Trying out bikes before buying them?
08-19-15, 04:30 PM
#26
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If it's your first or second bike, then you're probably still trying to get those numbers dialed in.
And while a newb may not be able to tell the difference between stiffness and compliance, they can still tell which bikes feel comfortable, and which don't. And if they road test several different bikes across several different brands, that will allow them to get pretty close on their fit. At least close enough that after putting a good number of miles on the bike, they should only have to do minor things to the bike to get a really good fit.
GH
08-19-15, 05:30 PM
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Well, if you already know your stack and reach (or know all of your ideal geometry numbers), then there is less risk in buying a bike this way.
If it's your first or second bike, then you're probably still trying to get those numbers dialed in.
And while a newb may not be able to tell the difference between stiffness and compliance, they can still tell which bikes feel comfortable, and which don't. And if they road test several different bikes across several different brands, that will allow them to get pretty close on their fit. At least close enough that after putting a good number of miles on the bike, they should only have to do minor things to the bike to get a really good fit.
GH
If it's your first or second bike, then you're probably still trying to get those numbers dialed in.
And while a newb may not be able to tell the difference between stiffness and compliance, they can still tell which bikes feel comfortable, and which don't. And if they road test several different bikes across several different brands, that will allow them to get pretty close on their fit. At least close enough that after putting a good number of miles on the bike, they should only have to do minor things to the bike to get a really good fit.
GH
I started a thread about this here ...
https://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycli...surements.html
I'll also add that I have taken the opportunity to ride a variety of bicycles if the opportunity presents itself. I've been a member of several clubs, and now and then someone will ask if I want to try out their bicycle. Or on a few occasions, I made arrangements to borrow bicycles. I do take advantage of those opportunities because they can be a learning experience.
For example, I had been riding a Giant OCR3. Then I went to the UK to visit a friend, and he borrowed a bicycle from another cyclist for me ... a little steel Raleigh. That was a beautiful little bicycle ... so comfortable. So much more comfortable than my Giant OCR3. And it motivated me to get my Marinoni Ciclo.
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Last edited by Machka; 08-19-15 at 05:36 PM.
08-20-15, 01:31 AM
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I'm from a different hemisphere but the issues are the same, bike shops will let you test ride if you seem interested, but not if you're killing time waiting for your kids to do something in a nearby shop.
I'd never buy another bike without a test ride.
08-20-15, 07:10 AM
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Most of us live in places where when a bike rolls out for a test ride,
it's not the last time the owner sees it.
Fuggedaboudit!
it's not the last time the owner sees it.
Fuggedaboudit!
08-20-15, 09:48 AM
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Test riding before buying is the norm; more of the rule rather than the exception. Maybe your local shops aren't willing to risk theft or damage loss from casual shoppers. Too bad, but probably a reflection of their environment. Imagine how this fear changes other behaviors in the shop as well...
This. Can you imagine not being able to test drive a car? This is no different. I understand that there is probably some theft but in the end, you will only hurt your business more by punishing everybody else for the actions of one or a few. I am quite certain that a shop would sell more bikes to offset the theft by not having this stupid policy. They are only hurting themselves. It is their loss.
08-20-15, 10:08 AM
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It would seem that the best way to get a person to buy a bike is to get them to test ride it. Simple sales process. Maybe it is your local area but I have never seen that before.
I do not think that test rides prove all that much but as a principle, I would not buy from a shop that did not let me test out a bike. I would probably leave the shop if they were even hesitant to let me. That is crazy.
This. Can you imagine not being able to test drive a car? This is no different. I understand that there is probably some theft but in the end, you will only hurt your business more by punishing everybody else for the actions of one or a few. I am quite certain that a shop would sell more bikes to offset the theft by not having this stupid policy. They are only hurting themselves. It is their loss.
I do not think that test rides prove all that much but as a principle, I would not buy from a shop that did not let me test out a bike. I would probably leave the shop if they were even hesitant to let me. That is crazy.
This. Can you imagine not being able to test drive a car? This is no different. I understand that there is probably some theft but in the end, you will only hurt your business more by punishing everybody else for the actions of one or a few. I am quite certain that a shop would sell more bikes to offset the theft by not having this stupid policy. They are only hurting themselves. It is their loss.
So my advice to @pat0115 is to ask for a test ride. Or ask them what it would take to let you road test a bike. And then, if they say that they don't allow test rides, go to a different LBS.
GH
08-20-15, 03:25 PM
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Crazy. Last fall I went to three bike stores while shopping...I tested bikes at all three, multiple sizes and models at each. I can't remember who brought it up, but all the shops were more than eager to get me on a bike...no one asked for a license or anything. I just went around the block, but at least one place told me to ride as long as I wanted. Another told me where the nearest gravel was since I was looking at a gravel bike....nice, because he obviously was going to have to get out the dust mop after.
