Inpd

There is lots of chatter about BikeDirect bikes but very little actual experience so I thought I would post my buying experience. I bought a Dawes Lightening DLX (see Road Bikes - Dawes Lightning DLX) and this post is about the buying and setup process. I'll review the bike after I've ridden it a bit.

As a comparison, I'll compare my experience with buying a Diamondback Kids road bike from Amazon ( https://www.amazon.com/Diamondback-Bi.../dp/B00FC1TMQA )

Pre-Purchase
========

Bikesdirect's website is ugly. It's as though they've never heard of web design software! In addition sometimes a bike size will be listed as available but when you go to check out it says its not in stock.

However, there email response to questions is pretty good and sometimes amazing. I emailed them on Sunday regarding an inventory question and got a response in 2 minutes, but typically its a few hours. That being said sometimes responses are cut and pastes from their website.

Delivery
=====

Delivery is quite fast. I ordered on Thursday and it was at my home on Tuesday. Shipping is from TX and I live 1500+ miles away from there.

The bike was very well packed in thick cardboard and lots of padding around the fork. It was much better packed than the Diamondback whose fork had poked through the packaging.

Bike Parts
======

This was my biggest concern. As you can see from the description of the bike, some parts have no name. I was therefore pleasantly surprised to see that BikesDirect had actually upgraded my bike. It came with a Claris, STI/Front-Rear/Dereilleur's. The cassette and crank were Suntour and LASCO but reasonable quality.

Now I guess one man's meat is another man's poison. The bike was supposed to ship with the thumb shifter STIs (2300's) so I guess one should check with BikesDirect to make sure you know exactly what your getting.


Installation
=======

To put the bike together takes just 30 minutes. To make it ride properly took me an extra two hours. But I think that's time worth spending since I can now make adjustments myself.

Putting together the bike involved putting in the stem, handle bars, front wheel, pedals and front brake. Everything is already connected (i.e. the gear/brake cables). The effort in putting it together was similar to the Amazon Diamondback effort.

In both the Amazon and BikeDirect bikes I had to true the wheels (took 5 minutes), adjust the brake pads. The BikeDirects bike took twice as long to tune as the Amazon Diamondback because I'd never worked on double pivot brakes before and I had to index the front Dereilluer. Amazingly the read derilleur was perfectly set up. Upper and lower limits were set and it was indexed.

Conclusion
=======

I was a pleasant transaction with a good ending. A drawback of BikesDirect is the inventory issue. I really wanted the next level up model which had a 105 drivetrain but it was not in stock and not going to be in stock until June.

Another issue is that BikesDirect seemed to have upgraded my bike so you should contact them to make sure the bikes coming to you matches the website description.

Set up is similar to setting up good quality manufacturers boxed bikes. It will take you a few hours, but the upside is you now can tune your bike which saves you money in the long run.

I'm happy to answer any questions about the purchase and installation of the bike.

Lazyass

I bought one 7 or 8 years ago, don't remember the model but it was aluminum with carbon stays and a 105 group for a good price. Shipped fast and took me about 30 minutes to have it ready to ride. It was a great bike, I regret selling it.

Stucky

I like the BD website. It's fast; very easy to see all of the bikes in a given category at once, in one big overview... It works; and they don't have to pay web developers and programmers a lot (which cost would be passed on to the customer). Just a good old functional website, without all the glitz and frills. I just wish they'd lose all "SALE! SALE! SALE!" BS, when the bikes are in-fact are not on sale. That makes them seem really sleazy.

PiLigand

OP, what do you mean when you say you "indexed" the derailleurs?

Lazyass

I'm sure he meant he tuned them. Which is actually called an indexing adjustment. You should know this.

PiLigand

I thought so. I didn't know if there was something more to the system of which I was unaware. You seem a little hostile about it. Is it really such an unreasonable question?

Lazyass

Man, doesn't take much I guess lol

PiLigand

??? Welp, I'm lost. I was just going for clarification in the first place. The "You should know this" seemed odd.

