Eeek, I need a new bike. About 4 years ago I bought a folding Raleigh bike and it was round the £200 mark, it's been okay, I've had it serviced a few times, which isn't cheap, but now I'm getting really sick of it. It needs servicing again 'cause the gears aren't shifting cleanly, it's rattling, the controls on handlebars are really stiff, but the thing I dislike about having a folding bike is the tiny wheels, it's so bliddy slow and horrible when you're trying to ride the thing uphill. Looking out for a folding mountain bike, I came across just the thing in Argos with good reviews and costing under £100, it said it was unisex which is perfect, but reading the reviews more carefully it seems that it would only really be suitable for someone 5ft 8 or more, as people of 5ft 6 were saying that their feet didn't touch the floor on it so they had to return it...I'm only 5ft 4, so pointless me ordering it. I've seen something in Halfords which looks promising cause it has 24 inch wheels, so runs as well as a normal sized bike, but it's about £100 out of my price bracket, last year they were doing a trade in deal which would have been great as my old bike would have qualified, however they aren't doing it any more, so I have the problem of trying to dispose of my old bike, which is too good to just "bin"
We have a number of dedicated bike shops in our town, however, they are ALL really expensive when it comes to folding bikes, and the people in there are really snotty especially if you are looking for something reasonably priced, it's all very well telling people that a cheap bike is a false ecomony, but if you haven't got the money for an expensive one, you haven't got the money!
Has anyone got any ideas as to where I can get myself a decent folding bike that doesn't cost the earth? I don't want second hand. My catalogue only sells folding bikes with the tiny wheels, which I don't want 'cause they're not pleasant to ride. I'm tempted to give the Argos one a go, however,as with Argos you can't go into the store, look at it, sit on it etc, you have to order it blindly and then if it's no good have the hassle of trying to return it!
I don't really want to spend the best part of £40 to get my current bike serviced again, but that's probably what I'll end up having to do!
We have a number of dedicated bike shops in our town, however, they are ALL really expensive when it comes to folding bikes, and the people in there are really snotty especially if you are looking for something reasonably priced, it's all very well telling people that a cheap bike is a false ecomony, but if you haven't got the money for an expensive one, you haven't got the money!
Has anyone got any ideas as to where I can get myself a decent folding bike that doesn't cost the earth? I don't want second hand. My catalogue only sells folding bikes with the tiny wheels, which I don't want 'cause they're not pleasant to ride. I'm tempted to give the Argos one a go, however,as with Argos you can't go into the store, look at it, sit on it etc, you have to order it blindly and then if it's no good have the hassle of trying to return it!
I don't really want to spend the best part of £40 to get my current bike serviced again, but that's probably what I'll end up having to do!