Cycling UK Forum

Right, final answer.

Been looking around, and buying a second hand one makes the most financial sense. I'm also getting on a bit and the Apollo
is very heavy lifting it on/off my car bike rack.

Thanks everyone for you help.

Apparently, Halfords carried out research which indicated that the bikes they sell travel an average of just 15 miles. Ever. This undoubtedly explains the existence of the BSO, but which came first? Was it the person who would buy such a thing, or was it the BSO itself? I suppose it is a bit like asking which came first, the chicken or the egg?

Brucey wrote: ↑29 Feb 2024, 6:10pm Apparently, Halfords carried out research which indicated that the bikes they sell travel an average of just 15 miles. Ever. This undoubtedly explains the existence of the BSO, but which came first? Was it the person who would buy such a thing, or was it the BSO itself? I suppose it is a bit like asking which came first, the chicken or the egg?

Whats' BSO?

mcluskc wrote: ↑29 Feb 2024, 7:07pm Whats' BSO?

Bike Shaped Object
A rather derogatory term for really cheap bikes - basically that they're bike shaped but not really "proper" bikes.

Brucey wrote: ↑29 Feb 2024, 6:10pm Apparently, Halfords carried out research which indicated that the bikes they sell travel an average of just 15 miles. Ever.

If that is true perhaps what H G Wells should have said was: “Every time I see an adult on a BSO, I despair for the future of the human race”.

Brucey wrote: ↑29 Feb 2024, 6:10pm Apparently, Halfords carried out research which indicated that the bikes they sell travel an average of just 15 miles. Ever. This undoubtedly explains the existence of the BSO, but which came first? Was it the person who would buy such a thing, or was it the BSO itself? I suppose it is a bit like asking which came first, the chicken or the egg?

I've seen plenty of cheaper end bikes been used regularly for years, and for sure there will be some that hardly get used. But to average this out over the lifetime of all bikes under some notional price to 15 miles, sorry but this is cobblers.

TheBomber wrote: ↑29 Feb 2024, 9:05pm

Brucey wrote: ↑29 Feb 2024, 6:10pm Apparently, Halfords carried out research which indicated that the bikes they sell travel an average of just 15 miles. Ever.

If that is true perhaps what H G Wells should have said was: “Every time I see an adult on a BSO, I despair for the future of the human race”.

frankly it's not anyone else's business what someone else purchases or indeed how much someone might ride a bike based on its percieved value/efficacy (indeed what is this number?)

Because some people choose to purchase a less expensive AKA 'cheap' bike that might have a greater likelihood of failing sooner or going by the wayside unloved - compared to some other notional bike/.s, is nothing to do with how the human race will be in the future, it's more about how the elite scum continue to squeeze the plebs and create fear.

[post edited by moderator]

SwiftyDoesIt wrote: ↑1 Mar 2024, 3:41am ……,,,the elite scum continue to squeeze the plebs and create fear.

Nice, thank you for that

pjclinch wrote: ↑23 Feb 2024, 12:19pm First up I'd assess if that's really a good bike for whatever you're wanting to do. It looks from a quick google to be a cheap full suspension mountain bike, and from what I've seen "cheap" and "full suspension" are not happy bedfellows with componentry designed to look the part rather than properly play it.

If you want to go mountain biking you're probably going to be better off with just front suspension (lighter, less to go wrong, easier up climbs, and as cheap suspension tends to be poor quite possibly better handling in any case), if you want it as a general bike then a no-suspension hybrid would probably work better, and you would probably be able to pick up an okay second hand one for around the cost of that service quote.

Obviously you can get useful work out of such a bike, but if it needs money spend on it you may be better off putting that towards a change for something simpler and lighter.

Pete.

Thank you 100% what I would have said

I would not throw good money at a reall what was cheap bike in it's day unless you have no finances.

rareposter wrote: ↑29 Feb 2024, 7:33pm

mcluskc wrote: ↑29 Feb 2024, 7:07pm Whats' BSO?

Bike Shaped Object
A rather derogatory term for really cheap bikes - basically that they're bike shaped but not really "proper" bikes.

I understand the origin of the form is the Piano Shaped Object, as referred to by Steinway technicians coming across rather grotty specimens in their work.

Pete.

SwiftyDoesIt wrote: ↑1 Mar 2024, 3:41am
This is such bike snobbery, frankly it's not anyone else's business what someone else purchases or indeed how much someone might ride a bike based on its percieved value/efficacy (indeed what is this number?)

