StephenH

When I first stumbled across Bikeforums, I saw the "Singlespeed and Fixed Gear" and thought, Hot Dog, they have a forum for Me! I didn't know what Fixed Gear meant, but I had a singlespeed and figured it would fit right in. In fact, you have to interpret the forum title as "Bikes that are both Single speed and fixed gear". But it makes just as much sense grammatically if you interpret it as "Single speed bikes and Fixed Gear Bikes", but you quickly discover that's not what it's about.

Anyway, in the original post, it's really hard for a third party to tell where the problem lies. Loose cone is an assembly/tune up problem. Broken spokes can be poor quality, can be overweight, can be bumping over roots and curbs and stuff, can be poor adjustment, etc. Seat post rusted sounds like leaving the bike out in the rain. Breaking stuff with the orignal bolts sounds like a user problem. All of these problems can happen just as easily with a Walmart bike, which is not noted for professional assembly, tune up, etc. Anyway, if your mind is made up, go for it and enjoy. If you're right, you've got yourself a good bike at a good price. If you're wrong, you've learned a valuable lesson.