so i've been looking through the forums trying to gather info about fixie parts and wheelsets since i'm about to build/buy my first one, and while this site has been a great resource, there's one thing that bugs me...

this site kinda seems like a giant advertisement for bikesdirect.com at times.

i realize they're a sponsor of this site, but somehow they seem to come up in almost every single thread, and buying a bd bike is offered as a solution to newbie questions quite frequently, imo.

an example that sticks out in my mind was someone asking for pointers about building their first bike, and it seemed like every other response was "you could build your own fixie, or you could buy a cheapie off bd and get more value!" while it's true that they are a good price, the question of the OP seemed to be ignored so bd could be pushed on people.

personally, i've never owned a bd bike, but i've known quite a few people who have bought bd bikes, and some of them were happy with it, others had big issues with crappy parts (especially wheels). usually the difference maker seemed to be that the people who only rode occasionally and casually didn't have issues, but anyone who actually rode them hard or daily thrashed the bike pretty quick.

i realize that they are "discount" bikes, intended to capture a booming fixie market with lots of people looking to get into the currently hip scene and not meant for hardcore riders. but at the same time, there's a lot of cheap intro fixed/ss bikes out there, but the bd bikes are the only ones mentioned regularly on this site.

so what i'm wondering is this... why do i never seem to find anyone criticizing the bd bikes? why aren't the other cheap bikes (se, schwinn, old conversions, etc...) mentioned as often?

as a closing note, i would like to say that i realize it might be hard to say something on here and not start a flame war, but i have tried my best to phrase my questions politely. i'm not trying insult anyone who loves their bd bike. quite the opposite, actually, if you have a bike you love i'm totally stoked for you. i would really appreciate honest opinions from other people who have been watching this site longer than i have.

thanks.