http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Topic: Any Edinburgh Pashley owners out there? en Wed, 13 May 2026 05:44:32 +0000 http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159136 Wed, 09 Jul 2014 14:22:05 +0000 bueller 159136@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I love you people!! Thanks for all the fab advice</p> <p>As a matter of fact I visited the Co-op and Evans last night, couldn't even lift the Pashley in Co-op not a great sign - what a BEAST it is though (swoon....)</p> <p>Looked at the Metropole in Evans - hmmm not sure, seems a bit flimsy....</p> <p>Walked back via BikeTrax and it was shut, so with my nose pressed against the glass (probably on their CCTV now) I spotted their selection of fancy girls bikes, might need to visit soon! </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159125 Wed, 09 Jul 2014 13:16:26 +0000 Stickman 159125@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Bueller, to echo the above advice:</p> <p>I was in BikeTrax at lunchtime and they have a good selection on display at the moment: Pashley Princess and Poppy, Dawes Duchess and several different Bobbins. They all look really nice so I'm sure that one of them will be just what you're after. </p> <p>Remember that a mooch about to drool over new bikes often becomes a purchase! </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159119 Wed, 09 Jul 2014 12:01:17 +0000 Baldcyclist 159119@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>^^ Yep, do that. I got my Pashley from Evans, wasn't particularly well put together. If I had known at time BikeTrax were a stockist I would happily have given them my money instead. Had good customer service from BikeTrax when (eventually) not buying a Brooks saddle. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159118 Wed, 09 Jul 2014 11:41:06 +0000 fimm 159118@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>bueller, go to BikeTrax too:<br /> <a href="http://www.biketrax.co.uk/index.php" rel="nofollow">http://www.biketrax.co.uk/index.php</a><br /> they have Pashleys and other bikes like that. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159114 Wed, 09 Jul 2014 10:52:33 +0000 gembo 159114@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>As<br /> With the other thread the three speed is I believe more reliable than the five speed and if the bottom gears are the same then I would go three. I need to stand to get up dundas street on my three speed.</p> <p>Possible to take a longer route to avoid the hill? Heavy bikes good for bowling along on the flat and downhill of course. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159049 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 15:24:44 +0000 bueller 159049@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>oh Iratesheep that's very kind!! </p> <p>Thanks again to you all for indulging my 'retro bike fetish' </p> <p>The Bobbin Birdie and Metropole all look good too, might have to mooch around Evans/Co-op this week so I can drool over new bikes :-) </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159045 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 14:59:45 +0000 Stickman 159045@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p><a href="http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=746&amp;page=131#post-117530">I can confirm that Iratesheep's Pashley Poppy is lovely. </a> </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159038 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 14:33:08 +0000 Stickman 159038@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Sounds like whatever you decide you'll have made a good decision! It's a nice position to be in! </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159034 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 14:11:27 +0000 kaputnik 159034@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p><em>I don't have any experience of hub brakes - but I imagine someone on here does.</em></p> <p>You will stop. The feel of them is different, they don't suddenly "bite" if you pull hard on the brakes, more progressive to slow and the braking power increases as you hold the lever, but they are effective. And better than rim brakes in the wet for sure. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159031 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 13:58:08 +0000 Baldcyclist 159031@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I have a Parabike which I use for shopping, and commuting if I get the train in. And my wife has a Little Black Bike which she loves. I think the 3 speed gearing on her bike is better than the 5 on mine. If anything I prefer riding her bike.</p> <p>The Little black bike is a cut down Sovereign, Poppy Spec with Sovereign looks from what I can tell.</p> <p>We live in Burntisland which is essentially on the side of a hill, and she manages on that pretty well. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159028 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 13:50:44 +0000 Baldcyclist 159028@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>The Bobbin Birdie is a pretty bike, and the pannier rack looks nice on that bike.</p> <p>But if you covet a Brooks saddle, by the time you have bought one the price becomes pretty similar. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159027 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 13:44:09 +0000 Iratesheep 159027@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Yes! I own/ride a Pashley Poppy. 3 gear, SA hub, hub brakes and I totally love it. I got it secondhand at soulcyle and I spent ages deciding if three gears wouldn't be enough. In the end I bit the bullet, and got it. It was the first bicycle I had owned in ten years. No regrets. </p> <p>Hubbed gears means acceleration from lights and junctions is easy.