Cycling UK Forum

As in beginner I've not have a bicycle for years, at least since I was a kid.

Anyway I want a bike fairly cheap.

I'll go into my background. Okay I'm 39 and although I'm not overweight, I'm right in the centre of the BMI chart. I am however getting a bit of a pot which I hate. As I retrained for a new career last year passing my test as a HGV class two I've found out that the logistics and transport industry is all experienced based. So I'm having a problem getting a job at the minute. So the knock on of all this is I don't have a great deal of money to spend on a bike.

I am looking for something I can upgrade myself in the future with various odds and end. The bike will be used for mostly road travel to get me in shape. I'm not totally unfit mind, I do running and I generally walk everywhere. I have a lot of muscle mass in my legs as I was a postman for 12 years. So I doubt the going will be tough on a bike, unless I push myself hard.

The bike I'm looking at is the Raleigh Explore MT20. What advice do you guys have for me?

I'll want to put a hub dynamo onto that when I have the money. Is that possible.

Go for it Ziggy - local ads, eBay. If you do your PCV (Bus) test, employers'll bite your arm off.

I've thought about doing my PCV. It should be a doddle for me.
But enough of my employment woes, I want to get a bike. Is the MT20 a good bike to start off with?

I'm not familiar with the Raleigh, but I just googled it, and reckon it's better to go for something secondhand but higher quality to begin with. Without wishing to sound like a snob, £135 isn't enough money to make a new bike, especially one with a suspension fork.
Why not stick a wanted up here for a secondhand mountain bike? You don't need suspension or disc brakes, just a good, reasonably lightweight frame with decent quality parts. Maybe a secondhand Marin, or an old Kona?
And yes, you can have a wheel built up with a hub dynamo, as funds allow. Look at £100-£150 for a wheel, £20-£100 for a suitable headlight and possibly a few quid more for a switch.

Cheers Chris. I'll have a look on Ebay.

Ziggy wrote:I'll want to put a hub dynamo onto that when I have the money. Is that possible.

I'd love a hub dynamo but it's quite an expensive thing to do. Don't rule out bottle dynamos which are really pretty good these days. Yes a hub is better, quiter etc but a decent bottle dynamo is around £20 (Axa-HR is what I've got and it's great). You do need tyres with a dynamo track on them otherwise it'll slip in the rain. I've got a dynamo track and have never had my dynamo slip even in a torrential downpour.

Hi Ziggy and welcome to the forum.

I agree with Chris, put your money to a good quality second hand bike if you are short of cash. If you buy a cheapie new bike it will be heavy, unbalanced and ride like a cow, meaning you will be more likely to give up and wish you handn't wasted your money.

There are some smashing bikes on flea-bay and in the second hand market generally.

Take a look at what you expect from your machine, ie commuting, mountain biking, touring etc and go from there.

This forum by the way is a great starting point on your mission. There are loads of experienced cyclists who are more than willing to offer you assistance, ideas and hlep you get the most out of your cycling.


Good luck

Mary

Hey Ziggy, welcome.

Will you be purchasing a helmet.................?

If so I could recommend one.

Thanks for the welcome. I'll more than likely be purchasing a helmet, plus other clothing.

I've been checking Ebay and I've seen a couple of bikes I like.

Ziggy,
Welcome to the forum!
Some sensible advice from those above on looking for a quality second hand bike. It's a good time of year now as more people tend to look for bikes in the spring / summer.
One tiny piece of advice - it's up to you it you wear a helmet or not, but you will get better input from people if you keep any discussion of helmets in a separate thread from discussion of bikes!

I'm too much of a beginner myself to give advice ... but you seem to be getting loads of what you need ... so I'll just say ... hello and welcome!

No one has mentioned the obvious point of making sure the bike is the right size. Too many people give up cycling because the seat is too low to use pedal happily for any length of time.

Ziggy. Welcome to the fold. I have an old steel Raleigh someone gave me. It rides OK and would get you started. You are welcome to it if you can collect from north London. In fact I could deliver within Freedom Pass land.

Ziggy wrote:As in beginner I've not have a bicycle for years, at least since I was a kid.

Anyway I want a bike fairly cheap.

I'll go into my background. Okay I'm 39 and although I'm not overweight, I'm right in the centre of the BMI chart. I am however getting a bit of a pot which I hate. As I retrained for a new career last year passing my test as a HGV class two I've found out that the logistics and transport industry is all experienced based. So I'm having a problem getting a job at the minute. So the knock on of all this is I don't have a great deal of money to spend on a bike.

I am looking for something I can upgrade myself in the future with various odds and end. The bike will be used for mostly road travel to get me in shape. I'm not totally unfit mind, I do running and I generally walk everywhere. I have a lot of muscle mass in my legs as I was a postman for 12 years. So I doubt the going will be tough on a bike, unless I push myself hard.

The bike I'm looking at is the Raleigh Explore MT20. What advice do you guys have for me?

I'll want to put a hub dynamo onto that when I have the money. Is that possible.

Check in Ebay buddy...

richards wrote:Ziggy. Welcome to the fold. I have an old steel Raleigh someone gave me. It rides OK and would get you started. You are welcome to it if you can collect from north London. In fact I could deliver within Freedom Pass land.

Thanks for the offer Rick, but I live a bit far. All the way up in sunny Newcastle.

But hey I appreciate the offer.

Thanks again.
I found this Kona on Ebay


Is it suitable for a beginner like me?