Of course some people can't afford top of the line bikes, but given a choice of spending £X on something basic, or £X where quite a bit of that has gone on terrible suspension, oversized (overweight, but notionally cool-looking) tubing, cable discs rather than V-brakes, 24 rather stiff and unreliable gears rather than 3-5 usable ones, it's often (not always, but often) marketing and lack of honest information that leads people to the latter.

Pete.

Re: Halfords. OP was considering getting work done by Halfords (though plans probably changed). Personally I've always been very unimpressed with Halfords (incl. some bad experiences) but irrespective of anecdotal experience, I'd suggest trying to find a local'ish independent local bike shop (LBS).

When searching for stuff and Halfords come-up in Google search results they've never been particularly price competitive and you'll probably find much better service and advice from a good independent LBS. If you know what you need and how to do it (eg from asking here) then searching internet will probably find cheapest parts (though check delivery costs), but where you need something urgently or work you don't have tools for or are not confident in doing a good independent local bike shop is bound to be far better than Halfords.

I have several local bike shops round me, a couple are rubbish but a couple are excellent. Internet search engines will tell you where they are but ask other cyclists you meet when riding where they get work done and what they think. I generally ignore online reviews of local bike shops as much can depend on who is writing the review.

Ian

pjclinch wrote: ↑1 Mar 2024, 11:34am it's often (not always, but often) marketing and lack of honest information that leads people to the latter.

It's often ignorance (and I don't mean that in a bad way either). Most people don't buy bikes very often (same way that most people don't buy fridges or TVs very often).
So when it comes to buy such an item, it's very easy to end up in a maze of reviews, (mis)information, opinions and so on, much of which is of little benefit to the end user.

"I want a bike to ride 2 miles to work and back" does not require reviews of carbon or suspension dynamics, it requires spending £149.99 on any old thing that fits and at that level most people barely know what they're riding, let alone how many gears it has or how much suspension travel or whether it's a top pull or bottom pull front mech. They don't care and to be fair, they don't need to care!

Reading stuff about how these gears are better or those brakes are worse is of absolutely no interest to the majority of people and they'll quickly bin off technical stuff in favour of going to somewhere that they "know", they feel comfortable with. A name.

Halfords, Currys, PC World etc. Those are the "names" that everyone knows sells the items in question - bikes, fridges, computers.

Many/most LBS exist to service the "enthusiast" buyer. Halfords/Currys/PC World exist to service the general public who don't know or care about any of the technical stuff, they just want something that does a job. It's not really a bad thing as such.
And ultimately, the OP got (and took) good advice on here that his/her bike is not worth fixing up and they should spend the money on a new/better bike.

rareposter wrote: ↑1 Mar 2024, 12:13pm
"I want a bike to ride 2 miles to work and back" does not require reviews of carbon or suspension dynamics, it requires spending £149.99 on any old thing that fits and at that level most people barely know what they're riding, let alone how many gears it has or how much suspension travel or whether it's a top pull or bottom pull front mech. They don't care and to be fair, they don't need to care!

Up to a point, Lord Copper...
I have taught Bikeability Scotland to quite a few kids on everything from BSOs to top-of-the-range Islabikes MTBs, and for the most part it's not about the bike.
But when we do a session on gears, and the kids on the BSOs can't even move their shifters and even if they could would be confronted with a 3x7 system they have no grasp of rather than a 1-3 system then it is about the bike.
When I come across a bike which has had one of the brakes unhooked and I say to the carer "!" and they say, "it was rubbing so I unhooked it" then it is about the bike.

Pete.

I have had bikes that most people (including myself) would dismiss as 'just another BSO' which have surprised me, For example, I well remember a ladies' apollo rigid MTB. When I first clapped eyes on it, my heart sank; the brakes didn't work, the gears didn't work, the tyres
were nearly flat and the crank wobbled like mad, amongst other things. However after half an hour's fettling I'd replaced one brake cable and just adjusted/lubricated everything else. It still looked like a scabby old BSO of course, but it rode like a new bike. It was so much better than walking, which you couldn't say before. I did feel like I'd just polished a turd, but that particular BSO did live on, to fight another day.

Brucey wrote: ↑1 Mar 2024, 5:41pm It still looked like a scabby old BSO of course, but it rode like a new bike.

That sounds like the ideal town bike which will probably still be there after a few hours looked up in a public place.