</p> <p>However - I do push it up Dundas street, the constant stopping at lights is just too much like hard work most days. YMMV, it is not a common route for me. </p> <p>I cycle it most days, including rain and snow because the enclosed brakes and gearing stay reliable.</p> <p>The Poppy is a little lighter (because it lacks some things) than the Britannia and Sovereign, but I tend to overload the front basket with ridiculous quantities of shopping and if it was stolen I would replace it with a near identical model (rear rack this time).</p> <p>I am more than happy to let you have a go on it if you like, let me know, you can take it out for a long ride.<br /> (I am madly evangelical about it) </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159025 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 13:41:55 +0000 SRD 159025@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Don't want to say anything against pashley - I love the look of them myself - but I do think a bobbin birdie might be a good call. There are two of them regularly locked up along my commute, and I always admire them. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159017 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 12:48:12 +0000 Stickman 159017@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I mentioned in the other thread that my wife has a Bobbin Birdie. This could be a cheaper (and lighter!) alternative to a Pashley. They also do similar step-through bikes with derailleurs, so could offer wider gear options. </p> <p>I've also got a Bobbin (the Daytripper) with the Sturmey Archer 3 speed hub. I changed the sprocket to make hills a bit easier and I'm now really pleased with it. </p> <p>One of the chaps in the Bicycle Works was very impressed with the build quality of the Bobbin - his view was that it was as well made as a Pashley. </p> <p><a href="http://www.bobbinbikes.co.uk">Bobbin Bikes. </a></p> <p>Perhaps something to consider? BikeTrax stock both Pashley and Bobbin, so maybe look at them both. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159016 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 12:37:26 +0000 Morningsider 159016@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Nice looking bikes - but they are seriously heavy. The Pashley Soverign is almost 45lb! A veritable Blue Whale in bike terms. Personally, I wouldn't fancy riding that up Dundas Street - regardless of the gearing. </p> <p>Also, given you have such a hilly route, it is worth considering how good the brakes are for the steep descents. I don't have any experience of hub brakes - but I imagine someone on here does. </p> <p>I agree with IWRATS - get used to cycling on what you have before committing to a new bike. You might well go off the idea of a classic roadster style once you find what sort of cycling you like. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159013 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 12:16:04 +0000 I were right about that saddle 159013@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>If I were you I'd keep your current bike until you are confident and riding the stuff you want to ride. Without noticing, you will have become fitter than you are now.</p> <p>At that point, note the gears you are using and you know what you need from a new bike. <em>Voilà!</em></p> <p>The first corner on the way up the Mound is one of the steepest bits of Edinburgh, but quite cyclable. The gear you need there is probably the lowest gear you'll ever need. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159006 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 11:45:10 +0000 kaputnik 159006@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I have a 3-speed Sturmey hub bike, chainring is 44T. I can get it up most hills in Edinburgh, but it can be a bit of a chore on the steeper ones involving standing up and a slow slog using lots of leg strength. It's not the lightest bike in the world but it would be certainly lighter than a Pashley.</p> <p>I think you'd be good to try and get a test ride on the 3-speed. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-159004 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 11:37:50 +0000 wingpig 159004@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p><blockquote><em>"Would a 3 gear Pashley get me around Edinburgh?"</em></blockquote></p> <p>Depends what the lowest gear is. In conjunction with the other thread it should be possible to check the gearing on the items of interest, comparing them with what you have at the moment to see if it's be easier or harder on slopes.</p> <p>The Dawes is a 38-tooth chainring, with 14-28 cassette and 26*1 3/8 tyres. Unfortunately, Pashley don't give their chainring sizes and only state the wheel diameter (26") without the tyre size, so comparison will require some Googlework and possibly counting the teeth on the chainrings on the pictures.<br /> The Britannia's 5-speed SA is an XRD-5[W]. The Princess Sovereign is <a href="http://www.pashley.co.uk/cms/pdf/PASHLEY_CAT_UK_AUGUST_2013_low_res.pdf">purportedly the same</a>, with the non-Sovereign Princess an Sturmey Archer XRD-3.</p> <p>It would also be possible to pop to a shop with them on display and physically compare the number of pedal-rotations-to-wheel-rotations of their lowest gears. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=13113#post-158997 Tue, 08 Jul 2014 10:38:52 +0000 bueller 158997@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I'm in the market for a new bike, I am looking at the Dawes Duchess (7 gears) Pashley Brittania (5 gears) or the Pashley Princess Sovereign (3 gears)</p> <p>Are there any lady Pashley riders out there? Would a 3 gear Pashley get me around Edinburgh? Would be cycle path riding initially but once my fitness/confidence improves I would probably want to cycle into town up Dundas St (yikes!!)</p> <p>Any ideas much appreciated, have already posted about gears already in another post so would love to hear from owners of any of the bikes above - ta very muchly . </p>