The fit. Different brands have different frame geometries, which may or may not work for you. The frame will also most probably outlive all other components.

So go visit a number of local bike stores and test ride a couple.

don't buy it in Switzerland ! ... go to decathlon in France, you can get a decent bicycle for less than 500 CHF.

Ciaociao

Fabrizio

if you plane to make 20kms a day don't buy a cheap bike... ;-)

You can find in Switzerland good brands like Stoke. If you give around 1500chf you will get something correct enough for a daily use.

"if you plan" sorry if you plane you will probably don't need a bike...

Sorry Fabrizio (in advance).

James - I have cycled and owned various bikes for more years than I care to remember.  You'll pay about a 1/3rd more in CH than you will in the UK for the same bike, but if you can't be bothered to go back to the UK to buy it, and ship it over - then bite the bullet and shell out the chuffs (and keep the Swiss economy going!).

The best bikes in the world - are all U.S. manufacturers (ouch! it hurts just typing that!), brands like Trek, Specialised and Cannondale.  I recently bought a Cannondale Quick CX (having been a devoted Trek cyclist) and LOVE it - its a hybrid and perfect for the type of cycling you want to do. (1,000 Chuffs BTW) 

Its light, ergonomically perfect (for me, a good friend loves her Specialised, so try them all) and a dream to ride.  My 15 year old Trek (which I loved) feels like a dinosaur in comparison.

Please don't go to Decathlon and pay less than 500CHF for a bike. Q. If you were in the UK, would you buy a bike from Halfords or go to a "proper" bike shop? No, thought not - buying from Decathlon is the same as buying from Halfords.

Finally - 1,000 CHF is about the right amount of money for the sort of bike you want.  Any extra money will just be spent on (lack of) weight (carbon posts//lighter frame - but then if you're commuting and adding panniers, lights, water bottles, mudguards etc., etc., - its money wasted).

Hope that helps! :-)

There's a Kona outlet store in Segny (France/Pays de Gex), in between Ferney Voltaire and Gex. I'm sure you can find something great for that price. =)

"The best bikes in the world - are all U.S. manufacturers"

sorry but it's the typical sentence of someone who really does know nothing about bikes.

There are a lot of other very good manufacturers and most of main American brands for entry range and mid range are just selling stickers on your bike, frames and parts are made in Asia.

One of the best is probably Nikolai which is german and male such jewelry frames. Some swiss frames are very well finished also.

The rest of the bike is usually made of Japanese groups Like Shimano and for other parts like saddle, pedals, etc. , there are so so many excellent manufacturers around the world...

Trek, SpecialiZed and Cannondale are good brands but far from being the best. I personnaly have a GT wich is also a good American manufacturer, but Kona bikes are very good also like Ghost, Lapierre, etc.

The only points that are making difference is the price you give as it will give you the possibility to have access to an higher level of quality in all parts and that is the same for all brands.

Hi Carolyn and Kev (and James of course)

I understand your point of view, you both sound like very experienced bikers, who have done dozens of thousands of km on the bicycle during your life and can appreciate the difference between different brands frames and so on, but James wrote: "i have never owned a bike before", then he maybe has a point of view more similar to mine (I didn't own a bicycle in the last 20 years, and bought mine last spring): "a bicycle is one thing with two wheels you sit on and you pull pedals to move it".

Said that I stil believe the best buy would be a cheap one, then James could decide in 6 months that he wants something totally different, a mountain bike, a city bike, a racing bike ... a three-wheeler , and just throw away the 300 CHF bike he bought at decathlon and go for a more expensive and quality one, after having better understood his needs and likes !

Ciaociao

Fabrizio

I agree with Fabrzio.

I sometimes commute 10km on a simple bike I bought 2nd-hand for 250CHF. It is more than good enough for my usage.

Depending on your use, there may be very practical considerations. E.g. I would never buy an expensive bike, because I leave it down-town, and I'd be too afraid of it being stolen or vandalised.

If you use the bike as a practical means of transport, you'll probably want a city-bike, with wheels that can go up and down of pavements, cross tram lines, or as is the case for me, going on dirt roads. You also want to look at practical items like mud guards (If you don't have mud guards, you have to plan on changing clothes when you arrive at work.) , or baggage rack. (You'll arrive a lot less sweaty at work if you put your stuff on the rack, than if you use a ruck sack.)

--tor

Thanks for good advice - i have looked in Intersports France and Switz so far and found the Swiss prices to be crazily expensive, hence me starting a thread last week. I do have a trip planned to UK soon, so maybe will check out bikes there.

Thanks Fabrizio - for your advice as well. Will check out decathlon website as well.

Thanks tor - i will need to consider mudguards and a baggage rack. Also, i need to correct myself - i did own a bike when i was 14 yrs old which i went on a 6 week bike trip around Wales, but since that time i have never ridden a bike and aloty has changed in the past 20+ years.

Thanks Kev for the post - you have provided alot of very useful information on different types of bikes - so at least i now have a list of good bike makes.

If you only have CHF 1,500 to spend you can put aside makes like Trek, Specialized, Kona, GT etc.   Those manufacturers all make high end bikes and while they no doubt have more low end you're likely to pay a premium for the name and not something the non-cyclist is going to get perceived value from - so the bang for buck might be questionable, however if you manage within that budget you'll have bought it from a reputable dealer and he will look after you.  If you buy second hand that might change things slightly but I doubt it.  

Don't go to france and buy a bike at CHF 500 it will be a piece of crap and badly made and will not endure 10km a day over time (i've done it and everything gets loose and the material are poor quality - bolts with threat, wear etc, etc. 

If you're a none cyclist then get a hybrid bike ie road tires but straight bars and if you can see if you can get disk brakes great for the wet but not essential normal breaks will be fine.

