low-end fully suspended MT bike, Honda VS Huffy



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B Yen

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I recently got a "Honda Racing" Trail Pilot fully suspended bike for $99 at K-mart. It works decent.
They are also available at SportMart:

http://www.sportmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1211764&cp=713103.88
7561.1212018&parentPage=family

According to the specs, it has Shimano derailleurs. There is another low-end fully suspended bike by
Huffy, for $20 more:

http://www.sportmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=979078&cp=713103.887
561.886960&parentPage=family

The Huffy seems to have more "structural integrity" in the frame, there is more triangulation.

Would the Huffy be a better bike? Spend $20 more, to get better frame? A local guy at the bike shop
told me he tested a bike at Walmart (stepped on the pedal to check frame flexure), & folded the rear
wheel. This is what I'm afraid of with the "Honda Racing". I can still return it to K-mart, & get
the Huffy.

At the local Sportmart, I saw some other fully suspended bikes for $199 & $299. One of them had the
paddle type shifters. They look like they have better componentry.

The local bike shop was into Trek bikes, so that had a whole selection from $199 & up. (hard tails
with front suspension). No fully suspended bikes for real cheap.

I've been told, "it depends on what you want to do with it". I think the above low-end fully
suspended bikes will suffice for a beginner like
me. I wouldn't do anything extreme enough to break it. I'm an engineer, so I want to kinda study &
experience the geometry/mechanics of suspended bikes. It's actually good to get a machine to
"break". I was watching a show on Air Force Test Flight School, & they were emphasizing on
seeing where the airplane & pilots would "break". Then, you know where the performance curve
is. This would teach me something about bike mechanics. Just take a cheap bike & hammer it.

I got some input from a previous post about the same bike, & everyone was saying it was foolish to
mess with a $99 fully suspended bike -- too many compromises ("you get what you pay for"). Maybe
it is foolish, so if anyone thinks I should do my little test on a $199 or $299 fully-suspended
bike, tell me.

TIA for any help/advice

B Yen
 
<snipped>
> The local bike shop was into Trek bikes, so that had a whole
selection
> from $199 & up. (hard tails with front suspension). No fully
suspended
> bikes for real cheap.

cheap, light, strong. pick two.

>
> I've been told, "it depends on what you want to do with it". I
think
> the above low-end fully suspended bikes will suffice for a
beginner like
> me. I wouldn't do anything extreme enough to break it. I'm an engineer, so I want to kinda study
> & experience the
geometry/mechanics
> of suspended bikes. It's actually good to get a machine to
"break". I
> was watching a show on Air Force Test Flight School, & they were emphasizing on seeing where the
> airplane & pilots would "break".
Then,
> you know where the performance curve is. This would teach me
something
> about bike mechanics. Just take a cheap bike & hammer it.

Unfortunately, it will break with you on it. eating stem, or extricating seat tube from your bowels,
will teach you more about your own biomechanics than the bicycle.

the doubleboingers are no fun on pavement. They squirm and bounce and wiggle. You're better off with
the hardtail, or better, hard- ass, hard-nose solid frame. efficiency. Strength. cheapness. Ask the
millions of Flying Pigeon owners the world over!

-Luigi

>
> I got some input from a previous post about the same bike, &
everyone
> was saying it was foolish to mess with a $99 fully suspended
bike -- too
> many compromises ("you get what you pay for"). Maybe it is
foolish, so
> if anyone thinks I should do my little test on a $199 or $299 fully-suspended bike, tell me.
>
> TIA for any help/advice
>
>
> B Yen

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B Yen wrote:
>
> I got some input from a previous post about the same bike, & everyone was saying it was foolish to
> mess with a $99 fully suspended bike -- too many compromises ("you get what you pay for"). Maybe
> it is foolish, so if anyone thinks I should do my little test on a $199 or $299 fully-suspended
> bike, tell me.
>

I'd agree with skipping the idea of full suspension on a cheapo bike. Wouldn't trust it for a minute
where full suspension would actually be useful (e.g. hard, offroad riding) and it'll be much less
efficient on pavement. If you want to go as cheap as possible, you might take a look at the Walmart
Schwinn/Pacific MTBs. They have a steel-frame model for about $130 with front and seat post
suspension:

<http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.gsp?product_id=1913343&cat=103684&ty
pe=5&dept=4125&path=0%3A4125%3A4178%3A103684>

Or you could probably get a similarly equipped bike from the LBS for about $200 with some selection
in frame sizes and free bike shop setup/tuning.

Mark
 
In article <[email protected]>, B Yen <[email protected]> wrote:
>I recently got a "Honda Racing" Trail Pilot fully suspended bike for $99 at K-mart. It works
>decent. They are also available at SportMart:
>
>http://www.sportmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1211764&cp=713103.88
>7561.1212018&parentPage=family
>
>According to the specs, it has Shimano derailleurs. There is another low-end fully suspended bike
>by Huffy, for $20 more:
>
>http://www.sportmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=979078&cp=713103.887
>561.886960&parentPage=family
>
>The Huffy seems to have more "structural integrity" in the frame, there is more triangulation.
>
>Would the Huffy be a better bike? Spend $20 more, to get better frame?

