donthomasino

Agree with guy that has an old Huffy. I have one also that I purchased in 1985. Just keep it tuned up and lubed and it will run forever. Yes, it's heavy and it's called a Huffy but so what. There's nothing that a guy at a bike shop can do that you can't do unless you happen to be a latte drinking, beanie wearing hipster and the fact that you're considering a low cost bike tells me you are not. Bikes are simple machines and you're correct that learning to fix it yourself is half the fun and a useful skill. I recently replaced a cable on my bike that had rusted and I had to put a new rear wheel on it years ago. It sits outside at my oceanfront house on coastal NC in the salt air and has a few pitted areas but for the most part it is rust free. I've had costly bikes and they're like the cigars I smoke - the difference between a $5 cigar and $15 cigar is $10, that's it. Don't let bike snobs discourage you. Old crap off of ebay is just old crap off ebay. Go ahead and buy that Vilano and start riding. I look at these forums where people wax poetic over downtube shifters and remember my cheap bike I road in junior high had them. Spend your money on something where buying the more expensive product does actually make a huge difference like a car or a house. I'm not saying Cannondales and other high end bikes aren't better. I'm just saying they're not worth the extreme difference in price from a Vilano. If I upset anyone that wants to feel validated because they purchased a $900 bike and are not mechanical enough to use a socket wrench set I apologize. BTW, the most expensive bikes on ebay are vintage Columbias (the first US bike company). They sell for a lot of money but back in the day they were considered cheap and sold by Sears and JC Penney. I had a Columbia with downtube shifter for 20 years and no problems until it was stolen and probably sold on ebay.