Cheap Road Bike (ouch)



Tieme

New Member
Sep 12, 2007
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[Start back story here - skip if you don't want to read it]
Hello everyone. I am brand new to posting. I have read a few posts on here over the past 6 months. I have just recently started cycling at all. Of course I have biked when I was younger but only lately have I really gotten into it.

It started because I have started working out and trying to get into shape and when I took a buddies road bike for a spin I was amazed at how easy and smooth the ride was (this was a 70's Schwinn). Immediately I started looking for a bike of my own at a decent price. In the mean time I started mountain biking to sate my desire for biking.

About 2 months ago I acquired a 70's era Schwinn road bike and started fixing it up. I am very limited on funds (3rd year in college) so I have been trying to do it as cheap as possible. I put new pads and tires on from fleet. I recabled everything with walmart supplies. I pulled it apart and replaced a few bearings and cleaned and repacked the rest. I tried truing the wheels with little success. I spent about 30 hours sanding it to repaint it (invest in a sandblaster guys - it is worth it). Anyway, I transferred a few weeks ago and it has been treating me okay. The chain has a lot of slack, especially on the smaller cogs. The chain also skips (part is from the slack I think and much is from the worn cogs and chain I think). The freewheel is kind of sticky. The brake pads are almost worn off already and I am starting to lose my stopping ability which is what brought me to where I am right now. I have a mountain bike to ride while I get this bike fixed but I need to do something.

[End back story]

Here is where you guys come in. I really want to pick up a cheap road bike and want some advice on where I should go. I am in Madison, WI and am always on the lookout for a solid used one at a good price but haven't seen anything yet. I have looked at Walmart at two models:
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4698938
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=3663046

I also looked at this model on Ebay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/2007-NEW-ROAD-RACING-BIKE-SHIMANO-X-SMALL-w-Warranty_W0QQitemZ150161005727QQihZ005QQcategoryZ98084QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Now I know you guys are going to tell me it isn’t worth it to spend that money on a crappy bike and I will agree. But right now I simply do not have the money so it is crappy or nothing. Can you recommend any of those models as being better than the others?

Also, would I be better to spend money on fixing the old Schwinn. It’s just that the frame is steel and everything is old and crappy and I’m not sure it would be worth fixing it up. It would cost me at least 100-150 to get everything in working condition. And after that I would still be wanting to put on new wheel frames and even after all of that I would still be riding around a shoddily painted hunk of rusting steel.



Sorry this post is so long and thanks in advance for the feed back – if you have any questions go ahead and ask and I’ll try to respond ASAP. Thanks a lot!
 
You sound like you know what you're shooting for with your budget and you don't have unrealistic expectations. I don't think I'd throw $100 or so fixing up the thirty year old Schwinn when you can buy an all-new bike.

Of the three you're looking at I'd easily choose the Dawes Lightning. It looks to be better equipped and quite a bit lighter than the others. Here's a helpful link to boot:

http://users.frii.com/michael/DawesLightningSport.html

Not bad for $199. I like the yellow one.

Good luck!
 
Excellent! Thanks for the reply. I have read that page you linked before and I nearly bought the bike at that time but then got word of that old Schwinn. I think I will probably end up going with then once I get the funds situated if I don't hear of anything better.

One more quick question. The bike shops I visited suggested bringing the bike in for a tune up to make sure everything is at the right tension, etc and quoted me maybe 50-60 ish. Is that worth it?

Thanks again!
 
Also. Do you think maybe walmart would be a better option since I would be able to return it pretty easy whereas on Ebay I am all alone?

EDIT: Just called walmart - they do assembly which would help me a lot. I think I am going to go that route unless you think the ebay bike is a lot better? Walmart fixes stuff for 90 days at least.
 
