17lb bike for 400?

[Starp]

I'm under the impression that 17 pounds is pretty light, does that automatically make it worth 400?

http://ithaca.craigslist.org/bik/2894438806.html

anybody know what brand it is?

 

[AlanG]

Do you understand that it has only one gear and no brakes? That saves some weight and cost of course.

 

[kdelong]

Don't buy it. According to the title it is BILE. You know, the stuff that comes out of your gall bladder.

Seriously, it is a track bike, it is going to be light compared to a road bike or MTB or anything else out there. You can shave pounds off any bike when you delete gears and brakes and anything else that is not absolutely required to propel the bike. The frame looks to be aluminum from the appearance of the welds. No name of the frame so you cannot tell the brand. Doesn't look spectacular to me, not worth $400. Maybe worth it to a hardcore track cyclist though. It's pretty much worthless outside of the velodrome.

 

[Starp]

sorry ive never rode a road or track type bike before, why would it be worthless?

 

[Starp]

I think im gonna go with it, its a few pounds lighter tan the kilo tt or whatever its called, and looks sharper for the same price. thank you

 

[AlanG]

Originally Posted by Starp .

I think im gonna go with it, its a few pounds lighter tan the kilo tt or whatever its called, and looks sharper for the same price. thank you

Yeah, those are all good reasons to impulsively buy something you are not familiar with. Is there some reason you asked for advice from experienced cyclists? Do you even know if it is the correct size for you? Maybe read this first and think about what kind of riding you plan to do.

http://www.rei.com/expertadvice/articles/bicycle.html

 

[Starp]

Yes it is the correct size for me, at least on paper. i'm about 5'9'' . and I live about a mile from my college so I need a nice bike for light travel and possibly the 5 miles to town. seemed like you were being sarcastic about those being good reasons why I should buy it, but I need to carry it up 2 flights of stairs multiple times a day. So it being the lightest bike by far for the money that I found, and being the type of bike I prefer aesthetically, what more should I consider? I suppose that is my question.

 

[Starp]

also, why is it worthless "outside the velodrome"?

 

[alienator]

also, why is it worthless "outside the velodrome"?

There don't appear to be any brakes, at least no brake levers. If it's truly a single speed, then there's no way to stop. If it's a fixie then you can stop by putting back pressure on the pedals, but that's not the same as brakes.. The important point is it's not road legal without brakes. Read that again: it's not road legal without brakes. Do you get what "not road legal" means?

 

[Starp]

it has the hub that you can switch between fixie and regular... so i could get some breaks if i wanted... doesnt mean its useless by any means. why does everyones response seem laden with sarcastic undertones? i apologize if my questions are redundant or incoherent, simply saw a nice bike that is close to me and wanted some more info :]

 

[kdelong]

My "worthless outside of the velodrome" remark is partly because it has no brakes. Another issue is that it has no gearing and the gear ratio that you are going to get with the chain wheel (pedal gear) and the cog (rear gear) is not going to be easy to use for commuting. You are in Ithica, going to Cornell? If I recall correctly, there are a lot of good sized hills in that area that will be difficult to ride up with the gear combination currently on the bike. Also, besides brakes, you will need to put a full reflector package on the bike to make it street legal. It is a nice looking bike but not really suitable for your purposes. It is sort of like a race car compared to a regular mass produced car. A race car is great on a race track but would not be a good choice for driving on the road whereas the regular mass produced car was made for driving on the roads.

 

[Starp]

but doesnt it have breaks if its a fixie? and no i live in canandaigua its like totally flat for the most part. and I have never used reflectors before and nobody ever seemed to notice? so you think this bike would be hard to pedal because of its gear?

 

[Starp]

and would it be bad for the bike to be ridden in that environment?

 

[alienator]

but doesnt it have breaks if its a fixie? and no i live in canandaigua its like totally flat for the most part. and I have never used reflectors before and nobody ever seemed to notice? so you think this bike would be hard to pedal because of its gear?

Being a fixie, it doesn't technically have brakes. That back pressure applied to the pedals does not engage a coaster brake, and it's certainly not a suitable brake, especially if you have to make an emergency stop. Note though that I did not say it is a fixie, only that it seems like it very well could be. A brake can be added quickly and inexpensively solving that problem. Single speeds/fixies are popular city bikes/university bikes because they're not used very often to climb big hills or many hills at all for the majority of folks that use them. Whether the current gearing would work for you is really dependent on your condition. The gearing can be easily and quickly changed to something easier or harder without spending a lot of money.