newindtown44

I am a college student on a budget looking for a cheap road bike which will be my first. I came across all of these bikes that seem like good deals on sale at a thrift shop. I was hoping to get help on gathering information on them and deciding if any of them are worth purchasing.

All of them are $35 except for the Free Spirit which is $25. Any help on if I should buy one or not would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

zukahn1

The WS sport looks like it might be alright if you can do all or most of the work to fix it figure about $100 for the parts. The other's are realy low end and not worth spending the time and money to fix up. Of the bike shown in th pics the Blue Univega Cross bike looks like it would be a better buy for a college student on budget slightly nicer alloy components and better condition. Looks like it would only need grips and tune up to make decent college rider.

digger531

Well first of all, negotiate. Its a thrift store after all. The world sport is the only one with a chance, although that Univega looked interesting. If you don't have experience fixing bikes you may be better off buying from a flipper on craigslist. A bike like that World Sport completely refurbed is only going to sell for $150-$200 depending on location. $25 for the bike plus $100 for parts and thats if you know where to source them (you can actually do it cheaper but it can be a lot more too) plus your time to do the repairs, added cost for tools you would need ect.

Thumpic

Buy em all....keep the univega....sell the others on craigslist as is 60 each...........

r0ckh0und 

My money would be on the Univega Activa because I'm pretty sure I could get my money back for the frameset in the event of epic fail on the overhaul. You'll want to make sure the wheels are true for a good starting point.

oddjob2

Guys, what happened to make sure it is the right size frame first?

+1 on the Univega if it fits.

Steve Whitlatch 

The World Sport looks like it was barley ridden. Tires look good. I see no rust. Tape and cables $35, Hubs and cranks lubed $60 at the local bike shop. So for & $120 total, you get a bike you know is done right. You may get lucky and find a flipper that actually cleaned and lubed the bike he is selling for $150 but you will never know until you pay the LBS to check it out unless you open it up and check yourself. Same goes for the Univega.

Steve Whitlatch 

If your on a real tight budget and you need a bike for $35, look each over. Find the one with the most straight rims that spin the best and that stops & shifts. Clean the chain and freewheel and rear derailleur wheels with Mineral Spirits to get all the dirt and grime out. Oil the chain and cable housings with 3 in 1 oil and ride it until it stops working. That`s all that many bike flippers do.

newindtown44

Thanks for all the help so far. I'm glad I posted because I didn't even notice the Univega.

newindtown44

I ended up getting the Schwinn for $20 from the thrift store. It seems like it's in good shape so far. Thanks again everyone.