Which is the bike to buy?

What kind of terrain will it be used in? Hilly, rough, smooth, Crossing never ending rail road tracks? I would get the cheapest bike unless you just want to spend excess money. You could go to wally world and see pretty much any breed of machine you could imagine. I like to have quick release hubs. Whenever you see a bike with the old fashion nuts on the axles it is an accurate indicator of a cheapie bike but that might be all you really need. It sounds like you will want to have a way to stuff belongings in like carriers and pouches/ bags. Allow for all these amenities when choosing a base bike. Also I like to have the tire tubes with “slime” in them to self repair small punctures. You will probably need to add slime yourself but that is easy enough if you have a way to inflate the tires.

I have a doosie I would love to sell you because I don’t ride anymore but it is a pretty extreme off road bike. It still rides fine on the road. No takers at all on Craigslist and I was letting it go cheap.

I would absolutely not go for the magna or huffy.

Really 150 for a bike isn’t much. Find a frame that is comfortable. Full front suspension is great. But if the parts are subpar you won’t get the joy of the ride. Constantly have to tinker and oil and align strive for something you will never get.

You can always fix a frame with a new bike seat. Handle bars, tire treads, water holder if necessary or storage different pedals everything.

If you really are budgeting 150 for a frame you can get a decent bike by searching yard sales, craigslist the lions club.

I spent under 150 on a cruiser that I bought “like new” on Craigslist. It only has 7-speeds, but it works for me. Are you sure that you need at least 18?

For around town you don’t really need suspension. It’s actually better if you don’t have it for urban riding. You want a “hybrid” for sure. Any good used one will do. Look for good components especially Shimano. Folks buy expensive bikes only to let them collect dust and eventually sell them for pennies on the dollar. I paid a couple hundred dollars for a frame that cost a couple thousand just five years ago. It pays to know what you are looking at so a little research will pay off.

I hope you mean $150 for a used bike. Don’t buy a $150 new bike.

You can get a great used bike for $150.

@woodcutter Hilly, rough, smooth, Crossing never ending rail road tracks? Mostly smooth, some gentle hills, no peloton separating hills (OK, maybe one or two but will not be traveled everyday), very few old style un-plated railroad crossings.

@Unbroken I would absolutely not go for the magna or huffy. Oops, using a Magna now; the heavy as the sinking Titanic bike.

@answerjill Are you sure that you need at least 18? OH YEAH! Unless the bike is super light, (which will make it super expensive), I need as much help as I can. People might say 52 is young but my body rebels when I tell it we are doing things my mind remembers it doing 15 years ago, and still thinks it can be done. It would be nice to be able to have a real expensive light bike that had a frame that only weighs 12lb round about, but I would feel I had to hire and armed guard because there are too many scurrilous bike thieves around here.

@ARE_you_kidding_me For around town you don’t really need suspension. It’s actually better if you don’t have it for urban riding. If I don’t have a cushion “Fat Boy” seat those curb transitions, when I am forced to use the sidewalk are not as smooth as they use to be. After a mile on the bike, and certainly if I use it to make a day’s worth of trips a couple of miles apart or less, I feel as if I just got off a mule going to the bottom of the Grand Canyon—when I have never rode a mule before. Full suspension lessens the beating my old bones take from the road.

@jaytkay I hope you mean $150 for a used bike. Don’t buy a $150 new bike. I was actually considering all sources; auction, new, used, Craigslist, liquidation sale, going out of business sale, warehouse sales, estate sales, everything.