[CRBlair]

Does anyone in the mountain bike community recognize this bike? It has Mongoose branding on some of the components (handle bar, stem, tires, crank set). It has a Shimano Tourney rear derailleur, Falcon grip shifters, Promax disc brake (front) and Promax V brake (rear). The frame is aluminum with a reinforced top tube design. I have contacted Dorel in Montreal, Canada, and they are not able to help (despite that this bike is supposedly designed in Canada). Dorel refers me to Pacific Cycle/Mongoose which has polite staff but who do not seem willing enough to help determine the model and year. They say they can only determine the model number if an owner registered the serial number of the bike and they don't recognize the pic.

I am refurbishing the bike for possible resale so I just want to know the brand and year to valuate the bike and be able to say what it is. It seems to be a department store type of bike, possibly from Costco or Walmart, with some good quality components (i.e. cast aluminum brake levers as opposed to low-end stamped sheet metal type). In 2004, Dorel acquired Pacific Cycle (Mongoose) so it could be dated back that far, but the tires and components seem much newer in terms of wear. If I can't figure it out, I'll call it a Mongoose - Ghost lol!

 

[Harold]

Why does it matter what it is? It's an old hardtail of dept store quality. It's not worth investing very much money into cleaning it up for resale. New cables, tires, brake pads and I'd probably call it done.

 

[r-rocket]

Resale value will be based entirely on how it rides up and down the block on the sidewalk, and on whether it looks stolen or not.

 

[CRBlair]

Resale value will be based entirely on how it rides up and down the block on the sidewalk, and on whether it looks stolen or not.

I'm mainly just curious. Usually I can go on the internet and find a bike model very quickly. This one seems impossible to find and even the people who make the bike are not helping me identify it. That makes me even more curious. It has a unique frame which is exceptionally light and some good components. I've upgraded the crank and bottom bracket which were problematic for the bike (the bottom bracket had a defect making the crank wobble). Now it is riding like a rocket. But what is this bike?

 

[Harold]

what I see in the pic does not show "good" components. records frequently get lost when companies change hands, so nothing strange about that.

it is what it is. an old alu hardtail frame that doesn't have disc brake mounts.

 

[life behind bars]

Walgoose, 50 bucks tops.

 

[rangeriderdave]

Not worth any money invested and not worth mush time either. It's worth what someone would pay for it, You would have to pay me to take it.

 

[BicyclesOnMain]

You're overthinking things. The company doesn't care what it is because it's a cheap imitation bicycle. It has no inherent value as anything other than basic transportation for someone down on their luck. Donate it to a homeless shelter or halfway house to get the most value out of it.

 

[CRBlair]

You may be right, but I'd still like to know. Who on this forum is smart enough to help me figure this out? Everyone is judging the bike by my comment about the department store. It is actually a pretty good bike, now that I've swapped out the bottom bracket, and is running very well. It is definitely not for a serious mountain biker, but is worthy of some time and a small investment - especially if I decide to keep it for my kids. Bikes in Canada cost more than 2x what you pay in the USA - even at a department store. An $89.00 bike in the USA can be priced at $225.00 CAD when sold in our stores. What is troubling is the notion, even here in Canada, that bikes "aren't worth it" or that they are a disposable commodity... Or this comment that the bike is only worthy of a homeless person or a person living in a halfway house. What does this say in the reverse about a disadvantaged person? That they are not worthy of a good bike?

 

[Harold]

You may be right, but I'd still like to know. Who on this forum is smart enough to help me figure this out? Everyone is judging the bike by my comment about the department store. It is actually a pretty good bike, now that I've swapped out the bottom bracket, and is running very well. It is definitely not for a serious mountain biker, but is worthy of some time and a small investment - especially if I decide to keep it for my kids. Bikes in Canada cost more than 2x what you pay in the USA - even at a department store. An $89.00 bike in the USA can be priced at $225.00 CAD when sold in our stores. What is troubling is the notion, even here in Canada, that bikes "aren't worth it" or that they are a disposable commodity... Or this comment that the bike is only worthy of a homeless person or a person living in a halfway house. What does this say in the reverse about a disadvantaged person? That they are not worthy of a good bike?

