New Bike

[Rafike]

Ok, well I'm starting my first year of college in the fall and I've heard alot of my friends talking about if they are going to get a bike for school. I'm going to have my car there, but I can see how it might be a good idea to have a bike to get from one side of the campus to the other without having to deal with the hassle of parking etc. Now seeing as I don't really know much if anything about bikes in general I'm sort of at a loss. So I guess that leads me to my question of what kind of bikes should I be looking at? Specific model ideas would be awesome although any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[pohibaba]

http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p...ibaba/bike.jpg

[Rafike]

Exactly what I'm looking for! How did you know?! Now my only question is where can I get one!

[pohibaba]

I would ask any crazy old hippie guys that you know; they all know where to get them.

[tyven]

just walk, your bike will get stolen first semester.

[Korietsu]

just walk, your bike will get stolen first semester.

If you don't use proper storage. I've yet to have a bike stolen from me in an high traffic area with a medium crime rate. Using a proper lock that can't be broken by a bic pen, by locking the bike's tires to a solid rack you won't lose anything. You can also buy a bike with quick detachable wheels, and take it inside your apartment, so its useless to steal it even if they manage to use a blow torch to break a cable lock. Also, buy a cable lock, not a solid lock, the cable can't be easily cut by bolt cutters nor a saw because of the way it crimps.

[Senji]

Go to your local bike shops to pick out a bike, not wal-mart or even your mall sporting goods store. It wont be a piece of crap, will have warranty, and will be tuned right from the start with another free tuneup for when your break in period is over. You'll also most likely get a deal on anything else you want (like 10% off).

Mountain bikes start at $200. At the lower price points they will all have the same parts, your frame and paint job will be all that changes, so pick what you like. A mountain bike is most likely your best bet. Durable, can clunk it around, go on paths/steps, not twitchy steering, and will put your body in a good position if your using a bag.

If you find you dont like knobbies and want to go faster, you can slap some street slicks on the 26" wheels. These I recommend http://www.specialized.com/bc/SBCEqP...jsp?spid=35708

Keep the bike in your room, get a good lock for when its not. If it has a quick release seatpost collar, have the bike shop swap it out for a fixed one. They should do it for free. You'll figure out where you want seat anyways and never touch it.

If you have a certain cycling interest, dollar amount, or just want a nice rig and do some sweet jumps, I can give you more info with some pics.

[Elesirdur]

If you're seriously planning to commute any distance on a bike, don't get a cruiser bike. They may be hip and stylish, but they weight a fucking tonne and frankly just suck balls for trying to go anywhere at anything but a pathetically leasiurly pace.

I definitely agree with Krystl that you should go to a local bike shop and stay away from places like Wal-Mart or corporate general sporting goods stores. Getting a bike that is a good fit for your body, overall height, leg length, makes such a huge difference in how energy effecient you can be when you ride. One of the cool things about bikes is that a lot of parts are built to reletively standardized sizes, so with a basic frame you like you can put other parts on (handles, forks, wheels, gears, pedals, brakes, etc) that are purchased aftermarket and they should work. It's nice that they're somewhat interchangable, or at least a lot more than cars.

A hardtail (not full-suspension) mountain bike is probably the best bet. For commuting just look for something that's light - steel is a good compromise between cheap, sturdy, and light - and fits your body. Don't go for front forks that have a lot of travel or have very soft compression rates. That will just eat up energy from your pedaling and make your arms more tired. For road travel you'll want something that's a bit stiffer since you won't need the soft suspension that's needed for taking 5' jumps off logs.

Oh yeah, and get a helmet. Please don't be one of those knobs riding on the street in rush hour traffic without one.

[Correction]

What kind of campus is it? Is the terrain hilly or flat? Are there many dirt roads in and around campus or is it all paved and nice?

Make sure you get a proper road bike. It doesn't have to be a racing bike but make sure the bike is appropriate for the road. Don't get a dirt bike with knobbly tires if you're on asphalt 99% of the time. DON'T get those god-awful twist-shifters (triggers or gtfo) and above all get a sturdy lock.

Buying a bike is simple. :D

[Senoska]

get a mountain bike and slap on a little motor. IE:
http://img172.imageshack.us/img172/4074/img3070wg4.jpg

[nicholai]

rofl that is not a mountain bike

[Correction]

It also isn't sporting road tires.

[Sojourn]

This looks comfortable enough

http://www.gearfuse.com/wp-content/u...ebikechair.jpg

[nicholai]

buy one of these! you'll have no problem getting around and it packs up easy with both tires removed.

http://www.fisherbikes.com/img/bikes...ifi_pro_29.jpg

[Elesirdur]

The other option is to check your local newspaper, craigslist, or wantad board at your university and just pick up something second hand. Having a shitty bike certainly helps it not get stolen, and I bet you could get something for under 50 bucks (or even free) and then spend some money at a good bike shop getting it tuned and a new set of tyres.

