BSO to a real bike, Advice?
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BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby Brotality » Sun Feb 10, 2013 9:09 pm
A few month ago I bought a foldable BSO from Aldi, It was a bit hard at the beginning since it was my first time one a bike in 8 years, but I sticked with it, and now I'm averaging around 12km daily on it (just for exercise/fun), doing some math, I'm pretty sure I passed 500kms on it. Last week there was a special at Aldi on a Mountain BSO, but I thought I should get something decent this time.
I usually stick with sidewalks with the occasional off road scenario (which is very unpleasant on the BSO), but nothing too extreme. I'm relatively a short light guy (160cm, 60kg) in my early 20s.
I was thinking about something between $300 and $500, what do you guys think?
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby zero » Sun Feb 10, 2013 11:22 pm
"Proper" hardtail MTB is about $800 - $1000 - and will have a way better fork (ie rockshox or fox and not suntour), and be mostly deore / x4 / x5 groupset bits. I have a deore group Trek MTB that I use for commuting that has 28,500 kms on the clock now (and its thousands short of the true figure).
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby GeoffInBrisbane » Mon Feb 11, 2013 12:30 am
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby bychosis » Mon Feb 11, 2013 7:06 am
Definitely don't get a full suspension bike.
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby human909 » Mon Feb 11, 2013 12:50 pm
No use talking somebody out of their price range. $200 will get you a decent used road bike IF you know what you are looking at. $500 would get you something nice.bychosis wrote:If going down the used road look at new bikes in the $800-$1200 range
EDIT: SORRY, I misunderstood/misread. Your advice makes sense now.
You can get an entry level brand name bicycle new for that price or something a little better second hand. You haven't said what you want it for. Is it only for recreation? Or is there potential to use it for transport and commuting? A flat bar road bike or a mountain bike would likely suit a young male getting into cycling. A flat bar road bike is better for speed on bike paths and the road. A mountain bike would naturally be better off road.Brotality wrote:I was thinking about something between $300 and $500, what do you guys think?
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby bychosis » Mon Feb 11, 2013 1:17 pm
My comment was not to talk him out of his price range, but to look at current bikes then find the same models a few years old. Bike brands often keep their model naming consistent for a few years so for example a giant boulder is low level, a talon or Yukon is probably in the ball park as second hand, or you may find an XTC for a suitable price a little older.human909 wrote:No use talking somebody out of their price range. $200 will get you a decent used road bike IF you know what you are looking at. $500 would get you something nice.bychosis wrote:If going down the used road look at new bikes in the $800-$1200 range
You can get an entry level brand name bicycle new for that price or something a little better second hand. You haven't said what you want it for. Is it only for recreation? Or is there potential to use it for transport and commuting? A flat bar road bike or a mountain bike would likely suit a young male getting into cycling. A flat bar road bike is better for speed on bike paths and the road. A mountain bike would naturally be better off road.Brotality wrote:I was thinking about something between $300 and $500, what do you guys think?
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby Bendito » Mon Feb 11, 2013 1:22 pm
I ended up with the giant, as they seemed about $50-$100 cheaper than other brands for the same level of components
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby Bendito » Mon Feb 11, 2013 1:23 pm
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby Nobody » Mon Feb 11, 2013 1:52 pm
OP was talking about off road occasionally.Bendito wrote:Another good option would be picking up a 90s steel 10 speed roadie for under $100, replace the tyres and brake pads and you're away ^_^
@Brotality - If you don't really need front shocks for the occasional off road, you can still buy a clunker MTB secondhand and then replace the worn out or rubbish fork with a rigid MTB fork. With big enough tyres at lower pressure, off road will still be manageable.Brotality wrote:I usually stick with sidewalks with the occasional off road scenario (which is very unpleasant on the BSO), but nothing too extreme...I was thinking about something between $300 and $500, what do you guys think?
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby Brotality » Mon Feb 11, 2013 2:08 pm
I'm kind of scared to commit to a $1000 bike right away, 500kms seems like baby steps compared with the number I keep reading here
What increases my doubts is, I haven't tried a MTB bike before, so I'm not sure if its the best fit for me (although i'm thinking anything will be better than the 20" ridiculously uncomfortable foldable i'm currently using). Again, I just ride for fun and I think the more I can do with a bike, the more fun it would be (just a thought).
What do you guys think? and can someone point me to what an entry level hardtrail bike look like? I'm currently into the idea of buying a new entry level hardtrail bike maybe push the budget to $600, I really appreciate all of the used bikes ideas, but I have very little experience changing parts that I don't think I can pull any of these off
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby Nobody » Mon Feb 11, 2013 3:30 pm
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby zero » Mon Feb 11, 2013 4:12 pm
Just grab a boulder 1. Giant dealers are everywhere, they sell them in 5 sizes so they'll have a good fitting one for you, you'll get a free service so you won't go out of budget for 6 months unless you start buying a lot of accessories (cycling shorts make a hell of a difference for comfort if you are on it for longer stretches), and MTBs are usually comfortable bikes.Brotality wrote:thanks for the replies guys,
I'm kind of scared to commit to a $1000 bike right away, 500kms seems like baby steps compared with the number I keep reading here
What increases my doubts is, I haven't tried a MTB bike before, so I'm not sure if its the best fit for me (although i'm thinking anything will be better than the 20" ridiculously uncomfortable foldable i'm currently using). Again, I just ride for fun and I think the more I can do with a bike, the more fun it would be (just a thought).
