Bikes Direct Mercier 2009 Galaxy Road Bike (D.B. Reynolds chro mo frame/forks) @$399
 

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I saw a Mercier Galaxy road bike with Reynolds Dble Butted Chrome Moly for $399 at Bikes Direct.
It looks like what I am used to. Has 700C wheels, brifters, and a few other updated features. Price isn't bad compared to some used bikes I've seen. The specs are:

Main Frame Reynolds 520DB butted Cro-Moly with outer butted seat tube, Double water bottle mounts, Rear Rack Mounts
Rear Triangle Mercier Custom Tapered Cro-Moly, investment cast brake bridge with rack mounts, forged dropout and eyelet
Fork Mercier Custom Butted, Full Cro-Moly, Unicrown Road 1 inch steerer, forged dropout and eyelet
Crankset TruVativ Triple Road 52/42/30T
Bottom Bracket Sealed cartridge
Pedals Wellgo Alloy Road w/ clips and straps
Front Derailleur Shimano Sora 3304, clamp-on, 28.6mm
Rear Derailleur Shimano Deore M530
Shifters Shimano 8-speed STI, brake and shift from the same lever position
Cassette/Freewheel Shimano HG 8-speed, 11-30T
Chain KMC Z-72
Front Hub Aluminum Alloy Road, Sealed, 32H
Rear Hub Aluminum Alloy Road Sealed, 32H
Spokes Stainless, 14g
Rims Alex, R500 Double Wall Road Rims with CNC machined brake surface, 32H
Tires Kenda K-196 Road Tire, 700 X 26c, Presta Valve tubes
Brake Set Aluminum Forged Road, Dual Pivot
Brake Levers Shimano STI
Headset TH Sealed Mechanism, Black finish
Handlebar Mercier 6061 Butted Road, Anatomical Drops
Stem Mercier Superlight Road Aluminum, 1 inch 0 Deg, Removable Clamp 25mm
Tape/Grip Mercier custom cork wrap
Saddle Velo Anatomical Saddle
Seat Post Mercier Forged Road, Micro Adjust alloy, 250mm, 27.2
Seat Clamp New Mercier Ultralite alloy, 31.8mm, Lazer etched

Looks like an updated version of what I am used to. I understand it to be $399 in total to the front door. Thinking it might be a possible light touring bike for day trips. Any thoughts? Experiences with the bike? Mercier still a real company, or a just a lable like Schwinn, Raleigh, etc. Thank you in advance.

Anything from Bike Direct is not a real brand. They just use various recognizable brand names for marketing purposes.

So just value it based on components.

Just remember at that price, you can buy any number of vintage touring bikes if you so desire. And any one of those vintage touring bikes will continue to go up in value in the years to come.

And all of their list prices are total BS. At the same time, you cannot find a new brifter bike for $400 anywhere else.

Mercier is just a label, unlike raleigh and schwinn which are still their own company. Mercier along with motobecane, dawes, and many others are examples of the brand name being bought to be put on cheap modern bikes with no connection to the original company.
That being said if you are considering a B.D. bike at least jump up to $500 so you are getting shimano 105 components.

Is a 2009 bike a Classic already?

FYI:

Reynolds 520 = 4130

I think that there are a lot of vintage bikes at that pricepoint ($400+tax+shipping) with better tubes and components...

Neither Raleigh or Schwinn are their own company any more, nor have they been so in this century. They are 'just a label', as you've pointed out.
I have no issue with BikesDirect, although the use of grand old marques does stick in my craw. But so does the so-called 'Raleighs' and 'Schwinns' coming out of red China.
Top

Cool. A BD pissing match in C&V instead of the road forum.

A question for you folks don't like the fact they own brands they didn't start. What's the big deal? Why can't they use the name? No brand has ever been stagnant, ask any brand manager, what's wrong with change?

