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Worst buyer's remose EVER?

Old 02-25-07, 09:02 PM
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Worst buyer's remose EVER?

I'm not trying to be a troll or stir up heated argument, but I tend to learn more from my mistakes that my successes.

I see alot of people around here asking for advice on their "next bike." More often that not, responses are very positive; people leave glowing reviews of bike they own. It's a bit like people who tell stories of their luck in Vegas: gambling gains are exagerated and losses downplayed. I want to hear tales of loss and regret.

I'm pretty new to cycling, so my only regret is having an old bike overhauled by a shop (cost about $200), when I could have spent the money on tools to do it myself (in which case I would have had a freshly-overhauled bike, tools, and lots of working knowledge of bike repair).

So, how about it? What bike-related purchase do you personally regret the most? Which bike was the worst lemon? What was the biggest waste of money? Share your biggest mistakes, so the rest of us won't repeat them.
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Old 02-25-07, 09:13 PM
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My biggest regret was purchasing my first road bike. I went with what the shop recommended to me. A 53 cm Lemond. I absolutely hated that bike. Later I found out it was most likely because they sold me the size they had in stock, not the size I needed. I now ride 55's or 56's.
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Old 02-25-07, 11:42 PM
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About 7 years ago the same thing happened to me. I didn't know too much about tandems and was sold one that in retrospect was pretty clearly too large for me.
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Old 02-25-07, 11:46 PM
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Originally Posted by kirkaptain
I'm pretty new to cycling, so my only regret is having an old bike overhauled by a shop (cost about $200), when I could have spent the money on tools to do it myself (in which case I would have had a freshly-overhauled bike, tools, and lots of working knowledge of bike repair).

This may not be what you want to hear but what you went through then, I am going through now.

I have always been into moutain bikes but lately I've been eyeballing *cough coughroadiescough*. I wasn't sure if my bad back would like such a thing so I ignored the yearning. I started to go through testing for possible cancer (which ended up to be negative) and my close friend here on BF saw how it was getting to me emotionally. So what did he do? That sweet person Michigander sent me his vintage Trek that he had when he was younger for me to rebuild (and I'm sure to distract me as well). I don't know much about skinny tire bikes so he delivered it to my LBS who said it was a minimum of $200 to rebuild it. I couldn't afford that because of the Dr. bills. I was really brokenhearted and took it home in parts.

My nephew sent me the brand new things I needed to rebuild it myself, along with a new set of tools and a how-to book. I have already started (as scared as I am) but you know what? As each step progresses, I am more determined to do this, not just because the bike has been sitting in pieces but because of the whole meaning of why it was sent to me. The message is there....to go on. Forward. And to not be afraid.

No regrets. On anything that has to do with my bikes. Especially this one.
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Old 02-26-07, 06:44 AM
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I've never had a real lemon. I've purchased bikes, which in retrospect, were not the best suited for me, but not necessarily bad bikes.

One was the first bike I purchased when returning to cycling. I needed a bike to get me home from work (because my husband was working at a different facility, he would drop me off at my workplace and continue to his) and purchased a retro Schwinn comfort bike, with a more upright posture. I later purchased a cheaper mountain bike, which also has an upright posture. Not quite as much of a mistake, but I could have started with a higher quality bike.

I made a huge leap when I purchase my next bike. That was my Specialized Dolce Elite. A lovely bike. But I had to do what many people fear--get over that 'it's going to hurt my back if I ride hunched over like that' thing. Guess what? It's a lot easier riding on my Dolce Elite than riding upright! There are a lot more hand positions than you can find on a hybrid or mountain bike, which makes riding more enjoyable.

It's not so much that I have glowing reviews of the bikes I own, so much as I have learned that certain bikes are more suitable for a certain job than others. If you want a bike to go get groceries, you probably don't want a bike suitable for road racing. A hybrid, or a mountain bike with slicks, will work quite well. Just don't try to ride long distances with hybrids or mountain bikes. Yes, it can be done, but a road bike is simply better suited to long distances. A touring bike is even better for long distances, and it can also be used to carry groceries.

That's why we inundate new riders with questions. It's not that you can't start riding with a Huffy or Magna from X-mart, but as you learn more about riding, and want to make your experience better or easier, you come to realise that there's a difference, and that's when you start asking questions.

