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Hi All, I need some guidance for buying a new bike. I've been riding a cycle for the past 6 months in Bangalore - a Hero Mach City iBike - 7 gears - 26 x 1.95T tires. Now that I've relocated back home to Chennai, I need to pick up the habit back before starting to gain any more lost tummy.
My thought is to combine motorbike and cycle for office commuting (Which will be a total of 45-50kms). I'm 5'6", and 72 kgs. So, what I have I researched so far? Not individual brands, they're way too many to even compare, but on a high level I know what I want - a hybrid.
My requirements? (Of course all of them within the possibilities of budget and category)
- Should be light weight
- Really really really fast bike - I could do 15 kms in an hour in Bangalore traffic in that Mach, but considering Chennai heat effects, I might only do 10 kms in a hour- I want to be able to cover at least the same 15kmph here to start with, and with regular riding can improve later. So, a slightly larger bike with smaller gear ratios, I think?
- Thinner tyres - not road bike type but neither the standard hybrid size. I'm lost here honestly.
- No single gears. Preferably, no front gears either. For Chennai with not that much elevation in terrain, I think only rear gears are enough. But if there are no options for rear-only cycles, I wouldn't complain with getting additional front gears.
- Budget under 20k including accessories (helmet, pannier, light, bell). But if something is worth considering for few more grands I can reconsider.
I'm not in a hurry, target is to get one somewhere post mid-Jan. So, I can take some time to evaluate and test drive all options where possible.
My doubts?
1. Which is better - fitting a hybrid bike with thinner tyres vs fitting a road bike with thicker tyres? (May be limited by the rim size and all, but considering the maximum possibilities, what is better out of the two in terms of speed, stability, long term effects if any, etc). My thought is - road bikes will have lighter frame, and adding thicker tyres to it will give better proposition than adding thinner tires on a frame-heavy hybrid.
2. What bike(s) should I consider - brand, specific bike name, etc. I'm gonna go nearly 80% highway - 20% city, and will need facility to add pannier.
3. Can I fit road bike handle bars (or an extn similar to that, the bull horn types) on a hybrid bike? If yes, how to do it, where to ask? I would ideally like to have options on the go, so having just an extn, I can swoop down on the highway and still be comfortable within the city)
4. What tire size should I look for - purely looking at max speed? 26, 27, 28 or 29 ? And the thickness? (My Mach was 26 x 1.95 T but I'm thinking of getting 27/28 x 1.7 T - larger, thinner tyres if I understand the numbers right. Can I get something like that? Will it be fine or pushing it too far?)
5. If I can't get stock bike based on questions above, is it possible to build a custom bike? How much do custom bikes cost and where can I look for it in Chennai?
6. Anybody around Avadi area whom I can join with for daily ride? I'm not a weekend rider, so don't expect me for those trips. Sorry.
Thanks for all your help!
My thought is to combine motorbike and cycle for office commuting (Which will be a total of 45-50kms). I'm 5'6", and 72 kgs. So, what I have I researched so far? Not individual brands, they're way too many to even compare, but on a high level I know what I want - a hybrid.
My requirements? (Of course all of them within the possibilities of budget and category)
- Should be light weight
- Really really really fast bike - I could do 15 kms in an hour in Bangalore traffic in that Mach, but considering Chennai heat effects, I might only do 10 kms in a hour- I want to be able to cover at least the same 15kmph here to start with, and with regular riding can improve later. So, a slightly larger bike with smaller gear ratios, I think?
- Thinner tyres - not road bike type but neither the standard hybrid size. I'm lost here honestly.
- No single gears. Preferably, no front gears either. For Chennai with not that much elevation in terrain, I think only rear gears are enough. But if there are no options for rear-only cycles, I wouldn't complain with getting additional front gears.
- Budget under 20k including accessories (helmet, pannier, light, bell). But if something is worth considering for few more grands I can reconsider.
I'm not in a hurry, target is to get one somewhere post mid-Jan. So, I can take some time to evaluate and test drive all options where possible.
My doubts?
1. Which is better - fitting a hybrid bike with thinner tyres vs fitting a road bike with thicker tyres? (May be limited by the rim size and all, but considering the maximum possibilities, what is better out of the two in terms of speed, stability, long term effects if any, etc). My thought is - road bikes will have lighter frame, and adding thicker tyres to it will give better proposition than adding thinner tires on a frame-heavy hybrid.
2. What bike(s) should I consider - brand, specific bike name, etc. I'm gonna go nearly 80% highway - 20% city, and will need facility to add pannier.
3. Can I fit road bike handle bars (or an extn similar to that, the bull horn types) on a hybrid bike? If yes, how to do it, where to ask? I would ideally like to have options on the go, so having just an extn, I can swoop down on the highway and still be comfortable within the city)
4. What tire size should I look for - purely looking at max speed? 26, 27, 28 or 29 ? And the thickness? (My Mach was 26 x 1.95 T but I'm thinking of getting 27/28 x 1.7 T - larger, thinner tyres if I understand the numbers right. Can I get something like that? Will it be fine or pushing it too far?)
5. If I can't get stock bike based on questions above, is it possible to build a custom bike? How much do custom bikes cost and where can I look for it in Chennai?
6. Anybody around Avadi area whom I can join with for daily ride? I'm not a weekend rider, so don't expect me for those trips. Sorry.
Thanks for all your help!
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