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Help me find/buy a cruiser please :(

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Help me find/buy a cruiser please :(

Old 05-13-21, 11:01 AM
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Question Help me find/buy a cruiser please :(

Good morning y'all! I hope I am allowed here, as of yet I solely dream of being a biker.

I have been wanting to buy myself a cruiser for probably 15 years, but as a single mom + public school teacher, money's always tight and better spent on my kids. Yesterday, someone told me that our local Walmart had a couple women's cruisers marked on clearance for $80 or so. I clearly had been talking about this pipe dream for a long time and she wanted me to just get one and stop wishing I had one. I checked the app, and it said there were 4 in stock and were $13 as of today. That seemed too good to be true, but I bundled the baby and toddlers up and went at opening at 7:00 am. We bumbled back to the bike department, and almost immediately a store manager asked if he could help us. I showed him the app, and he laughed and laughed and laughed. He explained that the bike had been clearanced out a season or two ago, but occasionally they find leftover merchandise in the stock room, and have to inventory it, and the system has automatically decreased the price as time went on. Knowing this, he had bought the 4 bikes himself prior to opening. I asked if I could buy one, not for the $13 or even the $80, but for whatever retail had been. I had already gotten my kids excited about the prospect of the baby riding on a bike with me and me being able to ride with them, not slowly walking behind with a stroller. I know it sounds silly, but all 4 of us were giddy. After this last year, it seemed so happy and exciting and fun and was finally something we could do safely and together and enjoyably. Mr. Walmart laughed and said no, he would not sell one to me, I could check Craigslist or Marketplace but he planned to mark them up from the original retail.

So, I started looking and looking. And they are not in stock anywhere! Of course now that I've bitten the bullet and am ready to splurge on myself, they aren't in stock or won't ship until mid-summer. An acquaintance suggested sixthreezero.com, but they are a little more than I'd like to spend.

I'll be honest - I want a cute one. I have lusted after this for so long, I want a bright pastel with a cute basket + a rear plate. I'd love white/cream wheels, or something not black/standard?. I feel like if I'm going to finally spend this money and treat myself, I should get one I want. I've looked extensively at Walmart and Target, and everything that meets my hopes is not in stock anywhere I can find, and isn't eligible for delivery or online ordering. I was shocked that even Amazon doesn't seem to have anything.

Ideally, I would have one within a week, prior to our first vacation to Maine to visit my parents in almost 3 years. This will never be used for anything super intensive. My kids are little and I am out of shape. It'll be used on asphalt/sidewalks, and for little jaunts around town with my daughters.

I have had this one bookmarked for years, it is everything I envision and dream of (and out of stock everywhere I can see)- Huffy Nel Lusso Cruiser

I have looked at these that are in-stock, but have no way of knowing how long they would take to ship or if they're even good quality / reliable.
- huffy yellow cruiser at wal mart
- huffy woodhaven cruiser at huffy website
- Schwinn women's lulu at target (but i don't really like how it looks...)

I can't find a reliable certainty about either company's shipping process/timeline.

I thought maybe someone here might be able to point me in the right direction, let me know if I am missing another retailer in my low budget price point, ideally with something like Prime shipping or the opportunity to pick up in store. I found a couple potential ones at Target, but none in-stock anywhere I could find.

(if it matters, I'm in Maryland. I'd happily drive to VA/WV/PA or anywhere within a couple hours.)

I appreciate anyone who's been patient enough to read any of this. Thanks for letting me into your community, hopefully one day soon I can be a bicyclist haha.
I know I'm being bratty. I want a cute one, and now I want it ASAP because I've gotten my kids and myself super excited for it. I want to go outside and be present and enjoy the spring and my kids and I am so sorry I'm the most annoying person. Please be kind if you have any suggestions or know where I could find one, or know from experience that Huffy ships 2 day priority or something haha.
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Old 05-14-21, 10:00 PM
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While this may not help in the short term, If you look on the Walmart website and can find the bike you are looking for you can request an email alert for when the bike is back in stock and order it then for delivery to your home. I just did this a few weeks ago and within a week the bike was available.

They are fairly easy to assemble especially a single speed cruiser.

While I hate to reward scalpers CL and FB marketplace can be good resources for used bikes.
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Old 05-19-21, 01:16 AM
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You can order new bicycles direct from HUFFY on the bay.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/15434546496...sAAOSwIe1gN8Tc



