Getting a cheap front wheel

ilyag said:

The front wheel of my cheap bike was just stolen. I am wondering -
what's the reasonable thing people do in this case?

Thrift stores maybe...

I haven't seen new $10 wheels for sale anywhere.

Ron Ruff said:

ilyag said:

The front wheel of my cheap bike was just stolen. I am wondering -
what's the reasonable thing people do in this case?

Thrift stores maybe...

I haven't seen new $10 wheels for sale anywhere.

You gotta figure though, on a $60 Fury Roadmaster the wheels cannot be
more than $15-20 each.

Jasper

flog over to the flea market. the bicycleman has a pile to give you
walmart $$$ is killing him.

Quoted message said:

Or is asking for a $15-20 used wheel delusional?

The problem is that people rarely replace such wheels until they're
unrideable, so the likelihood of anything being available used, that's in
decent shape, approaches zero at most bike shops. But somebody's
thrift-store idea might be a good one... you might very well find a complete
bike where most everything's a wreck *but* the front wheel, for $5, $10,
whatever.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA

"ilyag" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hello all,

The front wheel of my cheap bike was just stolen. I am wondering -
what's the reasonable thing people do in this case?

The new bycicle wheel in the shop next door costs $50 - about as much
as the whole bike. Does anyone know of good bike shops in the Chicago
area that would sell me a single wheel cheaply? (Obviously, I am fine
with a used wheel, though I wouldn't want to buy a stolen one). Any
other way to get it that does not cost an arm and a leg?

Or is asking for a $15-20 used wheel delusional?

Thanks a lot,
Ilya.

"ilyag" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hello all,

The front wheel of my cheap bike was just stolen. I am wondering -
what's the reasonable thing people do in this case?

The new bycicle wheel in the shop next door costs $50 - about as much
as the whole bike. Does anyone know of good bike shops in the Chicago
area that would sell me a single wheel cheaply? (Obviously, I am fine
with a used wheel, though I wouldn't want to buy a stolen one). Any
other way to get it that does not cost an arm and a leg?

Or is asking for a $15-20 used wheel delusional?

Thanks a lot,
Ilya.

bikepartsusa.com has some steel jobbies (Wald, Pyramid) that cost about $15
I believe. After you add oversize shipping plus regular shipping, it will
be more like $25.

"ilyag" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hello all,

The front wheel of my cheap bike was just stolen. I am wondering -
what's the reasonable thing people do in this case?

The new bycicle wheel in the shop next door costs $50 - about as much
as the whole bike. Does anyone know of good bike shops in the Chicago
area that would sell me a single wheel cheaply? (Obviously, I am fine
with a used wheel, though I wouldn't want to buy a stolen one). Any
other way to get it that does not cost an arm and a leg?

Or is asking for a $15-20 used wheel delusional?

Thanks a lot,
Ilya.

bikepartsusa.com has some steel jobbies (Wald, Pyramid) that cost about $15
I believe. After you add oversize shipping plus regular shipping, it will
be more like $25.

ilyag said:

Hello all,

The front wheel of my cheap bike was just stolen. I am wondering -
what's the reasonable thing people do in this case?

The new bycicle wheel in the shop next door costs $50 - about as much
as the whole bike. Does anyone know of good bike shops in the Chicago
area that would sell me a single wheel cheaply? (Obviously, I am fine
with a used wheel, though I wouldn't want to buy a stolen one). Any
other way to get it that does not cost an arm and a leg?

Goodwill or Salvation Army; get a whole used bike for on the order of
$20, sometimes less. Bike shops in low-middle-income neighborhoods
and near universities tend to be more likely to have a boneyard than
the ones in Yuppieville; let yer fingers do the riding through the
Yellow pages...

Quoted message said:

Or is asking for a $15-20 used wheel delusional?

Nope. Some bike shops might have one, but given the number of front
wheels that get stolen and bent, they're usually not around for long.
You might check eBay, but be aware that since wheels are so large
relative to their weight, the cost of shipping often makes an
interstate transaction uneconomical. Unless the seller has specified
a reasonable shipping amount up front, you can get burned buying a
used wheel that way.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
Some gardening required to reply via email.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

On Wed, 09 Nov 2005 23:05:35 GMT, Jasper Janssen <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Ron Ruff said:

ilyag said:

The front wheel of my cheap bike was just stolen. I am wondering -
what's the reasonable thing people do in this case?

Thrift stores maybe...

I haven't seen new $10 wheels for sale anywhere.

You gotta figure though, on a $60 Fury Roadmaster the wheels cannot be
more than $15-20 each.

