Need new bike for commuting, canal towpaths and trails £600

pumaz

pumaz

pumaz

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Joined
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I already have a road bike and mountain bike but I'm looking to replace my ancient 2004 Specialised Hardrock sport for something quicker and lighter but must be able to handle towpaths with loose roadstone etc. As well as a 7 mile each way commute 5 days a week which is no fun with heavy traffic and lots of lights on a road bike!

I've been looking at hybrids as they seem to be the best fit for what I want, I don't think I need suspension forks or fat tyres in fact I'd like to know what's the thinnest tyre I could get away with while still being able to handle loose stone on canal paths etc.

My max budget is £600 which would have to include tyres if needed. Any ideas?
 
For a mix of on and off road as you've described and with a road bike already I would definitely be looking at 700C hybrids with hydraulic disc brakes. I was killing a bit of time in Halfords today and the 13, Boardman and Voodoo offerings are all quite nice. The Voodoo is just over half your budget but looks like a real cracker if you don't feel that you have to spend the full £600.

Tyre wise I'd be aiming for something around the 35mm - 40mm area. Many of the nicer hybrids are really at the flat bar road bike end of the scale and 28mm tyres are quite common.
 
Thanks guys, I'm happy just to ride my Canyon Road Bike on a Sunday or on days off but I really want something to replace the MTB, Ive never really gone nuts! on the MTB but I do like exploring canal networks and trails. I'll do 25 to 30 miles after work when nights are lighter on the MTB and I love the more comfy riding position and flat bars, heck I don't even clip in! So honestly guys I don't want to use a Road bike for this :)

Been looking at the Voodoo Marasa which seems to tick all the boxes but at £350 is it built to last? don't get me wrong the cheaper the better and it looks great accept maybe the weight, was hoping to get closer to 10K

is it worth spending the extra £150 on the Boardman Hybrid Comp Bike or £200 on the 13 Implicit Beta Hybrid Bike 2015?
 
Personally speaking even with £600 in my pocket out of the three I'd buy the Voodoo. The frame and fork are robust and you've got a fair bit to cover any replacement bits (tyres would be high n the agenda).

The Boardman isn't enough of a step up over the Voodoo. The 13 is more towards flat bar road bike territory and has a carbon fork. If you can I'd have a sit on them both. At first glance the 13 looked to have a more upright geometry but it was hard to tell really.
 
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Yeah Halfords can be a real mixed bag to deal with. My Boardman ended up being a stonking price but it came with a couple of scratches down to the metal, one bar end cap missing, no documentation and various bits missing that they are legally meant to supply by law (front reflector and bell). It was however set up perfectly.

I paid just under half the retail price and there wasn't another one in my size within 60 odd miles so I didn't question it and if I ride it properly I'll add to those scratches :p

That Verenti looks like a good option.
 
I'm heavily leaning towards the Voodoo Marasa, seems like a bargain and it even looks good! I'll probably change the tyres to 35mm Swalb Marathons.
 
You asked at some point about the thinnest tyre you could get away with, generally depends on the size of any gravel you'll be riding over and the total weight of the rider+bike, but I'd say you could happily use 32s if it's just light trails.
 
I'm still smarting from being advised by 3 shops to buy a road bike when I told them at least 20% of my commute was on canal towpaths and rough path. The first time I commuted I thought my bike was going to be shaken apart so I had to slow down that much that Ninja cyclists were overtaking me on their little brothers £100 MTBs while using their phone in one hand and a fag in the other. One even cheekily said to me one day "Ever thought you were on the wrong bike?".
Because of a black ice accident I had a Carrera Subway which was great on any surface and fast.
I then had a Trek 7.5FX which is a better bike for towpaths and as fast as my Forme road bike but my current favourite is a Trek 4300 that I bought second hand for £150 and is superb on any surface.
 
pumaz said:
I'm heavily leaning towards the Voodoo Marasa, seems like a bargain and it even looks good! I'll probably change the tyres to 35mm Swalb Marathons.
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Good choice :) You may get on OK with the Kenda tyres but in my experience they are very hard. I swapped them out on my road bike after a couple of hundred miles but I'm over 1500 miles in with the set on the hybrid. Not much grip and ridiculously hard wearing but they've yet to be punctured. I'll stick a set of Marathons on that when I get round to it :p Maybe as part of the post winter maintenance.
 
