metomeya

Like the title says what is the best place to buy a bike online?



Seems all the website I goto are just websites for stores. There is a place online that ships the bikes to you right?

cs1

What exactly did you expect? The bicycle industry is more tightly controlled as far as price fixing than most other industries. As soon as the manufacturer finds out who is selling cheap or what distributor is selling to them they are cut off. I don't know how they get away with it but they do.


Tim

Sprocket Man

Actually, there are a number of good online retailers. Colorado Cyclist, Excel Sports, Nytro.com, Competitive Cyclist to name a few. A few manufacturers forbid their retailers to sell online (Trek and Felt, for example) while other manufactuers are just fine with it. FWIW, the bikes sold by the online retailers I mentioned tend to be "high-end" bikes (>$2,500). If you're looking for a bike in a lower price range, you're better off shopping at your LBS.

DanO220

The only online bike I've bought was from an actual store in Oregon. But it was a custom build that we spent alot of time talking about. From your post though, I believe you're talking about an online warehouse type that sends you a bike in a box for a low, low price. If that's what you're after; I've heard folks on these forums who've ordered from Bikesdirect.com with satisfactory results. That is they delivered what they said they would and the bike didn't arrive bent in half or anything. But be warned; these big volume wharehouse places warn you up front that the bike will be shipped in 'dealer ready' condition. This means that some minor assembly will be required and that you will be responsible for checking - and if necessary adjusting - the shifters, brakes, head set, bottom bracket, and perhaps truing up the wheels. If you do most of your own wrenching, go for it. Otherwise you will have to cart your .com purchase into the LBS and pay them to get the bike road ready - something they would have been compelled to do gratis had you bought it there. And they just might charge you a pretty penny, since it will be obvious to any mechanic, and throw in a bit of attitude for free. That said, I do most of my own wrenching (I might have to take just the wheels in for tensioning and truing) so I might consider a .com purchase next time... if, the price is right.

DanO

Senna94

https://www.bikesdirect.com/

DCCommuter

Here's the basic scoop. Brands that are sold in bike stores depend on the bike stores and don't want to irritate them, so they go to considerable trouble to make sure that their bikes are only sold new through bike stores. So there are basically two types of bikes available online -- brands that are not sold in bike stores, and bike store brands being sold by individuals.

Just because a bike is not sold in bike stores does not mean it is low quality. There are some well-respected manufacturers who sell direct to the consumer -- Rivendell and Terry come to mind; Ibex seems interesting as well although I'm not sure they've been around long enough to have a track record. Then there are the mail-order houses that stock a house brand: Nashbar, Performance, REI, etc. However, a lot of the bikes for sale on the net are just cheap Walmart quality imports.

The other alternative is to buy a bike store brand in a private sale -- Ebay is king, Craigslist is usually cheaper. Bikes from individuals are usually used, but not always. There are dealers who surrepticiously put their unsold stock on Ebay, and there are liquidators who buy out the hundreds of bike stores that fail every year and dump the bikes on Ebay as well. There are also a few dealers who say on their websites that they will skirt their agreements with the manufacturer by pretending that a sale was made in the store and charging shipping as a separate transaction. My rule of thumb is that if someone tells you they are willing to cheat someone else, you should assume they are willing to cheat you as well.

In any case, to buy online happily you really have to know what you are doing. Bikes are kind of like shoes that you really have to try them on to see if you like them. In a private sale the sale is final and you can't expect any support from the seller or the manufacturer. If you don't like the bike, your only recourse is to try to sell it yourself. I would expect an absolute minimum 30% discount for a new bike bought this way, minimum 50% for used, to compensate for this uncertainty. Manufacturers who sell direct usually have liberal return policies, but you have to pay for shipping if you return the bike, so a test ride could end up costing you seventy or a hundred dollars. You should also expect to do some assembly on a bike that has been shipped.

I'm an online shopping junkie and I've bought bikes I've been happy with over the net. Look at ebay, look on Froogle. Read reviews here, and ride as many bikes as you can to get an idea for what you're looking for.

samp02

sampson bikes. Check them out

dholmes

It seems to me that selling bicycles online is here to stay. Canyon will be here anytime next year, Trek just announced they are selling online, Giant is considering going online and Bulls (German premium brand) just started selling exclusively through their website in the U.S.
I think brands as Canyon have shown the world that online sales is the way to go. Personally, I like the idea of saving a couple of bucks to upgrade my bike. And let's be serious, most of the people in this forum can surely put together a bicycle that comes in a box. It is not rocket science.
I currently have a Trek bike I got from my local dealer, but surely enough I'll get my next one from Canyon (if they are here) or Bulls.

fietsbob

a folding bike.. you take it out of the carton and ride it.

anything needing user assembly relies on the mechanical aptitude of the buyer.

and there seems some posting on this forum quite lacking .


new trend is order and pay for it online, but it will be shipped and assembled, safety checked,
and serviced after the sale by a Shop. .

