Micah87

I haven't cycled in a number of years and I'm looking into taking it back up as a form of fitness as well as commuting. I'll be using my desired bike on both walking pavements and on road.

I've got my eye on the 2014 range of Bad Boy 6 and Bad Boy 29er, but I'm unsure as to which one will be the better purchase. They are both at the same price point, which makes it even harder to know which is the better bike, as I'm not too knowledgeable about bike components.

I just need a bike, which is lightening quick, sturdy and which will serve me well for a number of years.

All comments are welcomed. Thank you

WestPablo

They're both made of aluminum. Therefore, they're not going to be as durable as steel. IMO, they're both beautiful bikes, though....

If you want durable that looks similar to the Bad Boy, then checkout the Marin Muirwoods 29er on sale at www.amazon.com @ $450

Otherwise, just make up your mind, based upon height. If you're 5' 8" or less get the Bad Boy 9! OTOH, if you're 5' 10" or more, then get the Bad Boy 29er!

syncro87

Cannondale makes good bikes.

There are a TON of bikes in that class out there, though. Flat bar commuter / urban / whatever you want to call it. So before I bought anything, I'd do a lot of looking around. Pretty much everybody has a bike in that range. Do some shopping, in person. If you keep coming back to the CD, fine.

Personally, I would want something with a steel frame. Now, if I went aluminum, I'd want a carbon fork or a steel fork. I would avoid aluminum straight blade fork, myself.

If lightning quick is your overriding goal, and comfort is way down the list somewhere, ok, alu on alu would work. Not my cup of tea, but what do I know.

Your options with aluminum bikes that feature aluminum forks will be a lot wider. There are a lot more of them out there on the market. They are cheaper to produce, so more commonplace. And if they ride OK for you, good deal.

What is the top of your budget, and what is your ideal budget? Do you have an REI store near you?

dynaryder

FYI,the bike doesn't make you fast,you make the bike fast. I know a messenger in his 50's that could drop me like an anchor even if he was on a bikeshare bike. And the average TdF rider could smoke him without breathing hard. There are things that make a bike faster or slower,but the rider will always be the final determining factor.

If you want fast,then you don't want a 29er. Those big tires need some omph to spin them up. The 6 will be easier to accelerate than the 29er. Of course,you can always put thinner tires on the 29er,but why bother buying one unless you want the big tires? The 6 is also 9spd,so the chains/cassettes will last longer and be cheaper to replace than the 29er's 10spd.

This is the 21st century,and we're not talking about off-road or BMX. Modern alloy frames are just fine for street use. My Safari has well north of 10k miles,and has been through hell from my all-weather commuting,grocery hauling,and bike polo. My Swobo Otis was all alloy,and survived many spectacular crashes during polo,with zero issues.

Micah87

Which Cannondale range is better, the Bad Boys or the Quicks???

themishmosh

How "fast is fast"? I know people will say their bikes or the components make no appreciable difference in speed over the course of a ride but between my two hybrids, I am consistently 0.5mph slower on the heavier, less nimble of the two. To me, that is a big difference.

dynaryder

Depends on what you like. The regular Quicks are more road bike-ish,the BB's are more MTB-ish. Ride both and decide which you prefer.

Micah87

Great advice

I'll be sure to test out both bikes.

syncro87

They are different. Quicks are a little more road biased flat bar bikes, some with carbon forks. Probably slightly to moderately more efficient than a BB or Quick CX. The CX line has front suspension for the most part aside from one of them. Bad Boys go for the dark urban aesthetic, some have headshok suspension, some none.

There are about a bazillion variations of Quick. Quick, CX, SL, and levels of each. I just got on their website and started looking around, it's a learning curve.

Of all the Quick Bad Boy variations, my choice just looking at them for a few min for you would be the carbon fork models, assuming you're doing street riding.

You'll have to pore through the specs of all of them on their website for a while and see what mix of attributes appeals to you.

WestPablo

Whether we're discussing bmx, mtbikes, hybrids, road bikes, or what have you. The fact remains that certain metals have specific properties. One property that aluminum has that steel doesn't is it's tendency to fatigue from stress. Steel has a fatigue limit, below which it will never fatigue. We can't very well say that about any aluminum product.

WestPablo

OP...

