[kumar2007]

Originally Posted by FINTAIL

A classic case of- Too little, too late.

A front shock is needed, IMO. Specially, when you have 'em lovely slicks, you'll love to corner, MotoGPishtyle!

How do roadies handle that? I'm not really sure.

And the ghat roads around Pune are truly epic. Touch nearly 65 on the straights, and for a sharp downhill turn, slow down in a couple of seconds, bend, turn, and wow! The feel of the suspension damping, the slicks sending inputs about the imperfections on the road! Ah!....

Of course, doing this too much, will result you getting a roadie, which is altogether another matter.

If there were any vehicle which truly was a joy to drive, (ride, in this case), would be a hardtail MTB, running on the thinnest slicks possible. This, of course, is subject to various factors.

Phamilyman is right. There is practically no city road in India which needs shocks.

[Axe77]

This is an incredibly funny article - saw it on facebook. A lot of the more serious cyclists will perhaps relate to this, as would their spouses. Enjoy!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/ar...Man-Lycra.html

[manson]

After all the reading on this thread over the last couple of weeks, it would be plain wrong to not post by latest acquisition.
My purchase decision progressed from the fixie B-Twin MyBike to the B-Twin RockRider 5.0 with the grip shifting mechanism, which I ditched last minute after having ridden the Riverside 3 Hybrid sighting not so plush ride and aggressive posture of the Five Zero. Despite that really long drive to the Decalathon store, the Riverside ride was a plan changer.
It had to be a hybrid, but keeping the already slightly stretched budget, it was going to be an entry level. Enter Hercules ACT110 & Montra Trance Pro 2015. With Montra perceived to be higher quality, it was a no brainer between the two. A couple of quick calls for availability, and it was sorted.

Bike: Montra Trance Pro 2015
Category: Hybrid
Size: M
Color: Red
Config: 3 x 7
Fork: Rigid
Accessories: Bottle holder, side stand, grip sponge (stamped Kenda) & Lock
Price: 14,000 Inclusive Taxes

Initial Impression
Nice comfortable posture, upright position compared to Rockrider 5.0
Adequate braking power, zero vagueness.
Lightweight frame, easy to carry upstairs
Notchy left side shifter, could be made to work better with some tuning
Adequate saddle, not too narrow, not wide either, feels just perfect for now.

P.S. Huge shout out to our inhouse cycling experts bblost & yogi1771 for helping out with the endless queries, thanks guys

[yogi1771]

Congrats Manson,the bike looks good.Invest in a good helmet and get a rear blinker.

[shipnil]

Originally Posted by manson

Initial Impression
Nice comfortable posture, upright position compared to Rockrider 5.0
Adequate braking power, zero vagueness.
Lightweight frame, easy to carry upstairs
Notchy left side shifter, could be made to work better with some tuning
Adequate saddle, not too narrow, not wide either, feels just perfect for now.

P.S. Huge shout out to our inhouse cycling experts bblost & yogi1771 for helping out with the endless queries, thanks guys

How tall are you? From the pictures, it seems the saddle is set too low.

[phamilyman]

Originally Posted by shipnil

How tall are you? From the pictures, it seems the saddle is set too low.

+N

Raise it by atleast 2-3" easily.

http://freerider.in/drupal/General/Cycling-Gyan#FitQn can help you.

[manson]

Update: Started with my riding regime this morning.



Cycled for about an hour. Will use the strava app to keep a tab on distance, average speed, etc. from tomorrow.
Shifting the left shifter to third is just impossible, whatever I do, it continues to graze, so I was stuck in step 2 for all of today. Will have this sorted at the store over the weekend.

Originally Posted by yogi1771

Congrats Manson,the bike looks good.Invest in a good helmet and get a rear blinker.

Thanks bud! Any particular helmet brand / model brand you recommend?

Originally Posted by shipnil

How tall are you? From the pictures, it seems the saddle is set too low.

Originally Posted by phamilyman

+N

Raise it by atleast 2-3" easily.

http://freerider.in/drupal/General/Cycling-Gyan#FitQn can help you.

I am 5 feet 7" odd, at the current height setting I can firmly get my toes in contact with the road when seated. Isn't that how it should be?

Also, need to adjust the nose incline of the seat before I ride out tomorrow.

