Originally Posted by
TenSpeedV2
There are a lot of things that you don't need. I don't need a bike from Wal-Mart. No matter how much people try to convince me, it simply is not happening.
I'd be willing to bet if I went through your house, you'd own plenty of things that others would never buy at a big box store, but you did. As for me? A lot of stuff comes from big box stores, because they meet a price and quality level I can live with. I have audiophile friends who would never buy speakers from Wal-Mart, but I replaced my speakers in my old Blazer with ones from there which worked just fine. I don't buy my kitchenware at Williams and Sonoma or the local restaurant supply stores, my $9 Wal-Mart brand flatware set works just fine. I don't make a habit of shopping for jeans there, but I've found ones on the clearance rack that lasted no shorter an amount of time than my far more expensive ones from Macy's. On the flip side (rather ironic considering my previous speaker comment), I'm currently looking at spending nearly $300 on a new turntable, because I listen to records enough that I don't want to just go with the cheapies that you can buy around Christmas time, when most folks I know would call me crazy for doing so.
Everyone values their cost/benefit differently. While you or I may not be rushing out to see the new Schwinns at Wally World, doesn't mean they don't fill the cycling needs of many folks.
Originally Posted by
EnjoyinTheRide
But lets be fair, were talking bicycles here, they are not that complicated, in fact they are fun to work on even if your learning as you work on one..At minimum, grab a crescent wrench and tighten the wheels and handlebars
Yeah, this. Most can put together a bike and make it work OK. Whether or not the setup is optimized, probably not, but then again how many LBS bikes are hanging in a garage that haven't seen an adjustment in years, that get pulled out once a summer for that camping trip, with rock hard brake pads and derailleurs that don't shift to the last two sprockets?