Witness to a "Crime"

I was walking out of my office today, and saw this guy riding a real-live Schwinn Varsity. It was
about 4 inches too big for him, and he was really struggling. Then I noticed the other guy standing
around watching, and the scene became clear. The guy on the bike was test-riding it, and the guy
watching was the seller.

Guy riding bike complains that the rear wheel is out of true -- like he could tell, wandering around
like he was. Seller says he'll adjust it tonight -- like he knows how. It had the original steel
rims, and I'm sure that the nipples long ago became one with the spokes. No way it was going to be
trued without a complete re-build which would cost far more than the bike is worth.

I was tempted to ask what the asking price was, but refrained. I would have probably burst out
laughing and ruined the sale. Now, I know there are those who collect these behemouths, but this guy
was clueless. He just wanted a bike and was being sold an ancient bit of trash. For those who don't
know, a Schwinn Varsity tips the scales at about 45 pounds, and comes equipped with the Huret Allvit
derailleur, probably the worst design ever sold. Last made in the late '70s.

Maybe I should have said something.

--

David L. Johnson

__o | Deserves death! I daresay he does. Many that live deserve _`\(,_ | death. And some that die
deserve life. Can you give it to (_)/ (_) | them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in
judgement. -- J. R. R. Tolkein

 

"David L. Johnson" <[email protected]> wrote

>
> Maybe I should have said something.

Sometimes I do.

*Mart, Sunday afternoon. Large guy and his smallish wife, mid 50's. Looking for a couple of bikes to
ride around at their summer house on 'the island'. Said guy is sitting on a really low end bike
shaped toy. Looks like a monkey

"Yes sir...that fits you pretty well" "hmm....I don't know. Seems kind of small" "Well...that's a
26" bike. Usually, we also have 27 inchers, and every once in a while we have a couple of 29
inchers. But that one is good for you" [it was all I could do to not burst out laughing]

After the *Mart guy walks off to stock shelves somewhere, I direct the guy to the local LBS. "spend
about $250-300 each, and you'll be set for several years. If you buy that one, it WILL fall apart
under you before the end of this summer."

I think he took my advice. At least he didn't buy the *mart crap.

Pete

 

In article <[email protected]>, Pete <[email protected]> wrote:

<snip> funny stories about buying bad bikes

OOOOOH! OOOOOH! I have one too!

A nice kid who does the shipping at my store has been asking me about low end bikes. Just a thing to
get down to the beach on and to maybe ride to work a couple of days a week when it's nice out. He
wants to keep the cash outlay really low so we talk about swap meets, garage sales and other ways of
buying used. I strongly suggest a older steel mountain bike. Over the next couple of months he
brings me a few questions about used bikes he's seen and I tell him REPEATEDLY that I would be more
than willing to take a look at anything he's interested in so he doesn't get mucked up in overly
obsolete stuff like 27" steel rims certain types of derailer brands (probably not an issue if he
follows my recommendation for a 26 mt bike.) I tell him he should be able to easily find something
for around $125.

Next thing I hear is him calling me to ask me my opinion about a $100 beach cruiser from Target! And
he asks me this after he bought the damn thing!

 

"Pete" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>
> "David L. Johnson" <[email protected]> wrote
>
> >
> > Maybe I should have said something.
>
> Sometimes I do.
>
You too? I sabotage Wal Mart all the time. Mainly because I hate seeing people riding cheapo junk
with the Schwinn name on it. I don't know how many people I've sent to my LBS, but I'm sure I've
sold a few hybrids...

 

In article <[email protected]>, "Slider2699"
<[email protected]> wrote:

> "Pete" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> >
> > "David L. Johnson" <[email protected]> wrote
> >
> > >
> > > Maybe I should have said something.
> >
> > Sometimes I do.
> >
> You too? I sabotage Wal Mart all the time. Mainly because I hate seeing people riding cheapo junk
> with the Schwinn name on it. I don't know how many people I've sent to my LBS, but I'm sure I've
> sold a few hybrids...
>
>

I know this is a minor flaw, but at the local WallyWorld right now there is a Schwinn with the front
wheel on backwards and the it the brakes don't look like they are adjusted well at all.

But it really turns me to see people buying bikes that have been chained up outside since March.

Dave in Minnesota

 

In article <[email protected]>, Dave Jackson
<[email protected]> wrote:

> I know this is a minor flaw, but at the local WallyWorld right now there is a Schwinn with the
> front wheel on backwards and the it the brakes don't look like they are adjusted well at all.
>
> But it really turns me to see people buying bikes that have been chained up outside since March.

I've found four of the neighborhood kids' *-Mart bikes that either have their forks mounted
backwards or have inoperable brakes, including one that a girl got for her birthday just two weeks
ago. Her brother has a bike whose front derailleur won't shift. I've lost count of kids wearing
their helmets backwards or riding with flat tires, but at least it's not the stores' fault.

Van (proud dad of kids with immaculately-tuned bikes)

--
Van Bagnol / v a n at wco dot com / c r l at bagnol dot com ...enjoys - Theatre / Windsurfing /
Skydiving / Mountain Biking ...feels - "Parang lumalakad ako sa loob ng paniginip" ...thinks - "An
Error is Not a Mistake ... Unless You Refuse to Correct It"

 

David L. Johnson <[email protected]> wrote: [...]
: The guy on the bike was test-riding it, and the guy watching was the seller.
[...]
: Maybe I should have said something.

Entirely up to you. You have absolutely no moral onus to intervene.

Best case: You have a grateful potential customer and a resentful sales person.

Worst case: You have a potential customer annoyed at you being nosy and a resentful sales person.

One person's altruist is another's busy-body

--
'They paved paradise And put up a parking lot' -Joni Mitchell