Cycling UK Forum

Well, in the end I decided to just go for the Carrera Subway Hybrid as had been suggested to me. It seemed a not bad bike for the money, and I'll admit my decision was even further swayed by the fact that it's currently reduced even further to £199.99 if reserved online! At that price, I figured I couldn't really go far wrong, even it it should turn out that I maybe only get a year's use out of it. (Hopefully it will be more durable than that, but I realise that I'll need to factor in a groupset upgrade, at least, at some point when the original gets thrashed (which will probably cost me about half the price of the bike at least!).)

As I had sort of feared, a bit of a mixed experience with Halfords, but overall probably moderately impressed. Reserved the bike on Friday, thought I'd missed their web order cut off time (we'd had some internet problems at work earlier in the day), but got a (presumably) automated text confirmation back immediately, and then just a couple of minutes later a call from the shop to confirm that I would be coming to collect on Saturday and they'd have no problems getting the bike prepared in time. Quite impressed, so far.

Saturday itself, not so great. Despite having been promised, nobody phoned me to confirm when the bike was ready, so I phoned late-afternoon to check on progress (didn't want to hassle them, but I left it late enough that I thought they'd have it ready). It turned out that the bike was already ready much earlier, so I went straight off to collect it. The bike was presented with packing materials still on the frame and bars turned, and I had to persuade the assistant to straighten the bars so that I could ride it home (you'd think they'd know cyclists enough to just ask!). After getting the bike off the train (possibly one of the few Halfords conveniently next to a railway station) and starting riding home, it soon became apparent that I needed to raise the saddle (I really should have made them check the saddle height in the shop, but took a quick detour to another LBS en route for a multi-tool), and that the front brake disc was rubbing noisily against the brake pad. Unfortunately, I over-tightened the seat clamp after raising the saddle (very stiff and the seat tube didn't seem at all well-greased) and threaded the clamp. oops. No idea how to fix the disc brake, so I realised that a trip back the following day would be inevitable..

Sunday, got a very helpful mechanic who adjusted the brake alignment on the spot, and after taking a look at the seatpost clamp, just swapped it for the clamp for the display model to save me having to wait, and greased the tube. Very happy at the quick fixes without quibbles, but a little concerned that whoever had originally assembled the bike seemingly hadn't properly checked the brake rotation and the seat tube grease. I just hope nothing else was maybe skipped over..

Enough time to divert via another LBS on the way home to check out mudguards and a rack (stealth black colour scheme maintained throughout). Not enough time for them to fit them on Sunday, but they were able to have them ready for lunchtime today (quick trip into town) and so I could cycle home tonight, all kitted up. Now I'm just hoping the rain goes away enough for the local CTC ride tomorrow evening..

And I'll need to have a look-see on the Tektro website to see if there's a disc brake manual that I can download to get me learn'ed..

davecykl wrote:Saturday itself, not so great.

Never buy a bike on a Saturday, if you can avoid it. You get far better service on a weekday. Goes for most other shops, too.

I would like to be wrong but cheap means heavy in steel unless its used.
I am not convinced by the OP's insistance that building a bike is too technical.
If you want a expedition bike you are presumably going some where a touch more remote than LEJOG. Surely you will have enough mechanical knowledge to get yourself out of **** if something breaks away from a shop.
Thats all the knowledge you need to build a bike from scratch. Have some confidence in your self, it's easy and fun.
Alternatively any shop will fir the part you buy a ta cost. Buy the lot in one go and don't ask for discount and I bet you would get that discount in the fitting.
Finally I think the best way of getting a expedition bike at a low price is the second hand way and the reason manufacturers don't do them is economies of scale because "expedition" riding isn't done by novices and experienced riders will end up changing much of what they buy anyway.

Well done davecylkl!
You made your choice and went for it.
Bullbars-I love them.I`ve tried all shapes and styles of bars over the years,and these suite ME best.
Each to their own!
I wonder,out of interest,what the weight difference is between a cheap steel frame,and an expensive one.A kilo maybe?.You can end up carrying a kilo of mud on a bike on a bad day
Have followed this post from the beginning,ALL today.
VERY interesting.
Good luck.

mattsccm wrote:I am not convinced by the OP's insistance that building a bike is too technical.

Surely that's for me to decide? Building a bike clearly isn't the most technically-complex thing in the world, but it is a task requiring a sufficient level of technical proficiency that I personally really have absolutely no desire (or time) to do so myself, and living in a small flat, I don't really have an appropriate location where I could spread the parts out and do so, anyway.

I've got every respect for those to love to tinker with bikes and know what they're doing, and indeed, now that I'm no longer living a studentesque hand-to-mouth existence, I've got no problems paying a professional (ie, a bike shop mechanic) to do that for me, safe in the knowledge that, unlike me, (for example) they won't shear bolts by trying to over-tighten them, struggle to get components lined up correctly, etc, etc..

If you want a expedition bike you are presumably going some where a touch more remote than LEJOG. Surely you will have enough mechanical knowledge to get yourself out of **** if something breaks away from a shop.

OK, I maybe got a bit carried away with the 'expedition bike' term. Sadly, I'm not planning to emulate Mark Beaumont any time soon. I'm unlikely to have the money to take on anything more challenging than the C2C or NCR 7 before next summer, at least, and realistically I can't see myself being able to take any holidays longer than 3 - 4 weeks for the immediate future anyway. But I do need a bike that will be fine for a reasonable amount of off-road use.

Thats all the knowledge you need to build a bike from scratch. Have some confidence in your self, it's easy and fun.

Yes, I can do the basics, punctures, gears, brakes (although I'm going to have to learn afresh for disk brakes). Once you get into the realms of hubs, BBs, headsets and wheel-truing, my knowledge fast runs out, however. Trust me, for me, bike maintenance does not count in any way as fun (although I realise that for others it can be otherwise), especially as soon as getting covered in grime and oil is involved. I probably should sign up to a bike maintenance course at the LBS, as it would doubtlessly be "useful stuff to know" in itself, but I'd probably still check the bike into the bike shop for proper servicing.

Finally I think the best way of getting a expedition bike at a low price is the second hand way and the reason manufacturers don't do them is economies of scale because "expedition" riding isn't done by novices and experienced riders will end up changing much of what they buy anyway.

It does rather sound like it, from what others have said here. At least I do now have a new bike so that I'm back on the road (or off it) again, and as long as the frame turns out to be sound, I can start upgrading components (stronger rear wheel, better groupset, etc) as they wear out. For now, all I need is some decent summer weather this year so that I can have a good trip somewhere..