Fangoria

iTrader: (1)

Was looking at this
Get a £1k bike plus £150 of accessories for £500 over a 2 year period with work

Was looking at a 'Canondale BadBoy in MattBlack

My only issue is that I'm really fat, in fat 19 stones fat at the moment (hence why I want to start cycling to work!). Plus I need to get into some specific trickie car seats early next year and that will mean I need to weigh a damn sight less than I do now - need to lose about 5 stones (have done it before for my wedding - lost 3-4 stones in a few months and kept it off for a few years)

So to the cyclists out there - will this bike take my weight - I am mostly concerned about the rims and undulations in the road. I have been on bikes before and the Shimano rims last about 20 miles under my weight.
I did a quick look up and there are a lot of gripes about the bottom bracket but hopefully Canondale have sorted that out now

I do have a cheapo bike which I put Halo rims on - these are built to take a tank and havent buckled or done anything in over 1000 miles........ admiteddly I might have been a tad lighter when I last rode properly

Any comment on the Bad boy or any other bikes - I want a Commuter bike not a road bike so I'll be instantly discounting Boarman bikes as I'd probably snap the frame on that one! ;-)

davyboy

The boardman bike would be better.

Don't but from Halford, go to your local bike shop who will have a far better selection.

davyboy

I only wish I didn't live 50 miles from work so I could take advantage of the scheme!

.:mike:.

It's a great idea and I'd love to take it up, but I wouldnt want to leave a 1k bike chained up outside where I work as I dont think it would be there very long sadly.... Great if you have good secure cycle storage though

Scoobydiid

Theres nothing to stop you driving part way and cycling the rest of the way in occasionally You don't have to use it every day, and the HMRC police arent luking by your office door checking up!

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

I am 16 and a bit stone and have a Bad boy 700, have done 2000 miles on it, road and ligth off road and it has stood up well, just three broken spokes, no great problem if you know how to change them, takes abotu 40 mins including using it as an opportunity to clean it whilst its in bits. I have to say I am really pleased with mine, the gears work well, nothing has worn out (BB has been fine, just need to drizzle oil through it occasionally)

Dont know why the Boardman bike is instantly better ?

Cannondale specify that the Bad Boy has no rider weight limit, i,.e. suitable for those of enhanced mass, I reckon it will put up with it no problem, frame is epically strong and stiff (bit too stiff sometimes) and when I carry my rack/panniers, work gear, laptop(s) etc etc the whole ensemble must weight almost 300 lbs, apart from the spokes (usually pot holes) no problem. remember Cannondale are American, they would be severaly limiting their market if they just made bikes for ten stone "racing snakes", even slim people tend to be heavy over there, look at all the "Jock" type blokes, most of them are 200 to 250 lbs or more.

I found the stem to be a bit long and low so I replaced it with an adjustable one, put a gel seat cover on and ruined the looks with all the commuting parphenalia.

Beleive me, there are heavier people than you, riding slinkier bikes and the Bad Boy, I did a coupel of weeks on a 17.5 lb Felt racer and it seemed fine with me plus hefty rucksack.

i went via Cycle to work, it has been really good, have done over a year, not much slimmer but a lot fitter and I havent put any on, a lot fitter and I really love the cycling.


You will need,

Bike,
Rack/Panniers (Bad Boy doesnt need a disk specific one), Altura Orkneys are good

Wet weather gear (Altura Nightvision)
Decent Lights (Dont bother with the Cateye Single Shot plus, the bracket disintegrates)

Gel Seat cover, protect your bum.

New Stem, depends whether you get on with the one supplied but to me its more for looks than practical commuting type use.

Go for the 700 c wheels.

Dont bother with suspension

Disk brakes are ok, but not really all that much better than decent rim brakes.

Matteeboy

I think the Badboy is a superb bike if it suits your needs - it will take 19 stone no problem. Maybe avoid massive jumps on it though!

Highly recommend Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres if you hate flats - they are pretty much unpuncturable and roll nice and fast.