If Mercier is no longer "real" what about Cinelli? Cinelli was started by Giotto Cinelli in 1946. Cino Cinelli took over the business in 1948 and soon moved it from Florence to Milan. Antonio Columbo bought it in 1978 when Cino retired. Which is the "real" Cinelli? A Giotto? A Cino? Or an Antonio?

Yeah, but no one has accused him of being a shill yet!

I would think there are some people, when seeing the Brand name Motobecane, may think that the experience of the French company is what makes them a good bike. Nope, sorry, it's just a name. Beijing Cycle Bureau would be more accurate.

Albeit I'm a newb here in the 181 and have little standing to make such a request but could we NOT get into a BikesDirect discussion/argument/shouting match? NOT having them has been a welcome change from the 41. :)

Sorry, I'm echoing iab above.

Shill




















:innocent:

As a newbian LBS owner, I'm not super thrilled to see this. Given how many Mercier Kilo TTs Bikes Direct has sold to the fixed gear crowd, this amounts to fairly dangerous competition in the entry level road category. Who cares if it has no name hubs, it's a brifter bike for 400 freakin dollars.

Khatfull, where do the numbers come from? I see "41" being mentioned in the road forum, but no way I'm opening myself up to asking there.

On the URL for the main page of each subforum is a number. C&V is 181: "http://www.bikeforums.net/forumdisplay.php?181-Classic-Vintage"

If BD could spec it w/ ~30 year old parts and frame, I would check it out!

Wow. Never picked up on that.

Forget about the "Classic and Vintage. Bikeforums.net" on the Oregon Cycle Wear group buy jerseys. We should all be sporting wool jerseys with "181" shoulder patches.

Brilliant! Some of us would have to wear a 41 patch too though.

But would anyone wear a 250 or 199? :)

There was a Foo jersey a while back. It was before the number-names trend, or I'm sure it would have been mocked with a 199 on it somewhere.

Look at it this way. If it was a "real" Mercier/Windsor/Motobecane, we'd still be lamblasting it for not having lugged construction.

-Kurt

At least it has a horizontal top tube and a raked fork. :)

With Cinelli at least there is a linear progression over time. With the Bikes Direct "acquisitions" the only thing a modern Mercier or Motobecane or whatever has in common with the original company is the name.

Yeah, but Don, I'll tell ya the truth, as I see it. On my club rides, there's ONE person out of 7 or 8 that has a BD bike (a Dawes Lightning 1500). The rest have bike shop bikes...except me, although all of my bikes were shop bikes at one point in time ;) . I guess what I"m trying to say is that it seems there isn't much business overall from BD - at least, enough to affect a business in Culver.

And truth be told, if I was in the market right now and could find a cromoly fixed gear bike that can fit fat tires and fenders for under $400 from a brick and mortar store, I'd go for it. But as it stands, the best deal for that seems to be BD. Again, if I was in the market for a fixed/ss bike to use as a commuter, I'd be hard pressed to come up with better.

That said, I'd probably just do like I always do and build up a C/V bike to suit my needs with 27" fixed wheels out of an old dumpster bike.


I did notice that BD is selling the Kilo WT as a "5 speed fixed gear" although if you look at the pictures, the rear hub is simply a Sturmey 5 speed. Would be cool if they came up with a bike that was centered on the S3X hub though.

ETA: if I was looking at a BD bike and had the budget, it'd be this bad boy:

http://bikesdirect.com/products/merc..._serpensIX.htm

However, if I was to be buying something like that, I'd probably save my ducats and end up buying something I'd consider more versatile, prettier, and from a brick and mortar store, like the Masi Randonneur or the Surly Pacer.

Reynolds 520DB butted Cro-Moly tubing is made in Taiwan, but under the supervision of Reynolds in the UK, according to the Reynolds website.

Depends on who you ask! :)

Quite true but most people don't know that.

Raleigh: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raleigh..._new_ownership

Schwinn: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schwinn_Bicycle_Company