Bikes become effectively disposable when it costs more to give them basic service needs than it costs to replace them with something equivalent. Lots of products we use every day get to that point. Yes, it sucks. But it doesn't really change anything. It often costs more to buy ink for your computer printer than it does to just buy a whole new printer. How long do you keep a vehicle before the cost of repairs starts to outweigh the value of the vehicle? The list goes on.

So what it comes down to is that with a bike like that, along with its age, it doesn't take much for the cost of repairs to exceed the cost to buy a replacement brand new, off the shelf of the store.

So from your side of things as a reseller, what is your time worth? What can you do to the bike to make it function as well as possible while breaking even? Or even make a few bucks? How much have you spent on it already (in parts as well as labor)? Given what it is and how old it is (and the likely expected selling price), are you already underwater on the bike?

You're assigning what appears to be some higher ethical/aesthetic/emotional/inherent value to this bike than what most will. It's not actually a mountain bike. It looks like one, and that's about it. It's just a basic bicycle. If it was given to you, then giving it to a bicycle co-op seems a fair turn to me. They help a lot of people who need exactly this kind of functional, basic bicycle. Buying this kind of bike with the objective of fixing it up and flipping it for a profit is a losing proposition. Unless you have a pile of parts (which most bike co-ops DO have), then you will never be able to make money on it. If you bought it, then moving it along as quickly as possible is the way to go.

If you're functioning as the charity and you're fixing it up for someone in need because you want to and you don't care how much it costs you, then that's something else. Good on you. But it still doesn't matter what it is.

 

[r-rocket]

The model on that is "BSO". They were built by Dorel for about a decade and a half starting in 2004 in various configurations under a number of brand names. Regardless of configuration, they were all "BSO"s. You can print your own stickers for it off of shutterstock if you want to put accurate logo's on it.

 

[laherna]

I recognize it. Seen a crack head riding it last week.


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[BicyclesOnMain]

You may be right, but I'd still like to know. Who on this forum is smart enough to help me figure this out? Everyone is judging the bike by my comment about the department store. It is actually a pretty good bike, now that I've swapped out the bottom bracket, and is running very well. It is definitely not for a serious mountain biker, but is worthy of some time and a small investment - especially if I decide to keep it for my kids. Bikes in Canada cost more than 2x what you pay in the USA - even at a department store. An $89.00 bike in the USA can be priced at $225.00 CAD when sold in our stores. What is troubling is the notion, even here in Canada, that bikes "aren't worth it" or that they are a disposable commodity... Or this comment that the bike is only worthy of a homeless person or a person living in a halfway house. What does this say in the reverse about a disadvantaged person? That they are not worthy of a good bike?

We already answered you. It's not a mountain bike at all. It's an imitation mountain bike. It has the cheapest components possible and was designed to be assembled by a guy with an impact driver in a department store, then used once and stuck in a garden shed.

If you like it then we're happy for you. My rule is I don't care what you own as long as I don't have to ride it.

I have worked in the bicycle industry and volunteered with various bicycle related things for the last two decades. I have donated an untold number of bikes, although I know at one point I had 70 bicycles stored under my house for donations. We donate these types of bikes to homeless people because there's no point in giving them something high performance or high quality- they tend to get their bikes stolen often. I have a homeless guy in town that comes in once a month looking for a replacement bike due to the cops taking his bike or it getting stolen. We set aside useable tires and tubes for him, and always keep donated bikes or cheap trade-ins on hand for him and his friends. We are their lifeline. So please don't lecture me about bike donations, apparently you have no experience in the needs of the less fortunate. It's not about worthiness, it's that they are better served by ten $100 bikes than one $1000 bike.