If I had to buy a bike without a test ride, why would I be going to a LBS? I can find plenty of deals online for bikes that I can't test first!
If I had to buy a bike without a test ride, why would I be going to a LBS? I can find plenty of deals online for bikes that I can't test first!
08-20-15, 06:10 PM
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Yes ... as a matter of fact I can.
A little story ...
And that is precisely how we have gone about the bicycle acquisition process. We know what size frame to look for and what materials we like ... and we might acquire it from a bicycle shop (like when we ordered the Thorn frames from St Johns Street Cycles) ... or we might pick up a bicycle or frame from a tip shop. We know what kind of components we want so we (well, Rowan) orders them. And Rowan knows what he is doing when it comes to building up the bicycles. He's done enough of them now.
[HR][/HR]
Regarding test rides, my question would be ... what exactly are you looking for or looking at when you test ride a bicycle?
If you're just basing your decisions on something vague like "feel" ... well ... "feel" can change depending on what saddle happens to be on the bicycle ... or the width of the handlebars ... or the tire pressure ... or the saddle adjustments ... or the height of the handlebars ... or what tires are on the bicycle ... or the road surface in the vicinity of the shop ... or your reaction to the colour of the bicycle ... or your mood that day.
My suggestion is that if you are going to test ride bicycles, do some research, do your measurements ... and have some specific things you want to check while riding.
BTW - my uncle just had that car repainted, and it is looking good!
A little story ...
Decades ago, my grandfather had a particular car. Years passed and they moved and changed cars as you do. Many more years passed and my grandfather was now in his late 80s. My grandfather spoke fondly of that car and so my uncle tracked it down.
When they pulled it out of the field, it was a wreck. Imagine an old car which had been in a field in northern Canada for decades.
First of all, I was amazed that my uncle found it ... but secondly, I think we all wondered what he could possibly do with it.
Several years later it had become a gorgeous hot rod (defined as an old car, restored to its original grandeur with mostly authentic parts ... but with certain modern components).
Fortunately my grandfather was still alive then and had the chance to ride in it many times.
But my uncle had been too young when the car was first operating to "test drive" it ... and of course there had to be changes to it when it was being restored. Any testing he did during the rebuild wasn't at all like a car dealership test drive.
When they pulled it out of the field, it was a wreck. Imagine an old car which had been in a field in northern Canada for decades.
First of all, I was amazed that my uncle found it ... but secondly, I think we all wondered what he could possibly do with it.
Several years later it had become a gorgeous hot rod (defined as an old car, restored to its original grandeur with mostly authentic parts ... but with certain modern components).
Fortunately my grandfather was still alive then and had the chance to ride in it many times.
But my uncle had been too young when the car was first operating to "test drive" it ... and of course there had to be changes to it when it was being restored. Any testing he did during the rebuild wasn't at all like a car dealership test drive.
And that is precisely how we have gone about the bicycle acquisition process. We know what size frame to look for and what materials we like ... and we might acquire it from a bicycle shop (like when we ordered the Thorn frames from St Johns Street Cycles) ... or we might pick up a bicycle or frame from a tip shop. We know what kind of components we want so we (well, Rowan) orders them. And Rowan knows what he is doing when it comes to building up the bicycles. He's done enough of them now.
[HR][/HR]
Regarding test rides, my question would be ... what exactly are you looking for or looking at when you test ride a bicycle?
If you're just basing your decisions on something vague like "feel" ... well ... "feel" can change depending on what saddle happens to be on the bicycle ... or the width of the handlebars ... or the tire pressure ... or the saddle adjustments ... or the height of the handlebars ... or what tires are on the bicycle ... or the road surface in the vicinity of the shop ... or your reaction to the colour of the bicycle ... or your mood that day.
My suggestion is that if you are going to test ride bicycles, do some research, do your measurements ... and have some specific things you want to check while riding.
BTW - my uncle just had that car repainted, and it is looking good!
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08-20-15, 06:36 PM
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Regarding test rides, my question would be ... what exactly are you looking for or looking at when you test ride a bicycle?
If you're just basing your decisions on something vague like "feel" ... well ... "feel" can change depending on what saddle happens to be on the bicycle ... or the width of the handlebars ... or the tire pressure ... or the saddle adjustments ... or the height of the handlebars ... or what tires are on the bicycle ... or the road surface in the vicinity of the shop ... or your reaction to the colour of the bicycle ... or your mood that day.
If you're just basing your decisions on something vague like "feel" ... well ... "feel" can change depending on what saddle happens to be on the bicycle ... or the width of the handlebars ... or the tire pressure ... or the saddle adjustments ... or the height of the handlebars ... or what tires are on the bicycle ... or the road surface in the vicinity of the shop ... or your reaction to the colour of the bicycle ... or your mood that day.
08-21-15, 12:47 PM
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Yes ... as a matter of fact I can.
