schwinn , raleigh,canadian tire , money avail.$300/350.00



R

rick

Guest
My son want to buy with his own money his first bike.He is 15 and ride
mainly on paved road and nice bike path . He is a serious kid and take care
of his thing.

He looks now at the hybrid or comfort bike.There is one on sale this week
and made by Schwinn. To be honest with you all the brand I have seen with
him seems to be made from the same components, brake, derailleur, wheels,
most of them come from Taiwan.

Can you get a decent bike within his price range ( 250.00 to 350.00)
Canadian.?

We visited a few local bike shop but man, they want an arm and a leg for
their bike, and I dont know for you but I need my both legs and arms to ride
;-)I can understand that their stuff is maybe better but its like any other
stuff, the sky is the limit and we must stay rational.

300.00 for my boy is a lot of dollars,lots of sacrifice, so I would like to
see him happy with his purchase, can you minimise my worry ?

Thanks for your input
 
On Mon, 14 Jun 2004 00:15:20 -0400, "rick" <rick @ nowhere.com> wrote:

>My son want to buy with his own money his first bike.He is 15 and ride
>mainly on paved road and nice bike path . He is a serious kid and take care
>of his thing.
>
>
>300.00 for my boy is a lot of dollars,lots of sacrifice, so I would like to
>see him happy with his purchase, can you minimise my worry ?
>
>Thanks for your input
>


How about used? And some money kept aside for a book or two and some
tools.

http://www.roadbikereview.com/reviewscrx.aspx

http://www.mtbreview.com/reviews/
 
On Mon, 14 Jun 2004 00:15:20 -0400, "rick" <rick @ nowhere.com> wrote:

>My son want to buy with his own money his first bike.He is 15 and ride
>mainly on paved road and nice bike path . He is a serious kid and take care
>of his thing.
>
>He looks now at the hybrid or comfort bike.There is one on sale this week
>and made by Schwinn. To be honest with you all the brand I have seen with
>him seems to be made from the same components, brake, derailleur, wheels,
>most of them come from Taiwan.
>
>Can you get a decent bike within his price range ( 250.00 to 350.00)
>Canadian.?
>
>We visited a few local bike shop but man, they want an arm and a leg for
>their bike, and I dont know for you but I need my both legs and arms to ride
>;-)I can understand that their stuff is maybe better but its like any other
>stuff, the sky is the limit and we must stay rational.
>
>300.00 for my boy is a lot of dollars,lots of sacrifice, so I would like to
>see him happy with his purchase, can you minimise my worry ?
>
>Thanks for your input
>



I vote for used also. It will get him the best value for the money. My
friend's 13 year old son put together a bike last year from used parts
purchased from enthusiast friends of his father. For about $500CDN he
has a nice Breezer Lightning with a Chris King headset, Marzocchi
fork, Thompson seatpost, Salsa skewers, Magura hydraulic rim brakes,
etc. He is about to purchase 2 wheelsets dirt cheap that I can't use
any more, as I just switched to disc brakes.
Not everyone will ask the earth for used stuff, especially if
they know your son. Local bike clubs might be something he might want
to join.
Beware, though. Make sure a used frame you buy is not too old,
as there are issues with compatibility with more recent component
upgrades. Poke around the real bike shops a bit more.
 
"rick" <rick @ nowhere.com> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> My son want to buy with his own money his first bike.He is 15 and ride
> mainly on paved road and nice bike path . He is a serious kid and take

care
> of his thing.
>
> He looks now at the hybrid or comfort bike.There is one on sale this week
> and made by Schwinn. To be honest with you all the brand I have seen with
> him seems to be made from the same components, brake, derailleur, wheels,
> most of them come from Taiwan.
>
> Can you get a decent bike within his price range ( 250.00 to 350.00)
> Canadian.?


You can get a great bike used if you're willing to wait a while and look
around, and if you know something about bikes (or have a friend that does).
Bikes tend to depreciate rapidly.

Your son has about $250 USD available ... there isn't a whole lot in that
price range but there are some good bikes (or for a wee bit more). The
Giant Cypress ST is a decent bike for around $200 USD:

http://tinyurl.com/2dqhy

The best part is that it would be brand new and that would probably go a
long way to your son being happy with his purchase.

A couple of my friends have these bikes and like them a lot ... a
Specialized Hardrock and Trek 4300. They would be around $300 - $350 USD at
a bike shop respectfully. They also ride them on pavement all the time:

http://tinyurl.com/37fld
http://tinyurl.com/2nbxd

That's just to give you an idea of what's out there. The Trek 3500 would be
in your sons price range for instance:

http://tinyurl.com/yt4h8

Although you can get a great bike used, I would probably suggest looking
around a bit and deciding on a decent comfort or hybrid from one of those
companies.

