Quote:
Originally Posted by dongs
Some good advice. CL is a bit of a crapshoot for bikes I've noticed. Well it's really a crapshoot on everything 
Something like this?
And unfortunately I'm kind of stuck where I live; the rent is affordable and it's close to school for me and work for my girlfriend. I was at a closer job site until recently when I wanted to transfer. Things just got a little too dysfunctional at my old job site and I had to get out of there! |
Free Spirit roadies are not great, but would work for a while. There were so many companies making bikes back then I can't even scratch the surface, but Cannondale, Raleigh, Peugeot, Miyata, Nishiki, [lugged] Schwinn Approved, Panasonic, Trek and many more would be just fine. If you don't recognize a brand, just google it, and if all that comes up is complaining on Bike Forums, investigate further before considering.
I have owned three Schwinn Varsities and they are good bikes, but the brakes are annoying to adjust and the frames are just unnecessarily heavy (but beautiful). As stated above, chrome rims basically do not work for wet braking. You might think I'm kidding, but it's seriously scary. If you go with something a few years newer with aluminum rims you'll just get a better all-around bike.
I would recommend getting something for closer to $100, and look for something someone has put money into and recently ridden, as also said above. But yes. I like working on bikes and making sure stuff is up to par, but it would be smarter to buy one someone has maintained. Either way, budget for putting $30-50 into it no matter what, plus a saddle if you don't like the one on it.
As for your living situation, you can only do what you can do, and it looks like you're making the most out of it.
