Newbie Here

[Foty]

Hey guys, as you can see im brand new here. Well after a few minutes of searching, I found this place. Anyways I just picked up my first bike in about 8 years again. It needs some work, and I figure I could get somemuch needed help in a place like this. The bike was free, so im not out anything, but like I said it needs a little bit of work. It's a mongoose DXr 42 speed. I recognize the brand mongoose, but thats all, no idea if this is a decent bike. I believe all the bike needs is two new tubes and a new chain. Other than that it looks to be in decent shape. I'd like to start this little project going and get out ridding. Can I get some light shed on this, as to what size chain and tubes etc. Also is there anything else I should look for? Thanks in advance. I hope to become a valued member here and look forward to the comments.


-Joey

 

[Scotty_Dog]

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=882625

You have a low-end department store bike, so don't spend too much getting it road worthy. While it will get you from point A to point B, it's heavy as hell and bound to have more mechanical issues than seen on better bikes. I'm not trying to be negative, just truthful. I, too, started with a free bike similar to this one.

All that being said, I believe it's a 21 speed (3 gear crank X 7 gear cassette). You will need 26x1.75-1.95 tubes. The chain you need is typically known as a "multi-speed" chain for 6,7,or 8 speed cassettes.

Follow these links and thoroughly explore the sites until your brain explodes:

http://sheldonbrown.com/beginners/index.html

http://www.parktool.com/repair/byregion.asp (use the "select a region" drop down menu in the middle of the page)

 

[RickF]

Scotty Dog is correct. They are $99.96 new at WalMart: http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=882625&sourceid=32890134851198831875
In addition to the tires, tubes, and chain, you will need a chain tool to cut the new chain to the proper length. The chain tool will cost more than any other individual item. In addition to replacing the tires, tubes, and chain, it is a very good bet that the bike was never set up correctly. The brakes and derailleures probably will need adjusting, and the wheels may be out of true. If you have the tools and knowledge, these are not difficult repairs, but they can be time consuming. If you take the bike to your LBS, the labor could run between $50 and $200. On the other hand, if you bought a new version from WalMart, you still could end up spending $40 to $80 at your LBS to get them to put it together correctly and make the necessary adjustments.

Check out this link: http://www.bikesrnottoys.com/

The bottom line is that the bike could be a decent entry level bike, but chances are extremely good that in the condition that it was received from places like WalMart, it still needs a lot of work to make it run properly.