I was in Walmart this week and I just have to look at their bikes for some reason. Anyway I ran across one of the realish bikes they have the Triace which I think has Shimano 2200 on it. They had it marked down to $350 which isn't bad I suppose if you don't know about Bikes direct. I like the Schwinn Solitaire all outfited for commuting duty, but they jumped the price up to $244 from $199 and its now gripshifters which I don't really care for.

yes I rode a century on a walmart mongoose while pulling my son and all his toys behind me in a bike trailer

I found these

Sora shifters
http://www.walmart.com/ip/700c-Mens-...d-Bike/5585800
http://i.imgur.com/qv2iG.png

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Ferrari-Mo...nsion/15601138
http://i.imgur.com/s1mQx.png

I wouldn't personally buy them and if I didn't know about bikesdirect I wouldn't try to talk someone out of them. For what it's worth...

I rode a century on a Dept. Store level, steel rimmed Takara MTB back in the day.

I rode an MS150 charity ride on an aluminum Schwinn from WM... the frame cracked, I swapped the parts over to another frame, and am still commuting on the original wheels.

Short video when I first bought it. Here it is
maybe 6 months later. Over 2500 miles later, comparing to my Cannondale F4, still rides great but have made a few changes..
Video was made for another forum, but
just wanted to show the changes to the Trailways, still love the bike ! Richard

WOW ! Strong Statement ! Video speaks
for it's self.. Winter Riding ! Giant Rincon Still love riding the Trailways too. Richard : )

We sure are having fun !
or does it take a
2000.00 dollar bike, not including extra's to get around or have fun.. Just make sure the bike fits you well, and ride what you can, and do not worry about what other people think !
Richard

Ride home.. That was about a 15 mile ride
ALL ON DEPT. STORE BIKES ! Or would she had more fun on this bike ! Sorry for the rant, ( not really ), can not stand people who bash others, or look down
on them....I think they do it to make there self feel better ! Richard

Congratulations and hats off to you ! And towing a trailer. Your The Man, Richard

Good for you for giving your kids a great introduction to cycling!

I remember well going to get my son his first bike. We really, really wanted to buy from this neighborhood shop, so we stopped there first. The owner showed us a bike he thought would be good for our son. When he told us the price, we both said in unison: "For a kids bike ???"

He made a half hearted attempt to explain why we should spend 3 to 4 times as much on this bike as we would on one from Target but he knew from our expressions it was a lost cause. I'm sure the same scenario had played out 100 times in his shop before.

So our son's first and second bikes were from Target. There were problems with each that I won't bother to detail. Mostly minor but enough that I wanted something different for his 3rd bike. For that I got a used K2 from craigslist. A nice bike but a little heavy and also a little on the big side for him. That was probably a worse mistake than the Target bike. I think it dampened his desire to ride because it was harder for him to handle. Now he's grown into it but I wouldn't have got the same bike if I had to do it over.

With my daughter we didn't even bother to buy a bike until recently. There's so many girls in this neighborhood that are a couple years older than her that she's constantly getting stuff from them including bikes. They were all these cute princess things from Target or wherever. We had a mechanical problem with the latest one when riding to church last year that was caused by the cheapness of the bike so I got her a decent one. You don't have to look any farther than the rim brakes they put on these little kids bikes to know that they're not well made.

Her new bike is a Trek Mystic from craigslist. Fairly light for a kids bike and I made sure it fit her. Live and learn.

So anyway I agree that it's better to get a cheap bike that fits than an expensive one that doesn't. If you're lucky enough to have an active craigslist site near you and know what you're looking for you can have the best of both worlds (quality and low prices).

+1 on your post, I can build a bike from the frame up, so all my kids bikes are in very good working order. As they get older, there bikes get better also, my son is now riding a Giant ATX 860, since the video's. But good
info, Richard

yes why should starter bikes be 6000.00 rides

You can get a decent starter ride for $600 online or used.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=188993 You can keep clicking the picture for zooming in.