No I'd rank them about the same.

>A local guy at the bike shop told me he tested a bike at Walmart (stepped on the pedal to check
>frame flexure), & folded the rear wheel.

A soft wheel can be found on a Huffy just as easily as a Honda.

>At the local Sportmart, I saw some other fully suspended bikes for $199 & $299. One of them had the
>paddle type shifters. They look like they have better componentry.

Probably yes.

>The local bike shop was into Trek bikes, so that had a whole selection from $199 & up. (hard tails
>with front suspension). No fully suspended bikes for real cheap.
>
>I've been told, "it depends on what you want to do with it". I think the above low-end fully
>suspended bikes will suffice for a beginner like
>me. I wouldn't do anything extreme enough to break it.

In that case you probably have little use for the full suspension in the first place.

Suspension makes the bike heavier, less efficient to ride, cost more, less reliable, and sometimes
challenging/impossible to repair after a failure of the rear suspension system on a cheap-o bike.

A basic hard-tail is the best buy in your price range - lighter, faster, stronger, cheaper,
more reliable.

> I'm an engineer, so I want to kinda study & experience the geometry/mechanics of suspended bikes.
> It's actually good to get a machine to "break". I was watching a show on Air Force Test Flight
> School, & they were emphasizing on seeing where the airplane & pilots would "break". Then, you
> know where the performance curve is. This would teach me something about bike mechanics. Just
> take a cheap bike & hammer it.

Actually the best way to observe lots of bike failures is to have lots of riders bring their broken
bikes to you. You get to see lots of different broken bikes, ridden by different riders in different
conditions, you tinker with the bike and they pay you. Apply at a bike shop. Expect to start by
doing assemblies. This will still teach you a lot about bike construction. As an added bonus you can
buy a new bike on an employee purchase plan and get a fat discount.

--Paul
 
No offense but, the Huffy is still a poorly built toy not really good for much more than going
around the block on the sidewalk.

Save your money and buy a mid-priced bike at your local bike shop. The difference is night and day.

Now that you've tried the $99 bike go to the bike shop and try a $500 hardtail. Even the $299 fully
suspended bike is a toy and not off road worthy.

As an engineer you should be able to appreciate the difference in quality of construction,
componentry, and the huge increase in pedalling efficiency.

--
______________________________________
"If you get the Porsche first, you will probably get the girl." "If you get the girl first, you'll
never get the Porsche."

"B Yen" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I recently got a "Honda Racing" Trail Pilot fully suspended bike for $99 at K-mart. It works
> decent. They are also available at SportMart:
>
> http://www.sportmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1211764&cp=713103.88
> 7561.1212018&parentPage=family
>
> According to the specs, it has Shimano derailleurs. There is another low-end fully suspended bike
> by Huffy, for $20 more:
>
> http://www.sportmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=979078&cp=713103.887
> 561.886960&parentPage=family
>
> The Huffy seems to have more "structural integrity" in the frame, there is more triangulation.
>
> Would the Huffy be a better bike? Spend $20 more, to get better frame? A local guy at the bike
> shop told me he tested a bike at Walmart (stepped on the pedal to check frame flexure), & folded
> the rear wheel. This is what I'm afraid of with the "Honda Racing". I can still return it to
> K-mart, & get the Huffy.
>
> At the local Sportmart, I saw some other fully suspended bikes for $199 & $299. One of them had
> the paddle type shifters. They look like they have better componentry.
>
> The local bike shop was into Trek bikes, so that had a whole selection from $199 & up. (hard tails
> with front suspension). No fully suspended bikes for real cheap.
>
> I've been told, "it depends on what you want to do with it". I think the above low-end fully
> suspended bikes will suffice for a beginner like
> me. I wouldn't do anything extreme enough to break it. I'm an engineer, so I want to kinda study
> & experience the geometry/mechanics of suspended bikes. It's actually good to get a machine
> to "break". I was watching a show on Air Force Test Flight School, & they were emphasizing on
> seeing where the airplane & pilots would "break". Then, you know where the performance curve
> is. This would teach me something about bike mechanics. Just take a cheap bike & hammer it.
>
> I got some input from a previous post about the same bike, & everyone was saying it was foolish to
> mess with a $99 fully suspended bike -- too many compromises ("you get what you pay for"). Maybe
> it is foolish, so if anyone thinks I should do my little test on a $199 or $299 fully-suspended
> bike, tell me.
>
> TIA for any help/advice
>
>
> B Yen

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"B Yen" <[email protected]> wrote

>
> I got some input from a previous post about the same bike, & everyone was saying it was foolish to
> mess with a $99 fully suspended bike -- too many compromises ("you get what you pay for"). Maybe
> it is foolish, so if anyone thinks I should do my little test on a $199 or $299 fully-suspended
> bike, tell me.
>

Well..it's YOUR skin doing the test. Call us when you get out of traction.

Pete
 
>TIA for any help/advice
>
>
>B Yen

Don't ride it off road. Thats my advice.

If you want to test a FS bike, get one with suspension that has dampening rather than just springs
made to look like real shock absorbers. That'll cost a bit more than 2 or 3 hundred dollars.

Jon Isaacs
 
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