26in wheels accelerate faster, but on the flat straight-aways, the 700c and the 29er's rule, because they're better able to maintain their momentum, stability, and speed.

However, speed is still more dependent upon the cyclist's leg strength than wheel size.

Micah87

Hi, thanks for your post

I don't have the best balance as I'm a bit tad overweight. Will the 29ers suit me better relative to the Bad Boy 6??? I'll be riding on both walking pavement as well as on the road.

Micah87

Could you recommend any steel hybrid bikes, if possible???

syncro87

Some common steel bikes:

Marin Muirwoods. Surly Ogre / Troll. Novara Buzz. Specialized AWOL. Raleigh Roper. Nashbar Steel Cyclocross Bike. Salsa Vaya. Jamis Coda. Trek Steel District. GT Corsa. Old mountain bikes from the 1990's.

I tried to pick some steel bikes with varying pricing for you.

These are not necessarily "hybrids" per se, but represent a decent selection of steel bikes that are out there right now and that don't have too aggressive of geometry. They vary in what they emphasize.

I wouldn't rule out an aluminum bike. You probably won't put nearly enough stress on it to worry about failure. I think steel bikes are a tad more comfy to ride. I don't like Alu bikes with Alu blade forks, particularly. But something like a Raleigh Misceo, alu with a steel fork, or a Cannondale Quick, alu with carbon fork, that would work for me.

WestPablo

How tall are you?

What's your weight?

WestPablo

+1

The GT Corsa 1.0 at REI @ $800 (Tiagra Gruppo)

The Marin Muirwoods at Amazon @ $450

syncro87

Yep, nice, as long as the 25mm tires are not a problem. Nice spec for the $.


The more I look at them, the Jamis Coda line looks good.

Micah87

I'm 5'9 and weigh just over 14 stone. I really need to lose weight.

WestPablo

For the Muirwoods bikes, at 5' 9", you could very well take your pick either way. However, the 29er would be better for distance cycling.

The 29er would be my preference!

StanSeven

This thread is filled with myths about frame material. This sounds like the 7 and 8 year threads on the road forum. Any material is good and won't fail. Steel is the heaviest and the one thing going for it is it's easily repaired. Cannondale has been making aluminum bikes for years and has an excellent reputation. If aluminum really fatigued, Cannondale would be out of business with law suits.

The Bad Boy is an excellent bikes and one of the best looking around. The 29 is better suited if you ride trails because the larger wheels go over obstacles better and handle rougher terrain a little easier.

If you are concerned about quickness and maneuvering on streets and smooth trails, the Bad Boy is what you want. It's also lighter than the 29. Either bike will last you a lifetime. What makes bikes obsolete is technology and not old age (except of you don't exercise reasonable care and avoid things like rust)

dynaryder

This.

Micah87,you're not a Clydesdale,you're not going to be hauling heavy loads,and you're not going to be doing any extreme riding. The fact is,that for the majority of people who are just riding on the street,they are never going to take their frame anywhere near its limits. You're far more likely to pop spokes on your wheels because they weren't properly tensioned or because you went off a curb the wrong way than you are to break a frame or fork. Any quality,name brand bike will give you years of dependable service.

If you see a bike you like,take it for a test spin. The most important things are how a bike fits you,and how you like the ride.

WestPablo

Frame Materials

Metals 101 was a very nice elective taken at one time...

However with respect to aluminum bicycles, Talu pretty much surmises it all.

Micah87

Just one last question. I'm about to pull the trigger and purchase the Bad Boy 6. However is there a significant difference between the Bad Boy 6 and Bad Boy 9. The Bad Boy 9 is £200 cheaper. Is it worthwhile spending the extra £200 to get the Bad Boy 6 as opposed to the 9 version?

Bad Boy 6 - £799
Cannondale Bad Boy 6 2014 Hybrid Bike | Evans Cycles

vs.

Bad Boy 9 - £599
Cannondale Bad Boy 9 2014 Hybrid Bike | Evans Cycles

syncro87

I don't see a huge difference there.

Take a strong, strong look at this bike, though. I'd give it serious consideration over those others.

Jamis Coda Elite 2013 Hybrid Bike | Evans Cycles


Sorry, didn't see they have limited sizes available. Darn. A great bike.

Micah87

are canondale bad boy seats removable. I'd hate for it to get stolen when left alone