You just learned that you could have learned a new skill. You would not necessarily have saved any money for the first bike, but if you had visited the Park Tool website, or Sheldon Brown's shortcuts, and invested in some of the less expensive tools, any subsequent bikes would be easier to repair and the price of the tools would be amortised. That's when you could learn the joy of 'flipping' older bikes, or even fixing bikes for charity. You might also develop a pleasure in renovating classic and vintage bikes.

To sum up, it's not necessarily 'buyer's remorse', so much as it's an appreciation that some may be content with the Mongoose Serif ATB selling for $99.99, and others may decide that they love cycling enough, and that life is short enough, to go for the $1,029.99 Specialized Dolce Elite. And there's a lot of room in between, and above!

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Old 02-26-07, 10:19 AM
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Actually, I think there are mostly happy customers because most bikes being sold today are decent bikes. Whether you get a Trek, or a Fuji, or Specialized, or other brand you will probably like the bike provided it fits and is the right discipline. All of the components are either Shimano or Campy which frankly both work very well. The only thing that separates bikes is the frame and wheels.
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Old 02-26-07, 10:23 AM
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I don't have a bad bike purchase story but I did buy a crank set for my wife's bike I built up that I hated. So I ended up going with Shimano 105. I can't for the life of me remember the cheap crank I bought her for a intro bike.....maybe a Tru-Vativ low end model or something like it.
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Old 02-26-07, 11:54 AM
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Old 02-26-07, 12:04 PM
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I tend to learn more from my mistakes that my successes.
we all do.

i started cycling on a dept store special. when that crapped out after about a month, i went cheap and bought a diamondback wildwood from a large, retail sporting goods store. had nothing but problems with the bike and the store. eventually, diamondback replaced the tires and wheelsets with mtb parts. i had the bb replaced. now, it's a comfortable bike to ride. its more comfortable than my trek 7300...and for some reason, i avg about 1.5 mph more on it than my trek.

in hindsight, i'm glad i went cheap since i really didn't know what i wanted in a bike. however, unless i'm building my own bike, buying used or trust the seller, i'm buying from an lbs from now on!

2nd buyer's remorse;

my trek 7300. i bought it out of a fit of frustration with my db. i don't like the sram x7 rear derailleur. i don't like the sram x4 shifters.

now that my db is working well for me (definitely needs new chainrings and cassette tho), i wish i'd have stuck with it until i was ready to try a road bike.
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Old 02-26-07, 12:07 PM
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Originally Posted by Siu Blue Wind
This may not be what you want to hear but what you went through then, I am going through now.

I have always been into moutain bikes but lately I've been eyeballing *cough coughroadiescough*. I wasn't sure if my bad back would like such a thing so I ignored the yearning. I started to go through testing for possible cancer (which ended up to be negative) and my close friend here on BF saw how it was getting to me emotionally. So what did he do? That sweet person Michigander sent me his vintage Trek that he had when he was younger for me to rebuild (and I'm sure to distract me as well). I don't know much about skinny tire bikes so he delivered it to my LBS who said it was a minimum of $200 to rebuild it. I couldn't afford that because of the Dr. bills. I was really brokenhearted and took it home in parts.

My nephew sent me the brand new things I needed to rebuild it myself, along with a new set of tools and a how-to book. I have already started (as scared as I am) but you know what? As each step progresses, I am more determined to do this, not just because the bike has been sitting in pieces but because of the whole meaning of why it was sent to me. The message is there....to go on. Forward. And to not be afraid.

No regrets. On anything that has to do with my bikes. Especially this one.
My gearhead friends and I all got started the same way you are -with the shop manual and something they couldn't afford to to have fixxed by someone else. It's a great way to learn and that feeling on knowing you did it yourself is something that can't be bought. Good luck on both counts!
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Old 02-26-07, 12:21 PM
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A year ago I wanted to try a fixed gear bike like all the cool kids are doing. But being a cheap bastard, I didn't want to pay much. So I bought a frame that turned out to be too small, a stem that turned out to be 26.4 mm rather than 26.0mm (freakin' Italians!), and a crappy fixed rear wheel (a p.o.s. Suzue hub laced with crappy generic spokes to a worthless Sun rim, oh and did I mention that it came with dog poop nuts?). The whole bike was a disaster.

