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I need a bicycle - Need suggestions (1 Viewer)

kristoffer

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Hi,
I know this is slightly off-topic but I know how much information this forum holds so i´l give it a shot. I need a bike for birding, I want it to perform good on asphalt, gravel and in the forest if needed. Some sort of hybrid I guess? I need to able to attach bags to the bike but I assume all bikes have that option. Has anyone bought a bike recently and got a tip for me? This looks kinda good, Scott sportster P3. Anyone tried it?

Btw, I cant pay more then about £800, need some cash for new bins too you know ;)
 
I bike a lot and use a Cannondale model Comfort 400, since it has wide tires, a wide comfy seat (with a shock absorber) and it light weight aluminum frame. It is made for trails and rides more upright to minimize back pain from crunching over the handle bars. The geometry of riding higher makes it less suitable for mountain trails but perfect for in-town and gravel roads. With a bag in the back I can explore all day without the pain in the rear from the narrow seats.
 
Sorry, forgot the cost, about $450 US. Very comfortable and durable, mine is over 8 years. See Cannondale.com under recreation, then adventure category.
 
I bike a lot and use a Cannondale model Comfort 400, since it has wide tires, a wide comfy seat (with a shock absorber) and it light weight aluminum frame. It is made for trails and rides more upright to minimize back pain from crunching over the handle bars. The geometry of riding higher makes it less suitable for mountain trails but perfect for in-town and gravel roads. With a bag in the back I can explore all day without the pain in the rear from the narrow seats.

Thanks for the tip!
 
If you want to attach bags big enough to carry birding gear (bins/scope/tripod/lunch/waterproofs), you'll want a bike that you can attach a rack to. That means no rear suspension, and preferably attachment points at the dropout and on the rear stays between the brakes and the main triangle (exactly where depends on frame size as well as model). These attachment points are by no means universal. It can be difficult to determine whether the attachment points are present or not if ordering via the web - they are frequently not mentioned on the standard specs, and the photos often aren't good enough to see them. If you don't have them, fitting a pannier rack properly will be awkward - you will be restricted to a small number of racks which attach via the wheel quick release, and make wheel removal slow.

On the Scott website, it looks from the photo of the P3 that the attachment points are present, or at least the upper one is visible, which means that the lower point is almost certainly present.
 
I do lots of birding on my Norco Magnum with front suspension. The frame is made from some lightweight alloy but amazingly strong. I've attached a rack and saddlebags, since as was mentioned, only those with no rear suspension can do that. Kind of a trade off between comfort and utility. The tires I have are sort of a hybrid that decent knobs along the outside edge for gripping those non-paved tracks but lesser so down the middle to allow for a smoother ride on pavement. This sounds like what you need as well if you plan on doing multiple types of terrain.

As for saddlebag use, there is good and bad in that. I’ve used a small daypack to carry my accoutrements but always felt them to be awkward in some situations not to mention the sweat factor. Going to a rack and saddlebag frees one up some but shifts weight lower and to the rear, so depending how much you pack it can feel like you are hauling a piano when the hills get steep. Also try and balance your load with 2 saddlebags or one centre carrier on the rack. Believe me, using only one saddle bag loaded with gear throws your centre of gravity off. The last thing you need is to fight your bike while watching for birds.

As for buying a bike make sure it is the right one for you. The lighter the better IMO. Get it sized correctly and make sure the seat post is long enough for full leg extension especially if you have long shanks. And since you a man, get a REALLY GOOD saddle or you will soon get some painful lessons and complications in certain regions of your anatomy. Ahem. I’m yet to find the perfect seat. . .I wish they would invent something shaped like a horseshoe. |:D|

Another consideration is that when you sit on the bike note your position. Low handle bar configuration as found on many mountain bikes lowers the angle of your trunk and allows for aggressive manoeuvring. Great for some thing but for birding you may want to be more upright as found on your usual roadsters. Kind of another trade off area which you will have to decide what is best for you. Looking at that Sportster it appears to have a low configuration. I know my Norco is aggressively configured and I’m always cranking my head to look up. . .not good on the neck.

Just a few points for you.
 
Hi,
I know this is slightly off-topic but I know how much information this forum holds so i´l give it a shot. I need a bike for birding, I want it to perform good on asphalt, gravel and in the forest if needed.
I occasionally use a bike to cover my local swamp, so here are a few opinions based on my experiences. The area is fairly flat, but there are stretches of dried mud with tyre and bulldozer tracks through them that are a bit of a challenge.

- Very low gearing allows you to ride very slowly over rough ground, allowing you to look around for birds without risking a bad fall if you hit a rock or something. I think the standard gearing for mountain bikes is ok, but I could use a lower gear. I would imagine most cyclists would get bored with a lower gear, and not find it necessary.
- Front suspension is very useful for rough ground, it eases the jarring, and I suspect helps prevent spills that might occur when you hit a largish obstacle.
- Seat suspension is good too, and might help avoid some of the problems with fitting racks. I think some riders advise against seat suspension because it reduces efficiency, but at 5kmph or less, it just doesn't matter.
- It might be standard these days, but click type gear levers that can be reached without letting go of the handlebars make things much easier on rough ground.
- I find brake noise to be a problem. If I see something and want to stop fast to use binoculars, squeaking brakes just make a departing bird depart faster. Disk brakes might help, but so does cleaning the rims.

