Free bikes

[Browser]

Have you ever managed to blag a free bike and how good a blag was it? A work colleague has just bought himself a new MTB (can' remember the make) for £600 and decided he didn't want his old one any more. Old one is a hardly used ali frame 21 speed MTB, cheapo factory bike with lots of steel bits (bars/bar stem, forks etc) but it was free and only needed a front gear cable, clean and chain scrub and a teensy bit of TLC.
What's your best blag?

 

[fossyant]

Lucky you. I've never been given anything......I've only ever had two bags of Harribo from Wiggle, and a Bottle Opener......sob...sob...sob......

 

[2Loose]

A steel framed mtb that needed a new front tyre and pedals when my last bike got nicked.
Deora and Mavic, but accordingly I put it back into the 'pool' when I got my cyclescheme replacement sorted out. It was handed out again to a needy soul 2 days later.

 

[Riverman]

Not free but I guess I picked up a bargain recently. A second hand Dawes Discovery 201 hybrid bike for a little under £60?

It's in ok condition but I've had to play around with the shifting.

 

[buzzy bee]

Hi

I got a free bike, and built it up on friday, not a racing bike, but it caused me to have a nasty accident, say no more, it is going on ebay now! I aint pushing my luck again!

Cheers

Dave

 

[gbb]

I saw a Y framed MTB outside a neighbours with a 'free to any home' stuck on it...collected promptly. Did my son for 9 months for work...it really was a cheap and cheerful bike, but it did its job.

Got a MTB with slicks off freecycle, cheap originally but it goes really well...replaced the worn out crankset with something i had in the shed...it's now providing the same service for my son.

I also put an old MTB out the front of the house with a 'free to take' piece of paper on it. Saw an immigrant riding it a few days later.

My best was an old Carlton Continental 531 framed racer donated my one of the wifes ex employers. he was clearing his garage and asked if she knew anyone that wanted it. Did me sterling commuting service for several years. Gave it to a Polish guy when i'd done with it...still in perfect working order. Wished i'd kept it after
Funnily enough, we were watching the Tour series when it came to Peterborough...and ended up standing next to her ex employer who'd donated it.

 

[jig-sore]

i got these two bikes for free when my mum cleaned out her garage. naff but free ...

 

[Browser]

Free is free, doesn't matter what they look like (well, up to a point anyway ).

 

[gbb]

i got these two bikes for free when my mum cleaned out her garage. naff but free ...

The second ones exactly the same one i got from a neighbour . Rear wheel always needed the cones doing, heavy, and the rear hub collapsed eventually. but as a bike, it did its bit.

 

[nuovo_record]

got an ali MTB - BB bearings were shot and needed a new freewheel - total expenditure £8.
also holdsworth super mistral frame, complete with.....suntour cyclone rear mech, cinelli bars and stem and a nice leather saddle - milram? mean anything?

 

[l4dva]

I have a bike that I need to get rid of! Still trying to work out what I want to do with it first though!

Its a steel raleigh mtb. I think the only real issue with it is the front gear mech, everthing else is fine, my mate did the brum to oxford 70 mile ride on it a few weekends ago. Would anyone here have any use for it?

 

[tyred]

I got an old sit up and beg bike for free recently. I cleaned it, lubricated it and fitted new front brake pads. I tend to use it if I want to ride to the shop or occasionally for a Sunday afternoon pootle. It's certainly not a high performance machine but is very comfortable to ride with a sprung saddle and has a chain guard so I can ride in my good jeans without bothering with clips and proper full sized, sturdy steel mudguards which make it ideal if the roads are dirty. May not be fashionable, it may have poor brakes but on the whole I like it for what it is. The fact that it was free makes it even better. I may splash out on some leather faced brake pads (if I can find any) to see if it will stop better.

 

[Joe24]

As it happens, yes.

Quiet hard to beleive i got it free

 

[Ben M]

A hybrid which I got off my granddad for commuting to uni on =] tidy little bike.

 

[alecstilleyedye]

i got this rather splendid vintage bike for gratis…

most of the componentry is quite sought after (chater-lea pedals, dh airlite hubs, bayliss wiler bb etc), the wheels were built by reg harris' mechanic, and the frame is a genuine pre-59 claud butler.

the brooks saddle i put on has cost a bit, as will the brooks bar tape and the tubs for the original wheels, but overall it's a fantastic free find.