Frame

SizesS, M, L, XL ColorsWhite/RedFrameALUXX-Grade AluminumForkSR Suntour NEX 4610 w/ Lockout, 63mm TravelShockN/AComponents

HandlebarGiant Sport, Alloy 30mm rise 25.4StemGiant Sport, AlloySeatpostGiant Sport Alloy, 30.9SaddleGiant X-Road Sport Men'sPedalsVP-992S Steel CageDrivetrain

ShiftersSRAM X.5, TriggerFront DerailleurShimano AltusRear DerailleurSRAM X.5BrakesAvid BB5 DiscBrake LeversTektro 3 Finger w/ Kraton Comfort GripCassetteSRAM PG830 11x32, 8-SpeedChainKMC Z72NPCranksetShimano M361, 28/38/48Bottom BracketSealed CartridgeWheels

RimsGiant Sport, Double Walled, Disc Specific, 700cHubsAlloy Sealed w/ QR, 32hSpokesStainless SteelTiresKenda Kwick, 700x40Other


And can get you this new from a Local LBS for 579.00 dollars. A new rider shoud always take someone with
knowledge with them when buying used. Richard

I owned a walmart bike when i was a freshman in college. I hated it. The first week the pedal fell off. I tried to put it back, but the threads got damaged. Also, it was nearly impossible to tune the gears. The shifting was lousy. If walmart bikes were worth repairing, they would have done so in their store.

one thing I have to admit, the frame seemed decent. Only beef is the parts are nearly impossible to find, and i am not even sure the standard parts will fit. Anyhoo...i never regret buying the walmart bike. It worked fine for about a year and cost me next to nothing (good thing it got stolen). I am planning to purchase another walmart bike and will review it thoroughly. [Rumor has it, these bikes dont last more than 100 miles, and i dont disbelieve it, but want to put the myth to the test. Expect a new thread soon.]

This is not my video, but this rider seems very content with his $75 bike.

I owned a walmart bike when i was a freshman in college. The first week the pedal fell off. I tried to put it back, but the threads got damaged on the pedal (I was lucky it was not the crank-arm). Also, it was nearly impossible to tune the gears. The shifting was lousy. If walmart bikes were worth repairing, they would have done so in their store to make a few more $.

One thing I have to admit, the steel frame and fork seemed decent on the Murray MTB. Only beef, the parts were nearly impossible to find, and i am not even sure the standard parts will fit these frames. Anyhoo...i never regret buying the walmart bike for $80. It worked fine for about a year and cost me next to nothing (good thing it got stolen). I am planning to purchase another walmart bike and will review it thoroughly. [Rumor has it, these bikes dont last more than 100 miles, and i don't disbelieve it, but i want to put the myth to the test. Expect a new thread soon.]

This is not my video, but this rider seems very content with his $75 bike.

Every once in a while xmart ups their game but then, if you are going to be paying LBS prices on some models why not deal with a real bike shop ?

Buy. Ride it. Find out what's wrong and tell us all about it . . .

LOL WalMart bikes only last 100 miles?

Seriously...

Yup. I think there was a research done and the result was most casual riders dont ride more than 100 miles a year. So these bikes are definitely not for serious riders. More like one-time-use/disposable bikes. Once it breaks, get a new one.

I recently purchased a Surly LHT, which cost me over $1500 with all the parts and accessories. I would take this bike over 20 disposable walmart bikes, anyday. [mostly due to time saving by not having to do maintenace frequently, time savings by not having to search for the right parts, eg; cassettes, shifters, derailleurs, derailleur hangers, etc ] [But I do remember how broke i was back in college, and even $150 was a big deal, and $80 for a bike seemed like a steal. (I used that bike mostly as a single speed commuter and never really had much complaints)

Anyhoo...now i have a job and rewarded myself with a decent bike. Some pics of my Surly:

https://picasaweb.google.com/sonnet....kes#slideshow/

It's 100% quality... :)

Cheers .

Maybe, but if Walmart bikes only lasted 100 miles, then these folks would be getting new bikes every year. That's not the case. There's a pretty famous thread from this forum where a guy bought a Walmart bike and put 3,000 miles on it in less than 1 year.

I have to look for the thread, but I am sure the bike must have cost way more than $100. You can order decent bikes from walmart too. eg: this bike can proably do 3k easily. [ http://www.walmart.com/ip/700c-Mens-Schwinn-Road-Bike/5585800 ] But, with $500, I would rather buy a bike from my LBS and have it tuned properly before it hits the road.

As far as I recall, my $80 Murray bike had cheap/flimsy chainrings and freewheel cogs. There is no way it would even go close to 3k.

Incorrect.

That's hardly fair. Most bike shops in my area carry dozens of models below $2k. I own a few (non-department store) road bikes and one of them might value out over $2k.

For example, here's a couple of bikes similar to yours that Specialized makes:
$630: http://www.globebikes.com/us/en/glob...pid=11dailyUS2
$510: http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/...me=Path/Gravel

I'm not gonna argue they're cheaper because they're certainly not. But nowhere near $2k.