step-through frames

[youngoldbloke]

So is it really just the "female"-tag that puts people off? Sad. I thought we'd made more progress...

I suspect the reality is that step through frames simply do not sell nowadays - if the demand was there it would be catered for.

 

[alecstilleyedye]

mixte ('female') frames are also useful to gents who are no longer as nimble as they once were, i'm told.

 

[Hilldodger]

I think the two go together don't they? I am sure that if the demand was there it would be catered for by the big brands and the retailers. However it is interesting that there are more and more bikes like the AfricaBike available, marketed as utility bikes and not sex-specific. For hybrids, maybe the demand is catered for by there being very little difference - a few cm. maybe - between some of the steeply sloped compact hybrid frames and their female-specific version. For a more expensive bike I am sure a step through frame makes it less easy to sell second hand, though 'pre-owned' WS road-bikes are always in demand.
In fact I get the impression that there are more and more womens' road-bikes available, but that is more a question of size and proportion - correct fit - not step through frames.

We can't get enough loop frames bikes at Cyclemagic - either new or secondhand - but then, we sell people what they want and not what we can get a good deal on from the wholesalers or to hit our sales tagets.

 

[youngoldbloke]

We can't get enough loop frames bikes at Cyclemagic - either new or secondhand - but then, we sell people what they want and not what we can get a good deal on from the wholesalers or to hit our sales tagets.

- a marketing opportunity for someone then .....

 

[Hilldodger]

being sorted at the moment

 

[Globalti]

I'm told that a step-through frame is likely to be heavier than a two-triangle frame because in engineering terms the frame is such a bad shape, it has to resist the bending moment caused by the rider's weight being suspended between the two wheels so it has to be made considerably stronger and therefore much heavier than a two-triangle, which can be made light by virtue of its almost perfect shape.

 

[GrahamG]

The other advantage given is that if you want to sell the bike on again at some point in future, there's more of a market for gents bikes so you'll find it easier to sell.

...and the disadvantage of that is that it's mostly men's bikes that get nicked - my LBS recommends a ladies bike to everyone if they live in a high theft area, and they hear about stolen bikes a lot as the only place to deal in second-hand bikes.

 

[summerdays]

I know a female friend who has always ridden standard diamond frame bikes but she is finding that it is getting harder mounting and dismounting. She has started mentioning that she thinks she will go for a step through frame next time.

As for the nickability of them... hmm I think some thieves don't care what their bike looks like - but it probably does put off some ...but I suspect a Pashley would still disappear quite quickly.

 

[Jaguar]

I ride a gent's frame Galaxy, and a ladies frame Raleigh Jaguar (£330 online, RRP £500). I find that some people think the drop handlebarred Galaxy is a bit aggressive, so sometimes I wear a dress and ride the Jaggy, it depends what mood I'm in, and how much aggro I want on my ride


PS. I find it easier to mount the gent's frame if I do a high kick over my handlebars instead of swinging a leg over the rear