Just been reading through some older threads and discovered there's not much love for hybrids :( consensus seems to be they're a jack of all trades, master of none which as made me question my choice.

The towpaths and trails I want to use I would not take my road bike on yet my mountain bike is too slow and if I'm honest uncomfortable, I'm 5ft 8" and was advised I needed a 17" frame but really it's too small, I'm constantly having to push myself to the back of the seat!

Honestly don't want another MTB but now I'm wondering if a Hybrid is the right choice.
 
I had a hybrid and while I kinda liked it I'm certainly converted to a road bike now. If I had a commute like yours I'd probably consider something like a Mango Point AR, Pinnacle Arkose, and other cyclocross style bikes.
 
It's not quite off the shelf, but I've got an On-One Pompino, 700c, cross tyres, V brakes, 3 speed Sturmey Archer read hub, drop bars, rear rack.

It's my do everything bike, so my Condor can be the Sunday best.
 
PermaBanned said:
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/verenti-division-3-2016/

Similar spec if you're wary of Halfords. Charge, Kona, Surly all have similar models, as do Giant, Trek, Specialised etc. but only for around double the budget. Unless you happen to be tiny.
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Looks strong competition for the Marassa at Halfords at that sale price.

I think the stigma of hybrids, once you get above ~£300 pre-sale, is nothing like it was 5+ years ago. All the big brands have been pushing flat and drop bar variants at us that can cope with most terrain, but naturally a full suspension will be needed for extreme off-road and a road specific bike will be quicker on decent roads if you have the fitness levels.

The concept of n+1 bikes is becoming harder to justify for many in these tight economic times, so when we buy new, we are more inclined to buy something that covers more bases (but perhaps with a bias to a terrain type).

With the state of road disrepair, it is getting increasingly advantageous to buy a bike with clearance for at least 35mm tyres.
 
pumaz said:
Just been reading through some older threads and discovered there's not much love for hybrids :( consensus seems to be they're a jack of all trades, master of none which as made me question my choice.
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A road bike is better on the roads. A mountain bike is better off road. Swap these bikes over and they are really out of their comfort zone to the point of being unusable (road bike off road) or just a bit of a drag (MTB on road).

Where you will be riding both on and off road in a single trip a hybrid is ideal, it is literally what they are designed for. The great thing is you can pick where on the scale that hybrid sits depending on your usage as they range from a short travel mountain bike with road and trail tyres to basically what I would refer to as a flat bar road bike.

I ride an old dog of a hybrid as a winter hack and it is on average about 1.5 mph slower than my road bike.

EDIT - If you want to explore all of the avenues then there are options such as adventure bikes - https://www.evanscycles.com/bikes/cyclocross-bikes_c/adventureroad-discipline/?sort=price_inc_vat more clearance for big tyres and disc brakes. I wouldn't want to take them on anything too rough though personally as I find a flat bar far more controllable when the going gets bumpy.

UTmaniac said:
Looks strong competition for the Marassa at Halfords at that sale price.

I think the stigma of hybrids, once you get above ~£300 pre-sale, is nothing like it was 5+ years ago. All the big brands have been pushing flat and drop bar variants at us that can cope with most terrain, but naturally a full suspension will be needed for extreme off-road and a road specific bike will be quicker on decent roads if you have the fitness levels.

The concept of n+1 bikes is becoming harder to justify for many in these tight economic times, so when we buy new, we are more inclined to buy something that covers more bases (but perhaps with a bias to a terrain type).

With the state of road disrepair, it is getting increasingly advantageous to buy a bike with clearance for at least 35mm tyres.
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Completely agree.
 
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pumaz said:
Just been reading through some older threads and discovered there's not much love for hybrids :( consensus seems to be they're a jack of all trades, master of none which as made me question my choice.
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My Trek 7.5 FX is like a racing bike with straight handlebars and is as fast as my Forme.
I don't see the point of drop handlebars because in the last 4 years of cycling I have NEVER seen any road biker put their hands in the drops :confused:
 
SexyGreyFox said:
My Trek 7.5 FX is like a racing bike with straight handlebars and is as fast as my Forme.
I don't see the point of drop handlebars because in the last 4 years of cycling I have NEVER seen any road biker put their hands in the drops :confused:
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That's a good observation :p However, some do and it is far more comfortable to be sat on the hoods for hours than on straight handlebars :)
 
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