Thinking about a hybrid... sorry!

I have a Trek 7.6 FX flat-bar road bike which I bought 10 years ago. I've travelled through several countries with it loaded with camping gear, plus it's the bike I use for all my commuting, shopping, riding just for the hell of it, etc. It's travelled close to 40,000 km & gets ridden most days. Other than the regular maintence issues common to all bikes, I've never had a problem with it. I also have a Trek Domane but it's not suitable as a daily ride because I need panniers, etc & I don't like to leave it unattended. I'm very happy with the 7.6 & I'd recommend having a good look at one because as far as I know, they can still be bought (although they've upgraded several components since I bought mine). Almost all the reviews I've seen have been very good (see link). It should be in your price range as well.

Check it out!

http://www.chainreaction.com/product/trek-7.6-fx-173496-1.htm

I think you want a type that middle of mountain bike and hybrid bike. I can suggest you the name that might suit for you....The Northwoods Springdale men’s 21-speed hybrid bike which I think would be the perfect use for you. You can choose quite rough in the plain road for your commuting. This cycle will help you in your purpose.

In situations like this, internet convention is to post:

Holy thread revival batman!

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Hi Perksey

I would like to glad to say that you have described a good article on riding of hybrid bike. You mentioned that you are fond of road biking. And you also mentioned that it is not suitable for all-weather as well as all purpose. You are using it for commuting but you want it for outings on wet or slippery road which are always slightly nervous affairs. The budget you mentioned  is less than 500 pound which is really considerable indeed. I think you will be able to get your desirable hybrid bike within a short period of time.

Having ridden MTB and "flat bar road bike" type hybrids I would say without question that suspension is much less important than decent components. Yes, road surfaces are poor but larger tyres will fix that.

Coming from a road bike your hybrid will feel over sluggish and muddy handling if you go for anything but high quality expensive suspension forks.

Agreed. I rode a fixed gear for two years after my road bike got stolen, and it was (and still is) a wonderful asset. I can leave it out in the rain without worrying; I can hop on it in normal shoes and normal clothes; I can lock it up with a Death Lock in the knowledge that there will be more expensive bikes with less expensive locks in the vicinity; I don't have to wash it, and it's improved my pedalling and general fitness.

It's worth considering alongside a hybrid. Obviously, the lack of gears and potentially less upright position will mean there are times when you need to give it a few more beans, and may be a bit less cushy, but getting it up to speed can be quite exhilarating and you can set the gear to be as light as you like. You don't have to be insufferably trendy in order to benefit from a single speed. I'm very glad to own both bikes.

Have you considered a cheap and cheerful single speed hack? Perfect for commuting and about town in crappy weather...

Acera = Claris
Alvivo = Sora
SLX = Tiagra
Deore = 105
XT =Ultegra
XTR = DuraAce

there or thereabouts.

I also have a hybrid and use it for family duties and bashing around on canal paths and bridle ways around london - much better than riding on the road sometimes (I have 2 road bikes and poper NTB).

I built mine up from bits and pieces using a Pinnacle cobalt frame os sale at Evans for £85. But then I have a lot of bits and pieces. It's light, handles well and has zero brand or cool factor. Which makes it all the nicer over takings expensive MTBs on canal paths.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/pinnacle/lithium-5-2012-hybrid-bike-...

That's silly money really - the frame is pretty standard Taiwanese fare, but the basic idea is good. Maybe build something up to your own spec and have a ball

I have a Specialized Sirrus which I custom built with a carbon Zertz fork and slammed the front end as much as possible for going quick

wheels are Hope Hoops (Hope hubs on Mavic Open Pro), Continental 4-seasons in 25c and a road groupset consisting of Shimano 105 with Tiagra 10 speed flat bar shifters and Shimano XT v-brakes, plus S-Works carbon bar, carbon railed saddle, carbon seatpost and most importantly full length SKS mudguards for bad weather

here's an older photo with old wheelset, cranks, etc.

http://ep1.pinkbike.org/p4pb10736932/p4pb10736932.jpg

my "other" bike is a Tarmac SL4 with Ultegra and Fulcrum Racing 5's

The Sirrus is a great workhorse that will take ongoing commuting abuse, but feels much quicker than other hybrids I have owned or ridden...

There are a number of manufacturers making good "sports" hybrids which are basically flat-bar road bikes that will take bigger volume tires and mudguards

I picked up a one of the EBC Revolution disc hybrids earlier in the year. Only reservation was the aluminium forks, addressed with some more friendly bar ends. Bought a cross bike recently, which I'll be using for offroad and on road jaunts, with tyres for both uses. But sticking with the hybrid for commuting and utility/social rides.

Hoy, Boardman and Cube hybrid bikes looked nice, if outside my price range at the time for that sort of usage. Also considered Scott Scale 960 MTB, Boardman MTB and waiting until November when Btwin's carbon MTB hits the shops. In terms of heresy and blasphemy, don't worry. It's got wheels and pedals. It's all good.

