Schwinn vs Huffy

[A Muzi]

>> OP:
>> Which should I buy?

> [email protected] wrote:
> If the Schwinn has a frame mounted derailleur go that
> way you won't regret it.

What difference could it make? Bikes of that genre have
nice functional $14.95 rear derailleurs. If you should
happen to damage one or wear it out, they are readily
available. Even upgrade models at $20 and $25 . Of all
the factors I can think of, this is among the least important.

Get one that fits. Open bearing assemblies, grease them and
adjust properly. Spend a bit of time lubricating and
adjusting the brake and gear systems. Tension the wheels and
ride it.

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

 

[Joe Haggadah]

"PSB" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> So which would you recommend?

Murray or C. Itoh.

 

[[email protected]]

On Tue, 28 Dec 2004 23:24:37 -0500, PSB <[email protected]>
wrote:

>I'm six foot tall and about 160. I'll check closer into the Roadmaster
>when I go back to the department store and make my decision then.
>
>One more question, does the Roadmaster have holes where a bike rack can
>be attached easily? I know the Schwinn Sidewinder does.

Dear PBS,

Unlike the shabby sort of incomplete bicycle that Lance
Armstrong is forced to ride by contract, the Fury Roadmaster
offers small flanges with four holes above the rear dropout,
two on either side, presumably for a rack that may well be
available at WalMart.

I also note a pair of bolts on the down-tube for attaching a
water-bottle frame.

Since I ride solely for pleasure (not sordid commercial gain
like Lance), I have no idea how the rest of the rack
attaches. Possibly around the seat post?

Much as it pains me to say so, you should give Ron Hardin's
Huffy recommendation serious consideration, since he's
tested the thing for years in actual commuting and an
impressive 48,000 miles, instead of stripping off its
water-bottle frame, sidestand, and reflectors and then
forcing it to roll a mere four miles per day through a park
for about nine months.

Carl Fogel

 

[Mike Jacoubowsky]

>> So which would you recommend?
>
> Murray or C. Itoh.

What's wrong with American Flyer?

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

 

[Mike Jacoubowsky]

> Get one that fits. Open bearing assemblies, grease them and adjust
> properly. Spend a bit of time lubricating and adjusting the brake and gear
> systems. Tension the wheels and ride it.

Visions of Dave Stoller in his garage go dancing through my head...

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

 

[Werehatrack]

On Tue, 28 Dec 2004 23:46:35 -0500, "Joe Haggadah" <[email protected]>
wrote:

>
>"PSB" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>
>> So which would you recommend?
>
>Murray or C. Itoh.

Itoh printers are easier to find than Itoh bikes in the US...and when
was the last time you saw a Murray bike available new? ISTR that
Murray sold off its bike division to one of the borgs a while back.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
Some gardening required to reply via email.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

 

[Werehatrack]

On Wed, 29 Dec 2004 08:00:29 GMT, "Mike Jacoubowsky"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>>> So which would you recommend?
>>
>> Murray or C. Itoh.
>
>What's wrong with American Flyer?

If you can get the rust off, and if the rims aren't full of termites,
nothing. But a JC Higgins is probably a better value.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
Some gardening required to reply via email.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

 

[Ken Pisichko]

I basically agree with this article.

If you want cheap - then buy the cheapest. If you want something suitable
for commuting then start looking at more than the two cheap bicycles you
indicate. When i go to garage and other sales i see so many cheap bikes -
and then when i ask why they did not use the bikes the folks say the bike
did not fit, it did not work properly, it did not...

Cheap bikes might be OK for a spin around the block but that is IT!!

Get a used bike with good components. Who cares if it does not have the
latest in gadgetry?? I bought a 20 year old Peugeot at a garage sale and
with several adjustments to the seat and front bars it will be great for
commuting. It would be better to have fenders on it, but for $20 I guess I
can get fenders and still be farther ahead than buying a new bike similar
to what you are looking at.

Think outside the box and look at a quality used bike that will be much
more suitable for your needs as compared to the 2 new ones you are enamored
with...

[email protected] wrote:

> Neither. As commuters, they would probably do OK. But they are cheap
> junk, and possibly like throwing money away. If you search in this
> newsgroup for "Carl Fogel" "Roadmaster" and "Fury", you will find the
> saga of a cheap dept. store bike.
>
> You /should/ buy from your LBS. But not a new bike. A used one. A
> decent, well-maintained, used bike can cost only a bit more than a new
> dept. store bike-shaped toy, and is likely to have better components.
> This means that you might get more life out of your used bike than you
> would out of a new bike-shaped toy from some *Mart.
>
> Locally, the LBSs have quite a bit of used inventory that they are
> willing to make deals on because in our corner of North America, it's
> winter, and bikes don't sell well here in the winter.
> Good luck.
>
> HAND,
>
> E.P.

 

[Ron Hardin]

A Muzi wrote:
> Get one that fits. Open bearing assemblies, grease them and
> adjust properly. Spend a bit of time lubricating and
> adjusting the brake and gear systems. Tension the wheels and
> ride it.

