Argos folding bike- any good?

[keicar]

I love it when the best thing they can find to say about a cheap bike is 'Hi-tensile steel frame'

What does 'Hi-tensile steel frame' mean?

 

[weepiper]

What does 'Hi-tensile steel frame' mean?

It means 'slightly better than drainpipes'

 

[HackneyE9]

Me and Eme have climbed from Plymouth up to Princetown in Dartmoor on our Dahon bikes and covered some fairly decent mileages all over Cornwall (e.g. St Ives to Penzance and back).

My Dahon's got 8 gears though - you might find it hard work with just 3 gears.

Respect - St Ives to penzance is about the hardest eight mile stretch of road in britain. well, it certainly is if you do it on a brompton in the rain after two hours kip on the night train from paddington!

 

[editor]

Respect - St Ives to penzance is about the hardest eight mile stretch of road in britain. well, it certainly is if you do it on a brompton in the rain after two hours kip on the night train from paddington!

The ride from Plymouth across Dartmoor to Princetown was worse. It was one long endless stretch uphill, but the good bit was coming back

 

[Sigmund Fraud]

It means 'slightly better than drainpipes'

Indeed - its the lowest form of steel frame tubing.

 

[Throbbing Angel]

TBH if people have reservations about the £130 argos one, I can't see the £90 Halfords one being any better.

yeah, but , if budget is the main/only/key driver in this purchase - why not save £40 on the below average bike that is purchased?

 

[johnnymarrsbars]

i'm in the middle of moving house which means i'll no longer be able to afford to have the luxury of my carbon chugging earth killing ice melting gazz guzzling car to commute to uni with (in reality a pretty green little fiat panda). i'm looking for a bike, and something i'll be able to take on the train from didsbury to salford on.

i know a lot of folks on here are bike nuts and laugh at cheap stuff but that argos thing looks perfect for me...

people spend over 600 quid on a bike? more money than sense some of you lot i swear! you can get a nice little second hand vespa for that

 

[keicar]

people spend over 600 quid on a bike? more money than sense some of you lot i swear! you can get a nice little second hand vespa for that

The Vespa has running costs though- petrol and insurance. I'm not gonna spend £600, but I'm increasingly wondering if £300 would be a sound investment, especially if it lasts me my 4 years at uni.....

 

[johnnymarrsbars]

The Vespa has running costs though- petrol and insurance. I'm not gonna spend £600, but I'm increasingly wondering if £300 would be a sound investment, especially if it lasts me my 4 years at uni.....

i had a little 50cc vespa when i was in college (sold it though )

had it derestricted so it did an easy 50mph, which is more than adequate when just nipping around town and down the odd main road. petrol cost about 3 quid a week. cant remember how much the insurance was but it really wasn't much at all.

 

[roryer]

Interesting Roryer

Do you still work in the bike industry?

No, I got out because my plan to get them to promote urban cycling was rejected....

Ok so Raleigh fired me, well made me redundant, my product groups were profitable too, apparently strong cycle advocacy ideas don't wash with an MD who is a motor fanatic, who has never cycled, hates cyclists, drives a Jag and whose great marketing plan was to give away free tickets for the F1 in Dubai to bicycle shops who sell extra Raleigh bikes.

My great plan was to develop classic style 1950's Raleigh bikes that were tricked up a bit and sold as cool contemporary classics for urban cycling for a younger 'cool' market. The MD won, and I got laid off.

I now work in the sustainable transport field, but still have friends at Raleigh.

 

[untethered]

My great plan was to develop classic style 1950's Raleigh bikes that were tricked up a bit and sold as cool contemporary classics for urban cycling for a younger 'cool' market. The MD won, and I got laid off.

Do you know what the connection is/was between Raleigh and Triumph? I assume that Raleigh bought Triumph at some point.

 

[johnnymarrsbars]

My great plan was to develop classic style 1950's Raleigh bikes that were tricked up a bit and sold as cool contemporary classics for urban cycling for a younger 'cool' market.

for what its worth thats exactly what i'm after. i dont like sporty looking or rugged mountain bikes and just want something pretty cheap and nice looking to go about town on when the weathers nice.


they'd sell a fuckload. cant you take your proposal to another company?

 

[keicar]

http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~hadland/raleigh.htm says Raleigh brought Triumph in '54

 

[Sigmund Fraud]

No, I got out because my plan to get them to promote urban cycling was rejected....

Ok so Raleigh fired me, well made me redundant, my product groups were profitable too, apparently strong cycle advocacy ideas don't wash with an MD who is a motor fanatic, who has never cycled, hates cyclists, drives a Jag and whose great marketing plan was to give away free tickets for the F1 in Dubai to bicycle shops who sell extra Raleigh bikes.

My great plan was to develop classic style 1950's Raleigh bikes that were tricked up a bit and sold as cool contemporary classics for urban cycling for a younger 'cool' market. The MD won, and I got laid off.

I now work in the sustainable transport field, but still have friends at Raleigh.

Interesting and more than a bit depressing. I like the idea or modern retro roadsters, I really think the Raleigh name went a bit uncool in the 80s as it was such a household name but now I reckon its cool again.

 

[Gixxer1000]

My great plan was to develop classic style 1950's Raleigh bikes that were tricked up a bit and sold as cool contemporary classics for urban cycling for a younger 'cool' market..

They realy missed a trick there -you only have to see how much Choppers etc are going for on ebay as proof of that.OK '70s but same principle.

 

[keicar]

Well that's that gone for a fucking Burton and I mean that quite literally!

Folding bicycles are not permitted on the X38 service because (and I quote)

the bus is going down the A38 at great speed. If the driver has to pull up sharply, the bicycle could be a danger to passengers on the bus

So there you have it. Thanks for the many good responses to this thread- I only hope the information is of value to others on here.

Right I'm off down the pub to drown my sorrows, and to work out how the fuck I'm supposed to run a car on a student grant. Sorry to rant- at least I found out before I blew 300 quid

 

[beeboo]

pah, sorry you can't get a bike keicar

Anyway I've been looking and I've decided on this fella:

After speaking with the guy in the shop, decided that a small folder wouldn't really be suitable for my 9 mile each-way commute (too much wear and tear on the little wheels) and I'd also appreciate a more light speedy road bike rather than a heavier, bulkier bike like the Jack.

So I'm gonna order it next week - yay!

 

[keicar]

pah, sorry you can't get a bike keicar

I haven't given up yet! I'm gonna look at the train schedule and see if I can use that instead. Until I get my uni timetable I can't see for sure what times I will need to travel.

So I'm gonna order it next week - yay!

Nice one !