Originally Posted by Bekologist
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If you need to buy, sometimes excellent bikes come up on Craigs list for a c note, a hundred and a half.
+1
Also check to see if there is a Freecycle program in your area - which is a list of people wanting to give away stuff. And you can also check some of the Yahoo groups. My friend just picked up a MTB for $20. He took the wheels and swapped em with his "good" bike, then gave the one he took the wheels from away to a friend. (with his old wheels, of course)