I haven't tried carrying much more than a field book, notebook and rain coat. I use a handlebar mounted bag that doubles as a writing desk. I wear my binoculars and camera while riding, and I'm not sure what effect the vibrations might have on binoculars or a scope. I think I've carried the camera in the handlebar bag. A backpack just for optics might be the safest option, but others might be able to advise otherwise.

I find that riding lets me see some birds that I normally don't see when walking. Quail, for example, are more easily taken by surprise because of the speed of travel. Then there's the simple fact that I can speed past the birdless sections and cover more of the interesting bits.
 
Thanks guys for all your input. The bike is a nice tool for bird watching and I will buy one in the next few days. However unlike bins and other equipment I have realised that I probably should buy a bike at a local store so I can testride and return to the store for service and if something malfunctions.
 
Trek Carbon Fiber Full Suspension here

Thanks guys for all your input. The bike is a nice tool for bird watching and I will buy one in the next few days. However unlike bins and other equipment I have realised that I probably should buy a bike at a local store so I can testride and return to the store for service and if something malfunctions.


Hi there, I myself use a Trek Mountain Bike Fuel EX9.0 and Fuel EX9.5.. Both are marvelous light weight and super duty bikes.. Just like anything else, how much are you wanting to spend? Pics of mine below..


http://www.pbase.com/bulbmogul/image/85156122
 
For birding on roads and fairly smooth forest paths, I use a Fuji Silhouette. Any hybrid will do. For 500 euro, you´ll get a perfectly good hybrid for this purpose in any make. Giant, IMHO, do the best value at this kind of price point, with decent Shimano Ultegra drivetrain etc.

If you want to go on rougher tracks, and feel you need a mountain-bike (remember that the smaller wheel and wider tires make for far greater traction, therefore much harder pedalling and shorter distances), Trek are my favourites. The Trek 3500 Mountain Bike is a cheap and cheerful model, around 450 euro, front suspension and again, all the up-market Shimano bits and pieces.

BTW, the prices I quote are for Ireland, where average consumer prices are about 45% above the EU average. These bikes or similar might be had much cheaper in Sweden. When I buy a bike (or binoculars!!!) I never, ever buy local, I always buy from the UK (England or Northern Ireland), and save myself a fortune. Have a look at www.chainreactioncycles.co.uk, a Northern Irish-based website that sells all models of bike and kit at very reasonable prices. I don´t know how much shipping is to Sweden, but they post free to Southern Ireland!
 
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Hi Sancho, thanks for the help! So it is a good idea to order from the uk? I was really close to buying one locally but maybe I have to rethink that then. What is your opinion about the Nishiki 501? Many in Sweden recommend that for my budget of about £700. Scott Sportster P3 is also often mentioned.


For birding on roads and fairly smooth forest paths, I use a Fuji Silhouette. Any hybrid will do. For 500 euro, you´ll get a perfectly good hybrid for this purpose in any make. Giant, IMHO, do the best value at this kind of price point, with decent Shimano Ultegra drivetrain etc.

If you want to go on rougher tracks, and feel you need a mountain-bike (remember that the smaller wheel and wider tires make for far greater traction, therefore much harder pedalling and shorter distances), Trek are my favourites. The Trek 3500 Mountain Bike is a cheap and cheerful model, around 450 euro, front suspension and again, all the up-market Shimano bits and pieces.

BTW, the prices I quote are for Ireland, where average consumer prices are about 45% above the EU average. These bikes or similar might be had much cheaper in Sweden. When I buy a bike (or binoculars!!!) I never, ever buy local, I always buy from the UK (England or Northern Ireland), and save myself a fortune. Have a look at www.chainreactioncycles.co.uk, a Northern Irish-based website that sells all models of bike and kit at very reasonable prices. I don´t know how much shipping is to Sweden, but they post free to Southern Ireland!
 
High End C/F Trek

Hello! About $1000.
Yours look really nice but perhaps a bit too much mountain bike. I will use it a lot on asphalt too.



Hi there, No, actually the bike pictured is about $6000.00 configured the way i have it. Slight overkill but i love it.. I have 2 models..the Top Fuel 9.9 and Fuel EX9.5.. Both carbon fiber bikes..Sorry I read your post wrong..You want to spend up to $1000.00 Yes Iam quite sure you can buy a lovely and fantastic bike for that. Go to Trek.com and check out the treks..World Class Bikes ..


Jerry
 
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Hi Sancho, thanks for the help! So it is a good idea to order from the uk? I was really close to buying one locally but maybe I have to rethink that then. What is your opinion about the Nishiki 501? Many in Sweden recommend that for my budget of about £700. Scott Sportster P3 is also often mentioned.

