go-anywhere bikes

>>817833
>clipless pedals
>on hard trails
I think that's a death sentence.

>>817920
>downhill pedals
>death sentence
you know nothing

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>>817966
Mostly just bmx. But aren't those the pedals you need the shoes that lock in? If that's the case, I heard they are very unforgiving. I always see MTB dudes riding BMX platform pedals.

>never owned a bicycle
>decide it's time
>go to /n/
>turns out getting a bicycle is extremely complicated

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>>817833
Everything is acceptable except fatbike. These are meme shit and will be gone in 3-5 years. I would go rigid 29" w/ flat bars and a 2x10. A used 26" will be vastly cheaper though.
>>818017
don't forget expensive- my budget build ended up being over $2k.

>>817833
Depends on where you are biking and how much distance you want to cover. I have biked all around Canada and US on 26"x1.5" tires, can do mostly anything except gnarly singletrack and deep gravel/sand.

>>818033
>my budget build ended up being over $


No good reason a first bike should cost more than a few hundred bucks on craigslist.
Just do some research and get one. Once you know a bit more, sell it and get a new one. Repeat until you are happy with the bike.

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>>818017
That place is dumb. You don't need to build a custom bike. Go to a bike shop, see what type of bike ad size they reccommend for you, and spend $300-$2000 on a bicycle.

You can start cheap and as you start breaking shit or stuff wears out. You can buy new parts that you like. Before you know it, the frame is the only stock thing left on the bicycle. And then you can replace that when you want and use all the existing parts (minus little shit you should change with a new frame like headsets and crank bearings).

That's basically what I did with the BMX bikes. Going out and building a custom bike from the start with no experience or without knowing preferences is dumb.

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>>818045
Thats not my first bike but it was my first frame up build. I still have my first real bike from 18 yrs ago.

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>>817833
Cyclocross or BTFO.
About to set off on a tour form Philly to Asheville in August with my Kona Jake.

>>818048

I wouldn't say dumb, most of what I see there boils down to "l2google".

And if you have an idea of what you want already, it's still cheaper to just buy the high end model.

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>>817920
>I think that's a death sentence.
That's because you're just a BMX rat who doesn't know anything about real bikes or real riding.

>>817833
Rigid. 700C, so I can run road or 'cross or 29er tires. Steel. Shimano derailleurs. Like a Soma Wolverine.

>>818101
If you already have an idea of what you want you can almost never just buy it off the shelf. That's why people spend more to build their own bikes.

>>818123

Most people only really change saddles, handlebars and *maybe* cassettes.

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>>818123
So these pedals and shoes are a good idea for a go-anywhere bike for anon who wants to ride to work one day, ride rough trails the next, and take to his favorite backpacking spot on the weekend?

If anon wants to eat shit the second day and carry around an extra pair of shoes the third, sounds like a great idea.

You're saltiness gets in the way of common sense. You shouldn't let your emotiona take hold of you like that anon.

Meh, I feel safer in my Shimano SPDs than any sort of platform pedal.

I think it's just a matter of getting used to it.

>>817833

TLDR version: buy a cross bike

> frame
Doesn't matter

>gears
Derailleur, just in the rear, and SRAM because I like the ergos. Shimano works fine though.

>pedals
SPD

>wheel size
This is mostly masturbation and/or bike companies/magazines trying to get people to buy new bikes.

>fork
Rigid. I like my shock absorption in my tires, but I don't ride huge bumps much at all.

>bars
The curly type like they use in the Tour de France

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>>817833
there's really no such thing as an all purpose bike, just like there's no all purpose car- they all have advantages and disadvantages which become pronounced or quieted by the terrain/task at hand.

That said, I'm guilty of having once owned 14 bikes at a time. Only two were nice, the rest garbage/beginner tier but THEY ALL HAD A SPECIAL PURPOSE. I finally wisened up and sold/gave away most of them and am much happier.

To me, the swiss army knife of bikes would be a steel 29"/700c disc brake bike with enough braze ons/attachment points for fenders AND racks, front and back. I'd go with a cyclocross geometry over anything else personally. It'd be ideal for road riding of any variety and comfortable enough to tour. It could also handle single track, and easier mountain/dirt applications. Could I rock a terrain park? No. Could I downhill? No. Could I race track or even dream of holding someone's wheel in a peloton? Nope.

