25 mile round trip commute advice please?

hi all,

 

I have a roughly 25 mile round trip commute along flat smooth-ish canal towpath and have been looking into a hybrid as I don't feel I NEED a mountainbike.

 

Halfords have a few for my budget, and there are numerous others but nothing really stands out.

 

I can charge at work but IF I am unable to for whatever reason I would like to be able to manage the whole trip. ideally!

 

Ancheer, Basic Becon (?!) and Halfords have all piqued my interest.

 

anyone have any strong opinions?

 

budget is 'around' £1000

 

Thanks in advance all,

 

Dave

I'm sure you don't need a mountain bike.

 

If the canal paths are anything like the one I commuted on in Glasgow many years back you do need tyres resistant to broken glass. Easier than thorn resistant. I'd go for Marathon Plus which are very resistant to both.

 

Some cheap bikes have very small batteries so mind out for those. 25 miles flattish round trip should be possible on most ebikes as long as you put in some effort yourself,

 

Look at Woosh for excellent customer service and some good value bikes (with decent size batteries) around that price range. http://wooshbikes.co.uk/ Also Whisper for a little bit more.

Woosh bikes with rear hub, very good to superb CS. There bikes are priced about your mark and highly recommend them over Halfruads.

For 25mile trip 8ah/288wh [mention=22943]36v[/mention] will do the job, if you want to go futher a field then look for a larger battery.

 

http://wooshbikes.co.uk/?faro

 

http://wooshbikes.co.uk/?camino

 

The Camino is better for trails/off road paths with a bit of front suspension and chunkier tyres.

Edited January 15, 20206 yr by Nealh

Normally online retailers are a bit of the unknown but with Woosh you will we be expertly looked after and are the best recommended online bike retailer, if you live near Southend they do have their sole bike shop/ business premises on Queens Road..

thanks for the recomendations guys. Whoosh I have heard of but until now had not really seen a lot of testimony to back it up. I will investigate further.

 

really appreciate the time taken, thanks again

Marathon tyres and slime in the tubes are needed. This removes all worries of normal punctures.. mind you if there was a police stinger ,it would stop you

I would suggest that a standard high nelly or dutch style roadster bike ..the higher sitting stance is more comfortable in the longer haul. These models tend to be fully furnished with lights mudguards and carrier.

I would recommend a pannier. .. Halfords have good enough at a low price. You need this for your lock and waterproofs.

Built in lights and hydraulic brakes ..they can be rim types.the reason being you don't want to do lots of maintenance.

Buy an extra charger if you can and leave it at work. It won't matter when the biike is new,but will after a year.

I would suggest 400watt hr, battery .and charge it every journey,if feasible. It will last 3 to 4 times longer, if it never discharges fully.

Brand?. .. at 1000 they are all good. At that price a rear hub motor is the feasible option

Weight?. Irrelevant,since a few ounces on the bike will not matter.

Suspension?. Not necessary, but nice. Saddle suspension more important than front forks.

If you are interested in going down the ‘self-build’ route, then a £1k budget will get you a hub motor, good battery and a hybrid bike along the lines of a Boardman Hyb.

 

If you bought the bike second hand, the cost would probably be around £600.

The newer range of Halfords cheaper ebikes are surprisingly decent for around £700.

 

Hard to beat at that money.

 

The Carrera at around £1,000 is also worth considering.

 

Ebco also make decent hub motor bikes for the same price which you will find in a local bike shop.

 

A lot to be said for buying an ebike locally, particularly one for commuting because whatever you buy, you will need some servicing and repairs.

 

Both are best done locally.

the OP needs a decent bike and battery - 25 miles a day is pretty high for a cheap bike, he will forever recharge his battery. The first thing cheap bikes save money on is the battery.

There is another thread currently discussing first bike options. I'd rather like the £1,500 Scott Sub Sport, more or less ready for commuting:

https://www.cyclerepublic.com/scott-sub-sport-eride-se-mens-electric-hybrid-bike-2019.html

I purchased Forme ebike..bottom of their range,for my wife as a birthday present, last October. At 1200 it is slightly above your target value, but it hits all the targets as a reliable strong bike. .I am not suggesting that there are not equally good alternatives out there. A centre motor will add maybe 300 to the price.

hi all,

 

I have decided to get the Whoosh Rio - with the 17ah battery - plenty enough for my purposes and also allows me the chance to go offroad at times.

