atx33

Hello everyone, I have been reading this forum for a couple days and everyone seems nice and knowledgeable so I wanted to seek some input since I am brand new to biking. I really appreciate any help.

Well here is a little bit about me and my situation. I am in Austin, TX so the weather here is not too bad usually. I am looking for a bike to be used for shorter road commute trips (probably nothing more then 20 miles), rides just for exercise, and also a little trail riding (nothing too hard core). Austin is a little hilly so I need a bike that can deal with that. I am a taller guy at 6"2' and I weigh around 225. Price range is flexible if need be but I really don’t want to spend more then $500-$600 for my first real bike. I’m also a guy always looking for the best bang for his buck.

Well I stopped by a LBS the other day and asked the guy a bunch of questions about bikes. According to him and some research, a commuter/hybrid would work best for me. The 3 brands this store carried were Jamis, Bianchi and Scott except he didn’t even really mention Bianchi as an option to me. He was very high on the Scott Sportster P55 ($550) https://scottusa.com/gb_en/product/24.../sportster_p55 , said it was one of their best selling bikes. The other bike he showed me was the Jamis Coda ($550) https://www.jamisbikes.com/usa/thebik...a/09_coda.html , which is steel frame and from what I read on here is better then aluminum. They also had a 2008 Jamis Coda https://www.jamisbikes.com/usa/archiv...a_archive.html on sale for $380 which is very tempting.

All of the research I have done, Jamis Coda has gotten some great reviews but most people have the Sport, Comp or Elite. Is the base Coda a good bike? Is it a great deal at $380? Or should I upgrade to the Sport, Comp or Elite?

Now, I couldn’t find too much on the Scott Sportster, especially the P55. So are there any opinions on this bike? I'm just curious why the LBS guy was pushing this bike over the Jamis from the reviews I have read. All he really mentioned was the suspension fork and disc brakes.

Also, if you guys have any other bike suggestions I would greatly appreciate it.

Sorry for rambling so long and thanks for your help.

atx33

Oh I forgot to add that the other location of this LBS, I called and the owner was really high on Bianchi Iseo, and the Torino was their second choice. https://www.bianchiusa.com/09-bicycle...9-xt-iseo.html

noglider 

A lot of us are doing some heavy commutes on 30 year old bikes. I would almost call all of those bikes overkill, except that they're not, given that they'll be very enjoyable and well suited to your purposes. I say test ride them and choose the one you like best. With the amount of money in your budget, you can't go wrong.

Pinyon

My advice is to test ride lots of bikes before you buy one. I'm talking at least a couple of miles, and at least one hill if possible. You will quickly find out what feels right, and will be able to narrow down what type and size of bike you like, what bike shop you feel the most comfortable with (think future service), etc.

Salespeople really do have good advice, but it is sometimes hard to separate the good advice from the bad. They get paid to sell bikes. They get brownie points for selling the bikes that don't sell as fast. At a couple of shops around here they have problems selling hybrid bikes, so they push them pretty hard on new customers. A couple of other bikes shops bought too many funky cruiser and track-type single speeds, and they really push those there.

Find a bike that rides well for you. If what you like is out of your price range, then get a used one on Craigslist or an attic sale.

On a side note, I don't like hybrids. I've known quite a few people that wished that they had just purchased a road, mountain, or touring bike instead. I ride a 16 year-old mountain bike with a stiff front end and slick commuter tires for commuting, and a road bike for when I want to take longer rides in the country.

Torrilin

Test ride, test ride, test ride.

For the average rider, the difference between a bike that lets them go 100 miles and a bike that lets them go 5 is how well it fits. As a new rider, the only way you can know what fits is to ride it, because the geometry numbers don't actually *mean* anything to you at this point. And geometry numbers don't tell you if you've got touchy wrists that will scream if you ride 10 miles on a flat bar, or agreeable ones that are happy going 100 miles on one. And no numbers will tell you if you've got a Brooks butt, or a WTB butt, or if a gel saddle is the best for you. The only way you learn these things is to ride the bike. A lot.

So I'd try bikes with different handlebars, different saddles, different pedals... After you've tried 10 bikes, you'll have a much clearer idea of what you like. For me, that's Brooks saddles, platform pedals, and mustache or North Roads bars. Narrowish drops are good too. Frame I don't really care about material. Other people have entirely different preferences, and they'd be horribly uncomfortable on a bike made to suit me.

ragboy

Don't rule out used. I'm sure in Austin there are plenty of decent used bikes to be had. It doesn't need to be fancy or new -- just so the frame size fits you. The fine-tuning for fit can be adjusted later.

DallasSoxFan

Don't buy the bike based upon what you might do occasionally. But the one for its main purpose and occasionally use it for the other purposes. If you find it inadequate for those uses, pick up something cheap off of craigslist for that purpose.

For a 20 mile commute, I'd be looking at a road or touring bike (if you carry a lot). Don't make yourself suffer 80% of the time to fit in characteristics that you only need 20% of the time.

xtrajack

You can change almost anything but the frame, Make sure that it fits you. I lucked out the first time I bought a bike. It fit like it was made for me. Bought it on impulse at a pawnshop. Didn't know any better then. The bike I have now I bought at the LBS. I did make sure that it fit me.