Good luck,
C.Q.C.
 
Well what I would do I take the specs down, and go to local shops
and ask what they want for the same specs. You will be able to see
if there is a huge price difference or not. Problem is most of the time
LBS don't sell very low quality stuff like you might find at superstores,
so you are comparing apples with oranges. I am sure you could find
a Norco bike with similar pricing than what Canadian Tire is offering.

Also remember that once he has the bike, if he needs maintenance
Canadian Tire has to be the worst place for it. So he will have to
pay extra to have it done while it might be free or at lower cost
from the local bike shop.

Hope this helps


"rick" <rick @ nowhere.com> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> My son want to buy with his own money his first bike.He is 15 and ride
> mainly on paved road and nice bike path . He is a serious kid and take

care
> of his thing.
>
> He looks now at the hybrid or comfort bike.There is one on sale this week
> and made by Schwinn. To be honest with you all the brand I have seen with
> him seems to be made from the same components, brake, derailleur, wheels,
> most of them come from Taiwan.
>
> Can you get a decent bike within his price range ( 250.00 to 350.00)
> Canadian.?
>
> We visited a few local bike shop but man, they want an arm and a leg for
> their bike, and I dont know for you but I need my both legs and arms to

ride
> ;-)I can understand that their stuff is maybe better but its like any

other
> stuff, the sky is the limit and we must stay rational.
>
> 300.00 for my boy is a lot of dollars,lots of sacrifice, so I would like

to
> see him happy with his purchase, can you minimise my worry ?
>
> Thanks for your input
>
>
 
I don't know if you have ****'s Sporting Goods or Sports Authority in
Canada, but it you do they are a good place to look for a $200 to $250 (US)
comfort bike that will last. Forget about a hybrid for that money anywhere
(except used). The reason I mention these stores is because they will have
somebody on staff in their bike department that will be reasonably
knowledgeable if not an expert and they have a wide selection. I bought a
Mongoose at a ****'s 3 years ago for $225 and have put about 10,000 miles on
it (bottom bracket went out last year and cost me $35 to replace, that's
about it for repairs). My boss bought a Mongoose at the same ****'s last
year for $200 and he's been happy with it, too.

Consumer Reports (this month) says that you can find comfort bikes for $250
US in some bike shops and if that's true they are certainly worth a look.

One tip. Everybody seems to want to put front shocks on comfort bikes
nowadays. Avoid it if you can. Your best bet is an aluminum frame and
chrome-moly forks. The forks will have some give, but will not waste energy
like a suspension fork that you don't need for road use.

The idea of a used bike is a good one if you can find a nice one in your
area. Big if.

Good luck.

--

- GRL

"It's good to want things."

Steve Barr (philosopher, poet, humorist, chemist,
Visual Basic programmer)
"rick" <rick @ nowhere.com> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> My son want to buy with his own money his first bike.He is 15 and ride
> mainly on paved road and nice bike path . He is a serious kid and take

care
> of his thing.
>
> He looks now at the hybrid or comfort bike.There is one on sale this week
> and made by Schwinn. To be honest with you all the brand I have seen with
> him seems to be made from the same components, brake, derailleur, wheels,
> most of them come from Taiwan.
>
> Can you get a decent bike within his price range ( 250.00 to 350.00)
> Canadian.?
>
> We visited a few local bike shop but man, they want an arm and a leg for
> their bike, and I dont know for you but I need my both legs and arms to

ride
> ;-)I can understand that their stuff is maybe better but its like any

other
> stuff, the sky is the limit and we must stay rational.
>
> 300.00 for my boy is a lot of dollars,lots of sacrifice, so I would like

to
> see him happy with his purchase, can you minimise my worry ?
>
> Thanks for your input
>
>
 
"Daniel Crispin" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Well what I would do I take the specs down, and go to local shops
> and ask what they want for the same specs. You will be able to see
> if there is a huge price difference or not. Problem is most of the time
> LBS don't sell very low quality stuff like you might find at superstores,
> so you are comparing apples with oranges. I am sure you could find
> a Norco bike with similar pricing than what Canadian Tire is offering.
>
> Also remember that once he has the bike, if he needs maintenance
> Canadian Tire has to be the worst place for it. So he will have to
> pay extra to have it done while it might be free or at lower cost
> from the local bike shop.
>
> Hope this helps
>
>
> "rick" <rick @ nowhere.com> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > My son want to buy with his own money his first bike.He is 15 and ride
> > mainly on paved road and nice bike path . He is a serious kid and take

