How often do you change bike? And why?

Considering the age of my bikes, not very often;
commuting bike - 15 years
road bike - 11 years
mountain bike - 5 years
I like to get my moneys worth out of things (it's a Scottish thing), and would probably only replace a bike if the frame was trashed. I do very regular cleaning and maintainance and all moving parts are replaced when needed, so they tend to last a long time.

Whenever they wear out/are broken.

Components, YES. Bike? As long as the frame's still sturdy. Guess that makes it a NO.

Would like to have voted "never" but I change my bike more often .. just because of theft 🙁

Had a locked bike stolen from a "secure" :p 24hr-video monitored, electric gate access underground car park in London once, within a week of me moving there. Its replacement was stolen the following week. Have had 5 bikes stolen now. Gave up at that point and moved back to Japan. ( Bit extreme that, could have just got a better lock I s'pose .. 🙄 )

JJ

scico said:

How often do you change your bike and wich are the reasons?

i bought my last bike 15 years ago (an eddy merckx corsa, columbus sl tubing and very old shimano 105 components). changed this year to a colnago active frame with ultegra. only reason i changed from the merckx was coz it was completely worn out, i still use it as a hack bike though.

I've had my Cannondale M800 Moutain bike for 12 years (and still going strong)

I've just bought an R2000 road bike and expect to have it for at least that long. If anything, I'll upgrade the components (brakes, gears, wheel set) in a few years.

ed073 said:

Whenever they wear out/are broken.

same here.i cant really afford a new bike either. 🙁 🙁 🙁

youm0nt said:

same here.i cant really afford a new bike either. 🙁 🙁 🙁

LOL

Thing is, mine tend to need replacement long before they should, as bike and road meet unexpectedly......

Every year! As a sponsored rider I just give my bike back and they give me a new one to ride for the year. 😉

scico said:

How often do you change your bike and wich are the reasons?

After a 10 year hiatus from any physical activity whatsoever, I decided to start riding the bike again. Got out my trusty old steel steed - a 1993 GT Corrado - and started riding again. Great bike in its day. However, things kept breaking on it, such as spokes, cables, etc. Took her into the shop and they wanted approx $180 just to get the drivetrain into shape.

Rather than spend the money on the old heap I just put it toward another heap - a 2003 Raleigh M60 ($325 shipped on ebay! 😄 ). Even though the M60 is classified in the high end of the entry level bikes, it is a better bike throughout than my 10 year old rig. The '03 Deore derailures are much more responsive than the '93 XT derailures thanks to trickle down technology. Even the el-cheapo Tektro V-brakes have better stopping power than the old LX cantilevers with fresh brake pads!

So the short of it is, whenever there is a financial reason or a technological improvement that would make a new bike worth it. Otherwise upgrades and D.I.Y. repairs are the way to go.

Why not wait till the end of the year sales, buy a new bike at a discount, then ride it for a year. Then buy a new bike during next years the end of the year sale and sell the old bike to some idiot on Ebay for a profit.

I bought My Trek XO1 cross bike at the LBS for $550 in 2001. In 2002 I sold it on Ebay for $750.

At this rate, you can have a new bike every year for 10 years and the net cost to you would be Zero.

Here is a great article on the subject:

http://www.bikesportmichigan.com/editorials/0000026.shtml

jitteringjr said:

Why not wait till the end of the year sales, buy a new bike at a discount, then ride it for a year. Then buy a new bike during next years the end of the year sale and sell the old bike to some idiot on Ebay for a profit.

I bought My Trek XO1 cross bike at the LBS for $550 in 2001. In 2002 I sold it on Ebay for $750.

At this rate, you can have a new bike every year for 10 years and the net cost to you would be Zero...

Actually, jitteringjr, at that rate you would earn $200 a year! It would be nice to make $2,000 for 10 years of cycling. That's better money than working in the Tech Sector and trying to compete against ultra-cheap foriegn labor! :eek:

I've thought about doing just what you've described. Even if it only ends up costing $100 a year then that's a bargain, especially when you consider that there would be zero maintenance costs for chains, rear derailures, brake pads, labor, etc., etc.

I think part of the reason more people don't do that is we tend to develope a sense of attachment to our trusty faithful steeds, even though they don't love us back. I still have my '93 GT Corrado. And I even still ride it occasionally. As I gradually upgrade the Raleigh I purchased last year I'll trickle down the parts to the GT. That old heap just seems like part of my family.