[Dayson]

Just a friendly tip, if you do get a bike that you plan to leave outside classes on a rack, make sure you get a lock that you can attach to the frame of the bike and not the tire itself.

Way too many times have I come out of a building to see a bike rack with nothing but a string of tires chained to it, minus the rest of the bike. The thief would simply just detach the frame from the tire and just leave it chained to the rack.

A friend of mine had 4 bikes stolen from him in this fashion before he figured out what he was doing wrong.

[mikazuki]

for cycling mainly on tarmac you should get tyres with a central ridge and an off-road style tread pattern on either side; these tend to perform better in wet conditions than semi-slick tyres and on surfaces like gravel, while mountain bike tyres are absolutely horrible on-road and will take about 25% more effort to move. kevlar tyres are pretty good and will save you plenty of punctures during their lifetime, cheap chinese soft rubber will let through every thorn, nail, broken glass, that you ride over.

nice as a top end gary fisher full sus would be, you don't want any rear suspension, a cheap spring is acceptable for the front (air shocks are better but completely unnecessary for cycling around any normal educational establishment). likewise you don't need disc brakes.

gripshift isn't bad as such, if the bike you can afford has that type of shifters you shouldn't worry about it - it's possible to make the chain jump off by shifting to your highest gear suddenly though.

i would strongly recommend an aluminium frame if you can afford it, just pick up a steel mtb frame and an aluminium road frame for a slightly biased test.
in terms of the type of frame, a bike which is suitable for commuting just isn't going to work as a mountain bike, so i would get a road bike in essence.

you'll probably also want mudguards, even if it's just a simple guard on the downtube and one fixed to the seat post for the rear, these are really cheap so don't be tempted not to bother.
be sure to remove the water bottle holder from the downtube if there is one, likewise if there is a pump holder (most modern bikes don't have these), anything carried on the bike frame is going to get very dirty, less ornamentation is less to clean!

you don't need those things on the handlebars which stick up from the ends (i forget what they're called), but they actually help protect your hands so you might want some. (bull bars is it? )
if your bike comes with cheap plastic pedals then i'd strongly recommend replacing them with metal flatties (not sure what the correct term is for them), basically the kind you find on some bmx and xc bikes. they should have little screws protruding from the pedal to provide superior grip and their width gives stability. a lot of xc riders are turning to clips now but those would be really inconvenient for college since the shoes aren't great for walking in.

also you should get rims which take the fatter kind of valve (not presta) since they are less delicate and it doesn't matter so much if you lose the valve cap.

i absolutely agree with above posters, you don't want quick-release wheels or seat, a shop will definitely replace these for free with normal bolt/nut arrangement. definitely get a toughened cable lock (not a combination, not a d-lock) and always put it through the frame.

incidentally you might be required to have front and rear reflectors, wheel reflectors and lights at night (which you shouldn't leave on the bike of course).

and get a front mech with a guard, unless you like your trousers to all have matching holes on the inside ankle of the right leg.

[Elesirdur]

and get a front mech with a guard, unless you like your trousers to all have matching holes on the inside ankle of the right leg.

Important statement here. Unless you like being one of "those guys" with their pants tucked into their socks.

[mikazuki]

you can use ankle clips too, do you want to use ankle clips? you can get ones with a fluorescent yellow coating for extra visibility, so cool around campus!
more seriously when riding you can tuck the inside hem of your trousers into your socks without looking 'too' retarded. and don't wear your best threads because at some point you'll get chain marks on them - don't ask me how this happens but it'll leave a 6" grease chain mark on your lower calf.

i thought of some other factors to consider for a bike, the tubing on the right rear which the chain runs above and below is worth adding some padding to, some bikes will come with something like vinyl stuck on or a velcro sleeve wrapped round, but if your frame lacks this, you can get really really cheap packs of stickers, the long thing ones are for putting on that tube to prevent the chain chipping away the paint (and hence rust with a steel frame) while there are lots of smaller ones for where the cables rub - on the seat tube there is the rear brake and front gear cable sleeves which will wear the paint away - at first you will see a few scratches but over time it'll cut into the frame. there are usually a few places around the headset where this happens too.

also for a campus bike you'd want a fairly wide saddle with at least a decent gel cushion, hard narrow racing saddles are painful. the best modern saddles have a hole in the middle (when looking down at it) and this is a divine work...

alloy rims are also a good choice if you have that option, be sure the rim tape is solid regardless of what rims you have, spoke punctures are annoying :X don't be tempted to get a double rim either - these are purely for downhill and much heavier than normal rims.

and so on~