Fix what needs fixing when it proves it needs fixing. If you have
a tinkering fixation, that's another matter. You may enjoy it.

My Huffys work fine until something needs attention, and then I
attend to it. Bearings never have needed opening. Lubricate the
chain when it squeaks.

Every 10k miles or so, replace BB chainwheel chain and freewheel
together, when the chain finally starts popping off the chainwheel
startups. Huffy sells replacements over the phone.

The wheels are the best I've ever had, in not needing any attention
at all. I have 48k miles on the rear wheel, and it carries 40 lbs
of groceries a good part of the time too. No wobble, no squeak, no
anything. It's a MTB rim of course.

Mostly it's brake adjustment or freeing-up, or the great transmission
periodic replacement paroxysm.

Oh a wheel bearing needed a squirt of 3-in-1 last year. It was
squeaking.

These aren't Campy parts that you might want to have a fascination with.

--
Ron Hardin
[email protected]

On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.

 

[meb]

Every 10k miles or so, replace BB chainwheel chain and freewheel
together, when the chain finally starts popping off the chainwheel
startups. Huffy sells replacements over the phone.
[email protected]

Uh, when you replace that many parts at once isn't that approaching the price of a comparable new bike? Sounds like unless you've got a cheap source of parts, at 10k miles it's time to put Huffy to pasture and get a new Huffy/roadmaster/schwinn unless the faithfull steed has become part of the family. Might even be cheaper to buy a second as a parts bike.

Nobody else has chimed in on this issue, but often with a commuter you have to deal with rain, salt, snow so it's nice to have a bike on hand that you don't dread getting weathered on. Also, there may be locations you travel in wherein you want a bike the theives don't target.

Slicks/knobbies is too route specific an issue for practical comment per your limitted course disclosure. If commuting cross country or primarily in snow (particularly this time of year) you certainly want the knobbies. If exclusively bike trails in S. Cal, I'd think not.

 

[Maggie]

Mike Jacoubowsky Dec 29, 12:00 am show options

Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.misc,rec.bicycles.tech
From: "Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email protected]> - Find messages by this
author

>> So which would you recommend?

What's wrong with American Flyer?

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com


Maggie Dec 29

Isn't that a wooden sled. Wasn't my old sled an American Flyer?
Maggie.
Maybe I am getting senile.
Reply

 

[Mark Janeba]

Mike Jacoubowsky wrote:
>>Get one that fits. Open bearing assemblies, grease them and adjust
>>properly. Spend a bit of time lubricating and adjusting the brake and gear
>>systems. Tension the wheels and ride it.
>
>
> Visions of Dave Stoller in his garage go dancing through my head...

With the dramatic "BIG" music playing in the background, coming to a
crescendo just as the scene cuts to the little 500... ah, yes.

Mark Janeba

 

[[email protected]]

On 29 Dec 2004 09:38:06 -0800, "Maggie"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>Mike Jacoubowsky Dec 29, 12:00 am show options
>
>Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.misc,rec.bicycles.tech
>From: "Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email protected]> - Find messages by this
>author
>
>>> So which would you recommend?
>
>What's wrong with American Flyer?
>
>--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
>www.ChainReactionBicycles.com
>
>
>Maggie Dec 29
>
>Isn't that a wooden sled. Wasn't my old sled an American Flyer?
>Maggie.
>Maybe I am getting senile.
>Reply

Dear Maggie,

Yes, there was an American Flyer sled, as well as the
bicycle brand.

Let's not tell anyone what "Rosebud" really meant to Hearst.
The sled explanation is much better suited to the children,
and Marion might sue us.

Orson Welles

 

[LioNiNoiL_a t_Y a h 0 0_d 0 t_c 0 m]

> Learning toward one or the other for buying a new dept store bicycle.

Buy a much better used bike for the same amount of money, out of the
local newpaper ads.

--
"Bicycling is a healthy and manly pursuit with much
to recommend it, and, unlike other foolish crazes,
it has not died out." -- The Daily Telegraph (1877)

 

[Eric Vey]

--at 10k miles it's time to put Huffy to pasture and get a new
Huffy/roadmaster/schwinn--

Probably, but so what? A Giant (for example) costs 5-6 times more. So in
theory, the Giant will get 50-60,000 miles without major repairs? I
don't think so.

 

[spoking]

Wow. Just for fun, i'm gonna reply to this one. Even tho i am
completely a roadie, and everything I own now is fitted to a T, I
believe there is a place for dept store mass production machines.
Caveat - they are mostly wear-em-out-and-throw-em-away. Don't worry
about Huffy or Schwinn, go for price. Don't get fancy shocks. Don't do
stunts on it. Avoid potholes and riding off curbs. Make sure it fits,
and the instant the saddle gets uncomfortable, replace it with a better
one. Experiment with saddles. If your commute is <5 miles, maybe you'll
never have a problem.

