[felixcycling11]

I am looking to buy a bike for a  20-30 minute daily commute and some leisure riding, for around £200. I would prefer to buy new, but if anyone can reccomend something good to get used that would be great as well.

I have seen some Apollo bikes but people seem to think they are quite bad, any opinions on those would be useful.

Topic

[matthewn5]

If you’re buying £200 bikes

If you’re buying £200 bikes on Gumtree or FB Marketplace, please check the frame number on  https://www.bikeregister.com/ – you might help return someone’s stolen bike.

But as others have said, go second hand for better bikes. I got a lovely steel framed Orbit for a student friend last year for £70 on Ebay. Beautifully maintained by its owner, sensible 7 speed Shimano gears, and two new tyres that probably cost £70 on their own.

[Daniel Norton]

Below £400 you always get a

Below £400 you always get a better used bike that new.

[IanMSpencer]

FWIW, this is what I am
FWIW, this is what I am selling on eBay:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/234528198272?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=Rq-EFGYSQ8C&sssrc=2051273&ssuid=Rq-EFGYSQ8C&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

which I put a buy it now of £250. Priced because it is old and did some work when it was young, but it was over £1000 new. I’ve fettled out for sale out of new parts I’ve had for reasons long forgotten, but actually with new tyres and chain and cassette it’s a bargain for someone.

Trouble with eBay is that you don’t know what you are buying and I know mine is under-priced but you can’t really tell that from the listing… who knows what state a bike is really in?

[Npowel]

It will be better if you can

It will be better if you can increase your budget to 500 definitely find a good bike from here. A Specialized Vilano Diverse 3.0 for example. Otherwise will better to choose a used one.

[chrisonabike]

I had a drum brake / dynohub

I had a drum brake / dynohub combination – the Sturmey Archer X-FDD.  To get this and have it built up into a wheel is going to add around 100 quid to your costs but it should last forever.  Also heavy but for what the OP is looking for that’s likely unimportant.  You can have just the brake version but makes more sense to add in the dynamo then you don’t have to think about lights either.  I preferred it to Shimano’s roller brakes.  Same braking effect whatever the conditions and almost zero servicing.  After a year or so I did open it up, gave it a scrub out as recommended, buttoned it back up and forgot about it.

[John Stevenson]

One way to make a half-way

One way to make a half-way decent cheap bike with reliable components is to use as few components as possible. 

So if you live somewhere flat, then there’s this:

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/city-bike-single-speed-500/_/R-p-306292?mc=8550383&c=WHITE

There are always compromises with bikes anywhere near this price. As far as I can see this bike has two notable ones:

Very basic plastic pedals. Pedals on bikes this cheap are always crap (and often on bikes costing far more). You can pick up pedals with steel pins so they actually grip your shoes from about a tenner on Amazon.

Fixed-angle seatpost. There’s no angle adjustment for the saddle so if it doesn’t work for you as it comes, then you’re looking at around a tenner for a basic adjustable post.

On the upside, though, you’re getting 32mm tyres for pothole-resistance, what look like halfway-decent brakes, and a modern stem and headset.

[IanGlasgow]

Coaster brake sounds like a

Coaster brake sounds like a good idea.
Some people like drum brakes (Glasgow’s Nextbikes have a Nexus 7 and drum brakes and they’re almost bomb-proof).
Mine has hydraulic discs, Nexus 8 and a belt drive – it means it can get serviced in the autumn and makes it through a wet Glasgow winter with nothing but an occasional rinse to get the salt off. No need to degrease or lube anything.

[kil0ran]

Many years ago I had a Nexus

Many years ago I had a Nexus geared Ridgeback Nemesis for commuting, it was utterly brilliant. Coaster rear brake, Nexave roller front. Utterly reliable and completely up to doing muddy tow paths (I was in Reading at the time). Unfortunately got nicked but definitely reawakened my love for cycling. 

[NOtotheEU]

If you will only consider

If you will only consider buying new and can wait for one of the regular sales Halfords do and your employer is part of the ride to work scheme you could get a carrera Subway one for just a little over £200 (£330 full price) and you’ll be paying monthly anyway. 

I bought one on the ride to work scheme a couple of years ago as it was £50 off and I wanted a cheap bike to convert to an e-bike. I’ve used it daily since then and it’s used in any weather. I’m too lazy to be constantly fettling it and I’m 6 foot 5 inches tall and weigh 17 stone so i’d destroy a really cheap bike very quickly.

if you’re using it every day you’ll wear out parts regularly anyway so you can upgrade parts when you have to replace things.