It's bizarre you come onto a forum for MTB enthusiasts and immediately tell everyone they're wrong. There's nothing to know about it. I try to avoid classism, but let me assure you, that Mongoose doesn't even begin to approach a bike that anyone gave any thought to. The brakes don't even match. That came from a batch of thrown together parts about 10-15 years ago. If it was a house it would be the equivalent of a FEMA shelter, and you're asking who the architect is.

 

[CRBlair]

We already answered you. It's not a mountain bike at all. It's an imitation mountain bike. It has the cheapest components possible and was designed to be assembled by a guy with an impact driver in a department store, then used once and stuck in a garden shed.

If you like it then we're happy for you. My rule is I don't care what you own as long as I don't have to ride it.

I have worked in the bicycle industry and volunteered with various bicycle related things for the last two decades. I have donated an untold number of bikes, although I know at one point I had 70 bicycles stored under my house for donations. We donate these types of bikes to homeless people because there's no point in giving them something high performance or high quality- they tend to get their bikes stolen often. I have a homeless guy in town that comes in once a month looking for a replacement bike due to the cops taking his bike or it getting stolen. We set aside useable tires and tubes for him, and always keep donated bikes or cheap trade-ins on hand for him and his friends. We are their lifeline. So please don't lecture me about bike donations, apparently you have no experience in the needs of the less fortunate. It's not about worthiness, it's that they are better served by ten $100 bikes than one $1000 bike.

It's bizarre you come onto a forum for MTB enthusiasts and immediately tell everyone they're wrong. There's nothing to know about it. I try to avoid classism, but let me assure you, that Mongoose doesn't even begin to approach a bike that anyone gave any thought to. The brakes don't even match. That came from a batch of thrown together parts about 10-15 years ago. If it was a house it would be the equivalent of a FEMA shelter, and you're asking who the architect is.

We already answered you. It's not a mountain bike at all. It's an imitation mountain bike. It has the cheapest components possible and was designed to be assembled by a guy with an impact driver in a department store, then used once and stuck in a garden shed.

If you like it then we're happy for you. My rule is I don't care what you own as long as I don't have to ride it.

I have worked in the bicycle industry and volunteered with various bicycle related things for the last two decades. I have donated an untold number of bikes, although I know at one point I had 70 bicycles stored under my house for donations. We donate these types of bikes to homeless people because there's no point in giving them something high performance or high quality- they tend to get their bikes stolen often. I have a homeless guy in town that comes in once a month looking for a replacement bike due to the cops taking his bike or it getting stolen. We set aside useable tires and tubes for him, and always keep donated bikes or cheap trade-ins on hand for him and his friends. We are their lifeline. So please don't lecture me about bike donations, apparently you have no experience in the needs of the less fortunate. It's not about worthiness, it's that they are better served by ten $100 bikes than one $1000 bike.

It's bizarre you come onto a forum for MTB enthusiasts and immediately tell everyone they're wrong. There's nothing to know about it. I try to avoid classism, but let me assure you, that Mongoose doesn't even begin to approach a bike that anyone gave any thought to. The brakes don't even match. That came from a batch of thrown together parts about 10-15 years ago. If it was a house it would be the equivalent of a FEMA shelter, and you're asking who the architect is.

Who are "we" Harold, the welcoming committee? I came on here in search of a simple answer if you re-read the question. I wasn't interested in peoples' opinions on the value or worthlessness of the bike (I notice that the welcoming committee does that to other people on this friendly forum too. If you don't know the answer to a question and don't have any helpful information to provide, the polite thing to do would be to not respond. In terms of "lecturing" if you read what you just wrote, it sounds like a lecture to me. I don't know you and I don't really care what your "rules" are. I don't follow your rules. I am just here to get some information about a bike. If I was going to donate the bike to a homeless shelter, I would have already. I am sure I'll have other bikes to donate to charitable causes but that is not my vision for this one. Thank you for your interest.