Never seen the Nishiki, but just googled it and the specs look great. Do you really need that much bike, though? I think bikes are like binoculars...after a certain price, the incremental improvements are very, very slight indeed. I´d really go for a Trek, and save the extra cash for your binos! Or do as I did...get a mid-priced hybrid and a mountain bike too! I saved my special pennies for my road-racing bike, which I don´t use for birding, obviously. But I can easily do 30km trips on the Fuji hybrid, very comfortably, with binos, travel-scope, packed lunch and raingear on the carrier. It´s light and has fine parts, cost about 700 euro three years ago, but similar models by Giant or Trek are much cheaper now (´cos they´re made in Asia...whoops, we might start that argument all over again....;)) Another online dealer is probikekit.co.uk. If you buy online, be absolutely sure that you get the right size frame....have yourself measured in a local bike store, or check online how to measure yourself. Don´t get too obsessed about the technical details, though, just measure your height and leg and go from there.
 
They are very popular among bike-people here in Sweden, because of good build and quite good price. But that´s all I know, this is not a genre I know much about. Perhaps I dont need a bike that expensive, but the guys who claim to know "stuff" meant that If I opted for a cheaper the breaks would be of less good quality (and built differently as I understood it), and that £100-200 would be a stupid thing to save when the bike will be used dailiy for years to come. I would like a rugged bike but with small tires, hybrid then I guess. You got any direct links to a bike you can recommend? I can´t find trek at that homepage.

Never seen the Nishiki, but just googled it and the specs look great. Do you really need that much bike, though? I think bikes are like binoculars...after a certain price, the incremental improvements are very, very slight indeed. I´d really go for a Trek, and save the extra cash for your binos! Or do as I did...get a mid-priced hybrid and a mountain bike too! I saved my special pennies for my road-racing bike, which I don´t use for birding, obviously. But I can easily do 30km trips on the Fuji hybrid, very comfortably, with binos, travel-scope, packed lunch and raingear on the carrier. It´s light and has fine parts, cost about 700 euro three years ago, but similar models by Giant or Trek are much cheaper now (´cos they´re made in Asia...whoops, we might start that argument all over again....;)) Another online dealer is probikekit.co.uk. If you buy online, be absolutely sure that you get the right size frame....have yourself measured in a local bike store, or check online how to measure yourself. Don´t get too obsessed about the technical details, though, just measure your height and leg and go from there.
 
yeah, your bike has the look of a really good one. Ok il check that page out, both of you recommend trek then?

Hi there, No, actually the bike pictured is about $6000.00 configured the way i have it. Slight overkill but i love it.. I have 2 models..the Top Fuel 9.9 and Fuel EX9.5.. Both carbon fiber bikes..Sorry I read your post wrong..You want to spend up to $1000.00 Yes Iam quite sure you can buy a lovely and fantastic bike for that. Go to Trek.com and check out the treks..World Class Bikes ..


Jerry
 
Hi Kris, here´s a link to the Trek 3900 I mentioned.

http://www.trekbikes.com/uk/en/bikes/mountain_hardtail/3_series/3900/

The recommended price in the UK is 300 sterling, and all the parts look excellent for that price, IMHO. Check out their other models too. (I´m not trying to "push" Trek bikes, it´s just that these are the ones I know best, although it´s not what I have at the moment).

If the Nishiki is only an extra 100 euro, your friends are right, it´s silly to save 100 euro on a bike, by buying poor quality, if you want a good bike that you´ll use for years. And local advice is the best...they know what your requirements are.

On the other hand, beware of spending lots of extra money for a bike that´s really designed for mountain-biking enthusiasts, with a lot of extra features you don´t really need. Like I said, it´s like binoculars....200 euro will buy you rubbish, 400 euro (nowadays) will get you superb binoculars if you spend wisely, and 1,200euros will get you binoculars a little bit better than that.

BTW, when checking bicycles sites, "Hybrid" means full-size wheels for the road (or light tracks), but with straight handlebars and a frame that´s "in-between" a road-racing frame and a mountain bike frame, for comfort. When looking at Mountain Bikes, "Hard-Tail" means it has front suspension only, which is all you need....you only need "Full Suspension" (i.e. front and back) if you want to go thundering down rocky hills (which we birders never, ever do, because we´ve spent most of our money on the telescopes and binoculars on board....;))
 
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Hi,
yeah I want a hybrid! Just like you describe it. The bike you linked to is more of mountainbike right? YOu got any hybrids to suggest? just as you say, I do want it to be as cheap as possible. I need; a new scope, a tripod, a digiscoping adapter for my swaro scope, a camera, another bin etc etc B :)

BTW, when checking bicycles sites, "Hybrid" means full-size wheels for the road (or light tracks), but with straight handlebars and a frame that´s "in-between" a road-racing frame and a mountain bike frame, for comfort. When looking at Mountain Bikes, "Hard-Tail" means it has front suspension only, which is all you need....you only need "Full Suspension" (i.e. front and back) if you want to go thundering down rocky hills (which we birders never, ever do, because we´ve spent most of our money on the telescopes and binoculars on board....;))
 
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