Silverfox MTB - is this a good buy?

Although I do about 100 miles per week I don't know much about
bikes/cycling and I'm looking for a new bike cos someone stole my old
one - does anyone know anything about the Silverfox "Big Boot model
and would the following offer be a good buy?:

http://www.sterlinghouse.co.uk/Defau...roduct&ID=6978

Whilst I'm at it, my inside leg is 30 & a half - would I need a large
or medium frame size?

Thanks,

--

John Latter

Model of an Internal Evolutionary Mechanism (based on an extension to homeostasis) linking Stationary-Phase Mutations to the Baldwin Effect.
http://members.aol.com/jorolat/TEM.html

'Where Darwin meets Lamarck?' Discussion Egroup
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/evomech

John Latter wrote:
Although I do about 100 miles per week I don't know much about
bikes/cycling and I'm looking for a new bike cos someone stole my old
one - does anyone know anything about the Silverfox "Big Boot model
and would the following offer be a good buy?:

Depends what you are looking for. At 100 miles per week then you should
probably look for something a bit better.

What kind of riding do you do? unless you are doing hardcore off road,
I'd ditch the rear suspension, get decent slick or semi slick tyres and
have a lot more enjoyable cycling experience.

Let us know what sort of riding you are doing and you'll get good
recommendations from the group.


http://www.sterlinghouse.co.uk/Defau...roduct&ID=6978

Whilst I'm at it, my inside leg is 30 & a half - would I need a large
or medium frame size?

Small or medium.
I have an inside leg of 29 inches and a small (20 inch road, 17" MTB
used on road) does me fine.


...d

On Thu, 03 Feb 2005 23:48:02 +0000, David Martin
wrote:

John Latter wrote:
Although I do about 100 miles per week I don't know much about
bikes/cycling and I'm looking for a new bike cos someone stole my old
one - does anyone know anything about the Silverfox "Big Boot model
and would the following offer be a good buy?:

Depends what you are looking for. At 100 miles per week then you should
probably look for something a bit better.

What kind of riding do you do? unless you are doing hardcore off road,
I'd ditch the rear suspension, get decent slick or semi slick tyres and
have a lot more enjoyable cycling experience.

Let us know what sort of riding you are doing and you'll get good
recommendations from the group.


http://www.sterlinghouse.co.uk/Defau...roduct&ID=6978

Whilst I'm at it, my inside leg is 30 & a half - would I need a large
or medium frame size?


Thanks forreplying Dave, I mostly do road and country lane cycling - I
likle full suspension cos these bones are getting old! When my bike
was first stolen someone loaned me an old racer which I quite enjoyed
(cos it was lighter I seemed to 'work' harder) but every minor bump
felt like I had a flat!

John

Small or medium.
I have an inside leg of 29 inches and a small (20 inch road, 17" MTB
used on road) does me fine.


..d


--

John Latter

Model of an Internal Evolutionary Mechanism (based on an extension to homeostasis) linking Stationary-Phase Mutations to the Baldwin Effect.
http://members.aol.com/jorolat/TEM.html

'Where Darwin meets Lamarck?' Discussion Egroup
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/evomech

John Latter wrote:
On Thu, 03 Feb 2005 23:48:02 +0000, David Martin
wrote:

Let us know what sort of riding you are doing and you'll get good
recommendations from the group.


http://www.sterlinghouse.co.uk/Defau...roduct&ID=6978

Whilst I'm at it, my inside leg is 30 & a half - would I need a large
or medium frame size?


Thanks forreplying Dave, I mostly do road and country lane cycling - I
likle full suspension cos these bones are getting old! When my bike
was first stolen someone loaned me an old racer which I quite enjoyed
(cos it was lighter I seemed to 'work' harder) but every minor bump
felt like I had a flat!

You could consider a hybrid, these tend to be tailored for road
riding and light-off road. Here's the one with a suspension
seatpost so that might make it more comfortable for you:

http://tinyurl.com/6799m
or
http://www.specialized.com/SBCBkMode...y uiio.j27002

These go for about £300, a bit more than your initial budget.

Here's a Dawes model that goes for about £250:

http://wheelies.co.uk/bikesNew/bikeD...supplier=DAWES

You'll get a higher quality bike (frame, gears etc) if you avoid
full suspension. You might be surprised to discover what many
mountain bikers consider to be an "entry level" price for a full-sus
bike...!

--
jc

Remove the -not from email

On 4/2/05 8:21 am, in article ,
"John Latter" wrote:

On Thu, 03 Feb 2005 23:48:02 +0000, David Martin
wrote:

John Latter wrote:
Although I do about 100 miles per week I don't know much about
bikes/cycling and I'm looking for a new bike cos someone stole my old
one - does anyone know anything about the Silverfox "Big Boot model
and would the following offer be a good buy?:

Depends what you are looking for. At 100 miles per week then you should
probably look for something a bit better.

What kind of riding do you do? unless you are doing hardcore off road,
I'd ditch the rear suspension, get decent slick or semi slick tyres and
have a lot more enjoyable cycling experience.

Let us know what sort of riding you are doing and you'll get good
recommendations from the group.


http://www.sterlinghouse.co.uk/Defau...roduct&ID=6978

Whilst I'm at it, my inside leg is 30 & a half - would I need a large
or medium frame size?


Thanks forreplying Dave, I mostly do road and country lane cycling - I
likle full suspension cos these bones are getting old! When my bike
was first stolen someone loaned me an old racer which I quite enjoyed
(cos it was lighter I seemed to 'work' harder) but every minor bump
felt like I had a flat!

