Is it worth getting a dedicated bike fitting? Plus spec me a trail/commute bike

[shroomz]

I need to buy a new bike for the 10k commute to work but I'm torn between buying something cheap from halfords, something second hand off pinkbike, or something relatively nice from my local bike shop. The latter includes a bike fitting on a adjustable jig to work out which dimensions work best for people which sounds attractive as I seem to have odd proportions and my old bike (got nicked in December ) never fitted very well.

Has anyone had one of these and can you comment on its effectiveness? I like the bike shop but they have a noticeable premium so if it's not worth it and I'll be able to get much more bike for the money elsewhere then that's something to think about. But then again, if it makes the same difference as getting running or climbing shoes fitted properly, it's definitely worth it since I'll be cycling most days!

My budget is up to £1000 for a hardtail that'll do trail riding (as I've no mountain bike anymore either), or £500 if it's something more dedicated to road/bridleways. Anyone care to throw some opinions at me?

 

[shroomz]

Yep this was the problem, the top tube felt too long and I couldn't cycle without tiring my back out and putting weight on the bars. I felt like it could be improved with a shorter stem

 

[shroomz]

Each way,it's about 6 miles from home to the office with two short but nasty hills

 

[shroomz]

No they don't haha, I had two sets of wheels, one for mtb and one with schwalbe city jets. Anyway, I am leaning towards a road or hybrid bike. But in that case my budget is about £500. Do you think it'll be worth getting this bike fitting thing or will I get much more for my money second hand or halfords/decathlon?

 

[shroomz]

Thanks guys, theres a guy offering a year old boardman team for 400 on the social network. Is that a decent price? Both the marasa and bizango are ones I should probably have a go on as well

 

[shroomz]

Well road bikes are very dependent on size so it depends, if it's the full carbon one the geometry is probably quite aggressive which is likely not what you really want for just casual riding and commuting - hence why I suggested an adventure bike with the more relaxed riding position and wider tyres.

That is a good point. I meant to include that adventure bike in the list too

E- nvm it was the big one which will definitely be too big

 

[shroomz]

Update : so as luck would have it, my local halfords has literally none of these bikes in stock to try

 

[shroomz]

Further update, got a Nakisi coming on Monday that the guy said if I like it, I can buy it, if I don't, he'll put it on display. Can't say no to that. I like the fatter tyres and hydraulic brakes

 

[shroomz]

That's an excellent video @mattyfez , have you posted it in the road cycling thread too? My flexibility is pretty shocking on my hamstrings from years of running without any mobility work. Now I'm worried this bike night not fit and I need to go to the LBS to work out what actually fits, because they do all that stuff... But it's only free if I buy a bike from them...

 

[shroomz]

I'm not actually sure, I know another shop nearby offers it separately for £200. I might call them and ask. Or tbf I probably won't go wrong with the nakisi as long as it's the right size, it's not like I'm trying to compete

 

[shroomz]

I've been reading some fairly dodgy stuff about those mechanical brakes. Are they not as bad So the boardman hybrid team is quite tempting.

I'm also kind of interested by the CX Team, it does seem a lot more bike with Tiagra, drop bars and hydraulic disks. It's double how much I wanted to spend but it looks like one of these bikes (gravel/cx in general) could actually do most of the off roading I do so I'm going to cautiously increase my budget to £800ish

 

[shroomz]

Thanks @PermaBanned for your help. One more question - OK there really isn't much in the difference in spec, however, there is a difference in weight, the Boardman Hybrid Team comes in at 10.3kg on reviews, while the Nakisi is stated as 12.3kg, is that difference not significant? Or rather, is it a case that I personally probably wouldn't notice a couple of kilos either way?

 

[shroomz]

Hehe, I think a heavier bike will help move some of that weight anyway #pies. I'll go look at it tonight, I'm definitely more leaning towards giving the drop bars a go, spending the difference on nicer and more kit. Panniers and mudguards, are they all much of a muchness or do any particularly stand out?

 

[shroomz]

Normally it's just a change of clothes, office shoes etc. I think I'll have to resign myself to always having shirts that are a bit crumpled, I tried the alpkit panniers when I had my hardtail and while they were pretty good they just weren't the best shape for tidy, folded packing

 

[shroomz]

Turns out the bike will be ready tomorrow. Went to the local bike shop, the guy there did a fantastic sales pitch, got me drooling over the Orro Terra Adventure Carbon. That's a beautiful bike... And 4 times my original budget

 

[shroomz]

We do have cyclescheme at work but my understanding is that you basically have to stay the full 4 years to get the benefit of being tax free and the choice at the end, I don't know if I'll still be working at the same place by then. Is that correct?

Yeah it's so pretty though . I could definitely stretch to £1000 if the bike did everything I want to do and so on but 2100 plus pedals is what I spent on my car lol

There's an Evans nearby as well, I'll go chat to them tonight if I'm not impressed by the nakisi.

How would you rate the Pinnacle against, for example, the Boardman CX Team?

 

[shroomz]

So I tried the Nakisi, you know what? It was fine. Yeah brakes are a bit pants but meh. For £396 it'll do. I didn't bother with cyclescheme, seems hardly worth it for this price, I'd have to wait 6 weeks for payroll to process it and I'm spending about £15-20 a week sitting in traffic at the moment

Thanks everyone for your help

 

[shroomz]

It was great this morning, and not so great on the way back just now . I'll try to take some not too bad ones over the weekend, all I got is potato quality from last night

Edit - here's one from installing the panniers last night: