[Lawson Raider]

You can get a used good quality bike on craigslist for about the same price as a new Wally Wolrd bike.

So if you are trying to convince your parents to get the $500 bike and they say well I'm about to get laid off you can have the $100 bike from Walmart, ask them to just give you the $100 instead and go looking on craigslist for a used Trek 820 or something like that.

A used quality 9 year old bike beats a brand new Wally World bike anyday of the week.

 

[Iridethedirt]

well since I already bought this:
can any one recomend things to upgrade that are in the greatest danger of breaking?

Like it was said before, upgrade as components break, or as they give you trouble enough to make your ride less than plesant. I wanted to get back into mountain biking after a ten year hiatus, my old bridgestone mb3 was trashed, i quit riding it, and then quit riding all together. I impatiently went to target and bought a schwinn S-60 DSX, and i started riding here and there. it was heavy, had the crummiest fork, and rear shock I'd ever experianced, and the rear deraileur grabbed the spokes one day and said bye bye.... luckily it didnt harm the drop-out. I ended up going through old parts and buying a lot of new ones because i could afford a little here, and a little there, and meanwhile i had a bike that let me go ride some singletrack. you have the same stem and handlebars that came on my bike, replace the stem, the angle of rise on the stem, combined with riser bars make for a twitchy ride at speed. the handlebars are heavy but they will work ok. if the bike gives you trouble shifting, and adjustment just doesnt seem to get it working well, replace the rear deraileur, if you have the cash, go ahead and upgrade the entire drivetrain, a decent crankset from raceface can be had for about 40 bucks give or take,
https://www.blueskycycling.com/view...utm_source=GoogleProductSearch&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=GoogleProductSearch
and will weigh less than half what the cranks that came on the bike do, not to mention are probably twice as strong, you will need a new bottom bracket however. a new better rear deraileur and shifters you can get for under 100. however, the shifting is probably ok, and if you're not breaking parts yet, i would say junk the fork and buy yourself something decent, a dart3, or maybe even go for a rockshox tora, the low end toras are pretty easy to find for about 170, and will further improve the bikes handling, as well as actually work as a suspension fork, the RSTs and OMNIs or whatever crap they put on those bikes are basically a glorified pogo stick. the wheels are another weak point, better than the steel wheels from years past, but not a whole lot stronger, ride that bike on some fun trails for a couple months, huck off a few little jumps and you'll have very out of true wheels. a decent wheelset can be had for about 130 bucks https://stores.channeladvisor.com/cbo/items/item.aspx?itemid=12476694

those few upgrades,
stem, fork, wheelset, crankset, deraileur, and shifters, probably will cost you more than you paid for that bike. but again, replace as they break, or become unbearable to use any longer.
that being said, a used bike with a lot of life left, with good parts on it, can be bought for 400 or less pretty easily.
oh, i almost forgot, go buy yourself a GOOD seat, that one is garbage, your butt will thank you after 10 miles on that harsh crummy seat.
so..... its up to you.

 

[Iridethedirt]

the sticker on the bike is there for a reason, the wheels, suspension and components and yes even the frame is not designed for off road use. with the suspension on these bike, you can easily loose control.
I post here to offer another point to counter few of people who rave about the Kmart bikes.
my first bike was a full suspension "97 Trek Y frame bike. this was a dangerouse bike off road as I found out riding on a down hill fire road, It was scarey. I crashed this bike on my fist ride about a block from my house due to silcon still on the tires. My point is you can easily crash anywhere, street, fireroads even in your driveway.
I encourage people to ride and have taken beginners out on their first ride. I still do not recomend Kmart, Target etc bikes for first timers. There is no one there to properly fit them, install wheels correctly, etc. I have received bikes with the wheels installed backward q/r on the right side.

HAHAHAHAHA.

ok. well here's a pic of my bike. its a department store schwinn with lots of upgrades. i have a new fork on the way to replace my blown out dart3. I rode this bike in the massanutten super D. i rode it in the wednesdays at wakefield series. through the summer i was putting down an average of 45 miles a week. i regularly take 2 to 3 foot drops/jumps. I hit 30 mph in an open (but bumpy) grassy field on a local trail. I am also a welder/fabricator and have studied metalurgy, as well as welding inspection. if anything, most of the frames on these pacific owned/built schwinns are OVERBUILT. they use straight wall tubing, and its normally fairly thick. they change up materials based on what is available, I've seen my bike built out of both 6061, AND 7005 series aluminum. i opted for the 7005 because i dont know if they heat treat the frames, but i would assume they do... you kind of have to with 6061 (welding takes approx. 50% of the tensile strength of the metal away, artificial aging/heat treating is required to restore the strength to the heat effected zones caused by welding) the frames are STILL TIG welded by hand in these pacific factories. I had that sticker that says "dont jump, or ride offroad" on my bike when i bought it. i called pacific and asked them what the reason for that sticker is. reading between the lines its essentially because, yes, the forks, and wheelsets are not expected to see serious offroad abuse. the frames however, just as i suspected, were not a concern.

I see people at wakefield park here in the DC metro area on all kinds of bikes. 5000 dollar carbon fiber multi-link long travel lightweight fancy as hell bikes, and 200 dollar mongooses from wally-world. my favorite is when i see a kid ripping it up on one of these el-cheapo bikes.... or better yet, watching them pass the weight weenie on his 20 lbs XC race bike......

bikes dont ride themselves, and while i completly understand the benefit and reason for GOOD parts/frames etc... I also understand that some people just want to ride, and are not patient enough to wait for that good craigslist deal, or build up that frame they got for a steal of a price... they want to RIDE NOW! and can you blame them for that? its about riding, not showing off your high dollar gear.... again, i get it, buy it nice or buy it twice, but in the end, isnt it about riding the dirt and having fun?
and btw: what the hell is wrong with a trek Y frame? those bikes were great fun, i rode one of those a few times, as well as a gary fisher level betty when those came out... tons of fun, quality bikes.... some guys can break anything and crash on anything... mash the gears while you shift and see how fast you go through chains/cassettes.... case logs when you try to hop them and see how many pinch flats you get, and how often your wheels need truing. ride smooth and these things dont happen.....
RIDER means more than BIKE

 

[Broccoli]

Good luck to all the teenagers who are trying to convince their parents that they need the $500 bike from the bike shop rather than the $100 bike from Target.

This thread is directed to parents, and generally to people with a clue.

I am sure my kids would not need to convince me in anything. My daughter started on a $300 balance/convertible 14" bike, and not because I have money to burn, but because nobody deserves suffering through some heavy, ugly crap and losing interest for the sport for the whole life..

As far as teenagers, putting a kid on a bike that can not be safely taken off-road is child endangerment. It is borderline criminal negligence.

 

[firstlast]

walmart schwinn aluminum comp le

I know someone's going to come by and bash my posting, but i've actually had somewhat of a positive experience w/ a dept store bike. now that's ONE bike, and maybe i got that one "Wednesday bike" but it was the first bike since i was a teenager riding a bmx/freestyle gt dyno and pro compe...

About 7 yrs ago, when i first moved to where i'm at now, this was before ebay was an option, and i wasnt familiar w/ the lbs, being too new to the area, i went out to the local walmrt one night after work and bought an aluminum schwinn comp le (or something similar), it was the nicest bike they carried at the time in my local store. It was light compared to some of the other cheaper bikes they had lined up next to it and fortunately fit me well. i think i paid about $170 for it. I'm 173lbs btw. I used it mainly on sidewalks 90% and bike paths and some light trails 10%. I made the purchase mainly because i wanted something fun to do and it also allowed me to explore the town, and also be active.

Anyways in the 7 years that i've owned it, i've done all the maintenance myself, (thanks to the extremely detailed owner's manual) which until the last year included only the brakes (5-6 times) and rear dérailleur (3? times)... only a handful of times. Now keep in mind most of my riding was done on smooth terrain But I rode the hell out of that thing and everywhere, I was in a new and growing town w/ no previous acquaintances (Our company was subcontracted to do the property management for the govt bldings in this new and growing area and so i was from out of state) which just means i had a lot of spare time. Caring for it meant, a wash down at my apt complex's car wash port once in awhile, and a liberal spraying of wd-40 or some silicone lubrication spray that we had laying around on all moving parts.... i know, i know...this was before i knew better. I also kept it stored outside in our screened in porch, summer, winter, whatever in florida. The point i'm making is that my care and treatment for it was though not horrible was"rugged". But as far as I knew it rode, shifted, and braked well and took me away and always faithfully got me back after an excursion.

It wasn't until this past year that I just wanted another bike. Nothing was really wrong w/ my old bike, but the wheels needed "slight" trueing but still rode fine, and i'd have hiccups getting into the highest and lowest gears, which honestly dont use that often anyways... and i just finally wanted a "nicer" bike.

Anyways, instead of doing the dept store thing over again which i did consider, (which did actually end up working out for me) i also looked at sports authority and dicks, but in the end I decided to get a nice bike from an lbs. i looked into the gary fisher, haros, and decided on a specialized rockhopper( i know its not the nicest or best but its the nicest i've ever owned and felt i could slowly build on) and I ended up getting a like new specialized rockhopper comp ridden a handful of times, w/ v brakes and deore and lx components for $300 from someone who perhaps had the money and decided they were more into road bikes than mountain bikes.... so in the end i paid $130 more than my original walmrt bike... and though the measurements and size - dimensionally were very similar to my old dept store bike, my rockhopper somehow feels .... better - which i know now is because of the geometry. It's also faster, smoother and feels a tad lighter and climbs amazingly ... and though that could all be mental i dont believe it. I could from the moment i sat down and took it for a ride, just around the block, immediately tell a difference in quality, everything just seemed a bit more polished. .... now i'm not bashing my old bike but I can def tell a diff. I've also been able to take it out more off-road which I've just recently discovered due to some trails close by and taken it off a few small jumps 1-2 ft, that I would in all honesty be afraid to on my old bike.

Now before anyone tells me i'm full of sh^t, i have no reason to lie and love my new bike and highly recommend the nicer bikes if you plan on doing more off road stuff, and even if you dont, you'll be able to tell a difference, and i could've been that lucky one in a million, but i just recently bought my gf the girl version of the same dept store bike i had, and because she rides on paved paths and roads, it suits her purposes and needs more than adequately enough... and for basic maintenance I can do the work myself... so far so good.

So anyways its not ALL bad when dealing w/ dept stores. I say go w/ what kind of riding is going to suit you and also what you can afford from what is available. I wouldnt recommend a dept store mountain bike for actual mountain biking, but for mostly around town and paved riding trips, commuter, and light trails, I dont think its all that bad an idea, especially if you can't find a name brand one used for the same price, or absolutely dont have the money, or if you're not sure it'll be more than just a phase.

I'm just saying it can be an option if you are aware of what you are getting and its realistic potential and limitations.

I still have that schwinn, though its been repainted since, and derailleurs readjusted, sitting in the garage and still rides great... though honestly haven't ridden it more than twice since getting my rockhopper. BTW i changed my rockhopper seat w/ my old broke in schwinn saddle, which believe it or not is much more comfortable, The only thing that bothers me is that it doesn't look right on the specialized and so am currently looking at the charge spoon saddle to replace it w/.

--another point to keep in mind is that i'm much more worried about it getting stolen now too, now that i use the specialized for commuting trips to school still.... guess it comes w/ the territory and hope the lock which i didn't scrimp on performs its duty. so far so good.

-cheers

---here are some pics of it. still not a bad looking and riding bike. thinking of getting a nicer stem and repainting it white, just to have something different.

By firstmiddlelast at 2009-02-23

By firstmiddlelast at 2009-02-23

 

[theshore_KING]

It not really a true DH its more of sidewalk that are atleast 20 years old that have 6-7in sudden drops and broken pavement that juts up a couple inches and a couple that drop off the curb into a 12in deep pot hole that and the fact is the street is very steep and long. I got up to 35mph on the smoother section. It's more of an urban DH

Um kid sorry to disappoint you but I wouldn't call that even 'urban' downhill until you start doing 2-4 foot drops of bigger. seriously! I mean 12 inches is nothing comon! Watch the DH pros and you'll see what I mean

 

[theshore_KING]

I've always considered Consumer Reports is a very trustworthy resource, but their reviews & articles at times leave something to be desired. I think sometimes they rely on their respected ratings matrix to make up for less-than thorough write-ups.

A good site to supplement the CR link is "Bikes R Not Toys" at...

www.BikesRNotToys.com

Personally I have bought all my bikes by checking the reviews here at mtbr.com. Seriously they are some of the best reveiws on thousands of bikes with owners who tell you what it is actually like. I would stick to mtbr.com for your review needs.

 

[comfort biker]

I couldn't agree more kirill. My first bike was a dept. store special, Huffy. It worked fine for a beginner who couldn't afford $400 on a bike - especially when I wasn't totally sure I was going to get into this.

Now I am hooked and last year I got a Cadillac AVS Adventure bike. The ride is a TON better but I think I notice it only b/c I'm not a beginner anymore. If your just getting started and on a tight budget, make sure you are going to get into this before spending the big bucks.

Once you're addicted to riding, you'll find plenty of things to spend money on! lol.

Happy Riding!

 

[aDaug]

*sigh*

I would laugh till my sides hurt comfortbiker if I saw you on the trails on that bike. The only reason I'm not laughing now is because lame cons and internet "shop" reps keep posting in this thread hoping to catch one of our new friends in a bad deal. As you can tell that gets me so riled up that I cant laugh at you...yet. BTW, that caddy bike might be worth paying 150 for, not 450.

 

[harry2110]

Um kid sorry to disappoint you but I wouldn't call that even 'urban' downhill until you start doing 2-4 foot drops of bigger. seriously! I mean 12 inches is nothing comon! Watch the DH pros and you'll see what I mean

Ive just seen that stuff and Its a lot on a cheap mongoose with only 2-3in of travel or a hardtail. I could easily handle the big stuff if I had a bigger suspension.

 

[pedalitup]

Reply 431

Since I'm reply four thirty one. Check out this 4130 beginners bike I just finished up for my grandson. If I was prone to pride I would stil post it, but theres a lot more to this than that. . .

It's blowin a steady 20 mph out today so I'm stuck here when I was plannin to ride, having finihed this resto project a bit early, havin' gained said skillset through years of this kinda winter work.

I won't need to be commenting on "dept stores", now will I?

Get a quality used bike, tear it up and restore it to mint condition. You won't regret it.

 

[mikedirectory2]

Cheap Bikes

I would caution beginners who have a habit of not following through with new things. It might be better to start with an inexpensive bike and then upgrading with they are truly committed.

(Thanks to JimC for the link)

An excellent article at ConsumerReports.org titled "Cheap bikes are not bargains"

************************************************
Wal-Mart and Toys "R" Us sell plenty of bikes from brands such as Huffy, Mongoose, Roadmaster, and Schwinn for $100 to $200. They seem like good deals, so why would we advise you to spend $300 or more for a bike in the Ratings (available to subscribers)?

Because you get what you pay for. Mass-market bikes have cheaper construction than higher-priced bikes and can weigh 7 or 8 pounds more. They come in only one size, so you're not likely to get a great fit. And mass merchants can't match bike shops for quality of assembly, expert advice, and service.

In the long run, performance matters most, so we tried out two full-suspension bikes and one front-suspension model from the big-box stores, priced at $120 to $230. Shifting of the full-suspension bikes' 21 speeds wasn't nearly as smooth as on bike-shop models. Shock absorption and handling were fair to decent on pavement and on smooth dirt paths, but these so-called mountain bikes couldn't handle rough off-road terrain. On steep paved roads, the extra weight, poor gearing, and mushy suspensions made pedaling uphill very hard.

The front-suspension model, also with 21 speeds, did much better on pavement and on fairly smooth dirt trails--but only after we adjusted the sloppy setup to make it roadworthy. Plus it comes in only one size, so fit will be hit or miss.

Consider cheaper bikes from a department store only for the most casual adult use, and stick with a front-suspension model, which is likely to be better than a cheap full-suspension bike. You may want a mass-market bike for kids who will outgrow a bike quickly or toss it about.

Still, if your budget allows, we'd recommend that you buy one of the $300 comfort bikes in the Ratings (available to subscribers). You'll get a lot more bike for the buck.
************************************************

 

[Broccoli]

I would caution beginners who have a habit of not following through with new things. It might be better to start with an inexpensive bike and then upgrading with they are truly committed.

I think the point of this thread was that being a "truly committed" mountain biker on a bike that is not fit for off-road use, as written on it in big bold letters, is just flat out dangerous.

Nobody is suggesting a $3K investment.

 

[Ghost_Stalker]

Hi, well I found your statement interesting because I am new to this as many are. I was wondering what I should do or be looking for while I look to buy a bike, I am 5'6'' 170LBS and have a limited budget about $300 (hey the Army does not pay that well) and I don't want crap, and I can always add on better parts but I believe I should be looking for a light and strong frame (duh) how should i go about this anyone's help would be great,also where I live their are like two shops one is a Specialized dealer and the other one carries haro and some other brand, thanks

 

[redarm1]

Amendment to my previous

Ok, so I wiped out on my old Walmart bike (blackcomb) and well, it is pretty nasty.
Im fine, but the bike... well, not so much.

I have switched to a Diamondback Response. This bike seems to be a bit sturdier than the Wallmart version of a mongoose. Ive taken this bike of some decent (but not insane) drops and through a few gnarly rock gardens. It is tough and nimble, and quite asthetically pleasing! Besides, it alleviates the shame of having your friends on 1200 -1500 dollar bikes laugh at you because you bought cheap!

Anyway, I would say the response would be a good choice for a beginner, or a larger individual (im toppin 250 btw).

Hope this helps.

 

[Broccoli]

Ok, so I wiped out on my old Walmart bike (blackcomb) and well, it is pretty nasty.
Im fine, but the bike... well, not so much.

I have switched to a Diamondback Response. This bike seems to be a bit sturdier than the Wallmart version of a mongoose. Ive taken this bike of some decent (but not insane) drops and through a few gnarly rock gardens. It is tough and nimble, and quite asthetically pleasing! Besides, it alleviates the shame of having your friends on 1200 -1500 dollar bikes laugh at you because you bought cheap!

Anyway, I would say the response would be a good choice for a beginner, or a larger individual (im toppin 250 btw).

Hope this helps.

Even a decent bike may be dangerous if used beyond its design limits - like this one that author of the following post used to race in Downieville

http://forums.mtbr.com/showpost.php?p=5534689&postcount=15

Do you want be riding a bike when it snaps like that?

 

[Swthrtsuzy]

Hi, well I found your statement interesting because I am new to this as many are. I was wondering what I should do or be looking for while I look to buy a bike, I am 5'6'' 170LBS and have a limited budget about $300 (hey the Army does not pay that well) and I don't want crap, and I can always add on better parts but I believe I should be looking for a light and strong frame (duh) how should i go about this anyone's help would be great, thanks

Hi Ghost_Stalker. Just a suggestion, but you might want to post this as its own thread in the Beginner's Corner. More people are likely to see it that way. Also, kinda scroll through other posts in this forum because a lot of people ask this question, and you might get some ideas that way.

The basic bottom line is that people are going to tell you to go to a shop and look at the entry level bikes they carry. You will probably end up spending just a tad more than $300, but it'll be worth it because you'll be safer and enjoy the ride that much more.

I started riding about 8 months ago, and at the time I was adamant about not spending more than $200 on a bike. I had even picked out a Schwinn at Academy, but my boyfriend forced me to go to a real bike shop. I'm so glad because I ended up getting a Specialized Myka (the girl's version of their Hardrock) for $369. Please believe me when I tell you that even after just riding the Schwinn up and down the aisles at the store, and the Myka in the parking lot, it was like the difference between a Ford Ranger (the Schwinn) and an F-350 (the Myka). EVERYTHING about the Myka was better - especially considering the brakes on the Schwinn were routed backwards.

All of the major brands will have an entry level bike right around $300-$400. They don't have the best components in the world, but they will be completely suitable for riding on trails. Try to ride everything in your price range - even if it means visiting several shops. You could even put it on layaway if you found something just a little bit out of your reach. Good luck and don't forget to budget for stuff like a helmet, gloves, spare tubes, a pump, etc.

 

[wildtrekker]

Hi, well I found your statement interesting because I am new to this as many are. I was wondering what I should do or be looking for while I look to buy a bike, I am 5'6'' 170LBS and have a limited budget about $300 (hey the Army does not pay that well) and I don't want crap, and I can always add on better parts but I believe I should be looking for a light and strong frame (duh) how should i go about this anyone's help would be great,also where I live their are like two shops one is a Specialized dealer and the other one carries haro and some other brand, thanks

You might want to define your riding style first. City Biking? Light to med Trails? Downhill racing? Do you like cross-country? Like me, for example, I am more of a commuter but I do light trails as well from time to time.

Is there a Performance Bike Shop close to you? Check their website, they usually have something on sale. They usually have something below $300.00.

Ever considered a used bike? Check Craig's List website. I have seen some used but fairly decent bicycles there (Haro, Trek, Mongoos, Bianchi, etc).

Hope this helps.

Good luck.

 

[wildtrekker]

Hi, well I found your statement interesting because I am new to this as many are. I was wondering what I should do or be looking for while I look to buy a bike, I am 5'6'' 170LBS and have a limited budget about $300 (hey the Army does not pay that well) and I don't want crap, and I can always add on better parts but I believe I should be looking for a light and strong frame (duh) how should i go about this anyone's help would be great,also where I live their are like two shops one is a Specialized dealer and the other one carries haro and some other brand, thanks

This might help.

Check this link:

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=25170&estore_ID=2092

 

[DoinkMobb]

This thread is directed to parents, and generally to people with a clue.

I am sure my kids would not need to convince me in anything. My daughter started on a $300 balance/convertible 14" bike, and not because I have money to burn, but because nobody deserves suffering through some heavy, ugly crap and losing interest for the sport for the whole life..

As far as teenagers, putting a kid on a bike that can not be safely taken off-road is child endangerment. It is borderline criminal negligence.

I had Kmart bikes all my life. Even after cracking the stem and planting the sharp metal end into my leg, my parents continued to get me Kmart bikes. I would have liked to have seen you or any other biking aficianado tell my parents that it was "borderline criminal negligence" and "child endangerment" to put me on a crappy bike. There was no way in hell they were going to get me an expensive quality bike that wouldn't shatter jumping off curbs.

Most of us were destined to have crap bikes from Walmart and Target. We had cheap parents who were not about to be convinced to spend a lot of money for a kid's bike. And when we asked for a mountain bike we were told "you don't need a mountain bike, there's no mountains around here." Thanks mom.

The moral of the story is: be thankful for whatever bike your parents buy you/you can afford yourself.

But yeah, a used quality bike is probably better than a new dept. store bike...