 

really appreciate the advice on here. if you have any interest I will report back after I have had the bike a little while.

 

thanks again all.

 

Dave

adjustable stems are no good at all for any of road stuff if that pivot point fails over sustained ruff ground like going down a hill at speed you are going straight over the handle bars.

 

woosh if you advertise something as a mtb ppl will expect to use it as such this stem is a bad idea a fixed one will be a much better option and much safer.

 

adjustable stems are no good at all for any of road stuff if that pivot point fails over sustained ruff ground like going down a hill at speed you are going straight over the handle bars.

 

woosh if you advertise something as a mtb ppl will expect to use it as such this stem is a bad idea a fixed one will be a much better option and much safer.

although I have never come across an adjustable stem failing, I can fit a fixed stem if the customer prefers it. The cost of a fixed stem is a little less for us.

would it brake if i bought it? thats the point try take it down the hill in the video

I'll post some pictures of the adjustable stem on the Rio tomorrow. The pivot is locked with an M6 bolt on the underside of the stem. It's not going to break even if you put a ton of weight on it, the handlebars would go well before that. The pivot itself is an M5 bolt.

well if you think a m6 bolt is stronger than a handle bar you have big problems are you for real pmsl

well if you think a m6 bolt is stronger than a handle bar you have big problems are you for real pmsl

 

I didn't say that. The M6 holds the locking plate which has 6 teeth that key into the pivot. The M6 bolt is not load bearing.

I converted this afternoon a Btwin Roackrider 540 full suspension with a BBS01B and 17.5AH battery. I reckon it would go down that hill in your video with ease and won't fall into bits.

Total cost for the client: about £850.

The M6 holds the locking plate which has 6 teeth that key into the pivot. The M6 bolt is not load bearing.

 

 

do you get it ? that is a mtb bike if it cant do it dont sell it as one simple as that.

do you get it ? that is a mtb bike if it cant do it dont sell it as one simple as that.

 

the wheels may buckle, the brakes may fade, the tyres may blow, but I can guarantee that the adjustable stem is well designed and it won't fail on those hills. You bark up the wrong tree.

sorry but no bike you sell would last one run of the Megavalanche let alone compete in the race.

 

https://uk.bike-oisans.com/evenement/megavalanche/

sorry but no bike you sell would last one run of the Megavalanche let alone compete in the race.

 

https://uk.bike-oisans.com/evenement/megavalanche/

if someone wants to use a bike to go down that track at high speed, I would warn them that they need different kind of components.

Those who race know what they need for their own safety.

I sell my bikes to people who ride mostly on roads, canal paths and forestry tracks.

The warranty covers normal use, not racing.

thus it is not a mtb and only in style

Adjustable stems are not recommended for full on mountain biking.

 

Not that I take issue with woosh on this.

 

Their Rio bike inhabits that world of mountain bikes which won't be used as such.

 

You can see that by the number of inquiries about putting a rack and mudguards on the bike.

 

'Off road' in this context is fine with an adjustable stem because the rider will inevitably mean cycle tracks and towpaths.

I think most folk on this forum think of off road as being a stony track or canal path and the like, which almost any bike will cope with. Anyone wishing to do the hard core stuff are in a different league altogether and would need to select a bike which is also in a different league, cost being several thousands.

There are hundreds of bikes referred to as MTB's on sale, it's just a name, what else would you call them?

It seems like Dave wants a bike mainly for commuting with a bit of fun on the side, I would think the Woosh Rio would suit his needs perfectly.

Dave.

thus it is not a mtb and only in style

I can agree with that.

 

That's why adjustable stem is a benefit for those who prefer a more upright riding position. It gives up to 1.5" extra height to the bars. If they need more than that, I'll fit a stem extender to give them extra 4".

We do have fixed MTB stems in stock and can fit them instead if you don't need a more upright riding position. It takes the same time to assemble your bike, no difference to us.

Edited January 18, 20206 yr by Woosh