On the other hand, it was superfun and I learned a lot from my mistakes (plus good advice in the SS/FG and Mechanics forums, plus superguru Sheldon Brown) and it allowed me to figure out how to build up a really great fixed commuter and rain trainer. I ride that bike nearly every day and every turn of the pedal is a silent joy. It would have never happened without that first fixie disaster.
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Old 02-26-07, 01:32 PM
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I bought a 1992 Trek 6000 that was a closeout, frame was to big for me and I hated that bike. I sold it the next year and bought a Trek 930 that fit, still have that bike and 3 years ago I bought a 1997 6000 at a pawn shop that fits me and it is a great bike.
Moral, a closeout bike isn't a good deal if it doesn't fit!
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Old 02-26-07, 03:19 PM
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I paid top dollar on my first and most recent bike build buying everything from LBSes without comparison shopping. I don't mind supporting my local economy and love the bike I made but the gentle hosing experience made me a more canny buyer. I think if/ when I do another build I will be able to get r done for a lot cheaper.
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Old 02-26-07, 05:28 PM
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Last year the bf found a Gunnar Rockhound frame on ebay. But the auction had already ended and it hadn't sold. Contacted the seller and negotiated a sale. It was advertised as a 19.5 in frame and as in almost pristine condition, only built in a shop and then torn down to be sold as a frame.

So the frame arrived and it was the wrong size (20.5in) and the paint had more touched up areas than we were lead to believe. Otherwise the frame was nice. Since it's the wrong size, it's useless to my bf.

Told the guy we were not happy with it, it was the wrong size. He gave us the major run around and wouldn't take it back. I tried to go through Paypal, and my CC, but I couldn't get my money back.
In hindsight I should have told the guy to put it back up on ebay for us to buy-it-now.

Anyone want to buy a 20.5 in Gunnar Rockhound frame? We did clean it up more and it looks nicer than when we got it.

PM me if you want to know who this guy is so you can avoid him.
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Old 02-26-07, 05:39 PM
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Every bike is a good bike, and a lesson on what to look for in your next bike.
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Old 02-26-07, 05:47 PM
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Bike related? Buying a custom bike that didn't work well for its intended purpose. My remorse was I could have gotten something along the lines of a Surly (I love my Steamroller and like it more than my custom bike) and have something that functionally worked better for a fraction of the cost, just not the bling bling of the custom. Well, not 100% true. Fit wise the custom is really good since it was custom fit, and now I can use that data to setup my other bikes.

Non bike-related was buying a classic Mustang from a friend's brother. Car wasn't as advertised and, long story short, I wound up losing thousands of $$$ on the deal. Its still affecting me many months later. If one wants to talk about learning the hard way. The custom and Mustang both occurred within the same year, so my losses this past year are huge (percentage wise compared to my savings & salary).

My lessons?
1) I loved the bikes I had, and I *knew* I could have been happy with a cheaper frame/fork, but more than anything wanted the bling of the custom (custom look, not just geometry. So handcut lugs and the like). I should have gone with my gut feeling.
2) Don't do business with friends/family.
3) If you ignore (2), get a written, signed contract if you're going to have them do lots of work worth lots of $$$ on a project, whether it be a muscle car, house, or whatever it may be.
4) Another positive from these two ordeals ... i decided to put together a real budget. This has helped immensely, and I look forward to not making these mistakes again.

OK, that's all my brain will conjure up at the moment
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Old 02-26-07, 05:53 PM
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Originally Posted by vandeda
My lessons?
1) I loved the bikes I had, and I *knew* I could have been happy with a cheaper frame/fork, but more than anything wanted the bling of the custom (custom look, not just geometry. So handcut lugs and the like). I should have gone with my gut feeling.
I have a 42cm Surly Pacer that I really like the fit on. It's not a light and fast type of road bike though. It's more of a sport touring bike, which I like. Sometimes I think about seeing if I can get a custom steel frame in the same fit, but have it a bit lighter and faster. But will a frame that cost 3 times as much be 3 times better than what I have? Maybe not.
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