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When's too many bikes enough ?

I think I have problem, by bike stable keeps growing and I don't know what's/when's enough .

Any help/advice from fellow sufferers.

regards

Dave

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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61 comments

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rojre | 10 years ago
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I admire people who run a "do it all bike" and stick to just that . A good mid range tourer will do that. If one feels compelled to own another its got to be a road bike for weekend day rides or a mountain bike for the mountain bike thing . It does seem most of us want more, and theres always something new coming along. Its lack of space and money plus will power that keeps us in check.

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OldRidgeback | 10 years ago
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I'm down to just three bikes, a GT BMX, an SE BMX/cruiser and an MTB. Elder son has a road BMX and a race BMX and younger son has an MTB and a race BMX while my wife her her old MTB and we have a spare MTB for visitors. We definitely need a roadbike each at least to add to the fleet. I like the sound of that classic 73 Italian roadbike.

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pauldmorgan | 10 years ago
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I think I may have a problem. I did get down to three about six months ago, now up to five with two more in the pipeline... There is a fair amount of subterfuge and creative accounting involved. I need to find new hiding places.

Best carbon bike
Commuter hack (Dolan track frame with the brilliant Sturmey two-speed kick hub)
Aluminium winter bike currently on the turbo with TT bars for fun
Old School mountain bike I never ride (but can't bear to lose) - must take it out for a spin
Folding bike

Miss my steel crosser

Titanium do-it-all on order and vintage steel in my dreams.

Perfectly reasonable, no?

"Is that a new bike?"
"What, this old thing?"

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matthewn5 | 10 years ago
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Three, a carbon 'best bike', an aluminium 'everyday and winter' bike, and my original 40 year old last year Raleigh Record. Oh, and the carbon step-through women's bike I built my other half as compensation  3

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rojre | 10 years ago
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Iv had notions or a recurring thought that I could stash my least used bike which is a MTB that I keep for really bad winter weather in a cupboard at work. (How silly is that) . This would free up space ! But iv learnt from personal experience that one half bad accident , "no matter how many bikes in the stable" , renders one only capable of looking at the them. I don't want to put a downer on bike collecting , spend, spend, spend if you want but realistically we are all only a hairs breath away from that . As without doubt a sizeable percentage of us know .

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monty dog | 10 years ago
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Current total is 7 - had 9 at one point but haven't got enough hooks in my garage. I've also got about 8 pairs of wheels and rims tucked away. My fleet currently comprises:

Fast road bike
Fixed gear road bike
CX race bike and with skinny tyres serves for training duties
CX travel bike - based on Ritchey Breakaway CX
1983 Gios Aerodynamic for retro events
Ritchey P29er singlespeed rigid MTB
Custom titanium semi-fat, rigid MTB

I have just found enough space to also squeeze-in 17ft of carbon fibre racing kayak!

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Ross K | 10 years ago
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I think the limit of n+1 is more about space than money. Unfortunately I have lots of space so I have

531 restored steel wet weather bike
Alu wet weather bike
Alu dry bike
Rigid fork MTB ice bike pemanently fitted with ice tyres
Hardtail MTB

The next +1 is a Ti frame for the dry bike.

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Kadenz | 10 years ago
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Simples. The formula for 'too many bikes' is N+2, where N is the number you currently have.

But only if (a) your partner - if you have one - is also a cyclist; and (b) you keep separate back accounts.

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Kadenz | 10 years ago
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Simples. The formula for 'too many bikes' is N+2, where N is the number you currently have.

But only if (a) your partner - if you have one - is also a cyclist; and (b) you keep separate back accounts.

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thetallbird | 9 years ago
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Well, I am 6 or 7 bikes into a bit of an issue on the home front....it all started with an aluminium LeMonde, kinda racy, once i'd upgraded everything bar the decals, but it somehow wasnt 'old enough', so i found myself a 1982 Eddy Mercx, the prettiest bike on the planet, but it was, and i knew it at the time, but couldnt help myself, too small for me. So, i got myself a beautiful opalescent orange, 1978 Koga Myate with original Dura Ace, to replace the Eddy....