Then you go there and ride home . Some parts you May have different preferences , than OEM picks,

they can change those component picks.

NormanF

American Cycle Company - they will ship you a bike you order from them to your LBS or to your home address.

Plus any order above $800 include free shipping.

Americancycle.com Mail Order Bikes, BMX Parts for Sale, Frames, Wheels, Cranks 1-607-797-2700 GT, Animal, Cult, SE Racing, Odyssey, Redline, Bombshell, Kink, Profile Retro, Crupi, Old School, worldwide shipping discount bicycle mailorder acebmx racin

chasm54

Zombie thread, but in case it helps someone:

If you have any sense...

PlanetX

NormanF

I ordered my GT Eightball through American Cycle. I bought my Marin Muirwoods 29er off eBay. My Big Shot Mini Polo was acquired from the company website. And my Schwinn Super Sport DBX came from Harbor Cycles - now longer in business.

I've been happy with all of my online bike purchases to date.

NormanF

Only drawback with ordering from UK is you pay duty for anything of value over $200.

hig4s

If you want to shop on line and can do your own maintenance I second this site. You do have to really know what you want, size, components, everything.

rekmeyata

I really had a great experience with Adrenalin Bikes at: https://www.adrenalinebikes.com/stor...ategoryID=2121 My rep was Matthew, not sure if he's still there but he was great and highly knowledgeable as well as a racer but had down to earth ideas. They sell lots of different frames from unusual to the not so unusual, and their prices are good. I bought my Lynskey through them and they made swaps without charge except for the difference in cost between the stock item and the upgraded item. If I ever buy another bike it will be through them and I don't say that willy nilly either.

Take a look at all the different brands of frames they carry or can get, it's amazing, and some of the brands aren't even making frames like the old school Vitus aluminum tubing with aluminum lugs or the carbon tubing with aluminum lugs and those frames are brand new.

chasm54

Maybe, maybe you get lucky. But they're excellent value for money, anyway.

cobba

https://www.planet-x-usa.com/

70sSanO

ebay.

But you gotta know what you are looking at, and how, and the questions to ask; and maybe get a little lucky, but it has been good for me.

And they do ship to your door, but I prefer to have it shipped to the Fedex office with a signature required.

John

ColaJacket

True, but there is a caveat to Trek selling online. They will only ship to an authorized Trek dealer who will put the bike together for you. You'll still be charge MSRP. The bike shop will get a cut, but it won't increase the price over the MSRP. But the shop won't have to deal with the overhead.

But to the OP's question. Nashbar and BikesDirect are the places that I hear about most on the forums. And Nashbar recently had a really good deal on a Fuji Sportif 1.3C - 2014. It was on sale for about $100 less than what Peformance Bikes was selling it for.

GH

dholmes

Check this one out: www.bullsbikesusa.com
These guys ship bicycles ready to use with amazing price tags.
Not that I know a lot about Bulls, but they have a really cool XC team.
Does anyone know when is Canyon coming to the US?

NormanF

Canyon? Get a UK virtual address by signing up with Borderlinx - have your Canyon order sent to your UK virtual address to forwarding to your address in USA. If a merchant ships to Europe but not the USA, its still possible to acquire a desired item.

MMLC

My wife and I just bought a pair of Diamondback Apex Elites online through Performance, got free shipping to the store and they assembled. If we order online again it will be to the house since I have a bike shop worth of tools, but right now they are in storage and we were heading out for vacation. Bikes Direct has some interesting bikes/prices and would consider a bike from them in the future.

dholmes

Do you know if I need to pay any duties when the bicycle arrives into the US? What about warranty?

bikejrff

I had similar experiences with Adrenaline Bikes. Matthew was my rep too. Bought a complete Bianchi Impulso NOS and a new Lynskey frame from them. 100% satisfied.

NormanF

If the value is over $200, you will have to pay duty. That's usually paid to the shipper along with any separate shipping charges that might be incurred.

Be aware that if you order a bike online, its generally impossible to return it. Filing an out of country warranty claim may be excluded if the bike is not for sale in the USA.

As long as you accept those limitations, buying a bike online may be for you. I've bought all my bikes here, never had a problem with them but with overseas purchases there are some restrictions you may need to face if you do buy abroad.