If you were to travel to another country (especially 3rd world/undeveloped areas) go with 26" as it's ubiquitous around the world. Also go with cantilever brakes- they're the easiest to rig/find parts for. You could possibly cut a bit of tire to use for a brake pad if needed. Discs are just so nice, esp with extra weight of touring.

Don't know the current state of forks, but last time I checked, locking suspension forks didn't lock as well as I wanted them to. It's also just another thing to break. I love the feel of a rigid mountain bike too, so bear that in mind.

Handlebars are such a preference thing, I'll leave it at that.

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Speaking as someone who has been on a 600 mile bike tour I found that the wrong handlebar setup will cause you enough pain to break you down and take a bus ride home. Absolute showstopper.

I refuse to ride a multi-day ride without a bar setup similar to this:
Flat bars with an 11 degree sweep
Profile Design long bar ends with the sideways hand position and the forward position

It's something you can only find out through a long trial-and-error process, but you simply must have multiple ways to rest your hands on a bike because any position will get uncomfortable after a while.

>>818216
Cantilevers suck compared to v-brakes imho. And they are easier to service and find parts for these days.

>>818210
idiot

>>818417
>creative criticism
Gotta love dissenting opinions on the internet!

>>818216
modern forks and shocks lock out rock solid and cantis? nigga u srs?

>>818430
not everybody needs suspension, just like not everybody needs training wheels.

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I'll be totally honest with you guys here. The objectively correct answer is a rigid steel MTB with a 7 speed Shimano hyperglide drivetrain. You can find one on craiglist for $100

And the pinnacle of these is the Specialized Stumpjumper. Look at this puppy here. Look at the long wheelbase with ample heel clearance for panniers. Look at the double butted Tange chromoly tubing. Look at all the braze ons for racks and fenders. Look at the beautiful double crown fork. This bike must have been the result of Specialized's best designers coming together and asking themselves "if we were to design the perfect bike without giving consideration to the demands of your typical average retarded consumer, what would it look like?"

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>>818226
tried butterfly bars? They look hideous, but I really enjoyed them on my journeys in Romania before switching to drop bars. Anything but flat bars

>>818210
>Rigid. I like my shock absorption in my tires, but I don't ride huge bumps much at all.
when you go down fast you might really need the telescopes and they can be locked out if you don't want to use them like going uphill.
it can really save your life to have better contact with uneven ground on forest trails.

or you can just go slow like granpas.

Random question here,

I haven't owned a real bike in years because I think I outgrew the frame on my last bike, and every time I used it I got massive back / neck pain (I'm 6'4", was using a medium or maybe a large cannondale mountain bike frame).

Nowadays I only rent hybrid bikes when I go on vacation, so obviously they're not fitted.

Is it normal to get bad back / neck pain 20 minutes into a bike ride, or is that the result of poor bike fit?

It seems the only way to make the back pain go away is to sit up as straight as I can, but if I do that then my hands can't reach the handlebars.

How can I fix this?

>>819042
Definitely a result of poor bike fit. Someone of your size would probably be riding an XL frame. I'm 5' 11" and ride a large frame. I'm not surprised at all that you've got pain going on from riding a medium...

>>817980
OP is requesting specs for a bike that'll need to take him over long distances, which means that clipless is the preferable option. I honestly prefer flats, but I tend to only ride 3-5 miles at a time, and I do a lot of stupid shit.

>>818430
I was about to say, I have a locking fork and it doesn't budge in the slightest. To be fair though I don't lock it all that often.

>>817920
Having your feet bounce on and off the pedals is more of a death sentence.

You'd be surprised at how much control is derived from your feet.

>>819072
not to mention that with practice, anyone can learn to get in and out of clipless just as fast as platforms.

>>819072
>>819091
Some good platform pedals can be really damn sticky

Depends what OP is going to use the bike for the most. If we assume OP is going to be riding 20+ miles at a time like this anon assumed >>819058 then clipless are probably the way to go. Since this is /out/ and OP said "Adventure Bike" I would assume he wants to take it to /out/ spots and do /out/ things once he gets there. Not sure if MTB trails fit into this, but if OP is going to do a lot of hiking, hopefully he doesn't mind carrying around an extra pair of shoes or boots all day.

>>819042
6'3 here also riding a large frame 26"
there are special circumstances when it comes in handy, but mostly it's just way too hard. especially going up.

>>818437
sure you don't need it for the city and paved roads. going down in the dirt roads across stones ditches and roots you can die if you get disconnected from the road.