I've opted for an Avanti Inc 2...a domestic NZ brand that I can get for a really decent price here ($1299 so about 625 quid). It's got cable discs, 8 speed Alfine, and Gates belt drive...which for me was the final decider. I'll be sticking some plastic mudguards on it with some lights and I fully expect it to be pretty much maintenance free for quite a long time. Keen to see what you go with. I'd def recommend the belt drive for muck avoidance.

I have an On One Pompetamine Alfine a steel frame with Flat Bars, horizontal dropouts and a Shimano Alfine 8 speed Hub. It's a very different ride from my aluminium road bike and in many ways a better commuter. The frame and 35mm tires feel like a magic carpet after the road bike, but it's a bit slower (2-3 mins over 25 minutes). The best bit though is the hub gears they're great, you can choose the right gear to pull away with, starting off from an unexpected stop is not a problem they are easy to adjust (not that you have to adjust them often) and they are so much easier to keep clean and lubricated.
I've found it copes well with "easy" family style off road trails so it's pretty flexible
Good luck with your search let us know how you get on

I ran a Cannondale Adventurer (flat-barred 700c wheeled hybrid) for a while when the kids were younger and I needed a more family-friendly bike (not a road or dirt racer)… and rapidly came to the conclusion that, if for any reason you could only have one bike, this was the ideal choice.
Over the years it served as my infrequent commuter, shopper, load-hauler, child-carrier, tow-path warrior, all-round good beastie… it was fast-enough to pass muster in a time trial and sturdy enough to cover me when less-equipped mates needed to borrow a bike if we ventured around the local trails. It could turn it's hand to pretty much anything.
Sadly it's gone to a new home, where hopefully it's getting similar use from a new family… saying that, I've just put my grandad's 1949 Raleigh back on the road as my 'town' bike, which isn't really that far removed from a hybrid… maybe they knew more back in the day than we'd like to admit.

Nothing wrong with hybrids. I've owned a Mongoose Crossway for years. A very cheap bike, but has been excellent both on the road and for light offroad riding. I even did a 1,500 mile fully loaded tour across France on it last autumn. Certainly not the best bike you can buy, but the wheels and Continental tyres are bombproof.

I have been looking for a replacement recently though. The advice from my LBS was that the Giant Escape and Trek 7.1 FX are both pretty good. I think the disc brake models are more than £500 though. Trek have already brought out their 2015 range so many of the 2014 models are already on sale.

I was also warned against the Dawes Discovery range. Even though the shop stocked other Dawes bikes they don't sell the Discovery due to poor quality.

I commute on a Trek 7.2 fx.

This doesn't make me any less of a "cyclist", IMHO. I do enough 000's of miles, in all weather, that parts like v-brake blocks and drivetrain have to be affordable to replace.

I solved the hand positions issue, with a set of trekking bars. They're great.

If i was buying now, I might just consider disc brakes. But I had fairly specific requirements that surprisingly few hybrids met.

(I wanted a steel fork drilled for front rack - usually only a feature on cheaper bikes - but also a threadless headset - usually only on pricier models, which tended to have alloy / carbon forks. Trek ticked all the boxes!).

I just use(d) my hardtail MTB for commuting, a £700 bike from Cube gets you quite a lot of bang for your buck (tis what I got on CTW scheme at least).

You can take it offroad as that's what it was built for, but lock out the front forks and switch the knoblies for a hybrid/road tyre and you are good to go for a commute.

I primarily ride road bikes but after a tumble on icy roads last winter im looking for a cross bike or hybrid for the winter too
I used to knock about on a Dawes discovery 301 for a few years which i loved
Ive got my eye on a Focus Mares AX cross bike or a Boardman hybrid who have a couple of really good urban models
its just a case of deciding whether to go for flat bars over drops which i am used to but you can usually get alot more for your money with a decent hybrid

CX bikes are the fashion of the minute so I guess the price point reflects that. As I said above I would like to get one especially as a winter road bike but my bad boy does great stuff so its hard to justify to her indoors, a few years ago I did Reading to Bath on it along the town path of the kennet and avon canal and it was perfect for that.

I quite like the CX bikes with some 'chicken' brake levers for urban riding. Add mudguards and a pannier, although then you're into Tourers. I've got a 2000 Cannondale H700 hybrid which, although it's heavy, just does 'everything'. Bit of an 'old friend' but just did a carbon fork/disc brake upgrade which has lightened it up a bit. The other snag with urban bikes is you need to lug a decent lock around which just adds to the weight. That said, I do an 18 mile commute and log my rides. Nominally it's an hour but the hybrids average journey time (mainly winter) is only 10min slower than my road bike. In the sections of the ride where you're stopping at lights/junctions, the type of bike makes no difference as the hybrids/MTBs just catch up with you when you're stopped.