Newbie needs your opinion... which bike?

Go elsewhere, Evans is not the be and end all and sometimes the customer service leaves a lot to be desired (imo). Cyclesurgery, Brixton Cycles, loads of others will be much nicer

and have told e that i have to pay a £30 'deposit' per bike they get in specially, this then gets deducted off the purchase (E*ans).

And in case you do go down this route, they do have to give it you back, even if you don't buy a bike from them, so I am not really sure why they take it.

Bianchi? Genesis? Have a look at Fuji.

@ gizmond, because you might ride of down the road never to be seen again? The £30 probably covers the excess on their insurance.

I would try as many as you can. I can recommend the Langster, it gets no love from the hardcore but as a package £400. Its great. Its advantage over the others is weight, its very light compared to the Fillimore, Plug, Steamroller etc. I like mine, as a starter for 10 its great. Unfortunatley all the lovely machines on here have me hankering after my old individual build!

As I say try as many as you can before you buy.

All the best.:)

i say steamroller, as they are mega-cool

I just got a charge plug on monday....and fo £400, i don't think it can be beaten.
....it's a little on the heavy side tho.....and you'll need to buy a new set of tyres from the off, the originals aren't worth the rubber they're printed on.
It's my first single speed, and first rigid frame. my ass hurts.

my ass hurts.

Put the saddle back on!

I'm absolutely dead chuffed with my Pearson Touche and it has a number of reasonably unique points as far as OTP options go: it has mountings for mudguards and a rack; it will take up to 28mm tyres with mudguards; the geometry is more relaxed road rather than edgy track; this last point is particularly helpful when loading up the rack, it still handles respectably well with 15kg on the back; no toe overlap; the frame is very light, and the whole thing is fast enough that I may even consider doing a time trial on it! Plus the staff at Pearson are super helpful and accommodating - despite being an OTP, you can basically spec it up as you like and they'll do their best to meet your needs. If the touche is too expensive (basic price is £550) they also do a version with a cheaper frame but similar concept around the £450 mark. Well worth looking at, it's an excellent package at an excellent price and a really nice ride to boot.

Courant

I just got a charge plug on monday....and fo £400, i don't think it can be beaten.
....it's a little on the heavy side tho.....and you'll need to buy a new set of tyres from the off, the originals aren't worth the rubber they're printed on.
It's my first single speed, and first rigid frame. my ass hurts.

I picked up one of these, and gotta admit they are fun for the price. Having just swapped back from an MTB, I'd forgotten how badly paved the roads in London really are....

thing to realise about the plugs if youre on the smaller side is that the frames are actually huge. I wasnt comfortable even on the small. so i opted for the 49 steamroller. now that's a bike!

More love for steamrollers here, mines been going for 3 years and bar a dent (Cheers Ma3K) in the toptube it's as solid as the day I bought it.

I haven't manged to kill it with all of the stupid things I do and also taking it offroading.

He has broke himself a few times on it.. though

Exactly my point. The bike always holds up, I just need to upgarde my body...

what about a Pompino?

Start well: Fuji track at £350. Need to add a brake though.
http://biddlebikes.co.uk/catalog/index.php?cPath=342&osCsid=3b9a7b97528246006409e9ce769a4581
I would not use shops to buy unless you want something so exotic that there is no other way. By all means use them to look and try. The mark up in shops is way more than justified, and even with postage added the comparison with on line is unfavourable. Also check out Wiggle and Ribble, or once you have decided, Google the marque and find the cheapest supplier.

Start well: Fuji track at £350. Need to add a brake though.
http://biddlebikes.co.uk/catalog/index.php?cPath=342&osCsid=3b9a7b97528246006409e9ce769a4581
I would not use shops to buy unless you want something so exotic that there is no other way. By all means use them to look and try. The mark up in shops is way more than justified, and even with postage added the comparison with on line is unfavourable. Also check out Wiggle and Ribble, or once you have decided, Google the marque and find the cheapest supplier.

though you're right, what about the prisoner's dilemma? If everyone bought online, all shops would go out of business, at which point, there would be nowhere to try bikes out before you bought. Then some entrepeneur would open a business selling bikes in person, and call it a bike shop. Where would it end?!

i think the bianchi pista looks pretty...but is it a good build for the money? i also like the look of the genesis flyer...i have to test ride i know, but my local bike shop doesn;t have either of the bikes in stock and have told e that i have to pay a £30 'deposit' per bike they get in specially, this then gets deducted off the purchase (E*ans).

maybe I should try On yer Bike...or Cyclesurgery.

Bianchi Pista is a great bike, but quite harsh to ride since it's a proper track bike than a fixed gear road bike, lots of people praise the Flyer, but then they also praise the Charge Plug, Specialized Langster.. etc. (there's a topic here that cover all OTP fixie).

I paid a £50 deposit for my Pista, they just take away the £50 off the price of the Pista, so no problem (Evans).

though you're right, what about the prisoner's dilemma? If everyone bought online, all shops would go out of business, at which point, there would be nowhere to try bikes out before you bought. Then some entrepeneur would open a business selling bikes in person, and call it a bike shop. Where would it end?!

plus buying from the right shop would guarantee you're a customer for life, if something go wrong that shouldn't have happen (i.e. not your fault), they can fix it without charging you (usually).

unless of course it's evans, in which case all bets are off :-)

Giant Bowery beats the langster.

If your after a more modern compact aluminium frame, which has a very smart paint job (black & chrome) RRP's at only £350

That gives you a lot more room for customisation.

Spare £150

• £30 Lock
  
• £20 some comfortable nice looking ladies seat
  
• £30 Some custom paintjob you dont really need but would make it more "you"
  
• £20 Pair of spare Tyres in a Colour to match your fancy paintjob
  
• £10 Track pump
  
• £5 Fixed Cog in an alternative gearing
  
• £5 pair of inner tubes
  
• £15 a pair of more classy looking handbars or risers if you prefer.
  
• £5 Coloured bar Tape OR BMX grips to match your colour scheme
  
• £10 A pair of good LED blinkers, some batteries and a bell.
  
  

I realise you cant really get all of that stuff under cyclescheme, I just think the bowery is pretty good value.
Oh, you probably need a man to help you put it together ; )

I would try as many as you can. I can recommend the Langster, it gets no love from the hardcore but as a package £400. Its great. Its advantage over the others is weight, its very light compared to the Fillimore, Plug, Steamroller etc. I like mine, as a starter for 10 its great. Unfortunatley all the lovely machines on here have me hankering after my old individual build!

As I say try as many as you can before you buy.

All the best.:)