Heavyweight new member seeking bike advice.

[velomaniac]

Methinks you need a hardtail with a frame about 19-20 inch. Something from the 1990's if retro's your bag. Something up to the midpoint of the price range when new, north American from one of the big brands. There are as we know lots of big Yanks and thus there will be plenty bikes that can take it.
Popular and plentiful steeds come from Kona, Specialized, GT, Marin, Scott etc. Suspension from Rockshox, Marzocchi, Manatou with between 50 and 80mm of travel would be best, V-Brakes are very good, easy to set up and cheap. Make sure the headset is 1&1/8th inch as the older 1 inch is little use for suspension forks if you wish to upgrade plus its more robust.

Hope to see you out and about one day

 

[kaiser]

Methinks you need a hardtail with a frame about 19-20 inch. Something from the 1990's if retro's your bag. Something up to the midpoint of the price range when new, north American from one of the big brands. There are as we know lots of big Yanks and thus there will be plenty bikes that can take it.
Popular and plentiful steeds come from Kona, Specialized, GT, Marin, Scott etc. Suspension from Rockshox, Marzocchi, Manatou with between 50 and 80mm of travel would be best, V-Brakes are very good, easy to set up and cheap. Make sure the headset is 1&1/8th inch as the older 1 inch is little use for suspension forks if you wish to upgrade plus its more robust.

Hope to see you out and about one day

Perfect advice also if your looking to save a few pennies try the bike station in edinburgh, velo should be able to fill you in on the quality available

 

[Bullpup]

Perfect advice also if your looking to save a few pennies try the bike station in edinburgh, velo should be able to fill you in on the quality available

Excuse my ignorance but does he work there?

 

[kaiser]

Perfect advice also if your looking to save a few pennies try the bike station in edinburgh, velo should be able to fill you in on the quality available

Excuse my ignorance but does he work there?

Nah, just a regular

 

[Bullpup]

Well I took the chance to try a couple of bikes this weekend - a Gary Fisher with an xl frame and a GT with an 18.5 inch frame and found them both pretty cramped even with the saddle post well extended. I suspect I could do with something with a longer top bar - any suggestions please?

 

[velomaniac]

On-One Inbred or Scandal, modern yes but ride really well and available frame plus fork only, then build up old school. Long top tube about 24 inches with 20 inch frame, very good for the big rider

 

[mikee]

from what you say , your 6' with a 32" leg
so long torso ,bit like me i suppose
i ride bikes from 16" to 23" and feel okay
the bikes you tried ,were they modern ones ?
a lot of bikes these days are more of an upright riding position
the bikes from the early 90's were very stretched out almost
roadie stance , the modern bikes are more laid back (bit like the first
mtb's ) due to the big forks they run

it might be an idea to turn up at a retro rideout and get some advice
from the guys there ,even a shot of their bikes if they let you
and bring your bike , you never know someone might buy it off you

mike

 

[Bullpup]

Great advice thanks - I will see if I can find one to try.

 

[lambert]

Bullpup
I'm 17st and your length. I've got a 21" Clockwork Orange and while the height is perfect the reach is just, just too short. I just feel that bit too cramped on the bike. The Orange is amazingly light and really such a nice bike but I'm scared that I'm too heavy for it (I'm not doing any crazy jumps etc). The MacRetro meet at the end of the month will be a test for the Orange.

I've recently got a Specialized Hardrock frame also in a 21" size and the top bar is just slightly longer that the Orange - I believe that this bike will be the perfect fit (just need to remove a stuck seatpost and build it up). The Spec is build like a brick doo-doo house but it seems crude and agricultural next to the Orange. The frame is a bit more modern and it will be easier to find a 1&1/8" fork.
It's an absolute pain (effort and money) to find a proper 1" fork for the Orange and the one that I've got in there at the moment does not inspire confidence...

I've had a GT for a short while about a year ago and I just couldn't get used to it. It felt like driving a battle tank with the steering dynamics of a 70's Nissan/Datsun 120Y. Hope I don't offend any GT owners.

I had a Saracen (pre Rufftracs(?) model) some years ago and I still feel the love for that bike. Maybe it's because the bike reminds me of the years when I could lean forward, in an aerodynamic position, on a bike without getting cable burn on my belly and when my arse in lycra was an object of desire and not disgust...

I agree with Mike - try out some bikes before deciding on a specific one. They are all different!

Cheers,
Bertie

 

[Bullpup]

Thanks very much Bertie