How Long Between Bike Purchases?

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Originally Posted by withm

As long as a couple of years, and as short as a week.

How to justify buying a bike? You are talking to a bunch of enablers here. New, old, or in between doesn't matter. If you want a bike, thankfully there is NO ONE here who will try to talk you out of it.

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I might try to talk her out of it.

I started with a mountain bike (1998), which I rode on paved trails as well as dirt. When I wanted to do longer road rides, I got a road bike (2002). When I realized a different road bike would be more comfortable, I got a different road bike and donated the old one to a nonprofit bike shop (2010).

I made sure I had the money to pay cash each time.

Bikes are not cheap and they take up space. I buy new jerseys and new socks when I want variety.

In the past four years, I've bought two complete bikes and built up three others. It helps that, until recently, I worked part-time at a shop and got pro deals. So I'm probably not the best person to ask :D

They're all just a little bit different. The two that are most similar are the two road bikes....one is Shimano-equipped steel and the other SRAM-equipped carbon. The rest of the fleet have even more variety....the full-suspension mountain bike, the rigid singlespeed mountain bike, the cyclocross-turned-supercommuter, and the beater singlespeed for locking up at the grocery store.

I love them all but, in some ways, they're a burden. It's stuff....stuff that takes up space and requires time and maintenance.

I remember a little over a year ago when the good women of TE talked me out of building my LHT from the frame up and getting the Surly complete build instead - the build my LBS of that time was recommending wasn't very good and would have been much more expensive to build. I am glad I listened :)

While I've purchased two other bikes since then, I do not expect to buy any more unless something happens to one of them - hopefully not.

BTW, steel doesn't have to be heavy, I've two steel bikes and one is MUCH lighter than the other - and the ride is so much better than aluminum. I must admit that lighter steel does come at a premium price, but I love both of my steel bikes!

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Originally Posted by Catrin

BTW, steel doesn't have to be heavy, I've two steel bikes and one is MUCH lighter than the other - and the ride is so much better than aluminum.

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Oh a very big thumbs up to that! I got rid of my 18lb Specialized Vita Sport (aluminum) because it felt like I was always riding in mud.

My husband's Big Dummy (steel, over 6' LONG in in the 60lb weight range with his 30lb chain lock) is a better ride at well over double the weight.

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Originally Posted by Velocivixen

... 6 months ago ... hybrid ... thinking of a road bike.

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That's standard in my world, hehe. You don't need to justify it; it's mathematically N+1 where N = number of bikes you have and +1 is the number of bikes you need. ;)

Sounds like you have an idea of what you want to do with it, and I would suggest you focus on the bikes that fit and do the job rather than brand,so test riding is good. But also, don't buy for what you want today because most people find they can do so much more than they thought; buy for what you might want to do in 12 months' time.

@NY Biker - yes, I think for awhile I will be using jerseys & socks to add variety. lol

@oz rider, thanks for suggesting to think of what I might want or be able to do in 12 months time.

In reality I don't have funds to buy a bike, however I have been exposed to so many brands, types, build ups of bikes in my short time on this forum and I feel excited about the endless possibilities with bikes. I will still research and probably do some test rides, but I am in no big hurry to buy another bike. Just really wondered if I was "normal" wanting a new/different/additional bike so soon after I bought one that I truly love.

I guess I've found that I'm "normal" (well, I've never really wanted to be 'normal'). But I think you get the idea.
Thanks. I'm going to look up some of the bikes you've mentioned.

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Originally Posted by Becky

I love them all but, in some ways, they're a burden. It's stuff....stuff that takes up space and requires time and maintenance.

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Lovely stuff, but you make a very good point. I think I will always be at two bikes, as no matter what the finances, there's still only me and still the same number of daylight hours in a day and the same other demands on my time. With two, they both get ridden every week weather permitting.

VV - it's very normal :) Sorry. I just try to enjoy window shopping and the new bikes on here. Plus, my two are still less than a year old so new really...

