Advice on buying used vs new

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woodymckenzie

New Member
This is my first post. I'm considering buying a Cruzbike mainly for rails to trails and greenways around and near Roanoke, VA, where I live. I have a gravel bike and a mountain bike which I enjoy, but would like to do longer rides that are easier on my body. For example, one dream is bikepacking the GAP Trail. I've spent a lot of time poking around reading about Cruzbikes, but most everything seems biased one way or the other. The main question I have is whether older bikes are all that different from the latest model in terms of how well they function. How much improvement has occurred over the years? Is a model from few years ago essentially the same as the current model? Are even older models worth considering? Would other "legacy" models work for bikepacking dirt and gravel trails? Also, one of my favorite workouts is riding up to the Star on Mill Mountain here in Roanoke. It's an 800 ft climb that is about 2 1/2 miles and varies in steepness. It takes me about 40 minutes geared very low, which is pretty slow. Would that be doable on a Q45? Thanks for any info/advice you might be able to offer!
 
Tuloose

Tuloose

Guru
My wife & I biked from WA DC on the C&O canal trail and the GAP on our recumbent tandem many years ago, before I got into Cruzbikes. There were 2 other bent riders along, a lady on an Easy Racers and a young guy on a trike.
I wouldn't hesitate to ride the GAP today on a Cruzbike. I would choose my T50 with it's beefy 26" tires and panniers on the rear rack but a Q45 would work as well.
I use my T50 for gravel and rail trail rides and it works very well. It doesn't perform well on gnarly singletrack.
 
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CruzRider

Well-Known Member
The Q45 is a great option for paved or packed rail trails. It is my favorite of all the models because it is so comfortable and still fast enough. I also have T50, but only used that for shorter rides - 2 hour.

However, if the trail has loose gravel, I would not recommend either. Other people have done this though, just not my cup of tea. i think anny recumbent offers fewer options for bike handling that would typically get you out of trouble on a DF.

The Cruzbike 100 mile offer is a great option. It makes buying New a no-brainer.

If you want to put in some time in to the process, buying used is also great. You can always sell here with limited loss.

I highly recommend getting a newer (2022 or so) Q45 with Thru Axles. Much easier to change a flat if you need to.

Happy riding.
 
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Mathew Fy

Mathew Fy

GRU
Any Cruzbike will handle the GAP easily. If you extent on the C&O towpath to Washington DC then an S40 or Q45 would be my choice.
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Mathew's bike tours.

My first tour as a recumbent rider was last year. https://forum.cruzbike.com/threads/cycle-adirondacks’-second-annual-tour-2016.11307/ I was able to go on two bike tours this summer. The 31st Annual Shoreline West Tour is a seven day, 386 mile ride along Lake Michigan from Montague to Mackinaw...
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woodymckenzie

New Member
Thanks for your helpful replies so far! According to Cruzrider, I'm assuming that Thru Axles aren't on pre 2022 models. Except for ease of changing a flat, do they significantly improve the bike's performance? I'm not a gearhead and wonder whether I would even know or be able to tell any difference riding an older bike or a newer one. Are the newer bikes all that much better in terms of comfort and efficiency?
 
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Donald48

New Member
I bought a used QX100 a few years ago. It has proven all of Cruzbike's claims about ride comfort. I don't even wear padded bike shorts on it. I recently bought a new Q 45. I do not think I would have bought the new bike without the very successful experience with the QX100. Cruzbikes are expensive and I would not have taken that leap of faith with out that experience. With that being said, I don't see how you can go wrong with a used bike. There is a learning curve to a Cruze bike. A used bike would allow you to learn to ride it with less at risk and no time constraints and no expense of returning a new one. If, like me, you have a good experience and want a new one, you can sell the used one.
All of that being said, I think the Cruz bike is great for rail trails. We ride rail trails and state park trails. We have ridden the rail trail from Slidell, LA to Mandeville and back; the Chief Ladiga trail in Alabama, the Battle ground park trail in Brownsville, Texas and others. Rail trails have gentle grades which suits me. I think the Cruzbike does great on long not-very-steep grades but not so much on steep grades or "surprise" climbs where you can't keep your speed up. Buying a used bike would let you decide how it suits your riding. Long rail trails - great; steep switchbacks on the hills around Roanoke - not so much.
I bought a Thor seat for my Q45. Once I get that mounted and a few bugs worked out my QX100 might be available but that won't be for a couple of months.
Good luck
 
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woodymckenzie

New Member
Donald48 said:
I bought a used QX100 a few years ago. It has proven all of Cruzbike's claims about ride comfort. I don't even wear padded bike shorts on it. I recently bought a new Q 45. I do not think I would have bought the new bike without the very successful experience with the QX100. Cruzbikes are expensive and I would not have taken that leap of faith with out that experience. With that being said, I don't see how you can go wrong with a used bike. There is a learning curve to a Cruze bike. A used bike would allow you to learn to ride it with less at risk and no time constraints and no expense of returning a new one. If, like me, you have a good experience and want a new one, you can sell the used one.
All of that being said, I think the Cruz bike is great for rail trails. We ride rail trails and state park trails. We have ridden the rail trail from Slidell, LA to Mandeville and back; the Chief Ladiga trail in Alabama, the Battle ground park trail in Brownsville, Texas and others. Rail trails have gentle grades which suits me. I think the Cruzbike does great on long not-very-steep grades but not so much on steep grades or "surprise" climbs where you can't keep your speed up. Buying a used bike would let you decide how it suits your riding. Long rail trails - great; steep switchbacks on the hills around Roanoke - not so much.
I bought a Thor seat for my Q45. Once I get that mounted and a few bugs worked out my QX100 might be available but that won't be for a couple of months.
Good luck
Click to expand...
Thanks--this is very helpful! This makes me feel like buying used is a practical route. I'm assuming the Thor seat is an upgrade from the stock seat? Or is it just that the stock seat doesn't fit you?
 
D

devonian

Member
Tuloose said:
My wife & I biked from WA DC on the C&O canal trail and the GAP on our recumbent tandem many years ago, before I got into Cruzbikes. There were 2 other bent riders along, a lady on an Easy Racers and a young guy on a trike.
I wouldn't hesitate to ride the GAP today on a Cruzbike. I would choose my T50 with it's beefy 26" tires and panniers on the rear rack but a Q45 would work as well.
I use my T50 for gravel and rail trail rides and it works very well. It doesn't perform well on gnarly singletrack.
Click to expand...
I'm curious - what recumbent tandem did you and your wife ride?
 
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