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+--- Thread: [bike] found something on craigslist, does it look like a good option? (/showthread.php?tid=118050)
Re: [bike] found something on craigslist, does it look like a good option? - clay - 06-03-2011
Black wrote:
Slim pickens in your local Craigslist . . . what are nearby towns to expand your search to?
I consider paying new stuff prices to be a failure . . .
The next biggest nearby city is Charlottesville: http://charlottesville.craigslist.org/bik/ but that's an hour's drive away, so unless it's a true bargain or a sure thing, I'm not excited about looking there.
I hate paying new prices as well, but living in the boonies, so to speak, doesn't give as many options when looking for something like this. I use ebay extensively, but being somewhat of a road/touring bike greenhorn, I don't always know what to look for. Not to mention the issue of sizing/fit...
Re: [bike] found something on craigslist, does it look like a good option? - Black - 06-03-2011
clay wrote:
[quote=Black]
Slim pickens in your local Craigslist . . . what are nearby towns to expand your search to?
I consider paying new stuff prices to be a failure . . .
The next biggest nearby city is Charlottesville: http://charlottesville.craigslist.org/bik/ but that's an hour's drive away, so unless it's a true bargain or a sure thing, I'm not excited about looking there.
I hate paying new prices as well, but living in the boonies, so to speak, doesn't give as many options when looking for something like this. I use ebay extensively, but being somewhat of a road/touring bike greenhorn, I don't always know what to look for. Not to mention the issue of sizing/fit... Nothing there anyways.
The Surly and the Trek 520 are both great bikes-- maybe there's some way to find them closer to $1k.
Re: [bike] found something on craigslist, does it look like a good option? - decay - 06-03-2011
what size for me?
6' tall, long legs (32''+ inseam)
Re: [bike] found something on craigslist, does it look like a good option? - Black - 06-03-2011
decay wrote:
what size for me?
6' tall, long legs (32''+ inseam)
Hard to say but probably 58-ish.
Re: [bike] found something on craigslist, does it look like a good option? - jdc - 06-03-2011
clay wrote:
thanks for the input, folks. Might be good to just skip this one, due to all of the unknowns.
I probably wouldnt get hung up on the whole aluminum thing.
Re: [bike] found something on craigslist, does it look like a good option? - decay - 06-03-2011
thanks - i live near the Lehigh Valley Velodrome, now called the Valley Preferred Cycling Center
http://www.thevelodrome.com/
they have a flea market in Spring & Fall (i missed Spring)
maybe i'll check 'em out this Fall
Re: [bike] found something on craigslist, does it look like a good option? - digby - 06-03-2011
clay wrote:
...The trek retails for just under $1,500. Do i really need to spend that much for a decent bike? My $750-ish budget is quickly feeling inadequate.
I'm seeing a number of decent used bikes for $200-500 (C'list and a local shop with used bikes... in Wisconsin, sorry). And new road bikes here for $350-600.
One reason I ride is that cars cost so much to run. Well, if you go on 100 bike rides with a $1500 bike, figure you're spending at least $15/ride.
Re: [bike] found something on craigslist, does it look like a good option? - kj - 06-03-2011
Oh come on guys, even Sheldon Brown says frame material has little effect on ride quality:
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/frame-materials.html
I like steel too, but aluminum has its advantages. I've also learned to trust carbon parts. They're not as fragile as people think (torque wrenches are a good idea for assembly, seriously). And talk about a smooth ride. I agree though that damage to an aluminum frame is more serious than for a steel frame. I wouldn't ride a dented aluminum frame (mountain bike, at least). Course, steel full-suspension mountain bikes are pretty hard to come by. kj.
Re: [bike] found something on craigslist, does it look like a good option? - davester - 06-03-2011
I've seen that article by Sheldon, and I usually trust Sheldon's judgment, but I'm not sure he's right in this situation because he omits a discussion of fatigue failure (this results due to loss of yield strength through cyclic loading). All the aluminum frames on road bikes I've tried have seemed harsh. It is possible to build an aluminum frame that has the resiience of steel and there are some good examples out there at the high end of the bike spectrum, but it is tricky because you can easily cross the fatigue limit where aluminum fails due to loss of yield strength over time. In contrast, steel is highly resistant to fatigue and it's fatigue limit is virtually never crossed under bike frame loads so it is easy to build a steel bike frame that never gets even close to its fatigue threshold. For this reason, most of the early aluminum frames were built ultrastiff, to provide insurance against failure due to metal fatigue. Even today there are a lot of aluminum frames that are overly stiff because it is tricky to build an aluminum frame that stays away from the fatigue threshold.
Re: [bike] found something on craigslist, does it look like a good option? - kj - 06-03-2011
There's a lot of weirdness about steel. I've talked to several mountain bikers who ride steel 29ers who say they don't need suspension because the steel soaks up the bumps. To me, if they're getting even a couple inches of suspension out of their steel frames, they've got a big problem. Like Sheldon, I don't think they're getting much of anything in terms of a better ride from the steel. I'm 100% sure tire inflation makes a lot more difference (with tubeless you can run less than 30lbs, which truly gives you some shock absorption). I have a nice steel bike, and it definitely feels different. I've come to decide it has more to do with vibration absorption. Aluminum almost resonates, which is not an attractive feeling. Carbon Fiber sucks up vibration like a little black hole. It's beautiful.
As far as durability, I just don't see much evidence breakage is a big issue. Most mountain bikes are aluminum, and a broken frame is not unheard of (I've had one frame break), but certainly not common. Given the incredible beating they take, I can't imagine aluminum is a poor material. And a road bike or commuter is going to have a lot easier life. Plus, I've had two steel frames fail, both where the top tube joins the headtube (both lugged). One was a mid-price japanese bike, the other a high price italian. I don't think that means anything, except that things break sometimes. Interesting topic though, for me at least.
Btw, I eagerly await the day I can afford a carbon fiber mountain bike. I can't imagine how smooth they must ride. And they're beautiful, all curvy and weldless. kj.