I worked for halfords 30 years ago so things may have changed since then but Apollo bikes were not up to daily use even considering the low price. I always found Carrera bikes were great value when compared to the more expensive makes and you mainly just got lower spec groupsets and one less gear but the frames and forks are well made and finished.

Personally I always buy based on the frame and forks as pretty much everything else i’ll eventually replace if I keep it long enough.

[IanGlasgow]

Do NOT buy an Apollo bike.

Do NOT buy an Apollo bike.
There’s a fine line between a BSO (bicycle shaped obkect) and a budget bike.
Halford’s Apollo range are the wrong side of that line, their Carrera range are usually about the cheapest budget bikes around.
Other options for budget bikes are Decathlon’s own brand or Evans own Pinnalce brand.
Couple of suggestions below. The Vitus looks like it’s sold out in size M so will only be useful if you’re quite tall. Looks like a great commuter bike though.

Pinnacle Lithium for £260:
https://www.evanscycles.com/brand/pinnacle/lithium-1-2022-hybrid-bike-939171?utm_source=rakuten&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_campaign=digidip&utm_content=10&utm_term=3001042&ranMID=45658&ranEAID=hL3Qp0zRBOc&ranSiteID=hL3Qp0zRBOc-ISAXQGke9LyjD42J4NIGXA

If I didn’t already own a BMC with hub gears that I commute to work on I’d go for this Vitus for £320:
https://www.wiggle.co.uk/vitus-dee-vr-city-bike-nexus-2021?utm_source=affiliate-window&utm_medium=affiliates&utm_campaign=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.digidip.net%2F&utm_term=digidip+UK+and+USA+-+Incentivized&utm_content=Sub+Networks&awc=1857_1650491447_26b449bc6617aff92308baaba4492e93&sv_campaign_id=249371&sv_tax1=affiliate&sv_tax2=5425%7C5509%7C67301&sv_tax3=digidip+UK+and+USA+-+Incentivized&sv_tax4=0&sv_affiliate_id=249371

It got a rave review from Road.cc at it’s RRP of £430
https://road.cc/content/review/vitus-dee-vr-city-bike-nexus-287853
https://road.cc/content/recommends/vitus-dee-vr-city-bike-nexus-2021-288069

[Anonymous]

Coupla month back I bought an
Coupla month back I bought an Apollo Paradox £230 from Halfords. Worse thing I’ve ever ridden.
Set to with a hair dryer, removed all the tacky de-cals. Had a perfectly good Tiagra groupset lifted from a now dead Carrera frame and transferred the lot. Leaving only the frame being the original component.
If it hadn’t off been for having the Tiagra it would have been better to just get a new Carrera imo

[CyclingInGawler]

This doesn’t help directly

This doesn’t help directly (after 17 years in Australia I’m not best placed to comment on the supply and costs of bikes in the UK), but just for context, I bought my Orbit Gold Medal in 1983 for just the sort of use you’re describing. Back then it cost 220 pounds, so even allowing for a very different manufacturing paradigm today l agree with others that your best bet would be to spend a little more if at all possible or (carefully) go down the pre-loved route.

[Tom_77]

If you want something new,

If you want something new, Decathlon do the Riverside 120 for £230. It’s not great, but should be OK for a short commute.

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/hybrid-bike-riverside-120/_/R-p-300806?mc=8405304&c=GREY

2nd hand is probably the way to go, have a read of this article if that’s what you decide to do – https://road.cc/content/feature/your-complete-guide-buying-second-hand-bike-278689

[OldRidgeback]

For that money you can get

For that money you can get something half decent that’s secondhand. Have a look on E Bay. Carrera is the mid price Halfords brand and a lot better than the Apollo range. I had a Carrera MTB and while it wasn’t anything to shout about, it was cheap and did the job reliably, while being ok to ride.

Some police forces do sales of stolen/recovered bikes that haven’t been claimed. You might want to ring up your local cop shop or check online. The money goes to charity and you get a document saying it’s stolen/recovered and been sold legally, just in case the owner appears. They will be cheap.

A new bike at that money will be a bicycle shaped object featuring low end, quick wearing components. It’ll not be very nice to ride and won’t last very long. 

[Dnnnnnn]

Grahamd wrote:

Grahamd wrote:

Have you considered using the Cycle to Work scheme? As this would allow you to buy a more expensive bike, with tax and national savings and spread the cost over a period of time.

Great shout if you can take advantage of it.

[Author]

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