The aggregate total cost of the replacement parts for a manufactured
item is typically four to twenty times the price of the item itself.
This has been true for a long time. In 1982, I noted that the cost of
the leather seat covers for a new VW Scirocco (at VW suggested list
price for the replacement parts) was over half of the price of the
car. Thus, even if Pacific had a parts distribution system for the
Walgoose and Roadmaster bikes (which apparently they don't, from what
I can see), the wheels would likely be well over half the cost of the
bike...each.

Bikes returned to a Wal-mart for repair are just replaced, and the
"broken bikes" get flogged off at a steep discount periodically to
local breakers who scrap them out for the nominally useful bits.
There's a guy in the bookdocks in Indiana who has been parting out
piles of Wal-mart bikes and selling the bits on eBay for a while now.
I hope he has a use for the frames...
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
Some gardening required to reply via email.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

"ilyag" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hello all,

The front wheel of my cheap bike was just stolen. I am wondering -
what's the reasonable thing people do in this case?

The new bycicle wheel in the shop next door costs $50 - about as much
as the whole bike. Does anyone know of good bike shops in the Chicago
area that would sell me a single wheel cheaply?

If you were in Seattle, I'd recommend Recycled Cycles:
http://www.recycledcycles.com/; or Bike Works: http://www.bikeworks.org/.
Are there similar places in Chicago? It's so much bigger, I'd think so.

--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
Personal page: http://www.geocities.com/cpetersky/
See the books I've set free at:
http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky

Ilya-

Urban bikes in Uptown. Lots and lots of old/used bikes and parts.
Sometimes have interesting frames, got a Bianchi Specialissima
there for $100 (needed paint thought)

phone 773-728-5212

Kirk

ilyag said:

Hello all,

The front wheel of my cheap bike was just stolen. I am wondering -
what's the reasonable thing people do in this case?

The new bycicle wheel in the shop next door costs $50 - about as much
as the whole bike. Does anyone know of good bike shops in the Chicago
area that would sell me a single wheel cheaply? (Obviously, I am fine
with a used wheel, though I wouldn't want to buy a stolen one). Any
other way to get it that does not cost an arm and a leg?

Or is asking for a $15-20 used wheel delusional?

Thanks a lot,
Ilya.

Ah, Urban Bikes is still open? Yeah! They rock!

On Thu, 10 Nov 2005 13:22:35 GMT, Werehatrack <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

On Wed, 09 Nov 2005 23:05:35 GMT, Jasper Janssen <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Ron Ruff said:

ilyag wrote:
> The front wheel of my cheap bike was just stolen. I am wondering -
> what's the reasonable thing people do in this case?

Thrift stores maybe...

I haven't seen new $10 wheels for sale anywhere.

You gotta figure though, on a $60 Fury Roadmaster the wheels cannot be
more than $15-20 each.

The aggregate total cost of the replacement parts for a manufactured
item is typically four to twenty times the price of the item itself.

Even with that. Realistic retail pricing for a front wheel of Roadmaster
quality level can't be more than $20. In terms of the proportional cost of
the $60 roadmaster, the wheelset is probably closer to 15 for the set. The
frame, saddle, and combined other-bits (like bars, stem, seatpost) are
probably about equivalent at a few to five dollars each , which leaves
about $20 for the Groupset and $10 for assembly (half in the far East and
half at the store).

Quoted message said:

This has been true for a long time. In 1982, I noted that the cost of
the leather seat covers for a new VW Scirocco (at VW suggested list
price for the replacement parts) was over half of the price of the
car. Thus, even if Pacific had a parts distribution system for the
Walgoose and Roadmaster bikes (which apparently they don't, from what
I can see), the wheels would likely be well over half the cost of the
bike...each.

"Original spares" have that sort of relationship, but third-party spares
tend to be a bit more realistically priced -- and bike wheels are all but
entirely interchangeable.

Quoted message said:

Bikes returned to a Wal-mart for repair are just replaced, and the
"broken bikes" get flogged off at a steep discount periodically to
local breakers who scrap them out for the nominally useful bits.
There's a guy in the bookdocks in Indiana who has been parting out
piles of Wal-mart bikes and selling the bits on eBay for a while now.
I hope he has a use for the frames...

He probably sells them to an artist who makes steel-pipe sculptures.

Jasper

Yep, still open. I'm still kicking myself for passing on the Raleigh
Professional for $100 (at the time that was a lot of money to me)

maxo said:

Ah, Urban Bikes is still open? Yeah! They rock!

Wow don't they have garbage collection in Chicago,I have tons of bike
parts pulled from disgarded bikes.This guy www.bikedump.com sells
wheels for $20-$30 but you can get a whole bike for that price at a
thrift store.Find a bike repair shop near you and check their dumpster
or walk by the night before trash collection,you'll be amazed at what
they throw out.