When I was a child my parents bought me a few various "English"
3-speeds. I didn't like em and always wanted what the other kids had -
Sting-Rays. The first bike I had I considered to be mine I stole from
my sister - she had moved out of the house and left it. That was a
humongously heavy Schwinn girls cruiser - but it had a basket, and I
had a newspaper route that I had to deliver to make money, and there
was no other bike in the house at the time. My second bike I got after
high school, and once again used to commute to work - it was a dept
store cheapo 10-speed, and it saw a couple of hard summers of commuting
to work, and even some non-summer commutes. The bike held up long
enough, and served its purpose. At that time I had no spare parts bin
to rebuild a used bike, and didn't have the knowledge or desire to do
so either. It worked, I worked, and we got along just fine. When the
seat stay (part of the frame) broke away from the rest of the frame, my
kid brother braised it back, and 'inherited' the bike that way. Overall
miles, it didn't go that far, but it went far enough, and the price was
right.

Knobbies vs. slicks? Unless you're doing sloppy dirt, do the slicks.
The skinniest lightest tire that will give you a ride without going
flat or sinking into your "road" surface is a good way to think about
it. Riding roads in Africa or Mongolia? Get fat thick tires. Not going
there? hmmm.

You know, Ron H doesn't get a lot of respect around here, but on this
topic I agree with him.

Have a great day;
Mark

 

[Ron Hardin]

meb wrote:
> > Every 10k miles or so, replace BB chainwheel chain and freewheel
> > together, when the chain finally starts popping off the chainwheel
> > startups. Huffy sells replacements over the phone.
> > [email protected]
> >
> >
>
> Uh, when you replace that many parts at once isn't that approaching the
> price of a comparable new bike? Sounds like unless you've got a cheap
> source of parts, at 10k miles it's time to put Huffy to pasture and get
> a new Huffy/roadmaster/schwinn unless the faithfull steed has become
> part of the family. Might even be cheaper to buy a second as a parts
> bike.

Parts from Huffy are pretty cheap. I'd guess from memory that it's
about $40 for all that.

If you're replacing a wheel as well, then go for the new bike, I guess.

You tend to favor the old one, because it's set up with your add-on
fenders and favorite saddle and bike rack and milk crate arrangement.
--
Ron Hardin
[email protected]

On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.

 

[Mike Jacoubowsky/Chain Reaction Bicycles]

> Isn't that a wooden sled. Wasn't my old sled an American Flyer?
> Maggie.
> Maybe I am getting senile.

Maybe, but I might be getting there first. Might have been American Eagle.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
IMBA, BikesBelong, NBDA member

"Maggie" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Mike Jacoubowsky Dec 29, 12:00 am show options
>
> Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.misc,rec.bicycles.tech
> From: "Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email protected]> - Find messages by this
> author
>
>>> So which would you recommend?
>
> What's wrong with American Flyer?
>
> --Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
> www.ChainReactionBicycles.com
>
>
> Maggie Dec 29
>
> Isn't that a wooden sled. Wasn't my old sled an American Flyer?
> Maggie.
> Maybe I am getting senile.
> Reply
>

 

[Werehatrack]

On Wed, 29 Dec 2004 18:08:49 GMT, Little Meow <[email protected]> wrote:


>
>> Mike Jacoubowsky Dec 29, 12:00 am show options
>>
>> Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.misc,rec.bicycles.tech
>> From: "Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email protected]> - Find messages by this
>> author
>>
>>>> So which would you recommend?
>>
>> What's wrong with American Flyer?
>>
>>
>
>http://americanflyerbicycle.com/

Hmmm. Interesting. They claim that their road bike is equipped with
"Kenda Kontender Ceramic Tires".

That should yield some novel rebound rates on bumps.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
Some gardening required to reply via email.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

 

[Mark Weaver]

"Donald Gillies" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I took a close look at a department store Schwinn a month ago,
>
>
http://search.bikelist.org/query.as...?"&SearchPrefix=@msgsubject&SortBy=MsgDate[a]
>
> Specifically, the $108 schwinn hybrid at Target. Unlike earlier
> department store bikes that had obvious manufacturing compromises
> (e.g. cheap soft steel brakes that bent every time they were used,
> steel rims, lead-pipe frames, suicide extension levers), modern
> dept. store bikes have closed a tremendous gap with bike shop bikes.
>

I bought one of those for my kid. Heck of a deal, IMHO. Frame seems fine,
components are the same as on low end LBS bikes. My kid (like a lot of
13-year-olds) doesn't take care of things very well, leaves the bike out in
the rain, often forgets to take a lock, etc, so I was happy to be able to
get a pretty decent bike for such a small sum.

If you compare the Schwinns to the Huffys, though, there are some pretty
significant differences -- the Huffys I've seen do *not* use the same
components as low-end LBS bikes. You'll see stamped-steel caliper brakes
instead of aluminum linear brakes, a single piece crank instead of a
3-piece, possibly steel wheels instead of alloy, and so on.

> Although I don't own one, these bikes are probably not fun or
> practical to work on or tune. They are designed to be manufactured
> cheaply, used until the parts fail or go out of the adjustment, and
> then thrown away. Don't expect to get it fixed cheaply at a normal
> bike shop. Work on it yourself, if at all.
>

Nah, really no better or worse than a low-end LBS bike--the components are
the same. I didn't have any trouble adjusting it after I bought it.

Mark