Concretely do the following.   1) Buy a bike new from a shop reasonably close to you they will take care of you when there is a problem, and do so quickly.  There are shops that will service bikes that you have not brough from them but they're not very pleasant when doing this and may charge you more.   2) Go to www.hotpoint.ch and ask for Serge (he's French and English) and tell him I sent you he might do something on the price or throw in some extras - they have a wide range of what you're looking for. 

Enjoy the bike.

M.

PS UK might be cheaper, but are you going to be making false enconomies?  If you're happy to spend up to CHF1,500 buy in Switzerland don't be cheap after all that's the place that feeds you (Karma my friend).   Also there's no such thing as the "Best makes and models" they're all different, each manufacturer has his style and design and then his brand which will influence the more informed.  So with a big buget in excess of CHF 10,000 once you've lashed out on the High Modularity Carbon Frame, and Carbon Wheels you'll want get a  group set made primarily by Shimano, Campagnolo and SRAM, what you'll pay for is essentially based on weight and materials.  The more expensive the group the lighter because they use carbon, titanium and titanium alloy.  The cheaper groupos will use aluminium but be heavier and as you go even lower the quality of the aluminium will reduce in time decreasing the life span of a groupo.  That said you could do 50,000km on a mid range shimano groupo these days ie Ultegra (upper-mid) or 105 low mid (I have the articles to proove it). 

Alternatively try https://www.ochsnersport.ch/fr  they do stoke (german made I believe) and also best second hand website : www.anibis.ch, but you may have to speak french to deal with some sellers. 

"after all that's the place that feeds you"

good to know that some people still have a good mentality... respect.

@ james: your welcome... and i still think like Maurice, a daily use of 20km needs a minimum of quality, at least for your comfort, and I'm also to support little shops for ethic reason and for also because they really know what they sell instead of big ones where it's more difficult to find a good technician, those i met there were students and never stayed for long time... when you pay cheap you always finish by paying twice.

I bought a "trasher" for 400 CHF at SportXX Balexert five years ago. It's still in good shape and I have been extensively cycling with it.

Would rather invest in a D-lock and a bell.

I have a lovely Colnago racing bike for sale if you are interested...

Phil, at CHF 1,500?  Count me it!  Drop handlebars not the best if you're not use to them though.  

> Please don't go to Decathlon and pay less than 500CHF for a bike. Q. If you were in the UK, would you buy a bike from Halfords or go to a "proper" bike shop? No, thought not - buying from Decathlon is the same as buying from Halfords.

I'm sorry that is nonsense. I'm not suggesting that you should buy a Decath bike but they have their own R&D and have come up with a lot of innovations in bike design. They also make their own bikes, some in France and are opening a new factory near their R&D facility in Lille so soon all Decathlon bikes will be made in France. Compare that to Cannondale or Specialized which are basically US design made in Taiwan. If you want to include Taiwanese brands then why not mention Giant?

For commuting I would consider a hub gear such as a Nexus 8, I used to commute to St Julien to the airport on such a steed. In this case consider a Giant or Felt city bike or maybe an Orbea (from Spain Ole).

Get a fixie if you want to get fit and supple

http://www.feltbicycles.com/Switzerland/2011/Fixie/FIXIE-Series/CURBSIDE.aspx

Hi!

I'm a full time bicycle messenger (la Vélopostale, call 321 18 28 if you need any deliveries!) who does 400-550km a week, every week, snow or shine.

I ride a cyclocross bike, which looks like a beefed up race bike.  It's almost as fast as race bike, much sturdier and reliable, can take much bigger tires and, best of all, can have two sets of brake levers, one on the drop bars and one on the top of the bars (really great for traffic!).  People say that they're great for commuting!  Here's a link with some good picks (like Kona Jake)

http://www.tredzblog.co.uk/2010/01/top-5-cyclocross-commuters.html

I do happen to be selling a great fixed gear though, if you're into that kind of thing (it's not for everybody).

http://www.glocals.com/classifieds/goods-for-sale/32396.htm&search_reset=1

When I lived in Paris I used to ride singlespeed all the time, my daily commute was from the town center out to Puteaux near la Defense but Geneve has some wicked hills. I rode up the Rampe de Pont Rouge today, like, don't run the road straight up the slope but zig-zag a bit guys, we're not in San Francisco.

Nasty cycling conditions today, cold rain and a lot of cross winds, esp. on the Pont Butin.

That said cycling is practically the only sane means to get around Geneva. The traffic system ranks with Calcutta in terms of logic and planning.

Thanks for the advice

Yes Decathlon is cheaper. But 500 CHF will not buy you a decent bicycle. If you want to cycle 20 km every day (=4000 km per year), you should not only spend more but also look for a bicycle dealer that will care about maintenance. If you do not know about bicycle maintenance you will definitely need assistance for that. If you live near the border you could as well choose a French dealer - but you will have to bring the bike if something is broken.

Also buy a good lock (U-Type and 50-100 CHF).

Jörn

yes, maintenance is an issue ... I have been asked 80 CHF this year, just to check brakes, gears and tyres pressure :-/

counting that I paid my bicycle less than 300 CHF ... I'd better sell it as second hand at 150 CHF and buy a new one every year :-D

ciaociao

PS: does anybody want a one y.o. Decathlon MTB for 150 CHF ? ;-) :-P

From what ive read it seems a hybrid is what you need. A good range of gears with thin tyres and flat handlebars and all the mud guard accessories you could want.   Whatever you do you need to go to your local bike shop and consult them. Even if you dont buy from there theyll give you advice and youll have a place to take it when it needs repairs. Serge at Hotpoint is a really good guy, speaks perfect english and he knows what hes talking about.