Biking
Buy and sell bikes and cycling gear in Panama.
Every Sunday morning Avenida Balboa closes to cars, and the bikes that fill it say a lot about who rides in Panama: hybrids and kids’ bikes alongside road riders out early for laps of the Cinta Costera. Road bikes and hybrids come up new and pre-owned, next to BMX and folding bikes and the helmets and wheels that go with them. Many good used bikes come from riders who moved up to carbon or stopped riding after a few months, so asking when one was last serviced tells you more than the brand on the down tube.
Road bikes and the groupset that sets their price:
the frame gets the attention, but on a road bike the groupset, meaning the shifters, derailleurs, brakes and cranks, decides most of what you pay and how the bike feels. Shimano’s range climbs from Claris and Sora on entry bikes through 105 to Ultegra and Dura-Ace, with SRAM as the main alternative. Aluminium frames are cheaper and shrug off knocks; carbon is lighter and smoother on broken tarmac, but it hides damage. Disc brakes have replaced rim brakes on most newer bikes and stop far better on a wet road.
Hybrids, BMX and the bikes that fill Avenida Balboa on Sunday:
plenty of riders on the car-free morning are on hybrids, with flat handlebars, an upright position and tyres slim enough for tarmac and tough enough for potholes. They are the sensible choice for commuting and for the bike lane along the Amador Causeway. BMX bikes are built for tricks and pump tracks rather than distance, and a folding bike earns its place in a small apartment. Bikes with suspension for dirt trails are under mountain biking, and indoor trainers and spin bikes sit with exercise equipment.
Frame size before brand:
a well-fitted bike from a mid-range maker rides better than a premium one in the wrong size. Road frames are sized in centimetres, hybrid and mountain frames mostly in small, medium and large, and every maker draws its own chart, so check your height against the chart for that exact model and year. Trek, Specialized and Giant keep charts for older models online, which helps when a seller is not sure what size they own.
A road bike after a few seasons of early laps:
an aluminium road bike with a mid-range Shimano groupset is around $1,400 new in Panama, and from the big brands carbon with the same parts starts nearer $3,000. The aluminium one, two or three seasons on, tends to change hands for $700 to $900. Its next owner will need a chain, a cassette and tyres before long, the parts every road mile wears down, and Shimano renews its groupsets every few years, so the previous generation already looks dated. A receipt showing those parts were recently replaced puts a bike at the top of that band.
Checking a used frame from the bottom bracket up:
look first where the stress collects: around the bottom bracket, the head tube and the joints where the stays meet the seat tube. On aluminium, a crack starts as a fine dark line in the paint. On carbon, tap gently along the tubes with a coin; a dull, dead note in one spot can mean damage under the lacquer, and a bike that has been crashed hard deserves a mechanic’s look before you pay. Turn the cranks backwards and watch the chain: one that sags or skips, or chainring teeth worn into hooked points, means the drivetrain is due. Copies of big-name carbon frames come with convincing decals and give themselves away in rough moulding inside the bottom bracket shell or a missing serial number, which a genuine frame carries stamped underneath and an honest seller will show with the receipt. A top-end bike at an entry-level price, from a seller who cannot tell you its size, is one to leave where it is.
Listing a bike the buyer will want to ride first:
put the frame size, wheel size, material and groupset in the title, since those are what riders filter by. Photograph the drive side with the chain on the big ring, then the groupset, the tyres and any scratches. Say when it was last serviced and what was replaced, and whether pedals are included: road bikes often go without them, because riders keep their own clip-in pedals. A serious buyer will want a ride before paying, so meet somewhere with room: the Amador Causeway on a weekday morning is far quieter than on Sunday, and a road rider should bring their own pedals and shoes.