That should have been the end of that, but, a man who shall remain nameless, invited me to go to Paris...oooh i thought, Paris, what shall I ride?
He appeared with a carbon Focus Cayo. 'Try this for size', he said, nonchalantly. Great i said, i havent got a carbon frame.

Then the same man, appeared with a beaten up but somehow majestic dutch vintage VandeVeire road bike that had a Campagnola drive train, and i thought oooohhhh, Campy, I havent got any Campy. This is now my abslolute favourite go to ride.
Then, one day, the same bloke appears and says, 'fancy riding to to Waterloo (the one on the other side of the pond) on a fixie?'. I havent got a fixie I said...And true enough, i didnt have a fixie...for about 30 minutes...

Finally, no, not finally, but for now - just last week i went to 'Bespoked' and there it was a 'Faggin'...a frame out of the same factory that built all of Mercx's frames (regardless of what it said on the label)...and i thought...mmm i havent actually got a new bike. I'd better start saving.

For some girls it handbags and clothes. For me its bikes and underwear. You can never have too many sets of nice underwear and you can never, never have too many pretty bikes.

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Miles253 | 9 years ago
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Out of interest, what jobs do you guys work? I need me some of that if I want 5 bikes! Also tips for keeping partners happy?

Currently I have just the one main bike, Alu, had three but am travelling so needed to raise funds. Two planned when I returned.

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Dizzy | 9 years ago
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Too many bikes? Is such a thing even possible?

I think when you have to consider, forcing eldest child to leave home, building an extension or even moving house, there may be a slight issue.  103
But heck - Kids needs to stand on their own 2 feet sooner or later, and I never liked my old neighbours anyway  103  103

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mooleur replied to Miles253 | 9 years ago
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Miles253 wrote:

Out of interest, what jobs do you guys work? I need me some of that if I want 5 bikes! Also tips for keeping partners happy?

Currently I have just the one main bike, Alu, had three but am travelling so needed to raise funds. Two planned when I returned.

I'm a sysadmin for Gov't IT....it's pretty humble to be fair! One of my bikes I had to buy for half price after being loaned it from my old company, one was a hand me down from the BF, one's being bought by hire purchase, ones a team bike that I've to give back (cries!).

Not sure how the other half manages to buy so many though, he's far too good with money! >.<

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charliepalooza replied to matthewn5 | 9 years ago
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Ah a Raleigh Record. I loved mine and spent many long summer days getting lost on it.

Sadly my Mum and Dad's gardener 'borrowed' it to get to their place due to his phobia of buses. He left their employ a week later with a bad back which made it 'impossible to walk let alone do any manual labour' and that was the last I saw of the Record.

Ironically, I saw the thieving b****** a couple of months later running for a bus!

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arfa replied to Miles253 | 9 years ago
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Miles253 wrote:

Out of interest, what jobs do you guys work? I need me some of that if I want 5 bikes! Also tips for keeping partners happy?

Currently I have just the one main bike, Alu, had three but am travelling so needed to raise funds. Two planned when I returned.

The commuter bike is always good for the n+1, pays for itself you see  3
in all seriousness, if it's not getting used, there are lots of good charities that will take old unloved bikes and refurbish them and find them a good home for their after life.

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Nick T | 10 years ago
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For me, too many bikes is never enough.

For my wife, enough bikes is always too many.

In starting to think that perhaps one wife is too many.

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archie gordon | 10 years ago
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I have four bikes summer winter mountain and an old Raliegh medale i have owned for 31 years just can,t part with it . still use it every week

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Ross K replied to archie gordon | 10 years ago
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archie gordon wrote:

I have four bikes summer winter mountain and an old Raliegh medale i have owned for 31 years just can,t part with it . still use it every week

Me and you both. My from new 1985 531 bike is still in regular winter use. I prefer it to the Alu winter bike and find that the friction shifters are far less of a drawback than some might think.

