Wanted: ~51cm ratter/beater commuter bike/frame...lo-to-no-budget?

Hi Bicyclists,

Some 9 months ago I foolishly sold/freecycled all my bikes, frames, parts, ephemera, etc, to fund an unpaid internship working for an NGO in the Americas.

Well...that happened...and ended...and I'm now back in the Big Smoke with no money, no job (yet) and no means of commuting to hypothetical job of the future.

This puts me in the market for a new set of wheels. Hence, forum, I put it to you: Does anyone have an unwanted ratty beater knocking about, ~51cm in size?

My max budget is £100...but the closer I can get to £0 the better. My soul requirement is that its safe/legal to ride. Happy to build / fix up myself, but still in need of the parts.

So, if anyone has anything which would otherwise be scrap, please think of me before recycling! In addition to payment, beer/wine/non-alcoholic substitute + good karma shall be owed!

Ta much,

Alex

EDIT: I’ll also do a project-build on LFGSS just to showcase how well the build goes :)

Any good?

https://www.lfgss.com/conversations/304933/#comment13637757

Thanks @MCamb. Spotted that a few moments ago. Think it’s a tad small, although I am short legged. Also it leaves me with just £20 for components. I’ll wait until Wyshniukas replies at least :)

The idea of a bike for the cost of a 1 month TFL travel card is getting me thinking. Can it be done? En-masse?

It's the top tube length thats important!

And it certainly can be done, although you'd find it miles easier / quicker buying something thats complete. Then you can slowly upgrade it while still riding it

Just go on ebay. Categories > Sporting Goods > Cycling > Bikes
Refine (or filter or whatever it says) Condition = used, sort by ending soonest. Go through and snag something ending cheap.
That or sort by price low to high, watch everything cheap in your size

Very true, I concur, perhaps I was a little hasty in my fuzzy guestimation that the frame was too small from the photo. However, as speed is of the essence, a complete beater to upgrade was more along the lines of what I was thinking. Especially as tinkering space is a premium for me right now!