LesterOfPuppets

They didn't put the shifters on or run any cables? Hope they cut you a deal

GlennR

Actually, only the crankset was installed... nothing else.

4000 miles later, the only adjustment needed was the brakes due to wear. Not a single problem all season.

cale

Dang, I've almost got that much time into getting my first set of tubeless tires mounted!

GlennR

Gotta love clinchers.

cale

Nice bike.

GlennR

It's been cold for the past 2 weeks so i've been attending spin class. Today it was in the high 40s so i took it out for a quick 20.

Brought a smile to my face. It was worth every penny I paid for it.

Rcrxjlb

I assemble bikes for Walmart.

I average 15 mins per bike, about 20 if I have to adjust the derailleurs.

All I have to install are pedals, handlebars, front wheel, seat, and any accesories (training wheels, reflectors, axel pegs)

Air up the tires and it goes to the sales floor.

I check/adjust brakes & gears, but even if I spend 3 hours on it, the bike is only as good as the parts it came with.

That's the truth about big box store bikes...

cale

Nice!!! Got to love this sport.

elmore leonard

Shop mechanics can build reputations. One high end shop, near me, writes the name of the mechanic who assembled the bike and checked it out on a tag right next to the price tag for the buyer to know.

1WD

What a strange response. It does nothing but explain your high post count.


I'm pretty sure it has to do with duties - at least in Canada. A complete bike is taxed at a much higher rate than bike parts. I'm not sure at which point the parts cease to be parts and becomes a complete bike.

fietsbob

Amazon gives a specific number of Seconds for their pickers to Run for the ordered item . or they get Fired.

cale

How hostile. Do they get fired right there if say, they missed the number of seconds on their fourth pic of the morning? Right in front of their coworkers? Haha

Sy Reene

China vs. the U.S.: It's Just as Cheap to Make Goods in the USA - Businessweek

cale

You do realize that you can't reduce a 572 word article into a coherent statement by posting a link? Don't you?

Sy Reene

It wasn't my intent.. Feel free to read the article yourself and attempt to make a coherent statement if you wish.

cale

It was a fluffy piece by a Boston Consulting Group partner and more closely resembled a promo piece, not serious analysis.

My take was that wasn't important or insightful writing. In other words, a waste of time.

evets11

I was a pro bike mechanic almost 30 yrs. ago, but just for a few months after dropping out of college before joining the Navy. It took me about 1 hr. to assemble a bike as a pro back then. Takes me 3-4 hrs. now to assemble a BikesDirect bike. Why the difference? Because I save the zipties and packing material, not cut them, REGREASE the front/rear hubs and headset, grease and trim the cables/housing, true/tension/dish the wheels, upgrade the tires with my own, readjust brakes/derailleurs, align frame/fork/ RD hanger. I COMPLETELY OVERHAUL THE BIKE. They're LITERALLY just slapped together at the factory and ARE NOT set up properly because they are inexpensive Chinese/Taiwanese bikes. I assembled mostly Giants in the early 90's. The Giants' were set up IMMACULATELY, Only requiring front wheel/handlebar alignment and very minor derailleur/brake adjustment. There's a REASON BikesDirect bikes are so INEXPENSIVE! DO NOT BUY FROM THEM UNLESS YOU REALLY KNOW HOW TO WRENCH BIKES. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!

noglider 

Even Treks come from the factory with their bearings set too tight. I agree with @evets11. If you think mail order bikes are such a great value, you don't know what you're missing.

I bought something similar once. It was a fixie from Nashbar. The price was so low, I didn't complain. But I had to do everything also. Lucky for me I have the skill to do it.

billyymc

Too large a generalization. I've purchased many bikes online, from BD, Nashbar, Performance, and Ibex. Road bikes, mountain bikes, single speeds. They all come in about the same approximate state of assembly, and I've never had one that took longer than 2 hours to have reasonably rideable. I've ridden bikes that were setup and serviced by a LBS, and then turned around and ridden similar BD bikes in the same day. My experience has been different from yours, and I view BD as a very viable alternative.

Your list of things YOU do on a bike is great, but not every bike needs all that. The last few I've assembled didn't even need derailler adjustments.

noglider 

Even still, two hours of labor negates the savings on mail order bikes, at least for those who have to pay for the labor.

fietsbob

in # 3 , this was your famous name steel Italian race bikes ,,
Campagnolo sold a lot of those lovely boxed frame prep tool sets, because of it..
Tool wear and Re sharpening/replacement cost Externalized to all the shops selling their Brand.

With the rise of China making taps and dies for less ,

that means the factories can replace dulled cutters for less too ..




....

wphamilton

Yeah it's why I never complain to Amazon, about anything, and if I have to call them about something they'll get only good reviews regardless. They have to put up with enough from their own company, without me needing to add to it.

Assembling the bike, checking over and the overhaul if necessary, I'd personally prefer to do myself than hiring it out. Purely personal preference.

billyymc

Tom, I suppose for the lower end bikes that's true. A couple hours of labor will add a lot of cost to a low priced BD bike. I would never suggest BD to someone who I didn't think could do a reasonable job of assembly (which is a pretty vague phrase of course).

At the higher end of the BD pricing a few hours of assembly paid for wont' add too much to the cost of the bike, and arguably the value proposition is better. That depends on whether you want a BD bike or not I suppose.

noglider 

Good point, @billyymc. I saw an interesting video by a guy who rides 40,000 miles a year, every year. He said that he rides a bikesdirect aluminum bike. He says it's an excellent and durable bike, but he said it's necessary to replace a few things on it immediately. The most expensive thing was the crankset. Jeez, that's an expensive component. I realize he is optimizing cost, and his labor isn't worth much to me, but it's pretty unusual to spend a substantial amount of money on a new bike and replace the crankset. It works for him, but he is in a very special situation.

As I alluded to, the value of labor varies from person to person. My rule of thumb is to value my labor at one third what I get paid at my job, since I spend a third of my time there. I don't get paid overtime, so doing things I don't get paid for don't cause me to lose income.

musicmaster

I agree. I've ordered a number of bikes online and I can get most together and fully tuned up within an hour. That includes some dis-assembly to grease things. It's really not rocket science. My most complex one was my tri bike, mostly because I had never installed bar end shifters before, so it took awhile to get it set up right.

You don't have to replace the crankset though. I'm 100% sure what came with the bike was appropriate for the price level and would have worked just fine. I bought a $300 Tourney road bike (well, I got it on clearance for $150) and it came with a crap steel 50/40 crank. Is it heavy and flex a bit compared to my 105 one? You bet. But the whole bike was built for a $300 price level. And for that $300, I can't complain. The only thing I've seen that's pretty common among online bikes is brakepads that are trash. But that's a $10-15 fix, at most.

You need to look at the price level of the bike and who is buying it. Someone who is going to notice crank or wheel flex isn't probably buying a sub $500 road bike to race on. And even name brands use lower quality things, especially cranks. I replaced my Tri bike's crank a week after getting it -- only because I wanted a 105 crank to share my power meter with my road bike. Otherwise the basic FSA one did fine during my first few rides.

As for the "value of labor" - each to their own. If it takes me 3 hours on a Tuesday night... then so be it. My opportunity cost is watching TV, so my value either $0.00 or say -$80.00 (to have the LBS do it)