new hybrid commuter bike for someone who weighs 135kg

RE my build, I can imagine losing around 2 stones/ 12kg but considering Im 6'3 and lift weights 3-4 times a week and eat like a pig I cant imagine being much lighter than that tbh

Skinny tyres, no rack or mudguard mounts.. not ideal all weather commuter imo.

Something like tifosi ck7 would add those features and still be fast as you are.

Sorry, looks like the Claude does have mudguard eye but I hate it.
EDIT - I was not really offering opinion, more tryn to modify your direction.. if it were me I would try and get something with disc brakes. #currentadvice

lol, the tifosi ck7 is £750, £50 over my top end :(

The radial spoked front wheel on the Claude won't be as strong as a cross spoked design(like the rear).

I'd say ride a road bike first, it's very different in that you are more hunched over and can feel the road more. Some find it a very unpleasant change and some love it. Also try to buy from a bike shop, if it goes wrong in a warranty way they may be able to fix it where random internet guys will vanish and leave you to pick up the tab for repairs or even another bike.

That Claud Butler isn't a touring bike and lacks the features that makes a touring bike ideal for you (sturdiness, non-skinny tyres, rack and mudguard mounts). It's a bike for training or occasional sportives, not the bike for you.

How about this Tifosi CK5 down to £560 also available in Halfords if you want to get on it (they probably won't let you properly test ride it). Spacycles also have a reduced Dawes in your size.

I honestly don't know what most manufacturers put as their guidelines for rider weight so I don't know if they are too conservative. My only real point was that if you are buying a regular (not super lightweight race bike, or a brompton with a really long seat post etc.) bike, from a reputable company, you probably don't need to worry about it being strong enough.
Just concentrate on getting the right bike for you and the riding you want to do.

From experience don't get a mountain bike though, a road/touring/cx type bike will feel so much faster for the same effort. The more you enjoy your ride the more you will ride, the more you ride the easier/faster and more fun it is.

im looking at cx bikes too and they seem like a good half way between a road bike and something a little stronger. Also imo they look nicer :| Decisions Decisions!

im looking at cx bikes too and they seem like a good half way between a road bike and something a little stronger. Also imo they look nicer :| Decisions Decisions!

It's worth bearing in mind that, although lots of people seem to end up trying to decide between them, tourers and (proper) cx bikes are very different beasts. One is built for comfort, stability and load-bearing at reasonable pace over roads and the occasional towpath; the other is built for high-speed, muddy conditions, high maneuvrability with no specific capacity for carrying anything (without the handling getting weird). Have a google around to see various discussions on the distinction and bear in mind that you can get light tourers/audax bikes that are plenty fast on the road and still able to carry some stuff.

^ further to this the projects part of this site covers a lot of options, all sorts of different bikes have been built up. It might be a good idea to look through a few, though there is no need to build from scratch you can gather an idea about what other people have done and how it worked out. Coupled with some google-fu you will get a lot of information.

Try a pinnacle arkose, i was about getting one, reasonably priced & equipped for all weather riding

It's worth bearing in mind that road bikes designed for racing will have geometry more suited to the slimmer belly. The larger gentleman may find it uncomfortable to be leaning over so much. To mitigate this, perhaps a (gasp!) adjustable stem might be an idea on whatever bike you end up getting, at least to begin with.

@ BobbyBriggs fortunately i am less belly and more just generally big. Ifr anything I would be worried about cramp in the shoulders, back and forearms.

I know someone in a similar position who had to have his handlebars very high to avoid those issues - abnormally high for a tourer and much higher than that Tifosi.

just so i have this right (forgive my ignorance)

tourer - strong rugged bike, designed to carry weight and very durable
cx - essentially road bike made for off road sporting activities too, stronger than a normal road bike.
hybrid - kinda a light mountain bike with thinner road tyres.

general consensus seems to be to go for a tourer

tourer - strong rugged bike, designed to carry weight and very durable

Maybe, but it's really about features like triple bottle mounts, low-rider [front pannier] brackets, esoteric gearing choices, geo designed to be not upset by luggage etc. Durability...maybe.

cx - essentially road bike made for off road sporting activities too, stronger >than a normal road bike.

Two types - Racing, i.e. Cannondale SuperX, and 'do-it-all', i.e. Cannondale CAADX. The later will take bottles, mudguards, a bit like a tourer...Strength doesn't come in to it - a modern road bike is as tough as nails.

hybrid - kinda a light mountain bike with thinner road tyres.

Some come from a road angle, some from an MTB angle - you can tell usually by the wheel size and / or the clearance for tyres beyond 28mm.

general consensus seems to be to go for a tourer

Well, you need something that meets your needs. It's probably somewhere in between an endurance bike / cyclocross / touring. I thought that flat bar genesis looked excellent - well specified from the off, pragmatic equipment choices, theftproof (i.e. looks a bit dull), durable, can't argue with the price. A Surly Crosscheck with drop or flat bars would be similar, as would something like a Kinesis Tripster - trouble is they will blow your budget.

I think that reads pretty well. Still worth asking your employer about the bike to work scheme.

^^ what @Howard said

That's broadly correct, but I wouldn't get too hung up on strength and durability. As people have said, a bike at your price point from any reputable brand should stand up to the punishment for a decent amount of time.

cx bikes were orginally just road bikes with knobbly tyres. Now they're a specific type of bike that looks like a road bike, has racey geometry and bigger tyre-frame clearances (and often cantilever brakes) so they don't get clogged with mud. They're not really like a mountain bike, although they arguably have similar capabilities to some rigid mountain bikes.

"a light mountain bike with thinner road tyres." would be a hybrid. You can get hybrids with 26" (MTB) or 700c/29" (road) size wheels. There's nothing wrong with hybrids and one would serve you well, but aren't brilliant at any one thing. Some people on here argue that hybrids are a bad choice because many people end up "graduating" up to something more specifically suited to their needs.

Tourers used to be built in a similar way to road racing bikes when everything was made of steel, but with heavier tubing and geometry more suited to stability when loaded up with panniers etc. They also have all the extra eyelets and fittings required for pannier racks and mudguards. As racing bikes shifted to aluminium and carbon fibre, the classic steel tourer was maintained as a design because steel can easily be made into a comfortable frame for eating up some miles and because shaving weight off was less important. Also, for the more hardcore tourer, if your frame broke mid-tour the local bloke with a welder could patch it up; not so with aluminium or carbon. Tourers aren't sexy so you can get second-hand ones cheap. You could buy this Dawes Sterling, upgrade it with V-brakes and matched levers, bar-end shifters and still have change from £300. (next stage would be to buy a Brooks saddle, hang a Carradice off it, start wearing leather cycling shoes, grow a beard etc.)

what you reckon guys? (sorry if this is going on a bit, I'm going to order this weekend so I'm stepping up the search)

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/claud-butler/regent-2014-touring-bike-ec061590

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/jamis/aurora-2015-touring-bike-ec072110

Of those two, the Jamis looks better to me. I know nothing about the microshift shifters though. Have you had a go on both, or similar bikes?

I am popping down to Evans on Thursday to try the Jamis out as they have it in stock in an XL frame. They also said I should try a hybrid out and see if I prefer it. Very keen to get me on a hybrid they are :)

is it just me or is this a bargain?

http://www.winstanleysbikes.co.uk/product/50129/Raleigh_Royal_2012_Bike_ROY60GR?gclid=CI7Ipq6Ly8UCFdQZtAodsj8AIA

its in a 60cm frame too which should be perfect

Not sure why they would push one style over another. But give it a go, you might find that they are right and you really enjoy it.