Cruiser bicycles have few if any gears, are designed for an upright riding position and feature a wide saddle and fat, soft tires, notes bike tour guide Dennis Bailey in "Bike Repair & Maintenance For Dummies." As a savvy shopper, you'll need to match the cruiser bike's features, designed to be ultra-comfortable, with how you plan to use the bicycle.
History
Cruiser bicycles first came out in the 1950s and 1960s and came back as a retro revival in the 1980s and 1990s, writes William Love in "Classic Schwinn Bicycles." The reissued cruisers featured soft seats and 2.125-inch balloon tires. Schwinn's Cruiser line featured a tank top tube, rear carrier, fenders and a spring fork. Schwinn's Cruiser Super Seven model, sold in 2001, featured a seven-speed internal shifting hub, controlled by a twist-grip shifter.
Expert Insight
Cruiser bicycles are designed for boardwalks, cycle paths, beaches and parks, writes Rory McMullan in "Biking to Work." Certain college campuses also supply them to be shared by students. Cruisers are typically brightly colored with shiny fenders. They come with one, three or seven speeds and sometimes have only a coaster brake on the back wheel.
Misconceptions
Cruisers are not always suitable for busy city streets. Their disadvantages include wide handlebars and, for many models, heavy steel frames that make them slow but conversely rugged and good exercise given their weight. Starting around 2005, manufacturers have offered models with more gears or V-brakes to be suitable for road use over short distances, McMullen notes.
Types
Trek and to an extent Raleigh sell high-end cruisers. The intermediate market is served by Schwinn, Raleigh, Nirve, Felt and Cadillac. Big-box stores carry Huffy, Pacific Cycle, Micargi and Polaris, the most affordable cruisers. As of October 2010, Raleigh offered men's and women's versions of its aluminum-frame Retroglide, a single speed, and Retroglide 7, with seven speeds. Raleigh's models have coaster brakes, no front derailleur and a Shimano rear derailler on the Retroglide 7. Raleigh also sells the Special, a steel-framed cruiser in men's and women's models with coaster brakes, as well as smaller girl's bikes, the Retro 16 and Retro 20.
Considerations
Trek, one of the Big Three U.S. bicycle manufacturers, offers three models, all with steel frames, a kickstand, fenders, 26-inch Bontrager wheels with 2.35-inch tires and a chain guard. The Classic Steel and the Cruiseliner have three speeds with coaster brakes, while the Calypso has seven speeds and V-brakes. Suggested retail prices range from $409 to $459 as of October 2010. Women's versions come in smaller frames with lower step-over top tubes in pink, gold or red finishes.
Identification
Schwinn's aluminum "Lifestyle" cruisers comprise 12 models, including the Hornet, Panther, Mark V and Corvette, with single speeds, three-speed internal shifters or seven speeds, at $219 to $459 as of October 2010. Its 13 steel cruisers comprise the "Classic" series; all have one gear and coaster brakes, ranging in price form the Willy at $299 to the Tango Tandem for two riders at $699 also as of October 2010.
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