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I let my wife take my daughter bike shopping

Old 05-17-19, 06:13 AM
  #26  
Koyote
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Originally Posted by I-Like-To-Bike
It's easier if the cyclist doesn't spend time listening to or reading the biased comments of bike snobs and LBS employees/fan bois who describe products without an LBS provenance as "junk" or Bike Shaped Objects and inadequate for use by anybody for any purpose.
The original post mentions that the bike is "difficult to ride" and that things fall off of it, which makes it sound like a piece of junk. And I wrote nothing about Wal-Mart, or LBS bikes, Bike Shaped Objects, or any such thing. So I think the only problem here is with your reading comprehension.
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Old 05-17-19, 06:36 AM
  #27  
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Originally Posted by Skipjacks
Craiglist.

Get the bike shop bike from the parent who made the mistaken of not going to Wal Mart last year....pay them Wal Mart prices for the barely used bike shop bike.

My two girls have gone thru a handful of bike shop level bikes and I havent regretted any of the bikes because...
- ive bought them used and upgraded them.
- they have sold and will sell for a smaller lo\ss difference than what I would spend to buy a big box retail bike.

One of the rigid MTBs(specialized hotrock) was purchased for $50 and has about $250 into it to make it work better and lighter. The bike got my oldest into liking to ride local singletrack and is currently with my younger who just finished helping me paint and rebuild it. Itll last another 2 years until she is too big and it will have been well worth the money spent once I sell it for $100.
the dozens of hours spent from 4 years of riding singletrack and family trail rides, to me, is easily worth $200.

Trek 650c road bike with carbon fork and seatpost, specialized 24" hotrock mtb, diamondback clarity 24" hybrid, giant mtx 20", specialized 16" hotrock...its been a great process and my kids love it because they get to help clean and change whatever is needed to make it theirs(grips, tires, bar tape, tires, etc).



I certainly wouldnt say in general the selling parents made a mistake buying bike shop level bikes though. A mistake is something you regret and perhaps they dont regret it. A lot of the quality youth road bikes around me are because youth triathletes have outgrown the bikes. Those are often listed for a few hundred and are excellent for any kids looking to get into some faster and longer rides. Sell the bike in a couple years for even $200 and its effectively like a walmart disposable bike was purchased.
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Old 05-17-19, 11:24 AM
  #28  
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Originally Posted by I-Like-To-Bike
It's easier if the cyclist doesn't spend time listening to or reading the biased comments of bike snobs and LBS employees/fan bois who describe products without an LBS provenance as "junk" or Bike Shaped Objects and inadequate for use by anybody for any purpose.
Just once, can you admit that there are some bikes sold at Walmart that really might not be worth the small amount of money they cost?

I think it's quite possible to buy a bike that's adequate for a kid there, but I also think it's just as possible to get one that's not sturdy enough to hold together for normal kid use. I've seen both things happen.

Does the Walton family give you a commission for every time you call someone a "snob"?

Your version of PC is "thou shalt not speak ill of Walmart or its bikes."
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Old 05-17-19, 11:34 AM
  #29  
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
Just once, can you admit that there are some bikes sold at Walmart that really might not be worth the small amount of money they cost?
Don't hold your breath.
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Old 05-17-19, 11:38 AM
  #30  
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Originally Posted by indyfabz
Don't hold your breath.
I fully expect one of his stock insults. I just periodically get tired of him posting the exact same thing over and over.
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Old 05-17-19, 11:41 AM
  #31  
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
I fully expect one of his stock insults. I just periodically get tired of him posting the exact same thing over and over.
I am actually surprised. Normally you are called a snob unless you picked up a 70s Schwinn for peanuts at a garage sale--or picked one out of the trash. Maybe it's ok to pay $100 for a bike if it's new. His rules we are supposed to live by are not always well defined.
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Old 05-17-19, 12:41 PM
  #32  
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
Just once, can you admit that there are some bikes sold at Walmart that really might not be worth the small amount of money they cost?

I think it's quite possible to buy a bike that's adequate for a kid there, but I also think it's just as possible to get one that's not sturdy enough to hold together for normal kid use. I've seen both things happen.

Does the Walton family give you a commission for every time you call someone a "snob"?

Your version of PC is "thou shalt not speak ill of Walmart or its bikes."
Some bikes and bicycle products/accessories sold at anLBS really might not be worth the large amount of money they cost.

Whoever said that habitual bashers of bicycle product not originally sold by an LBS are always snobs or emotionally attached to the high priced stuff they purchased or would like to purchase?

Enough do come forward though with their BSO BS to stand in as poster boys for the stereotype.

Last edited by I-Like-To-Bike; 05-17-19 at 12:44 PM.
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Old 05-17-19, 01:12 PM
  #33  
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Originally Posted by I-Like-To-Bike
Some bikes and bicycle products/accessories sold at anLBS really might not be worth the large amount of money they cost.

Whoever said that habitual bashers of bicycle product not originally sold by an LBS are always snobs or emotionally attached to the high priced stuff they purchased or would like to purchase?