> care
> > of his thing.
> >
> > He looks now at the hybrid or comfort bike.There is one on sale this

week
> > and made by Schwinn. To be honest with you all the brand I have seen

with
> > him seems to be made from the same components, brake, derailleur,

wheels,
> > most of them come from Taiwan.
> >
> > Can you get a decent bike within his price range ( 250.00 to 350.00)
> > Canadian.?
> >
> > We visited a few local bike shop but man, they want an arm and a leg for
> > their bike, and I dont know for you but I need my both legs and arms to

> ride
> > ;-)I can understand that their stuff is maybe better but its like any

> other
> > stuff, the sky is the limit and we must stay rational.
> >
> > 300.00 for my boy is a lot of dollars,lots of sacrifice, so I would like

> to
> > see him happy with his purchase, can you minimise my worry ?
> >
> > Thanks for your input





He read all your post and suggestion, but he really wants the Schwinn Sierra
( known as Santa Monica in Canada) So will see if he is taking the right
decision.

I went to the store with him, we looked at it and at some Raleigh of the
same category. The Raleigh Portage looks better but the Sierra seems to be
equipped with better wheels and derailleur.

I do not think that he his really making a bad move for the price, and you
know how the kids are, they need to learn by themselves.

I managed to get out of the store without the bike, I want him to think
about it a little more, the sale end in 5 days.We have the choice to get it
build for free or I can have it delivered at home not built. I certainly can
handle this task ( I'm a mechanic) but can you direct me to a good web site
where I can get good info on bike maintenance and repair. I want him to
build the bike to have a better feel about it.

BTW can you get a bike not made in China,Taiwan or Vietnam ???

Once again I appreciate your suggestion, but he is in love with that
bike.... and you know what love can do at 15 !!!
 

>
>BTW can you get a bike not made in China,Taiwan or Vietnam ???


Pay lots and lots of money. Italian, American or Canadian (and others)
made bikes tend to be higher end and cost more, although most
companies have an entry level.


Try www.parktool.com for repair and maintenance info.
>
 
"H. Morgan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> >
> >BTW can you get a bike not made in China,Taiwan or Vietnam ???

>
> Pay lots and lots of money. Italian, American or Canadian (and others)
> made bikes tend to be higher end and cost more, although most
> companies have an entry level.
>
>
> Try www.parktool.com for repair and maintenance info.



I wonder if the occasional rider can feel the difference between a 350.00
bike and a 1000.00 bike , if the answer is yes, is it enough to justify
650.00 more ?
 
In article <[email protected]>, "rick" <rick @
nowhere.com> says...

....

> I do not think that he his really making a bad move for the price, and you
> know how the kids are, they need to learn by themselves.


Any bike from a good manufacturer in that price range is going to be
pretty comparable. Some will have better parts, while others might have
better frames or wheels, but the overall quality will be very
comparable.


> I managed to get out of the store without the bike, I want him to think
> about it a little more, the sale end in 5 days.We have the choice to get it
> build for free or I can have it delivered at home not built. I certainly can
> handle this task ( I'm a mechanic) but can you direct me to a good web site
> where I can get good info on bike maintenance and repair. I want him to
> build the bike to have a better feel about it.
>
> BTW can you get a bike not made in China,Taiwan or Vietnam ???


Not in that price range. When you get to around $1000 (maybe a little
less), you can find ones made in Canada or the US.


--
Remove the ns_ from if replying by e-mail (but keep posts in the
newsgroups if possible).
 
In article <[email protected]>, "rick" <rick @
nowhere.com> says...
>
> "H. Morgan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> >
> > >
> > >BTW can you get a bike not made in China,Taiwan or Vietnam ???

> >
> > Pay lots and lots of money. Italian, American or Canadian (and others)
> > made bikes tend to be higher end and cost more, although most
> > companies have an entry level.
> >
> >
> > Try www.parktool.com for repair and maintenance info.

>
>
> I wonder if the occasional rider can feel the difference between a 350.00
> bike and a 1000.00 bike , if the answer is yes, is it enough to justify
> 650.00 more ?


Yes, (s)he'll be able to tell the difference, but probably won't
consider it to be worth almost 3x the price.


--
Remove the ns_ from if replying by e-mail (but keep posts in the
newsgroups if possible).
 
rick <rick @ nowhere.com> wrote:

> I wonder if the occasional rider can feel the difference between a 350.00
> bike and a 1000.00 bike , if the answer is yes, is it enough to justify
> 650.00 more ?


Most occasional riders won't ride 100 total lifetime miles, so the $350
bike is probably a better deal for them.

Art Harris
 
"rick" <rick @ nowhere.com> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> >
> > Try www.parktool.com for repair and maintenance info.
> > >

> >

>
> Great site !! Thanks



Where in Canada are you? In Toronto, Silent Sports is a great bike
shop; they have bikes in the price range of $350 which are solidly
built.