nooooob

she keeps suggesting to look at wal-mart or target to buy a bike. I am very apprehensive about this. are there any brands available at these places that are somewhat reputable, not in the sense that they are GOOD bikes but just that they are SAFE... and not going to fall apart when riding them?

how are schwinn mountain bikes? or magna? these are 2 brands I saw last time I was up there

StanSeven

Go to a LBS instead and buy something on sale. Some even have last years models left. Or go to a place like Performance which has a sale on for the entire month.

It's not only Walmart and Target carry very low end bikes - the people that assemble them do that along with all their other jobs like assembling lawn motors and stocking the cases of auto oil.

Also starting out, you need someone to do adjustmenst and repairs. You don't get that at Walmart.

mystolenbikes

My fiance has one of those Target schiwn bikes and it's the biggest POS. Now in the defense of the bike it has never given her any problems she goes to the trails with me every weekend and she does about 10-12 miles(she is about 105lbs and bike must weigh at least 40lbs ) but everytime when she came a cross something steep or slightly technical she used to jump off the bike and walk it, and every time when she did that I kept saying "we need to get you a new bike" and her response was "I don't need a new bike I don't even know what the difference is" so two weeks ago I saw a local guys selling a 2005 Marin bobcat trail with disc breaks for $150 I made phone call and got the bike for her when I came home with it she wasn't happy because I went and spend money on another bike but hey who cares
Anywho first time we went for a ride with it she was going up the hill so fast that I had tell her to slow down I guess that 40lbs bike made her little body strong and she was blown away with how easy the bike was riding. Anyways moral of the story is go look at your LBS or some adds like craigslist and get a half way decent bike you will not be sorry.
WOW! that was a long story. hehehe

victim

Man, your riding that sweet stumpy around and had your GF tagging behind on that POS bob-o-matic? You shoulda been ashamed! Oh wait, you were. Good chit on getting her something better...

mystolenbikes

Man I got my ass chewed when I came home with that bob-o-matic
And I got to admit that stumpy is sweeeeeet!

Oleanshoebox

Craigslist.

muckrakey

Check out the Forge 5xx @ Amazon or Target.com.

Spawne32

schwinn are ok(just okay, nothing more) from what ive seen, magna are absolute junk

i also agree with muckrakey about the forge 5xx, also check out olpran on amazon.com, thats what i ride.

Zephyr11

Forge 5xx has the same MSRP as a 2009 Trek 3700 and 2009 Jamis Trail X1, and is $20 MORE than a 2009 Fisher Mako. If your LBS has 2008's in stock, they'll probably be discounted to even less. Plus that way you know it was assembled professionally and you start a relationship with the shop. The other way to go is Craigslist. You can get a decent bike on there for not a lot of money.

jeff^d

I'd buy a Schwinn or Magna if I was going to ride it 2.3 miles to the park and back, once a week, on freshly paved streets. Otherwise, I'd say, "Sorry babe, but you have absolutely no idea what you're talking about." With more finesse, of course.

My girl's first "real" bike was a Trek ZX 9000, bought used for $300. It lasted her 3 years and she even won some races on it. Buy her a bike you wouldn't be ashamed to ride, as others have already stated.

Spawne32

no i wouldnt even suggest the magna, ive actually gotten on that thing at target and it is horrible

Ka_Jun

She just going to ride it on fireroad? Just ride rails to trails?

Ka_Jun

https://www.dirtragmag.com/print/arti...egory=features

jstek

I would also recommend explaining to your GF the difference between low-end Walmart bikes and "real" bikes. I admit, I really didn't get it when I first started riding and probably would have ended up with some POS if I hadn't found a cheap but decent used bike. Even so, it took a really long time of huffing and puffing trying to keep up with the others before I realized that they all had much nicer bikes than I did. I almost gave up cycling because I thought I just sucked! Once I got a better bike, everything was so much easier and I began to actually enjoy the sport. It can be incredibly frustrating to ride a heavy POS when everyone you ride with has nice bikes.

Esteban32696

You pretty much get what you pay for. My first bike cost $49, in 1958.


What cost $49 in 1958 would cost $360.92 in 2008. Also, if you were to buy exactly the same products in 2008 and 1958,
they would cost you $49 and $6.72 respectively. Do you want to do another calculation?

roccobike

Magna is crap, total crap, stay away from them. As for Schwinn, the higher priced hardtails have some decent components and if you know how to tune derailers, adjust brakes, and tru wheels, you can get a bike that won't fall apart on the trails. However, we're talking about bikes that sell at T and Wally World for around $180, not $60. You can probably find a bike shop that sells a not so popular brand for under $300 and have a decent entry level bike.