until five years ago. It happened sort of by accident... but I digress.

A three speed sounds like a great solution to the problem of Chicago commuting and social/recreational/errand riding. But it also sounds a bit, uh, delicate? So what I would suggest would be to do what the other people have suggested in this thread so far: get it fixed and review/learn how to operate it correctly AND also get a cheaper used bike as a spare. Having a second (or third or whatever) bike also frees you up to take some chances doing some of your own maintenance and thereby being less at the mercy of your LBS.
Permalink Reply by Barry Niel Stuart on August 14, 2009 at 10:25am
Are there any dealers in your bike's make in Chicago? I'd check if that manufacturer has a website. If it does, you can check the site for dealers in Chicago. This would be a big help if the bike is so new as to be still under warranty. A local dealer would probably have access to parts. Unauthorized repairs could possibly void your warranty.

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