Torrilin

I don't quite agree with this. 90% of my *trips* are 6 miles or less. I can literally use any bike and do ok. But over half of my *miles* are trips to visit the sister-outlaw, or Target, or just have fun noodling around on a state trail. For over half my miles, I carry no extra weight. The remainder, I've got between 30 and 50lbs of groceries and library books. I hit an edge case at least once a week, sometimes as often as 3x a week.

So I actually focused pretty hard on the edge cases, where I was doing longer miles or heavier loads (or both at once). It's been well worth it, because doing 10 miles with a 30lb load is pretty painful on a bike that doesn't do cargo well. And it's no fun to meander around on state trails if your wrists or butt are killing you.

atx33

Thanks guys for the help so far. Yeah I need to ride a few and see what feels the best, I guess I was just wondering which of those bikes might have the best value component wise.

I have been looking for used bikes for a while on craigslist but no luck so far. Anyother wesites you would suggest? Or should I call around to some bike shops?

I guess if I go used then I need to know what to look and watch out for.

noglider 

Too much emphasis is placed on components. You never know what you'll end up replacing. If you get low-end derailleurs, for example, you may never need to replace them, so why optimize the derailleur value? Also, the wholesale price difference between low end and high end parts is quite small. Most of the difference is not manufacturing cost, it's profit. Spending extra on components is often not worth it.

atx33

That makes sense. So it would probably be best to go with a base model, then when I get more into it then I can upgrade certain components that I want or need to.

So when I go test ride tonight, and lets say the Jamis Coda feels the best too me, then the base should do just fine. Then if I need to replace the seat or hubs or anything then it should be fairly simple and cost effective?

Thanks again guys. I'm kinda hoping the 2008 Coda feels really good since it's on sale.

noglider 

Well, it's super-expensive to change a frame. If there is a difference between the frames of two models, and if you think you would reap a benefit from the better frame, buy the nicer bike, if you can afford to.

Andy_K 

I would definitely jump on that 2008 Coda if you like the feel of it. It's a good bike.

I want to know about this "Austin is a little hilly" idea. They must have been hiding the hills when I was there. I flew into Austin and drove up to Ft. Hood, and it was one of the flattest places I've been.

Seriously though, when I started biking two years ago, I was cursing the many hills on my commute, but other riders were telling me it was actually pretty flat. It's all relative. Now I can do it on a singlespeed, but two years ago I had to use the granny gear on my hybrid and still needed to stop for air at the top of hills.

I don't really have a point, I think. Just rambling.

devildogmech

There are hills in Texas? Where!!??

Go ride in So Cal or Wa and then tell me about the "hills" in Texas (I have been to all three, so yes I know )

If I had found a Jamis Coda that fit me for that price, I would have bout it! As it is, I bought a very nice, used Trek. I've 700 miles on it in the last year (i'm a mileage light weight, ok ) and am learning how to fix and replace stuff.

Start with the best bike you can, but half of the fun of having a bike, is making it yours! I have yet to see another bike around here with Trekking bars like I have. I'm thinking about an eXtracycle frame extension.......

Oh, were we talking about you?

Billy

atx33

Thanks.

Yeah if you flew into Austin and drove north up 35 then that is all flat. If you go to west Austin, its hilly there. If you go even further out west they call it the Hill Country. Actually Lance Armstrong trained out there, heck he might still.

Pinyon

Most of the drivetrain should last for years and years. Things like the derailures, bottom brackets, hubs, chainrings, brake calipers, seat posts, etc. are built pretty tough these days. Even the low-end ones work great. They are just heavier and may not look as slick. Unless you decide to start racing or something, I would just enjoy riding and not thinking about them.

There are some things that I and most of the people that I know automatically replace on a new bike, though. The first thing is the saddle. With the exception of Specialized saddles that come on their road bikes these days, I've rarely seen anyone that did not end up hating a stock saddle that they tried to ride with. You don't have to get an expensive saddle, either. Notice what saddles felt better on your test rides, and try to find an affordable version of that.

Another thing that a lot of people automatically switch out around here is brake pads. The softer rubber found on all-weather brake pads stop you a lot better (especially in the rain and snow), are less noisy, and shed road debris better than a lot of stock brake pads. I like green Kool-Stops, but most brands make softer rubber all-weather pads.

After that, you are set to go. Don't forget to take it back into the dealer after a couple of weeks for them to adjust the derailures and brakes (new cables stretch-out some). The stock tires will probably wear out in a few months, but I say ride them till they are dead. If you keep it lubed, you probably won't have to worry about replacing the chain until 3,500 - 6,000 miles of hard riding.

Just ride it.

Andy_K 

If I look east, I see this:



I'm pretty sure I didn't see anything like that around Austin. But I guess I'm willing to take your word for it that you have some hills.

atx33

Thanks Pinyon for the advice.

To those of you saying the Texas isnt hilly, here are some photos. It might not be as hilly as other places, but its hilly to me (Im from flat Kansas).

https://www.city-data.com/forum/austi...l-country.html

atx33

Nope, no mountains in Austin. I think that would be too much for me.

Andy_K 

It's too much for me too, but it's there as inspiration. Someday.... For now, I'm content with the hills between me and Mt. Hood.

Andy_K 

Well, what do you know? I guess it's just further evidence that my brother was right when he described Austin as being like it was dropped into the middle of Texas from someplace else.

Ka_Jun

When you say, "trail", you mean paved, crushed gravel, or singletrack?

atx33

Yeah, should be all.

lil brown bat

Meaning, you don't know how to ride a bike? My advice on how to go about taking up bike commuting would be pretty different depending on the answer to that question.