Routty1

First, I do not know a great deal about bikes.
My son has a Redline 320 (that is what is says on the bike). The bike does not currently have a back wheel. The hub was bad. He got a new one, but does not know how to respoke it. His friend has a Haro F2. They want to trade bikes in as is condition and the friend will have to respoke the back wheel. They say nothing is wrong with the Haro.
My 12 year old son rides freestyle at the skatepark. He is not a small kid (5'5 125lbs). I want to make sure my son is not getting taken advantage of and the Haro is capable of handling him.
He still owes me $100 for the Redline which is why I will not pay for the bike to be fixed.

Thanks for any advice you can give.

minichamp31

After looking at the Redline, I'm sure pretty much any bike would be better to be honest. I think the Haro would probably actually hold up better.

Routty1

Thanks, He got the redline second hand from a friend for $70 and added new cranks, sprocket, wheels and handlebars. He does not have a great deal of money in it(or I don't). He has always been a skater, this bike thing just came a few months ago. I just don't have the money to keep buying expensive toys and I don't want him to make a trade that put him in a worse situation.

Thanks for you help.

fuzzbox

Depending what new parts they are you might want to see if you can keep them

mtbabruni

That redline was way overpriced and that haro f2 is going to be HEAVY. Hard for him to learn on.

tyler11

yea but it will help him in the long run wen he gets a better bike
im 5'2 100
i started out a cuple years ago on a schwin z-force it was like 35-40 pounds
the difference when i got my subrosa amazing

mtbabruni

guess so, my first bike was around 30 pounds. Then i recently got my Eastern but with an aluminum frame, soooooo light, its insane the difference you feel.

K_phomma

alu sounds sketch

Street rider

aluminum doesnt just sound sketchy. it is sketchy.

minichamp31

Unless you're racing. I think it's funny how some people are like "my bike is too heavy. it weighs like 28 pounds." Hahaha. My bike is almost 35.

mtbabruni

I know it sounds sketchy, but theres nothing to grind where i live so i normally just ride street but without the grinding. Aluminum frames work fine for taking stairs and ledges and stuff like that, just stay away from rails.

Street rider

i say only use aluminum for racing. i wouldnt trust it on the streets.

fuzzbox

I think stairs would be worse with all the impact. Unless you are doing stupid things like 2 stairs and 1 foot ledges. Just cause you don't grind doesn't mean something will be better last longer. Can't wait to hear the "my frame just broke" story.

mtbabruni

hasnt failed me yet. And ive taken way bigger things than 2 steps... But my next bike will for sure be 4130 cromo. And grinding seems worse because it puts more stress on the dropouts instead of the entire frame.

iwegian

didn't easter do a ti frame? i think the complete was ~14lbs with no super light components on it. but that's all from memory so i could be off.

mtbabruni

Not sure. Never heard of a Ti Frame.

Street rider

yea eastern had one. it weighed like 2 lbs 1 oz. and then they came out with a bunch of TI parts to go with it

mtbabruni

wow. sounds expensive lol

Street rider

the frame alone cost $1200. the handlebars were $120, and the forks were like $209

mtbabruni

lmao. 1200 bucks for a frame?! That insane

fuzzbox

Yea sure it isn't going to break right off the bat depending who you are and what style you ride but give it some time.

mtbabruni

Ive had it for a year. I ride every day or every other day. It works for me. But like i said. My next bike (probably within 6 months) will for sure be cromo

Street rider

mhmmmmmmmm

fuzzbox

Waste of money, you can build a sweet bike with $1200 alone.

Kodyo

I strongly suggest you buy a decent bike such as a mid level complete from We The People, Kink, Stolen, Subrosa has some, DK has one or two.
Basically, look for this
1) Full Chromo frame
2) Sealed Bottom Bracket, and hubs
3) Chromoly Forks, Handlebars, Cranks
4) Double walled rims

You really do get what you pay for. And there are plenty of customs on craigslist for cheap

Which are you talking about? TI reaper?
Anyways, I dont trust anything Eastern makes. And the most expensive forks i know of out at this point are Ody Directors at $150