Secondhand bike for a beginner?
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Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby smileyhou12 » Tue Dec 02, 2014 10:22 am
Any ideas/advice will be much appreciated!
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby Ross » Tue Dec 02, 2014 12:45 pm
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby 2wheels_mond » Tue Dec 02, 2014 1:28 pm
http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/yeronga/ ... 1063728329" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby slidetaker » Tue Dec 02, 2014 1:32 pm
If not, just resell it, you won't lose too much money as you buy second hand....
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby Jean » Tue Dec 02, 2014 2:15 pm
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby koshari » Tue Dec 02, 2014 4:22 pm
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby smileyhou12 » Tue Dec 02, 2014 7:01 pm
I won't be doing any more than 15-30km for the first few months. I just need something that can get me through a couple of months of basic training before I can afford to spend a little more. I understand this is an expensive sport but I'd prefer to have something rather than nothing for now. There's always the option of just doing the swimming and running for now but I feel like even a few kms on a basic bike is better than no cycle training at all...
This is the new $300 bike (RRP $399) I was looking at: http://www.99bikes.com.au/apollo-villa-womens-2014" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby 2wheels_mond » Tue Dec 02, 2014 7:11 pm
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby smileyhou12 » Tue Dec 02, 2014 7:44 pm
Okay I'll look into that one further, thanks! Are there any pressing questions I should ask the seller?2wheels_mond wrote:If you're around Brisbane like the Apollo on Gumtree is, the one I linked above will be lots, lots better than anything you'll find new.
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Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby koshari » Tue Dec 02, 2014 9:12 pm
As for any question to the seller, the only one I can think of is if he will hold it until your financial!
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby smileyhou12 » Tue Dec 02, 2014 10:21 pm
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby koshari » Wed Dec 03, 2014 7:24 am
-obvious frame damage,
-big woofs in the rims
-brifter functionality
-bent/broken rear derauiler/hanger
other items are generally covered in general maintenence of the bike such as cable/brake adjustment.
pads,bartape,tubes and tires are generally considered consumables.
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby bychosis » Wed Dec 03, 2014 7:47 am
Frame damage: looks straight, no big dents, no cracks particularly around the joints.koshari wrote:you can just check for the obvious big ticket items-
-obvious frame damage,
-big woofs in the rims
-brifter functionality
-bent/broken rear derauiler/hanger
other items are generally covered in general maintenence of the bike such as cable/brake adjustment.
pads,bartape,tubes and tires are generally considered consumables.
Rims: lift the wheel of the ground and give it a spin. Watch the rim near the brake pad to see if there are any wobbles or dents.
Brifters: either pedal and changes gears, or pop the rear wheel off and change gears to see if the shift changes up/down for the range of gears. Ie enough clicks for the no of gears.
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby smileyhou12 » Wed Dec 03, 2014 7:54 am
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby brawlo » Wed Dec 03, 2014 2:51 pm
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby smileyhou12 » Fri Dec 12, 2014 10:38 am
Thanks for the tips! I ended up talking it down to $150. I took it in for a service and the only thing it needed was a new tyre. Other than that it seems like a good buy!brawlo wrote:Hopefully not too late, but you should have a really good look over a brand new bike at a bike shop. The purpose is to see what new running gear looks like. Pay particular attention to the front and rear gears and chain. Then, if they've got a nice bike mechanic, he/she might be able to show you some running gear that is shagged. It's then up to you to assess the bike you're looking at. At such a cheap price, you'll most likely have to spend some money on it. My sister's friend talked down a Giant OCR3 to $80 that someone was trying to sell for $300. It ended up needing $200 in bits and also my time to fix up. It was never worth $300, but it wasn't a bad buy at the discounted price.
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby 2wheels_mond » Fri Dec 12, 2014 10:58 am
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Re: Secondhand bike for a beginner?
Postby koshari » Sat Dec 13, 2014 9:17 pm
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