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Yorkshie Whippet | 10 years ago
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When you get rid of the kitchen table to fit a fourth bike in kitchen. It wouldn't go in garage as the old dining table is in there holding up the boxes of "spares bits" and a few wheels. The understairs cupboard already has two bikes and several wheels along with all the essential just bought spares (tyres, tubes etc).

It's getting cramped in the kitchen wi four bikes and a couple of wheels, but yet the womenfolk still manage to get in before shaking their heads.  29

Hmm maybe it is time I sold something...... Old sofa looking for a good home. Need the space for bike stuff  1

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paslemeilleur | 10 years ago
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Maybe swimming against the current here: had 5, now down to 3. Amazing how attached you can become to a collection of metal, rubber and plastic but seems alright to keep it simple. Preferably same wheel size and groupset too.

Alas, no way I could have Campagnolo on the 'any weather, leave anywhere' bike.... !!

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Super Domestique | 10 years ago
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It is always n+1.

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Bob's Bikes | 10 years ago
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The time to stop buying/building bikes is when no matter how well your storage racks/methods are. You struggle to get in and out of the garage, shed and house.

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mooleur | 10 years ago
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We just had to move house because of this fact. No longer could we keep the stallions in the living room.

Nice garage now currently housing a merger of both mine and my partners two TT bikes, three winter bikes, mountain bike and three race bikes.

The only obvious way forward here is to make sure all the odd numbers are even and increase the numbers going forward.

I don't own a mountain bike OR a cross bike which is pretty ridiculous.

Also planning a little renovation project for a vintage frame too ^_^

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drfabulous0 | 10 years ago
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As a used bike dealer I obviously have a ridiculous amount of bikes, I am of the opinion that the magic number is 42.

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armchairracer | 10 years ago
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Its good to hear that I am not the only one suffering, with this condition,

I think one bike for every discipline of cycling and a spare for each discipline just in case the first choice needs work.

Don't forget the one being built up as a dream bike.

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glynr36 | 10 years ago
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Five here.
Best Bike, Bianchi Infinito running Chorus & Mavic Cosmic Carbones.
Winter, Dolan Preffisio with the old athena gruppo & Fulcrum racing 3 off the above.
Fixed, Dolan Track Champion.
XC MTB, some focus thats in bits.
MTB Dirt jump/bmx track/skatepark bike, Tonic Fab howie.

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Kapelmuur | 10 years ago
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I'm glad that vintage steel has got a mention. My 1973 Italian racer is ridden only when the sun is hot and the roads are dry, ie rarely.

However, it is looked at frequently as a reminder of how beautiful bikes can be when I've had enough of modern machines with logos covering their fat oddly shaped tubes (and wheels) and their dull colour schemes.

OK, my coat is on and I'm away to Retrobike  103

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Col Nago | 10 years ago
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At the very least:

2 or 3 cross bikes (to race in the mud, one with discs), winter commuter (cheap and corroded), summer commuter (still cheap but less corroded), full-sus MTB, hard tail MTB, 29er, TT bike, Ti sportive bike, full-on carbon stiff as hell race machine, the "tooling about" bike (fixie), track bike, the extra race bike (just in case you break one), the vintage steel "I am one cool retro dude" bike, the bike you really don't need but it looked a good deal in the LBS/on-line so I bought it anyway...etc, etc, etc

total cost still way cheaper than buying a new BMW....

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Shades | 10 years ago
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Bit of a nightmare this subject. Currently on 4 (wife has 2): Road, MTB, Folder and Hybrid. There's always a better, or more suitable for the job, bike out there and you're a 'bit attached' to the old ones. I just try and ensure they all get an airing to justify their existence. I can vouch for a bit 'pimping up' if your old steed is feeling a bit tired. Nothing like some upgrades to give it a bit more zip and cure the lust for something you can't afford.

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consciousbadger | 10 years ago
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I have five at the moment and can't get any more because I have no space! So a short term solution to this shared problem is to live in a small flat with no garden in an area where locking a bike up in the street will mean it will disappear within the week... I say short term because I am now thinking of moving to a house with a garage so I can store more bikes  17

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