Just got a bike through our company but bypassed C2W. So claim back VAT and pay back no NI or PAYE tax on it. And no £1k limit... Our accountant has okay'd it. Also got a 10% discount (Cyclescheme charge a shocking 10%!!) off RRP.

You might need those disk brakes - more powerful and mean the rim isn't being worn out (disk specific wheels are usually stronger) - the pads also last much longer.

Seat covers are hopeless - just get padded shorts and a saddle that fits.

And most of all - enjoy becoming a less fat b4stard!

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

I like my Gel Seat cover, my **** is more delicate than Matteeboys well used old catflap

The disk brakes I have to say, arent that great in terms of power, the are only Avid juicy three, I bunged my Hope Mono Mini's on until I broke the front one, they were more powerful but not as reliable, have the Avid on the front and Hope on the back now, seems ok, they are only 160 mm disks, on a good descent I get a lot of smoke and not as much stopping power as I would like, but then its still pretty good for a push bike.

Fangoria

iTrader: (1)

Thanks
I can only use Halfords and On Your Bike through my work scheme (so it'll be on your bike as Halfords are useless)

I have 2 racing bikes but wouldnt dream of getting on them at my weight - special Carbon fibre rims and spokes have a weight limit of 16 stone (I cant pronounce the brand starts with K! - kYZSERIUM or something like that) - so they have been gathering dust for years thats why I dint think I could go on a road bike like a Boardman

Just rang the bike shop after reading the thread and he was a bot concerned about my weight - his solution......... why dont you go running for a few weeks before you get the bike that way you'll be less of a fat *******.... and the guy doesnt even know me
some people!

Matteeboy

Fangoria - there are plenty of roadies your weight and above who do okay but the Bad Boy would probably be more fun and has a wider range of gears.

They also look dead cool - very important.

I'd avoid Boardman - hearing too many horror stories of snapped frames. Amazing spec for the prices but frames are a bit ropey I reckon.

Fangoria

iTrader: (1)

Hopefully I'll be 70% of the man I was soon, of course not in all areas ;-)

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

Fangoria, I too have heard some dissatisfaction with the Boardman stuff, sometimes things are too good to be true and they may be fine if you are 12st but I would go with the recommendation of another reasonbly heavy bloke with the Bad Boy, i.e. me, 12 months 2000 miles and only problem has been three spokes at 79p each.

As for looking cool, yes they do, until you load it with all the commuter garb and then a stick a fat lump like me on it


I wouldnt buy anything from the bike shop mentioned, there are ways of makign a point without insulting the customer, you are aware of your weight problem and are doing something about it, you dont need some tit in a bike shop to tell you, I find this with a lot of shops, it can be a bit elitist and someone on 12 grand a year in a shop makes judgements about you based on appearance and treats you like a complete pillock because you didnt turn up knowing all about stuff, just find out the requirments and offer alternatives based on a budget.

If you were 6 ft 5 and a wall of muscle (like Matteeboy) at 19st and you went in the shop would he be so direct about your weight ?

Matteeboy

I'd have to sit in a bottle of Baby Bio for about a century to grow to 6ft 5!!

Agreed though - no need to be insulting like that to a customer even if it was supposed to be in jest.

yoza

Fang.

I did exactly the same as you but I bought this Banshee X.

I am 19 stone dead, and the bike is fine, it locks out front and rear so its ideal for roadwork and off road.




I like the ride, and I like the Gel seat cover, as I dont wear cycling shorts with a padded ****.....ever.

Matteeboy

Yoza - very similar to my MTB saddle...



Tsk tsk...

yoza

That seat is OK for you as you are lightweight and probably out of the saddle most of the time, and when you are in the saddle you will be pedaling like ****, so taking the weight off your ***.

Me on the other hand....how can I explain, imagine going for your ride on your bike with another one of you on your back, that about sums it up.

I use my seat for sitting on....often.

Matteeboy

Yoza - I'm seated most of the time - it's more efficient. The carbon of the main part of the saddle flexes under your backside. I know an 18 stone MTBer with the same saddle who finds it fine.