[yogi1771]

Manson you didn't get the bike fit done at Sardar,check this video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VYhyppWTDc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrZBjOloChg

[phamilyman]

Originally Posted by manson

I am 5 feet 7" odd, at the current height setting I can firmly get my toes in contact with the road when seated. Isn't that how it should be?

Also, need to adjust the nose incline of the seat before I ride out tomorrow.

Attachment 1321431

Sir jee,

you clearly did not read my link at all. best is to watch the video.
http://freerider.in/drupal/General/Cycling-Gyan#FitQn
one was http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm:

Set the saddle high enough so that your other heel can just touch the pedal with your leg straight, and with the pedal at the bottom of the stroke, in line with the seat tube. For most people this results in a saddle height that leaves some bend in the knee at the bottom of the pedal stroke, when you're pedaling with the balls of your feet over the axle of the pedals. It also should prevent you from having to rock your hips through each crank rotation. This gets you close enough to your optimum saddle height that you can go through the rest of the fitting process and fine tune saddle height later. Any later saddle height adjustments shouldn't be enough to throw off the other adjustments other than handlebar height, which is easily changed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAl_5e7bIHk

Helmet - any good brand (Cratoni / Prowell / Decathlon etc) in the 1.5-2k range is fine. Make sure it matches with your cycle color. Style matters!

The nose should be flat. Some folks prefer to later have it a bit tilting downward or upward but for 99% of people - level saddle is good enough.

[OHCVtec]

Guys can you suggest a good hybrid within 30k range.. Primary usage will be commuting with slight offroading.

[Axe77]

Originally Posted by OHCVtec

Guys can you suggest a good hybrid within 30k range.. Primary usage will be commuting with slight offroading.

I don't know model names off hand but within about 35k you should be able to get offerings from most of the decent brands including Scott, Fuji, cannondale, giant, bianchi, trek etc.

Try multiple models and see which geometry suits you best. All else is secondary to the best fit.

Even within Hybrids, they can lean more towards road or more towards MTB so pick the model that suits your usage best. Typical middle of path hybrid seems to fit your requirement well.

[parsh]

I have been contemplating between

Hercules Roadeo Hardliner

http://www.bsahercules.com/index.php...-26&Itemid=184

and

Hercules Ryders Canyon

http://www.bsahercules.com/index.php...yon&Itemid=183

Tried them personally at the Hercules showroom and both seemed nice from ride position, weight, ease of ride.

However, not finding much detailed reviews about them.

If anybody has any experience/feedback about them, pls do share.

[FINTAIL]

Originally Posted by parsh

Hercules Ryders Canyon

I know, and see a couple of Canyons daily, in that fiery red.

They really would seem average, which is only to be expected.

The suspension does not damp well, the cornering is useless, and it seems labouirous to pedal on one of these, IIRC.

I would take the Canyon, simply because I've seen them handle the roads of Bombay quite well, given their shortcomings.

Upgrade the chainset. See if something can be done about the shocks. And of course- Do something about the tyres!

Slicks, of course.

Though, if were you, I'd consider the Montra Rock/Blues. Hardy bikes, which can be really quick when needed, and can be extremely pleasureable to ride on the ghats. The price differential is justified, specially given the fact that these are extremely potent bikes.

My 2012 example is currently somewhere near the 8500 kilometre mark. Initally she was somewhat nigglesome, but as the miles get on, the damn thing goes on improving.

Services at 2000km intervals, thats what I generally stick to. Partial gear overhaul at the services is routine in my case, though the gears seem alright.

I'll be going in for a gear upgrade shortly. Along with a rim upgrade, if possible.

[parsh]

Originally Posted by FINTAIL

I know, and see a couple of Canyons daily, in that fiery red.

They really would seem average, which is only to be expected.

The suspension does not damp well, the cornering is useless, and it seems labouirous to pedal on one of these, IIRC.

I would take the Canyon, simply because I've seen them handle the roads of Bombay quite well, given their shortcomings.

Thanks a Ton Fintail. That's quite a heads-up. Gives quite a few aspects that I need to scrutinize while looking at bikes. Will now inspect more on these aspects before jumping in.

[joshguy]

Hi all, I am thinking of buying a cycle for my self just for keeping myself fit. Last time I owned or driven a cycle was about 15 years back,so I am totally out of touch of the brands .i owned a bas mach1 those days.

Can anyone suggest me a decent cycle at a cost below 10k and please note that I am 6'2 ft tall and legs are taller than my trunk,

Thank you