nipperkin

Hi all,

I'm a student in need of an inexpensive yet fairly well-built bike. I wouldn't mind buying an older used bike. I was looking on craigslist and saw several Raleigh Grand Prix for around 70-80 dollars. I could have it refurbished at a local bike store. Would this be worth doing? Any advice is appreciated.

CACycling

I'm a firm believer in buying used but if you don't know much about bikes and will have to pay to have one refurbished, it may not be worth it. Do you have a bike co-op or friend who knows about bikes to assist?

Seattle Forrest

If you want a quality bike and don't want to pay much for it, than used is the way to go, without a doubt. But I wouldn't refurbish a particular one, unless there were a few very good reasons to do it. The downside to buying used, is it can take longer to find that great deal.

gdhillard

We try to buy used for everything except food and tires. Cuts our carbon footprint down substantially and leaves more money in the descretionary pile. Bikes are the perfect place for buying used, and a great chance to get to know your bike first hand. Buy a few tools, used, and check out a good bike maintance book from the library. Research before you buy, and have a bike friend go with you to check out the bike. I see beautiful bikes for under $100 every week, and have three Craigslist finds for myself and my two daughters. I'm on a 1981 Miyata Ridge Runner, set up as a commuter, and the girls have a Trek 700 and a Bianchi Sika, both set up for street, all bought for under $100 each. Used is the best way to go.

zoridog

Students should ride used bikes. New stuff has a way of getting clipped while you're sitting in class. After you get a good job, buy that dream bike and keep your eye on it.