What Bike Do You Recommend? - The Chainlink2024-03-28T10:37:17Zhttps://thechainlink.org/forum/topics/what-bike-do-you-recommend?commentId=2211490%3AComment%3A816898&feed=yes&xn_auth=noI'd look for a (used) Trek, M…tag:thechainlink.org,2014-05-05:2211490:Comment:8174942014-05-05T21:51:56.965Zmark stetsonhttps://thechainlink.org/profile/markstetson
<p>I'd look for a (used) Trek, Miyata, Nishiki, Cannondale touring, etc. I have a Trek 400 that I bought here for $200 that's been great, a similar Nishiki I bought from CL in Madison, and a Cannondale T400 I bought on ebay. They are all modern enough to take upgrades with no problems, will fit anything up to 34c tires, and are versitile enought to commute on, tour, or race (in a pinch). </p>
<p>I'd look for a (used) Trek, Miyata, Nishiki, Cannondale touring, etc. I have a Trek 400 that I bought here for $200 that's been great, a similar Nishiki I bought from CL in Madison, and a Cannondale T400 I bought on ebay. They are all modern enough to take upgrades with no problems, will fit anything up to 34c tires, and are versitile enought to commute on, tour, or race (in a pinch). </p> I found an amazing old Fuji t…tag:thechainlink.org,2014-05-04:2211490:Comment:8169632014-05-04T22:44:48.445ZTominatorhttps://thechainlink.org/profile/Tominator
<p>I found an amazing old Fuji touring bike from the 80s for my 6-5 friend for $250 on Craiglist. This guy had a garage full of amazing bikes for sale in West Chicago. Very cool guy. It was hard to leave because he kept showing me old, interesting bikes and parts.<br></br><br></br>While I don't think you have to get a custom built bike to get a good fit, Gunnar makes some reasonably priced customs at the same factory as Waterford. And there's local frame builders who can build a good frame at a good…</p>
<p>I found an amazing old Fuji touring bike from the 80s for my 6-5 friend for $250 on Craiglist. This guy had a garage full of amazing bikes for sale in West Chicago. Very cool guy. It was hard to leave because he kept showing me old, interesting bikes and parts.<br/><br/>While I don't think you have to get a custom built bike to get a good fit, Gunnar makes some reasonably priced customs at the same factory as Waterford. And there's local frame builders who can build a good frame at a good price. But if you're talking about spending $350 for a new bike, you can spend less and get a better used bike. If the parts are decent, save up for a custom frame and then swap the parts to the custom frame. <br/><br/><br/></p> You should bone up on the use…tag:thechainlink.org,2014-05-04:2211490:Comment:8168252014-05-04T01:46:18.877ZMarc A. Irwinhttps://thechainlink.org/profile/MarcAIrwin
<p>You should bone up on the used/vintage market. You can get much more bike from that than you ever will at a department store. I say you should never buy sushi from a gas station or a bike from a department store, you will get equally unpleasant and unpredictable results.</p>
<p>You should bone up on the used/vintage market. You can get much more bike from that than you ever will at a department store. I say you should never buy sushi from a gas station or a bike from a department store, you will get equally unpleasant and unpredictable results.</p> Todd, seems you don't live ve…tag:thechainlink.org,2014-05-03:2211490:Comment:8167542014-05-03T11:26:52.228ZLisa Curciohttps://thechainlink.org/profile/LisaCurcio
<p>Todd, seems you don't live very close to Chicago. Sorry for the Chicago recs. But they are good choices if you make your way up here! </p>
<p>Todd, seems you don't live very close to Chicago. Sorry for the Chicago recs. But they are good choices if you make your way up here! </p> http://www.thechainlink.org/f…tag:thechainlink.org,2014-05-03:2211490:Comment:8169122014-05-03T03:43:38.930ZMatt M. 18.5KMhttps://thechainlink.org/profile/MattM
<p><a href="http://www.thechainlink.org/forum/topics/need-some-crank-help-suggestions?commentId=2211490%3AComment%3A812297" target="_blank">http://www.thechainlink.org/forum/topics/need-some-crank-help-suggestions?commentId=2211490%3AComment%3A812297</a></p>
<p>The above talks about the difficulty of bottom bracket conversions.....so that's something to consider if you go for the Wayfarer. I still think …</p>
<p><a href="http://www.thechainlink.org/forum/topics/need-some-crank-help-suggestions?commentId=2211490%3AComment%3A812297" target="_blank">http://www.thechainlink.org/forum/topics/need-some-crank-help-suggestions?commentId=2211490%3AComment%3A812297</a></p>
<p>The above talks about the difficulty of bottom bracket conversions.....so that's something to consider if you go for the Wayfarer. I still think <a href="http://www.ebay.com/itm/Meile-Lupa-Bicycle-/201081591786?pt=US_Bicycles_Frames&hash=item2ed16597ea" target="_blank">many used bikes are far better.</a></p> http://www.target.com/p/schwi…tag:thechainlink.org,2014-05-03:2211490:Comment:8168022014-05-03T02:18:03.462ZMatt M. 18.5KMhttps://thechainlink.org/profile/MattM
<p><a href="http://www.target.com/p/schwinn-mens-700c-gateway-28-hybrid-bike-black/-/A-12309359#?lnk=sc_qi_detailbutton" target="_blank">http://www.target.com/p/schwinn-mens-700c-gateway-28-hybrid-bike-black/-/A-12309359#?lnk=sc_qi_detailbutton</a></p>
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<p>Don't let the townie look on the Gateway fool you. It has a good spoke count and almost looks like it has touring bones....steel frame, cantilever bosses, a rack and preinstalled fenders for $200. WHAT? very cool, IMHO. You can…</p>
<p><a href="http://www.target.com/p/schwinn-mens-700c-gateway-28-hybrid-bike-black/-/A-12309359#?lnk=sc_qi_detailbutton" target="_blank">http://www.target.com/p/schwinn-mens-700c-gateway-28-hybrid-bike-black/-/A-12309359#?lnk=sc_qi_detailbutton</a></p>