What do you guys think? and can someone point me to what an entry level hardtrail bike look like? I'm currently into the idea of buying a new entry level hardtrail bike maybe push the budget to $600, I really appreciate all of the used bikes ideas, but I have very little experience changing parts that I don't think I can pull any of these off
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby human909 » Mon Feb 11, 2013 6:27 pm
You can't go too far wrong with a Giant. Buying a Giant is like buying a Toyota Corolla or a Toyota Camry. They are kinda boring and not that interesting but you really can't go wrong. They are good value basic bikes.zero wrote:Just grab a boulder 1. Giant dealers are everywhere, they sell them in 5 sizes so they'll have a good fitting one for you, you'll get a free service so you won't go out of budget for 6 months unless you start buying a lot of accessories (cycling shorts make a hell of a difference for comfort if you are on it for longer stretches), and MTBs are usually comfortable bikes.
You can get cheaper bikes online from places like Cycling Express. Here is a better specced bike for less money. But buying online means you don't get helpful service in choosing the right bike for you, nor do you get needed free services. Personally I buy online, but I do my own servicing that makes a big difference.
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby Brotality » Mon Feb 11, 2013 9:17 pm
Thanks alot of your help guys
Small question tho, what is the difference between different boulders (1,2,3)?
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby Nobody » Tue Feb 12, 2013 8:42 am
3 & 4 don't have lockout forks so not good bikes for what you want to do.Brotality wrote:Small question tho, what is the difference between different boulders (1,2,3)?
1 & 2 are close in price with the only differences being the brakes. Since there isn't much money between them I'd get 1. Rim brakes aren't much fun when the rims get wet.
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby warthog1 » Tue Feb 12, 2013 9:35 am
OT again sorryNobody wrote: Since there isn't much money between them I'd get 1. Rim brakes aren't much fun when the rims get wet.
I cant get over how cheap that boulder 1 is
Cheaper to buy that than to try and replace the front fork, brake and wheel only, for a disc equivalent on my roadie
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby Nobody » Tue Feb 12, 2013 11:17 am
The lack of brifters makes a significant saving for the Boulder.warthog1 wrote:I cant get over how cheap that boulder 1 is
Cheaper to buy that than to try and replace the front fork, brake and wheel only, for a disc equivalent on my roadie
Customization costs dearly. My Surly CC cost almost twice as much to build from parts as the similar Charge Filter Hi, which is ~ $1481 AUD delivered from Evans. And in reality it probably cost me closer to $3K if I include all the extra bits I've upgraded etc. At least I found out what I wanted/needed which would make it much cheaper now, especially with the current availability of road going disc bikes.
http://road.cc/content/review/76067-cha ... er-hi-2013" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby human909 » Tue Feb 12, 2013 11:30 am
Bikes are cheap. So getting a good set of wheels for under $500 is easy.warthog1 wrote:I cant get over how cheap that boulder 1 is
Cheaper to buy that than to try and replace the front fork, brake and wheel only, for a disc equivalent on my roadie
However cycling companies have figured out that MAMILS, road bike enthusiasts and MTB enthusiasts often have significant disposable income that they are willing to spend on a bike. So cycling companies have obliged and given everybody a wealth of options to spend on a bike.
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby sb944 » Tue Feb 12, 2013 12:10 pm
While the advice here has already given you a decent answer to what mountain bike might be best at that budget, checkout http://www.bikeexchange.com.au/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. Put in your maximum budget, choose mountain bike, choose male, and sort by most expensive first. At $600, there are a few bikes discounted from $800+, which I'm sure would be like heaven compared with your current bike. That gets you some ideas, then start googling those ideas, and seeing what's available locally.
You could look 2nd hand, but be wary. New from a bike shop gets you a bike fitted to you (maybe most important thing), usually a free service and brand new parts and warranties. 2nd hand is often ridden a lot, or neglected for the last couple of years, either of which could have replacement parts needed, plus it's going to be hard to know if it fits you correctly, or is setup correctly for you.
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby warthog1 » Tue Feb 12, 2013 1:54 pm
Now if I can just get someone to steal the Azzurri.......Nobody wrote:
Customization costs dearly. My Surly CC cost almost twice as much to build from parts as the similar Charge Filter Hi, which is ~ $1481 AUD delivered from Evans.
I'll keep looking for a cheap road disc fork that doesn't weigh 2 kilos, someone will have one eventually.
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby human909 » Tue Feb 12, 2013 2:20 pm
For the beginner/recreational/utility cyclists road bike handle bars are not ideal. This may be controversial given the demographics of this forum but you only need to look at Europe or inner Melbourne to see that drop bars are not the choice of most 'regular' riders. Flat bar road bikes or 'commuters' are the way to go for most people if you are avoiding off road riding.sb944 wrote:If you think you'll mainly be on roads, and you can avoid too much off road riding, I'd consider going a road bike. They are much lighter and better suited tyres, you'll be riding quite a bit quicker. If you like taking a lot of shortcuts, or riding down rough paths, definitely stick with a mountain bike though.
-Brotality- .. As you can see many people have many different opinions. Take you time, decide on you needs and go for some test rides. If you are see yourself really getting into cycling as serious fitness thing then most end up with Lycra and a road bike. If you just like taking the thing for a spin off roads then mountain biking is better. Personally, bikes are transport and a lifestyle so I look for practicality.
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby Nobody » Tue Feb 12, 2013 3:19 pm
2Kg for a steel fork? Sure Mr WW. More like 1Kg. Maybe the whole package will add 2Kg. But that shouldn't matter if it's only commuting.warthog1 wrote:I'll keep looking for a cheap road disc fork that doesn't weigh 2 kilos, someone will have one eventually.
Actually I just noticed that the fork listed above has a A to C or 376 for the 26" version.
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Re: BSO to a real bike, Advice?
Postby warthog1 » Tue Feb 12, 2013 3:23 pm
Need that disc brake so I can run it deeper into the corners when going for it on the loaded commute
Edit : nice fork by the way, good find
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