Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 44,172
Likes: 6,393
From: New York, NY, and High Falls, NY, USA
Bikes: 1962 Rudge Sports, 1971 Raleigh Super Course, 1971 Raleigh Pro Track, 1974 Raleigh International, 1975 Viscount Fixie, 1982 McLean, 1996 Lemond (Ti), 2002 Burley Zydeco tandem
You get a better value with a used bike, even if it needs repairs and some replacements. I'm not a fan of low end bikes, and I think $500 is a minimum when buying a new bike. If you pay less, you get stuff you'll eventually have to replace. Or if you don't, it won't serve you well. I'm particularly an un-fan of mail order bikes. They need work, right out of the box.