Regarding test rides, my question would be ... what exactly are you looking for or looking at when you test ride a bicycle?
If you're just basing your decisions on something vague like "feel" ... well ... "feel" can change depending on what saddle happens to be on the bicycle ... or the width of the handlebars ... or the tire pressure ... or the saddle adjustments ... or the height of the handlebars ... or what tires are on the bicycle ... or the road surface in the vicinity of the shop ... or your reaction to the colour of the bicycle ... or your mood that day.
My suggestion is that if you are going to test ride bicycles, do some research, do your measurements ... and have some specific things you want to check while riding.
Regarding test rides, my question would be ... what exactly are you looking for or looking at when you test ride a bicycle?
If you're just basing your decisions on something vague like "feel" ... well ... "feel" can change depending on what saddle happens to be on the bicycle ... or the width of the handlebars ... or the tire pressure ... or the saddle adjustments ... or the height of the handlebars ... or what tires are on the bicycle ... or the road surface in the vicinity of the shop ... or your reaction to the colour of the bicycle ... or your mood that day.
My suggestion is that if you are going to test ride bicycles, do some research, do your measurements ... and have some specific things you want to check while riding.
08-21-15, 12:54 PM
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Crazy. Last fall I went to three bike stores while shopping...I tested bikes at all three, multiple sizes and models at each. I can't remember who brought it up, but all the shops were more than eager to get me on a bike...no one asked for a license or anything. I just went around the block, but at least one place told me to ride as long as I wanted. Another told me where the nearest gravel was since I was looking at a gravel bike....nice, because he obviously was going to have to get out the dust mop after.
If I had to buy a bike without a test ride, why would I be going to a LBS? I can find plenty of deals online for bikes that I can't test first!
If I had to buy a bike without a test ride, why would I be going to a LBS? I can find plenty of deals online for bikes that I can't test first!
08-21-15, 07:29 PM
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There is no question that you should take your business elsewhere if a LBS flat out refuses to allow you to test ride a bike. It's not hard to understand and it has nothing to do with how much knowledge you possess as the potential buyer.
As long as you are willing to provide adequate security in the form of a driver's license or are willing to leave your car keys (I have been asked to do that and did so with no problem at all)
If an LBS owner and it's employees are not skilled or experienced enough to qualify their customers well enough to let them test ride a bike I don't think I would want to do business with them in the first place.
As long as you are willing to provide adequate security in the form of a driver's license or are willing to leave your car keys (I have been asked to do that and did so with no problem at all)
If an LBS owner and it's employees are not skilled or experienced enough to qualify their customers well enough to let them test ride a bike I don't think I would want to do business with them in the first place.
08-21-15, 07:45 PM
#41
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I seriously considered buying a bike from BD, but I was concerned that the generic charts for fit would be inadequate. That's why I went to an LBS for my touring bike, and the generic charts were, indeed, imprecise. However, if the LBS refused to let me test-ride, I would save the money and buy online in a heart beat.
08-21-15, 08:55 PM
#42
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Worst that can happen is that you gain nothing from it and you're in the same spot as before the test ride. It certainly won't do you any harm.
08-21-15, 09:06 PM
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It could turn you off a perfectly good bicycle ... because it didn't "feel" right.
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08-21-15, 09:08 PM
#44
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Many 'perfectly good' bicycles out there, might as well pick one that 'feels' right.
I understand thinking test rides might be unnecessary, but being against them is just weird. Glad it worked for you though.
I understand thinking test rides might be unnecessary, but being against them is just weird. Glad it worked for you though.
08-22-15, 01:43 PM
#45
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08-22-15, 01:50 PM
#46
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Never have to worry about that sort of thing here in the South, where people are polite for the most part.
08-22-15, 01:54 PM
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I understand the points that you and other greatly experienced riders made in this thread, but some of us don't have anywhere near that kind of experience and thus we need the tactile experience of riding a bike in person before buying it. That seems to be a consistent downside to decades of experience in any field of endeavor (cycling, playing guitar, etc.) - people over time forget what it was like to be a beginner.
08-22-15, 02:25 PM
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It's a NYC thing. Let someone ride a bike there, there's an 80% chanceyou'll never see it again, and'll be sitting there holding a stolen credit card or phony driver's lic. Then call the fuzz, and they'll just shrug their shoulders and laugh. That's NYC. Shop for a bike out on Lawn Guyland or up in Westchester or Rockland...or over in Jersey.
08-22-15, 03:19 PM
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It's a NYC thing. Let someone ride a bike there, there's an 80% chanceyou'll never see it again, and'll be sitting there holding a stolen credit card or phony driver's lic. Then call the fuzz, and they'll just shrug their shoulders and laugh. That's NYC. Shop for a bike out on Lawn Guyland or up in Westchester or Rockland...or over in Jersey.