I got my first non-kid bike in 1982: a Univega Gran Turismo. I wish I still had it. In 1986, I got my first racing bike, a Fuji something-or-the-other. It was stolen that same year. In 1986 I bought my first mountain bike, a Specialized Stumpjumper Sport. I still have it! In 1987, I bought my second racing bike in 1987: Centurion Facet. I rode and raced that for several years. I sold it and bought a beautiful Vitus racing bike that I rode until 2003. The frame cracked in the Horrible Crash.

In 1989, I bought my second mountain bike: a Bridgestone MB2. I had it until 1999 when i left it behind when I moved from Overseas.

I rode the Vitus and the Stumpjumper all through the 1990s and into the 2000s. In 2003, I bought a Jamis Coda Comp and retired my Stumpjumper from commuting duties. In 2003, I had the Horrible Crash and the Vitus bit the dust. I only rode the Jamis for the next two years, and only for commuting.

In 2005, I bought my beloved Luna. Still riding it, of course.

In 2008, I bought my Bike Friday Pocket Rocket Pro. Still riding that, too.

I have not bought any other bikes since 2008. I have all that I need and want.

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Originally Posted by tulip

I have not bought any other bikes since 2008. I have all that I need and want.

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Hehe...famous last words...

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Originally Posted by hebe

Lovely stuff, but you make a very good point. I think I will always be at two bikes, as no matter what the finances, there's still only me and still the same number of daylight hours in a day and the same other demands on my time. With two, they both get ridden every week weather permitting.

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You make a very good point about time, and it's a lesson that I still haven't learned ;) I do toy with the idea of selling a bike or two, but I wouldn't know which one to let go of first....

I remember when I got my Fuga, saying to one of the shop guys it was the last bike I was ever going to buy (to which he laughed). 2 more bikes later, within 4 years. I bought my steel Merckx because it was a deal I couldn't pass up, and I wanted a beater (it's the world's nicest beater, btw :p). Then I decided riding outside all winter was more fun than riding the trainer, so I sold my trainer and bought a winter bike. I use it more than I thought I would, like whenever it's going to be wet out, and whenever I need to carry stuff. It's a great addition to the stable. I do a lot more utilitarian cycling.

But you don't need to/shouldn't go into debt for more bikes. Wait until you have a need for, and the money for, a new bike. You might be surprised what you end up wanting.

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Originally Posted by redrhodie

But you don't need to/shouldn't go into debt for more bikes. Wait until you have a need for, and the money for, a new bike. You might be surprised what you end up wanting.

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+ 1,000 :o

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Originally Posted by Velocivixen

So, if you have more than one bike how long was it between getting another bike? How did you justify getting another bike?

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I bought my first carbon fiber zoom-zoom bike in '07. Then added a mtb that same year. Sold the mtb the next year and upgraded to a full suspension mtb. Decided I needed a touring mtb and bought one in steel. Then my zoom-zoom bike got rear ended by a car when it was on the hitch mount bike rack and after the insurance settlement I ordered a new road bike--in light weight, OX Platinum steel.

I've often thought of reducing the number of bikes to just 2 but I always find a use for every one of them.

I think I'd ask myself if I were prone to buying too much... if so, then hold off. Also, you may want to get a few more miles under your backside to get to know what's important to you. However, if something lighter and faster will mean you can go on rides (especially with groups) that you can't keep up with on the hybrid -- and you'll go :) -- then you'll *get* those miles with a new bike.

I have usually had about 2 years between bike purchases; they each have a unique role. I started with a hybrid in... '91? ... in 2001 I decided to go with a lighter bike for longer, faster rides. I don't remember when I added the Vintage 1968 Racer to the fleet because that's an amazing cool bike that I grew up with and I found one cheap on ebay ($32, another 30 for shipping)... and then a little after that this grad student was selling his Dutch commuting bike 'cause he was graduating and going back to HOlland. (That I would have bought even if I'd bought a bike the week before, because it wasn't going to come along again!) Anotehr two years later and I got a folding bike for those traveling miles.

Any of my bikes cost less than a year's worth of auto insurance that I'm not paying.

I just realized, there will be strays, too. You'll start seeing bikes in the trash, and at yard sales, that you'll think you need to take home, to rescue. Sometimes they're great deals, sometimes, just clutter. I haven't counted any of those in my bike count, because I've gotten rid of them all, but they can really add to your fleet.