2nd Hand Road Bike for Daughter

[Witterings]

My daughter's looking to buy a 2nd hand road bike, she doesn't want to spend a fortune as where she's at Uni it's quite reknowned for bikes "going missing" and whilst I know what to look for in a 29er / Gravel bike I wouldn't have a clue what to look at for road bikes.

She had found a Diamondback DBR Pursuit but I found some not great comments about it ... mainly the gearing.

She's doing leisure riding rather than anything race orientated but would probably do circa 30 miles at the weekends sight seeing / getting some enjoyable excercise and just for nipping to the shops during the week.

If anybody can give us any pointers of what makes / models to look at up to £300 max but prefereably a bit less would be much appreciated.

[Jamesh]

How about an old Raleigh pioneer.

Tough as old boots and not too nickable.

Avoid cheaper steel bikes though that are seriously heavy!

Argos do a range of Alu hybrids too at about £150 - 200

Cheers James

[Bonefishblues]

Uni?

Ostensibly crappy, a bit rough around the edges is the ticket - 1990s steel mtb on slickish tyres.

[gbnz]

Argos do a range of Alu hybrids too at about £150 - 200

And on flicking throiugh the Argo's site this morning, their road bikes are on a clearance sale. £1 off the normal price! (Nb. To be fair, they look superb value for money even at full price)

[Witterings]

Uni?

Ostensibly crappy, a bit rough around the edges is the ticket - 1990s steel mtb on slickish tyres.

Uni = University ? ....

mtb

.. she's after drop bars.

Had a look at the Argos ones ... she's 5'2" so probably a 46/48cm frame and the only drop bar ones are quite a bit bigger unless I've missed a sizing opton somewhere.

[Bonefishblues]

Uni?

Ostensibly crappy, a bit rough around the edges is the ticket - 1990s steel mtb on slickish tyres.

Uni = University ? ....

mtb

.. she's after drop bars.

Had a look at the Argos ones ... she's 5'2" so probably a 46/48cm frame and the only drop bar ones are quite a bit bigger unless I've missed a sizing opton somewhere.

I understood Uni

I was trying to be helpful - you said it was known for bike theft, hence my suggestion for an 'under the radar' bike that would still be good to ride and might not get nicked but good luck anyway in your quest.

[iandusud]

Would this fit the bill?
https://www.resurrectionbikes.org.uk/pr ... road-bike/

[julianm]

I'd recommend buying a really good lock like a https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kryptonite-Yor ... th=1&psc=1
Which I realise is about 1/4 of your budget. My son had 4 cheapo second hand bikes stolen at uni/hospital before we bought him one this good & he stll uses it 15 years later! There are cheaper things around which could be considered. Practice how/what to lock it to as well! If there is a bike recycling place near you it could be worth a look, but they can be surprisingly pricey for stuff. Good luck.

[Vorpal]

Buy this lot, make one decent but not especially stealable bike out of it for your daughter & sell the rest on?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/254859443281

edited to add: I missed the 5'2" part. It's obviously hard to tell the frame sizes from the lot on ebay, but except for the Dawes which seems to have a high top tube for the set-up, they don't look like big frames?

[Witterings]

Would this fit the bill?
https://www.resurrectionbikes.org.uk/pr ... road-bike/

That would be ideal they also have this one on their site

https://www.resurrectionbikes.org.uk/pr ... low-black/

But they're closed for lockdown (I thought bike shops were considered essential ... maybe it's just their choice) they're also based in North Yorkshire ... the petrol there and back wold be nearly as much as the bike

[iandusud]

Would this fit the bill?
https://www.resurrectionbikes.org.uk/pr ... road-bike/

That would be ideal they also have this one on their site

https://www.resurrectionbikes.org.uk/pr ... low-black/

But they're closed for lockdown (I thought bike shops were considered essential ... maybe it's just their choice) they're also based in North Yorkshire ... the petrol there and back wold be nearly as much as the bike

They will open for collections in person (not couriers). Whereabouts are you? There are other such projects dotted around the country.

[Bonzo Banana]

I think the Carrera Virtuoso at Halfords would be a good option. It's slightly above your price range at £375 but there are often 10% off days to bring the price down a bit.

https://www.halfords.com/bikes/road-bik ... 48654.html

The trouble is its a great bike for the money but Carrera I believe are the UK's most stolen bike brand. Halford's have a huge slice of the UK market and a stolen Carrera bike is easy to sell on due to their popularity, a stolen bike won't stand out unlike rarer models.

Personally I'd look for a cheap road bike on ebay, gumtree, facebook marketplace etc. Typically the smaller woman's sizes don't sell for great money as there are less female cyclists and they are harder to sell. Some people actively look for those bikes because of their lower selling price as donor bikes where they may have bought a CF frame and forks and looking for a cheap donor bike to provide all the other components. To them it doesn't matter so much if the frame is the wrong size.

Many years ago I remember reading a forum posting where a teacher constantly got his decent bikes stolen. In the end he went for a cheap sterlinghouse bike (shows how long ago its was) and at the time no one was interested in stealing it due to its low value and pointless risk. Maybe it just lasted longer before being stolen but a beater bike seems the best option where there is a high risk of theft. You can build a stealth beater bike where its basically a naff old bike but a few key components have been upgraded. A freehub in the rear wheel for improved strength and shifting, a sealed bottom bracket which is never seen. Decent inner tubes and sealant. So it looks rubbish but actually rides very well with decent shifting and low maintenance. You can stick drop handlebars on many bikes, a old style 90s mountain bike with drop handelbars is basically a gravel bike.

[bgnukem]

Also recommend wrapping the frame and forks in black insulation tape, as I did with my Dawes while at Uni, or painting the frameset a horrible sh!t brown colour - makes it harder for the thieves to move on.....

[ElCani]

Both those resurrectionbikes.org bikes look like great value, but also attractive the thieves. And if the bike is for general transport as well as exercise/sport then mudguards are a basically a must-have, and ideally a rack too.

[iandusud]

Just re-read the title and thought that sounds like a good swap