The first thing that you should do is get your LBS to fit you to a bike so that you know what size bike you need. A poorly fitted bike is the primary reason people give up riding. The Dawes is the better bike but they only have 47 cm bikes. This would be too small for me and I am only 6 foot tall . Wal-Mart may do assembly, but have you ever seen the way they assemble? I have purchased several juvenile bikes from Wal-Mart and had to do tweaks and adjustments to every one of them just to make them rideable. I won't even let the kids get on the bike before I've had a chance to go over it with a fine tooth comb.

I would go the eBay route and look for a good deal. I found a $1495.00 bike and paid $495.00 for it, including shipping. The auction ended two days after Christmas though so there were fewer interested parties bidding, but timing is everthing. Good luck with whatever route you decide to take, but get fitted first.
 
I wouldn't put much faith in Walmart ensuring that their bikes are assembled well. The guy putting your bike together may or may not know what he's doing.

It looks like the Dawes ships almost fully assembled with little more left to do. I'd rather take my chances with an eBay seller with almost 100% feedback, but that's up to you.

$50 sounds reasonable for a tune up, but if it's assembled correctly and functioning properly then you might want to let the bike break in first before you take it in.
 
Well thanks for the advice guys. I keep mentally bringing myself to the point of "maybe I should just save up the extra 200, bite the bullet, and get something nicer" but I keep worrying about someone stealing it. And honestly I don't know enough about bikes to really know what I am buying and if I do spend like 450 on something it may end up only working as well as the cheap ebay one. I have been around to a few local shops and they give good info but I hate asking too much especially if I know that I am not going to be buying from them. They are very helpful but I don't want to take advantage of them and I wouldn't feel right getting fitted if I have no intention of purchasing from them.

Again, thanks for all the great advice. If you have any other info or suggestions please post them and I am going to keep thinking about this for a few days (I tend to impulse buy too much and need to control myself =D).
 
save up the money. I bought a brand new 2006 Specialized Allez triple last year in Nov. for $524 because they were bringing in the 2007 bikes. originally it was $710. almost $200 saved by shopping at the right time of year :) and i assure you it rides better than one of those dawes, but then again i was *lucky* and they had 54cm left, which is the size i needed (they had a trek in the same size but i liked the specialized more.) you should be able to find a closeout trek, specialized, giant, felt, etc etc for around 500, or maybe craigslist and find a used one. if you buy one that fits you and is better quality, you will enjoy riding much more!

if you really cant save the money, that dawes doesnt look too bad, now that i look at the ebay auction a little more. and they have various sizes as well...I might just tell my brother if he is intersted in a road bike to take a look at the dawes...i wouldnt want one (weighs more than my mountain bike) but then again, I already have a road bike lol...

good luck, take care!
 
Tieme said:
Well thanks for the advice guys. I keep mentally bringing myself to the point of "maybe I should just save up the extra 200, bite the bullet, and get something nicer" but I keep worrying about someone stealing it. And honestly I don't know enough about bikes to really know what I am buying and if I do spend like 450 on something it may end up only working as well as the cheap ebay one. I have been around to a few local shops and they give good info but I hate asking too much especially if I know that I am not going to be buying from them. They are very helpful but I don't want to take advantage of them and I wouldn't feel right getting fitted if I have no intention of purchasing from them.

Again, thanks for all the great advice. If you have any other info or suggestions please post them and I am going to keep thinking about this for a few days (I tend to impulse buy too much and need to control myself =D).
Be upfront with the bike shop and tell them that you are looking for an eBay bike. Offer to pay for the fitting. They may go ahead and do it for free hoping that you will be a future customer for tune-ups, etc. They may even know of a good bike locally that is for sale in your price range. It never hurts to try.
 
I wouldn' put too much faith in Wal-Mart honoring the return if it doesn't work out. My local Target wouldn't take back a Schwinn that I had bought the previous day, because I had ridden it (just to check the fit) and it therefore wasn't "new."
 
