5 Walmart bikes on Father's Day
06-17-18, 03:17 PM
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5 Walmart bikes on Father's Day
Was at Walmart early this morning and saw a lady check out with 5 bikes and pile them into the bed of a pick-up truck like sacks of potatoes.
I guess the plan was to go on a bike riding outing for Fathers day. They were different bikes.
Was going to tell her to buy a pump, but I just walked away.
Kinda made me cringe.
I guess the plan was to go on a bike riding outing for Fathers day. They were different bikes.
Was going to tell her to buy a pump, but I just walked away.
Kinda made me cringe.
06-17-18, 03:29 PM
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People from different walks of life are different. It happens.
06-17-18, 06:27 PM
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Wheres the punchline?
wait... this was not a joke?
wait... this was not a joke?
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06-17-18, 07:05 PM
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LBKA (formerly punkncat)
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It isn't a matter of snobby. It's a matter of what this retailer and the supplying manufacturers have allowed quality control and product durability fall to on these "Bicycle Shaped Objects" they sell. See, people buy this **** thinking it's a bike. It's heavy, poorly made, often poorly assembled. People take a ride and find things that don't work, bad ergonomics and poor performance then think THAT is cycling. It's not.
I am not against inexpensive bikes at all, but what passes as that word among most BBS is laughable.
I am not against inexpensive bikes at all, but what passes as that word among most BBS is laughable.
06-17-18, 07:10 PM
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Practically infinite number of things could go south with five new Walmart bikes. I glance at the bikes occasionally when at Walmart, which is pretty frequently, and regularly see examples of poor assembly, adjustment, etc. Such as the single speed bike I noticed last year with a chain that was absolutely as tight as could be - not taut but Tight. Brakes commonly look very questionable. Hope the family with five new bikes got what they wanted out of them.
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06-17-18, 07:33 PM
#7
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Well, pretty much anything and everything in Walmart is low quality...or at least not the best quality. So you're going to berate someone for buying the bikes there, while you're in there buying some other low quality merchandise? But ya know...I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that the folks using the Walmart bikes aren't riding much more than a few miles infrequently. Aside from the safety issues (like maladjusted brakes)...those cheap bikes are probably fine for what they need them to do. And if it's just for a short, infrequent family bike ride...more power to 'em.
Dan
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06-17-18, 07:51 PM
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Bikes are okay, I guess.
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I was adamantly anti-Walmart for years but have mellowed since. When doing chores in one direction from home it's easier to stop there than to drive in the opposite direction to find similar products, and I don't care if something costs more or less than it does elsewhere if it's what I need when I need it. Regarding the other folks who shop there, I'm glad they have the wherewithal to pay for their stuff. I'm fortunate enough not to feel like I have to shop there to stretch a dollar. And that lady with the five bikes? She and her family rode farther than I did today. Good for them. Hope they had fun. I did touch one of my bikes to move it out of the way so I could continue working with concrete and with bricks and mortar rebuilding my front stoop. Happy Father's Day.
06-17-18, 08:38 PM
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Craiglist usually has bikes that would lend a better cycling experience. Plus, it might just create a thing that a family could turn into routine fun.
having had my hands in many b&m box store bikes, nothing goes as planned. Leaving that certain level of sting everytime.
having had my hands in many b&m box store bikes, nothing goes as planned. Leaving that certain level of sting everytime.
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06-17-18, 09:18 PM
#10
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It isn't a matter of snobby. It's a matter of what this retailer and the supplying manufacturers have allowed quality control and product durability fall to on these "Bicycle Shaped Objects" they sell. See, people buy this **** thinking it's a bike. It's heavy, poorly made, often poorly assembled. People take a ride and find things that don't work, bad ergonomics and poor performance then think THAT is cycling. It's not.
I am not against inexpensive bikes at all, but what passes as that word among most BBS is laughable.
I am not against inexpensive bikes at all, but what passes as that word among most BBS is laughable.
06-17-18, 09:27 PM
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Clark W. Griswold
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We should all be so sorry that we dared question buying a bike shaped object at Wally-Mart. We are all horrid snobs because we find scrap metal shaped like a bicycle which in many cases is not safe and could hurt someone a really poor purchase. Get off your tall bike and realize what crap is.
Should we all just crap in a cheap plastic bucket because toilets are too high falutin'? Or can we actually accept that what Wally-Mart and others sell is junk and not an item I would want to put any loved one on. If they had actual trained and qualified bicycle mechanics that were building each bike and giving it a final exit tune before it left the Wally-Mart then I might change my tune slightly but that will never happen and the quality of the bikes will still be the same but at least they won't be as much of a death trap in their unbuilt status.