Either way, I wouldn't have thought that the cables were already connected when ordering the bike. That's a pretty nice bonus.

AlmostTrick

I like BD and their website. Good quality photos along with lots of close ups. In each color even.

I agree the 60% Off Sale!!! is hokey. The important thing is the bikes are decent.

datlas 

Thanks for posting. There are definitely pros and cons to the BD option. The main drawback I think is that newbies may not know how to get the proper size and do the proper setup. The irony is that BD appeals to newbies who experience sticker-shock when they go to the LBS.

I think BD is a reasonable option for many. Their website reads a bit like a used car dealer's flyer, "Sale of the Century" type copy and references to "MRSP" that is clearly are not accurate.

dr_lha

Wasn't the bike supposed to come with a Sora RD? Claris is the level down from Sora. That said, if it's the new 2400 Claris, that's probably on par with if not better than the old 3400 Sora.

Still it just goes to show that these bikes come with the caveat that what you see on their website might not be what you get. This is of course true for all bikes, but less surprising when you see it hands on before you pay for it.

JerrySTL

I bought a Windsor Tourist from BD a few years ago. The shipping was fast. Assembly was easy (I've worked on bikes since a kid decades ago). The bike was a very good bargain and has held up well. I do light touring on the Katy Trail across Missouri each year plus use the bike for night riding and when there's a chance of ice or snow. I'm considering getting a bike from BD for my son before this year's Katy Trail ride in June.

himespau 

If you can do your own work, it doesn't seem like a bad deal as long as you know exactly what you're going to get. Changes aren't always a good thing.

lkngro

I got a Dawes Lightning 1200 7 or 8 years ago as my first road bike from there and it's lasted me this far. It weighs a ton and the adjustable stem creaks a little bit, but I've put some good miles on it. If you know how to set up a bike or know someone who will do it for you, it's a great deal. I'm selling it to my friend as a commuter after I finish my build. I'll be sad to let it go.

snow_echo_NY

thanks for the report OP~

shelbyfv

Informative post. Thanks! I like that you can see all the bikes with a certain component group or whatever. On the other hand, if a size is out of stock they should say so right away.

Stucky

Shills! Shills! You're all shills!

Corben

Nice post Inpd. When do we get to see a picture of your new bike?

sloar 

I bought a Kilo TT from there, super fast shipping and packed up nice. No complaints.

Sidney Porter

I think that I would rather have the new Claris than the old Sora. I think the new sora is 9 speed but the bike was advertised as an 8 speed.

Inpd

Just a quick update. It seems that BD upgraded/changed a few other bits compared to the website.

As well as upgrading the STIs to Claris and the front derailleur to Claris I found:

The cassette was supposed to be a cheap "SUNRACE CSR86BQ0SS1 12-25T-8 SATIN " but instead is a bit more expensive DNP Epoch cassette.
The saddle is also a genuine Velo saddle

But this is where I don't get BD, they did all those upgrades, but the brake pads are DANGEROUSLY inadequate. I had to change them out for a cheap set that cost $6 and the improvement was remarkable.

himespau 

I don't think Claris is really an upgrade. It's just the new name for 2300/2400. Before that the 2000-level parts just had a number and not a name.

Inpd

Really? Hmm, maybe I'm wrong but I thought all the 2300 STIs only had thumb shifters but the Claris had the black lever inside the brake shifter like the 105s.

roadwarrior

Unless I am off my rocker, and that could be....2400 is Claris. 2300 is below that and has the fun stubby thumb buttons like Sora used to have.

Frankly, I have not seen 2300 for a very long time on a production bike from the Big Three (Trek, Giant, Cannondale).

dtrain

You are all partially correct. 2400 (Claris) is replacing the otherwise un-named 2300. Yes, it's an 'upgrade' (ditching the thumb shifter)...but is also just the current version of the 2xxx level offering.