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<p>Don't let the townie look on the Gateway fool you. It has a good spoke count and almost looks like it has touring bones....steel frame, cantilever bosses, a rack and preinstalled fenders for $200. WHAT? very cool, IMHO. You can switch to a triple front chainring and do the bottom bracket conversion later, if you still want to keep the bike by then. BUT I do agree there are many good bikes out there used. <a href="http://www.thefixfixfix.com/thefixxx/wp-content/gallery/alice-and-schwinn-super-letour/b13.jpg" target="_blank">The old Schwinn bikes</a> are just so incredibly versatile.</p>
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<p>Even cheaper and identical in design is the Wayfarer:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.kmart.com/schwinn-men-s-700c-wayfarer-bike/p-080W028201960001P" target="_blank">http://www.kmart.com/schwinn-men-s-700c-wayfarer-bike/p-080W028201960001P</a></p>
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<p>Stick with steel. It will return the favor mile after mile and keep you comfortable in the saddle for many years.</p> A good bike is one that fits…tag:thechainlink.org,2014-05-03:2211490:Comment:8169892014-05-03T01:49:59.011ZElwood Gruschowhttps://thechainlink.org/profile/ElwoodGruschow
<p> A good bike is one that fits you regardless of price. The most common way to measure bike size is the distance from the center of the cranks to near the top of the seat tube. When you sit on the saddle your leg should be slightly bent at the bottom of the stroke. The Trailways bike ,you gave a link for ,is a small bike. I do not know why Target calls it a 28" frame size. From the picture it looks close to an 18" frame about the same size of the blue Mesa you linked to.…</p>
<p> A good bike is one that fits you regardless of price. The most common way to measure bike size is the distance from the center of the cranks to near the top of the seat tube. When you sit on the saddle your leg should be slightly bent at the bottom of the stroke. The Trailways bike ,you gave a link for ,is a small bike. I do not know why Target calls it a 28" frame size. From the picture it looks close to an 18" frame about the same size of the blue Mesa you linked to. </p>
<p> You might not need a new bike. Does your old Schwinn road bike fit you? I bought a Schwinn Sports Tourer frame in 1972 and installed parts from my broken frame Bianchii. I rode it a few years then gave it to my son when in high school. He gave it back when he went to grad school. It is currently set up as a flat bar touring bike. I am 6'2" and the Schwinn is a 25 inches frame. Notice the pedal crank looks short on my bike compared to the Target bike picture. I used it to cycle camp across Missouri two years ago and rode from Buckingham fountain to Wisconsin last month. I might use it on the LeTourdeShore this June.</p>
<p> Get a good sturdy frame that fits. If you are touring, get low tread moderate width tires that will take at least 90. See you on the road. <a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35253264?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="721" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/35253264?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="721" class="align-full"/></a></p> This is awesome for the $ and…tag:thechainlink.org,2014-05-03:2211490:Comment:8169042014-05-03T01:02:45.914ZDave Grossmanhttps://thechainlink.org/profile/DaveGrossman
This is awesome for the $ and huge!<br />
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<a href="https://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/bik/4439798839.html" target="_blank">https://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/bik/4439798839.html</a>
This is awesome for the $ and huge!<br />
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<a href="https://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/bik/4439798839.html" target="_blank">https://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/bik/4439798839.html</a> J.P. and ilter are dead on. I…tag:thechainlink.org,2014-05-03:2211490:Comment:8169872014-05-03T00:50:19.950ZGene Tennerhttps://thechainlink.org/profile/GeneTenner
<p>J.P. and ilter are dead on. In ilter's photo example look at how long the head tube is (front tube between the top and down tube that the steering goes through). You will need that length at your height. That will help you narrow in on the right-height bikes. Touring bikes will have more distannce between the rear wheel and the seat tube which will be at a flatter angle (less perpemdicular) than a road bike. Take Lisa's advice on local bike shops and you should be able to find your dream…</p>
<p>J.P. and ilter are dead on. In ilter's photo example look at how long the head tube is (front tube between the top and down tube that the steering goes through). You will need that length at your height. That will help you narrow in on the right-height bikes. Touring bikes will have more distannce between the rear wheel and the seat tube which will be at a flatter angle (less perpemdicular) than a road bike. Take Lisa's advice on local bike shops and you should be able to find your dream bike.</p> I think you need to reconside…tag:thechainlink.org,2014-05-03:2211490:Comment:8168982014-05-03T00:10:39.457ZJ.P.https://thechainlink.org/profile/JensPfister
<p>I think you need to reconsider what you would like to do with the bike (on the one hand) and how much you want to spend. If you say, you want to be comfortable for hours and hours of riding, I am thinking of <a href="http://surlybikes.com/bikes/long_haul_trucker" target="_blank">this</a>.</p>
<p>If you want to spend less than $350, I wonder if you will comfortable for hours and hours of riding, and I agree with …</p>
<p>I think you need to reconsider what you would like to do with the bike (on the one hand) and how much you want to spend. If you say, you want to be comfortable for hours and hours of riding, I am thinking of <a href="http://surlybikes.com/bikes/long_haul_trucker" target="_blank">this</a>.</p>
<p>If you want to spend less than $350, I wonder if you will comfortable for hours and hours of riding, and I agree with <a href="http://www.thechainlink.org/forum/topic/listForContributor?user=2k9dof9mijpsq" class="fn url">ilter</a> recommendation of stopping by WorkingBikes.</p>