Should we all just crap in a cheap plastic bucket because toilets are too high falutin'? Or can we actually accept that what Wally-Mart and others sell is junk and not an item I would want to put any loved one on. If they had actual trained and qualified bicycle mechanics that were building each bike and giving it a final exit tune before it left the Wally-Mart then I might change my tune slightly but that will never happen and the quality of the bikes will still be the same but at least they won't be as much of a death trap in their unbuilt status.
06-17-18, 09:30 PM
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Well, pretty much anything and everything in Walmart is low quality...or at least not the best quality. So you're going to berate someone for buying the bikes there, while you're in there buying some other low quality merchandise? But ya know...I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that the folks using the Walmart bikes aren't riding much more than a few miles infrequently. Aside from the safety issues (like maladjusted brakes)...those cheap bikes are probably fine for what they need them to do. And if it's just for a short, infrequent family bike ride...more power to 'em.
Dan
Dan
06-17-18, 09:42 PM
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A cheaper bottle of catsup or is it ketchup or a cheap t-shirt or a low price TV is not really going to put your life at risk (unless it is poisoned or had wiring issues) but a bike that uses cheap materials and is not properly assembled can.
06-17-18, 11:11 PM
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https://photos.app.goo.gl/miqJq85iniBWZmtv8 . Take a look at which side the front brake is mounted on. The bike was assembled incorrectly.
For a little kid who is going to grow out of a bike in a season or two and only ride it a hundred miles or so a year on mostly flat ground, the Walmart bike might not be the worst choice on a budget. Not everyone lives in an area that has good Craigslist coverage. It seems like a lot of people who frequent this forum do not have budget constraints.
For a little kid who is going to grow out of a bike in a season or two and only ride it a hundred miles or so a year on mostly flat ground, the Walmart bike might not be the worst choice on a budget. Not everyone lives in an area that has good Craigslist coverage. It seems like a lot of people who frequent this forum do not have budget constraints.
06-18-18, 03:21 AM
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Did she have 5 children with her ... in which case she could of been buying one for each dad 
Last edited by Witterings; 06-18-18 at 09:55 AM.
06-18-18, 04:14 AM
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This is going to end well. 
06-18-18, 05:01 AM
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anyone in the mechanic sub section has a bit of financial savviness & care to budget a repair a bicycle vs buying a new N+1.
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06-18-18, 06:34 AM
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06-18-18, 06:50 AM
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Well, pretty much anything and everything in Walmart is low quality...or at least not the best quality. So you're going to berate someone for buying the bikes there, while you're in there buying some other low quality merchandise? But ya know...I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that the folks using the Walmart bikes aren't riding much more than a few miles infrequently. Aside from the safety issues (like maladjusted brakes)...those cheap bikes are probably fine for what they need them to do. And if it's just for a short, infrequent family bike ride...more power to 'em.
Dan
Dan
At least they are out riding a bike. Much better than the majority of people who sit home and watch TV while their arteries clog up.
06-18-18, 06:57 AM
#21
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It isn't a matter of snobby. It's a matter of what this retailer and the supplying manufacturers have allowed quality control and product durability fall to on these "Bicycle Shaped Objects" they sell. See, people buy this **** thinking it's a bike. It's heavy, poorly made, often poorly assembled. People take a ride and find things that don't work, bad ergonomics and poor performance then think THAT is cycling. It's not.
I am not against inexpensive bikes at all, but what passes as that word among most BBS is laughable.
I am not against inexpensive bikes at all, but what passes as that word among most BBS is laughable.
Maybe she bought them for people she doesn't like.
06-18-18, 07:09 AM
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Wal-Mart bikes have their place. I'm certainly not goiing to argue they are a better choice than anything else, but for the family that is doing things like piling them on top of a pop up to ride around the campground, they are adequate. Probably not ever going to fit the needs for the members of a cycling enthusiast forum, then again I'm guessing most people's cars on this site would be mocked on a car enthusiast forum, as would their clothing on a fashion enthusiast forum, as would so on and so forth down the list of their possessions.
06-18-18, 07:29 AM
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Chances are really quite good that a lady who has neither the time, inclination nor money to buy 5 custom-fitted high quality bikes for her kids in a hurry would just end up buying used Walmart bikes from CL, and might not even know it. At least this way, she knows where to return it.
Bikes are pretty much all ill-fitting at those ages. Even if you take the trouble to size it properly, it'll likely be the wrong size within a month. Growth spurts are really sudden and pretty dramatic.
Get back to us when you have to budget your time and money caring for 5 kids and have to buy items you aren't knowledgeable about.
Bikes are pretty much all ill-fitting at those ages. Even if you take the trouble to size it properly, it'll likely be the wrong size within a month. Growth spurts are really sudden and pretty dramatic.
Get back to us when you have to budget your time and money caring for 5 kids and have to buy items you aren't knowledgeable about.
06-18-18, 07:35 AM
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The last two posts have started an upward trend in intelligent thought on this thread. Maybe the thread will end well after all! 
06-18-18, 07:44 AM
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