But they must fit your "sit bones" exactly or they are complete torture.

phil_wrx

iTrader: (2)

ive heard nothing but good things about boardmans but if u buy a bike not suited to you or the riding thst is going to be then they all break.

have u thought about a orange crush ? they are in solid as a rock and you wont break one, there £999 i think

here is my 2007 one




by the way i was 16 stone before i started riding and im now 14 stone so good luck

phil_wrx

iTrader: (2)

Orange Crush Mountain Bike 2009


here u go 2009 model

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

I think he is after something more road biased, I myself am not sure whether to go for an Orange P7 next or go for a road bike.

austinwrx

aldi and lidl do some amazing cheap cycling gear- like tops, shorts, gloves etc etc

worthwhile buying a few of their bits and pieces to get you started.

only critcial things are a decent helmet, a decent waterproor jacket, mudguards and possibly over shoes for when its wet/winter time.

lights you can spend £100's on. ebay, or wiggle or chain reaction are a good source of bike stuff.

can't comment on bike scheme or bikes I'm afraid- one option- if you can- get a bike shop to handbuild one

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

I find Decathlon pretty good for reasonably priced, basic bike gear, had some Aldi stuff and it was ok, the Spd shoes did me for six months at £20 but replaced with Shimano ones for £60 which are a lot better, you do to a point get what you pay for.


I paid £170 for my front light, Hope Vision 2, its fantastic but for about £25/£30 you can get a similar light output by going to Tesco and getting two of their 3w small alloy bodied LED torches, usualy about £8 or £10 each, plus some decent rechargable batteries, to mount them you can get blocks off Ebay, I just used to interlocked Jubilee clips, run one most of the time and both if on an unlit road or track.

Panniers make life easy and get weight low down rather than on your back making you sweat and lower our c of g, also excellent for visist to the offy and chippy on the way home, I can get about 12 cans in my spare pannier, I use one normally and take two if planning a beer purchase in the evening.

dpb

Id hav imagined youd require a rim with more than 32 holes say 36 or 40 to carry the weight

Matteeboy

Fangoria doesn't need to go all budget - get some kick **** Lupine Wilmas (1500 lumens), an Ortlieb pannier set, some S Works shoes and XTR spds and the top of the range Bad Boy.

yoza

You can buy all that but it will do exactly the same as a £30 Grifter, and you know it.

Matteeboy

The Grifters I've ridden don't have lights mroe powerful than a car on full beam.
The Grifters I've ridden don't have good panniers that last forever.
The Grifters I've ridden don't have proper pedals.
The Grifters I've ridden weigh about 45lbs as opposed to 25ish.
The Grifters I've ridden don't have proper gears, or brakes.
BUT the Grifters I've ridden DO look dead cool...

Unlike watches, pricier bikes do actually work better than cheapo ones...

austinwrx

I think for someone who doesn't even cycle, spd's are a complete no no until a bit more experienced.

as for lupine wilma lights- no one needs that output.- plus what you talking £700 ???

I'm sussing out light and motion versus hope at the moment. hoping to get a bargain now for using during winter.

Fangoria

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for the comments
I do like the look of the Badboy over the others
The issue with spokes is that when I break them I tend to buckle the rim badly - I am of the opinion that once a rim buckles its structural integrity is compromised......

I may get a second set of stronger wheels as spares - but then the cost mounts up........

I'll think about accessories closer to the time - main thing will be getting some decent peddles and shoes as in this weather I'll need to be 'clicked in'

Matteeboy

Austin - only being daft!

I have a Hope 1 and it's a superb light for the money. Will probably get a Hope 4 this winter. I also helmet mount a Tesco AA cree torch for long range light (but cack field of view) - the two work very well together. Keep your eye on Teabay - some good light bargains do come up once in a while.

Fangoria - shoes are very personal depending on fit but Specialized Body Geometry work very well and are comfy for most. Go for XT SPD pedals if you can - totally bomb proof, lightish and very positive "clicking in" system. XTRs are just too pricey for the "extra" you get.

Unless you plan to jump the bike, I can't see you killing the rims.

Mark1983

iTrader: (2)

HMRC did query a mate of mine as his commute was Peterborough to London however they were satisfied when told he rode to the train station and caught the train into London.