Decent quality 24" girls / ladies bike

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KGB
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Decent quality 24" girls / ladies bike

Postby KGB » Fri Oct 02, 2015 7:04 am

Purpose: wife needs a bike to chase the kids around on.

She wants: something that "looks nice", reasonably plain, would prefer white, ability to add a decent basket (fr or rear), doesn't mind curvy retro style frames.
I want: internal hub gears or maybe SS, happy with coaster brake or hand brake, aluminium frame, decent components (ie, ones that work and are made of aluminium)

So far the leader is the Byk e540 with 3spd hub, although I made the mistake of telling her the price. (~$500)

I can't see us getting anything decent for less than that though. Otherwise, I'll buy/find a curvy 24" frame from a BSO, respray it white and build it from my own spare parts. I think I have everything (inc a NOS shimano 3spd hub w/ shifter) except 24" rims so this could actually be a viable option. Time cost soars but dollar cost plummets.

26" is possible but she's only 155cm and since it's just for tooling around, I'd rather keep it small and easy for her to manage.

Usually, when I make threads like this I have pretty specific criteria and ideas and then I get no replies - please add any comments you feel will add anything! :)
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outnabike
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Re: Decent quality 24

Postby outnabike » Fri Oct 02, 2015 7:24 am

My wife loves this one. Two years old and no probs. We bought it from Vello bikes in melbourne. A Breezer made in the US,but who knows.

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Vivente World Randonneur complete with panniers

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KGB
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Re: Decent quality 24" girls / ladies bike

Postby KGB » Fri Oct 02, 2015 9:24 am

Looks neat. Is it 24" or 26"? Is that a dynamo front hub?
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outnabike
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Re: Decent quality 24

Postby outnabike » Fri Oct 02, 2015 1:07 pm

Yep all included as is the rack. 26 inch wheels.
The 8 speed gears are excellent and she can change easily after a stop. Around just under a $1000-00 at the time. No way could she come to terms with a previous cog swapper. I did have to get an obligatory new seat but that was only 40-00 from anaconda
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KGB
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Re: Decent quality 24" girls / ladies bike

Postby KGB » Fri Oct 02, 2015 1:41 pm

I think she'd struggle to get on it with the bouncy seatpost.
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mikesbytes
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Re: Decent quality 24

Postby mikesbytes » Fri Oct 02, 2015 2:06 pm

I was looking at Ladies bike last week and the 24" one was noticeably lighter than the full size one (26" or 700c I forget). This was at the cheaper end of the market aka cheap steel but in your price range aka cheap alloy the difference would be less. Also while my 158cm lady did fit the extra small full size ladies bike, the 24" looked less truck like

At 155cm she is going to be impacted by the weight difference a little more than taller ladies, so its one thing to consider

More importantly is to get the style/colour/accessories that she likes and she is the guide for that. Some sort of basic gearing, rear wheel only even if she says she doesn't want gears, but make sure its really easy to understand and control.

And ultra reliable, I recall one poster noting that his wife wanted her bike disposed of, complete with colourful language for what was a minor adjustment that we would of done in 30 seconds at the side of the road. Mine pushed the bike home from the train station because the chain had fallen off the big ring, then she got a shock as to how quickly I put it back on
If the R-1 rule is broken, what happens to N+1?

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KGB
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Re: Decent quality 24" girls / ladies bike

Postby KGB » Fri Oct 02, 2015 4:16 pm

All good points Mike, we're thinking along the same lines.
My wife has mentioned she just wants something cheap but I really think some gears would make a big difference. Maybe not for chasing the kids but definitely if she decides to take it on a run to the shops etc. if I don't buy something with gears then I'm happy to build a new back wheel and use the 3 speed hub I already have.
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Derny Driver
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Re: Decent quality 24

Postby Derny Driver » Fri Oct 02, 2015 5:23 pm

mikesbytes wrote:... I recall one poster noting that his wife wanted her bike disposed of, complete with colourful language for what was a minor adjustment that we would of done in 30 seconds at the side of the road. Mine pushed the bike home from the train station because the chain had fallen off the big ring, then she got a shock as to how quickly I put it back on
My girlfriend wanted a bike, I picked up a nice ladies singlespeed for a song secondhand on gumtree ....the girl I bought it off said she only rode it once and it was too hard, she needed gears.
She was right, it was geared a bit big. Swapped the 44 tooth ring for a 38 and took 2 chain links out...problem solved :)

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mikesbytes
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Re: Decent quality 24

Postby mikesbytes » Fri Oct 02, 2015 8:59 pm

Good point DD

But I suppose what kinda chain ring it has, if its BCD 110, 130, 135, 144 then we probably have a ring sitting around, but if its built to the crank AKA like in our dad's day then we can still get there by chaining the single speed [will that statement get me banned from the fixie club] and add a couple of links. Suppose what we are looking for is a gear that not too low for the flat so they can get up shallow hills without walking. Downhill is not a issue as they will be free wheeling and probably on the brakes anyway

Dealing with people who don't come from a sports background has opened my eyes to a cycling world very different to mine
If the R-1 rule is broken, what happens to N+1?

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KGB
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Re: Decent quality 24" girls / ladies bike

Postby KGB » Sat Oct 03, 2015 2:13 pm

I showed her a pic of the Shogun Belmar:
http://www.kent.bike/545-large_default/ ... -girls.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

...and it was well received. I do like the clean simple look of that one although it would need at least a front brake added to be legal for sale in Australia.
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Re: Decent quality 24

Postby mikesbytes » Sun Oct 04, 2015 10:25 am

KGB wrote:I showed her a pic of the Shogun Belmar:
http://www.kent.bike/545-large_default/ ... -girls.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

...and it was well received. I do like the clean simple look of that one although it would need at least a front brake added to be legal for sale in Australia.
Nice bike

From the picture there seems to be quite a reach from the hole on the fork to the rim. Is there an option to buy it with brakes, or do you need to go searching for a suitable brake?
If the R-1 rule is broken, what happens to N+1?

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KGB
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Re: Decent quality 24" girls / ladies bike

Postby KGB » Sun Oct 04, 2015 12:37 pm

No idea. I might look into it further...
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