Tieme said:
Well thanks for the advice guys. I keep mentally bringing myself to the point of "maybe I should just save up the extra 200, bite the bullet, and get something nicer" but I keep worrying about someone stealing it. And honestly I don't know enough about bikes to really know what I am buying and if I do spend like 450 on something it may end up only working as well as the cheap ebay one. I have been around to a few local shops and they give good info but I hate asking too much especially if I know that I am not going to be buying from them. They are very helpful but I don't want to take advantage of them and I wouldn't feel right getting fitted if I have no intention of purchasing from them.

Again, thanks for all the great advice. If you have any other info or suggestions please post them and I am going to keep thinking about this for a few days (I tend to impulse buy too much and need to control myself =D).
I have no experience with the Wal-Mart bike but if you’re leaning towards the eBay bike, then save up and buy something better.

I bought the Dawes Lightning Sport about 4 months ago and I do not recommend it.

The frame seems decent quality but the parts, especially the wheels, are flimsy at best. The tires had to be replaced within a couple weeks. The gears (and usually brakes) have to be adjusted constantly and the seat is pure ****.

I still ride it on limited outings but would never venture far on it. I just can't see the parts on this bike lasting too long. But then again maybe they will. I really wanted a road bike but I still ride my mtn bike 90% of the time, so the Dawes will probably last forever. :D
 
What kind of bike was it?
kdelong said:
The first thing that you should do is get your LBS to fit you to a bike so that you know what size bike you need. A poorly fitted bike is the primary reason people give up riding. The Dawes is the better bike but they only have 47 cm bikes. This would be too small for me and I am only 6 foot tall . Wal-Mart may do assembly, but have you ever seen the way they assemble? I have purchased several juvenile bikes from Wal-Mart and had to do tweaks and adjustments to every one of them just to make them rideable. I won't even let the kids get on the bike before I've had a chance to go over it with a fine tooth comb.

I would go the eBay route and look for a good deal. I found a $1495.00 bike and paid $495.00 for it, including shipping. The auction ended two days after Christmas though so there were fewer interested parties bidding, but timing is everthing. Good luck with whatever route you decide to take, but get fitted first.
 
Sorry if I sound harsh but if you say crappy or nothing...

Go nothing and save up your money. You DONT NEED a bike, if you want to workout just run. You will have to get the bike adjusted and all that stuff from a mechanic also you should get the bike professonally fitted to you, its not cheap. I think getting it tuned and professionally fitted by a licensed fitter will cost you close to 100 bucks.

Its not worth dumping all the extra money into if the bike is only 199 bucks. You will need gear too, helmet of course. I would say just save your money and buy a nicer bike in the future, you can get a pretty decent bike for 500-600 bucks... Name brand stuff too!
 
Pottsie said:
What kind of bike was it?
2003 Raleigh Competition purchased just after Christmas 2003. There was a small chip in the paint and it had about 6 months worth of dust on it. It had been extremely lightly used, the tires still had the little rubber stringy things on them and just a very slight lighter colored strip down the center of each showing that it had been ridden. It is a 62 cm frame so it is a little large for most people. When I received it, there was a sticker from a pawn shop on it and the price that they had listed on it was $1495.00. I was really surprised as this bike fit me perfectly right from the start. I have long legs but a normal length torso, and I thought that I might have to get a shorter stem, but it was perfect with the original stem on it. In fact the bike fits as well, if not better than my custom built Setavento. I have made three changes to it over the years. I replaced the original saddle with another Selle Italia Prolink Lite when the first one wore out. I have also replaced the Shimano Wheelset with Bontrager and replaced the Shimano Cassette with a SRAM Cassette
 
Since you live in Madison, I have a suggestion. Look on Craigslist. There is a section for Madison and the bikes are usually much cheaper than on Ebay.You also will be buying locally and can inspect the bike before buying it. I have bought 2 bikes off Craigslist and got great deals on both.
 
If you're shopping on eBay, don't limit yourself to the Dawes Lightning. Windsor, Mercier, and Motobecane are other inexpensive makes marketed on eBay. Some of the claims are outrageous, like list prices and Merckx's hour record on a Windsor, but these are well made bikes in a variety of sizes sold at very reasonable prices.