If you might be okay with something like a vintage 3 speed Schwinn, or a vintage 5 speed Schwinn Collegiate or vintage 5 speed Schwinn Suburban, THERE IS A LONG TIME USED BICYCLE SELLER ON THE BAY CALLED shadow27 IN Fond du Lac WISCONSIN. He has a 99.9% ebay rating. I have never done business with shadow27 , but I have met some folks who have purchased bicycles from shadow27. They are happy with them. I have seen two of them, both women's (step thru) 5 speed Schwinns from circa 1971 - 1974 and they are nice old bikes. It seems shadow27 hunts and finds old Schwinns, particularly ladies models Breeze, Collegiate, Suburban.........as well as sometimes the CO-ED and women's TRAVELER model of the early sixties that pre-date the arrival of the Breeze & Collegiate of the mid sixties. Most sellers simply part out the women's bikes no matter how nice they might find them, --or-- else they primarily use the womens bikes for clean rust free wheel swaps and fender & handlebar swaps with the diamond men's bikes....................historically girls and women cared for and stored their bikes in garages or indoors in their apartment while boys & men would leave the bike outdoors uncovered in all types of weather.
I DO NOT KNOW shadow27.
All that I do know is that he has been selling complete, good quality vintage " lightweight" SCHWINN women's models of the 1960's and 1970's at very reasonable prices for an Ebay seller and his shipping cost is reasonable too. I am told he does a good job packing and shipping the bikes. THE PRICES FOR shadow27 BICYCLES HAVE INCREASED ABOUT 25% SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE PANDEMIC in FEB 2020, Based on my estimation. Shipping Cost to the buyer in the lower 48 has remained about the same. He typically had much more inventory of these bikes at any given point in time during 2018, 2019, and very early 2020. I'm guessing he has been selling through the existing inventory much faster and at higher prices than before 2020 due to the Pandemic and that he has earned a stellar reputation. His bikes aren't perfect and he makes no effort to restore them, but it seems based the two that I have seen in person, is that he accurately he describes their condition.
Again, I do not know shadow27. You can find decent bicycles at prices much better than shadow27 but you will need to become a really good hunter. After all, that is what he does... Once you get to be really good, you have friends and friends of friends calling you saying we have these old bikes, do you want them because otherwise we are gonna take them to the dump or put them out on the curb on trash day.....so I'm guessing his average cost per bike is lower than any novice could achieve without years of experience. I've noticed that shadow27 has been on ebay for at least the past five years, perhaps more, selling probably hundreds of old women's model Schwinns. He currently has a '63 Traveler 3 speed #402815648616. He usually specializes in selling Breeze, Suburban & Collegiate step thru bikes, and he never fails in finding the ones with the really cool colors, although currently he may only have dull colors like black and blue.......


Hey, if you are gonna be travelling north by car to visit relatives, you could check and see what might be available on the bay as PICK-UP ONLY in cities/towns along or near the general route that you will be planning to take. The thing about buying on the bay with paypal is that there is LESS RISK that you'll be robbed at gunpoint as can be the case with CRAIGS if you don't meet at a sheriffs substation or police station or other secure safe public place. e-Bayers with good ratings(100% or very close to) are less likely to be dangerous criminals, being that there is some documented "paper-trail" of member account history and the fact that both eBay and Paypal do use their leverage to resolve any disputes where a seller attempts to scam a buyer.
A quick look on the bay shows what looks to be an average condition early seventies 21" frame Schwinn Suburban five speed that needs tires replaced from a 99.8% seller in Staten Island NY #164847705396....................................there is a 19" Breeze from a low rated 97.9% seller in Haddonfield NJ #265013810433...............there is a 17" Breeze red '76 3 speed with two new tires from a 100% seller in Manchester Township NJ #233962717311.....................and there is a 19" Breeze 3 speed that needs work, so it is way overpriced considering, but has nice paint and otherwise presentable in Edgecomb Maine from a 99.4% seller
These are just a few examples and none are bargains but if you check the bay daily, you never know what you'll find from folks that won't ship bikes and specify LOCAL PICK-UP ONLY. Bicycles from this type of ebay seller tends to often be very reasonably priced. The problem is often that the seller's location is a million miles away across 23 states so that it is an impossibility, but sometimes you get lucky and find something within your city or within 75 miles from you. You just gotta look on the bay every day and see what is out there. Good Luck. Also, never forget to ask your neighbors and friends as well as family members in and out of town to keep an eye out for something nice that you'd like.
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Old 05-20-21, 07:47 PM
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I love cruiser bikes - following as well
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Old 08-14-21, 10:09 PM
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The nearby Hilo Wal-Mart has had about nothing recently, other than kids bikes. Here is a couple they show in stock at my WM.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Kent-26-I...Blue/901976281

And, the one I like:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Kent-26-B...Gold/914178913

The first one is a basic single speed with coaster brakes only, meaning you pedal backwards to apply brakes. I'm not a big fan of coaster brakes myself. U like the second bike because it gas seven speeds, and hand applied rim brakes on both wheels. No coaster brakes. Being a 67 year old dude with a bad knee, I wouldn't mind a step through frame. If they gave these bikes at my Hilo store, there is a good chance they might have them at a WM near you. Notice the frames are the same design, and both are using 26 inch wheels.
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Old 08-14-21, 11:57 PM
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Maybe take a look at the cruiser offerings on bikesdirect.com?
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