Maybe it was effectively a flat ;-)

I personally find a medium width MTB slick (ie about 1.5 inches) to be ideal
for that sort of riding. Not bone-jarring and not too slow. If the bike is
going 'thud' over bumps then the tyres are probably too soft.

I'd second teh sustpension seat post and rigid frame idea. Part of it though
depends on what you want to do. There are two competing interests. One is to
have as much comfort as possible [1] whilst enjoying a ride in the country
side at whatever pace takes the fancy.

The other is to get from A to B as efficiently as possible. These two will
conflict. More efficiency will allow you to go to more places in the same
amount of time for the same effort. More comfort will mean that you enjoy it
more if you are not frustrated by the speed.

The bike you have picked is at the very cheap end of the scale. For the
amount of riding you do, a better bike may be a better investment. After
all, 200 pounds is 4 pounds a week, or a couple of pints. A better frame
will provide a starting point on which you can gradually upgrade the various
bits and pieces as you discover what works.


...d

[1] No, don't say that.. unless you can find one that fits the budget..

On 4/2/05 9:06 am, in article ,
"David Martin" wrote:
The bike you have picked is at the very cheap end of the scale. For the
amount of riding you do, a better bike may be a better investment. After
all, 200 pounds is 4 pounds a week, or a couple of pints. A better frame
will provide a starting point on which you can gradually upgrade the various
bits and pieces as you discover what works.

If I was spending 200 notes on a bike I'd probably get this
http://www.edinburgh-bicycle.co.uk/c...?ID=2826188&CF
ID=48708&CFTOKEN=45587768
Which is extremely good value. (This is the Cuillin 3HT). You might be able
to get them to swap out the tyres for better road tyres, and a suspension
seatpost.

It will be an order of magnitude nicer than the sterling house bike..

...d

in message , John Latter
') wrote:

On Thu, 03 Feb 2005 23:48:02 +0000, David Martin
wrote:

John Latter wrote:
Although I do about 100 miles per week I don't know much about
bikes/cycling and I'm looking for a new bike cos someone stole my
old one - does anyone know anything about the Silverfox "Big Boot
model and would the following offer be a good buy?:

Depends what you are looking for. At 100 miles per week then you
should probably look for something a bit better.

What kind of riding do you do? unless you are doing hardcore off road,
I'd ditch the rear suspension, get decent slick or semi slick tyres
and have a lot more enjoyable cycling experience.

Let us know what sort of riding you are doing and you'll get good
recommendations from the group.

Thanks forreplying Dave, I mostly do road and country lane cycling - I
likle full suspension cos these bones are getting old!

Nonononononononono...

Cheap suspension does not make the bike more comfortable to ride on the
road. Very much the opposite. If you are having trouble with old bones,
a suspension seatpost is a better idea. Good full suspension bikes cost
from one thousand pounds upwards; cheap suspension really is no good.

When my bike
was first stolen someone loaned me an old racer which I quite enjoyed
(cos it was lighter I seemed to 'work' harder) but every minor bump
felt like I had a flat!

There are other bikes in the world besides old racers and cheap
suspension bikes. What I think you want it a hybrid, ideally with rigid
forks and a suspension seatpost, with large section slick not knobbly
tyres. Something like this:
URL:http://www.falconcycles.co.uk/2005/cb/classicM.html, under £200
with rack and mudguards.
(Obviously, there are many other suitable models, this is just an
example).

--
(Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/
;; Our modern industrial economy takes a mountain covered with trees,
;; lakes, running streams and transforms it into a mountain of junk,
;; garbage, slime pits, and debris. -- Edward Abbey

On Thu, 03 Feb 2005 22:28:57 +0000, John Latter
wrote:

Although I do about 100 miles per week I don't know much about
bikes/cycling and I'm looking for a new bike cos someone stole my old
one - does anyone know anything about the Silverfox "Big Boot model
and would the following offer be a good buy?:

http://www.sterlinghouse.co.uk/Defau...roduct&ID=6978

Whilst I'm at it, my inside leg is 30 & a half - would I need a large
or medium frame size?

Thankyou for all the advice everyone! I'm a bit pushed for time at the
moment [er, it's friday night... ] but I've saved the messages &
will read them again tomorrow (already had a look at the links though
- ta!).

Hadn't really thought about a suspension seatpost but from what you've
said it seems to be a viable alternative so I'll postpone buying a
bike for the moment (am using my boss's) & have a look around -
talking of rounds, I really gotta go - am very appreciative of your
replies!

--

John Latter

Model of an Internal Evolutionary Mechanism (based on an extension to homeostasis) linking Stationary-Phase Mutations to the Baldwin Effect.
http://members.aol.com/jorolat/TEM.html

'Where Darwin meets Lamarck?' Discussion Egroup
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/evomech

John Latter wrote:

Although I do about 100 miles per week I don't know much about
bikes/cycling and I'm looking for a new bike cos someone stole my old
one - does anyone know anything about the Silverfox "Big Boot model
and would the following offer be a good buy?:

http://www.sterlinghouse.co.uk/Defau...roduct&ID=6978

No. Look at the bike ads on the Cycling Plus website. You can get a
great secondhand machine for that money.

On Thu, 03 Feb 2005 22:28:57 +0000, John Latter
wrote:

http://www.sterlinghouse.co.uk/Defau...roduct&ID=6978

The feature " Gents size medium" seems to conflict with the feature
"Lightweight aluminium unisex Y Frame."