Enough do come forward though with their BSO BS to stand in as poster boys for the stereotype.
Hey, there's some definitely overpriced crap you can buy at LBS, not at all hard to admit. But you jumped to the conclusion that the reason OP hates the kid's bike is because he listens to bike snobs. Can you admit that he might just be right that the bike is actually a piece of crap?
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Old 05-17-19, 03:45 PM
  #34  
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My wife provided quite the opposite experience from what the OP had. I work in a shop part time and she went out and bought a 500 dollar 3 speed cruiser that my daughter saw in a competitors shop! Couldn't believe it, but the girl sure was happy with her pink bike. Some women just don't make sense to me.
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Old 05-17-19, 05:20 PM
  #35  
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
Hey, there's some definitely overpriced crap you can buy at LBS, not at all hard to admit. But you jumped to the conclusion that the reason OP hates the kid's bike is because he listens to bike snobs. Can you admit that he might just be right that the bike is actually a piece of crap?
I can admit that even you might be right on occasion, this is not one of those times, since I never stated anything about the condition of this bike or any other bike. Hence nothing for me to "admit."
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Old 05-17-19, 06:29 PM
  #36  
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Why The F**k did you let your wife take your daughter bike shopping ... were you at home at the time cross dressing and doing the housework in a pinny or something

I'd never let my Mrs take my daughter bike shopping .... but she doesn't let do the ironing ... although I'm a dab hand at hoovering and washing up

Seriously though .. what on earth were you doing that was so important ... I'm guessing with a greater insight to bikes than your Mrs but you didn't take her yourself???

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Old 05-17-19, 06:53 PM
  #37  
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The bike probably is a piece of junk. Having tried to straighten out a few of these blue light specials for kids that happen to have them, I know what a pain they are to work on.

Still, the thing can probably be made ride-able with a tub of grease and a few basic tools. It could even be a fun dad and daughter activity. If she gets into cycling, then your daughter will really appreciate a proper bike...and have the knowledge to do basic maintenance, which is huge for anyone who wants to get serious about riding.

Or, it can probably be returned to Wallyworld. They tend to ask few questions.
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Old 05-17-19, 07:19 PM
  #38  
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Originally Posted by I-Like-To-Bike
I can admit that even you might be right on occasion, this is not one of those times, since I never stated anything about the condition of this bike or any other bike. Hence nothing for me to "admit."
Hate to break it to you, but Walmart isn't hiring greeters anymore. You can stop auditioning.
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Old 05-17-19, 07:23 PM
  #39  
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Originally Posted by TiHabanero
My wife provided quite the opposite experience from what the OP had. I work in a shop part time and she went out and bought a 500 dollar 3 speed cruiser that my daughter saw in a competitors shop! Couldn't believe it, but the girl sure was happy with her pink bike. Some women just don't make sense to me.
Huh? Sounds like mom done good. Talk your boss into stocking the pink three speed.
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Old 05-17-19, 08:36 PM
  #40  
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Don't rule out getting a better bike.

Meanwhile... get her some tools, and maybe some classes at the local bike co-op. In fact, encourage Mom and Daughter to take some classes together, and fix the bike. Kids get so few chances these days, to learn how to fix things. The bike is a learning opportunity. Thanks to bikes, both of my kids know how to swing a wrench.
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Old 05-20-19, 12:30 PM
  #41  
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One day while entering a local Walmart, their up front entry layout had a $68. bike on sale. As I passed, a young lady (reference I'm 69, they're all young to me) asked if that was a good bike. I told her it was good for one year, you'll be looking for another next year. I owned a DiamondBack for 20 years and bought another three years ago. Dependable bikes with a huge assortment of styles, sizes and colors. Amazon does good job and at $200 it will last much longer than most for the same cost.
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Old 05-20-19, 12:40 PM
  #42  
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Originally Posted by hillyman
Yea depends on age and bike here. I wouldn't go to a bike shop at any age unless they proved a lot of interest. A $100 bike laying on its side in the yard is better than a $1,000 one.
Which 8 out of 10 girls won't. If you have a daughter serious about cycling she would have done her research and wouldn't have accepted Walmart as a bike solution.

I suggest you leave things as they are and if she is determined she will make it known by her insistence to get a better bike.

In the mean time, no sense in spending good money on a bike just for it to end up sitting in the garage after only a month or two of riding.

The majority of girls ride bikes when they're little and again to ride from one side of the college campus to the other. There is very rarely an in-between.
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Old 05-20-19, 12:45 PM
  #43  
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Originally Posted by OBoile
Not for a kid. I got into cycling enough to be willing to save up my own money to buy a "good" one having ridden only the equivalent of Walmart bikes.
Same here. I suspect this is an age thing where as a child, you did not get the newest fad or the top end item handed to you each year. Such deprivation...
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Old 05-20-19, 01:58 PM
  #44  
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I have had decent luck with Walmart bikes. No way I’m spending hundreds on a bike they will outgrow in a few years. You do have to spend a few hours tuning them and they are heavy as hell but the kids don’t usually care
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Old 05-20-19, 02:28 PM
  #45  
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You never know. She might become a Hammer and drop Dad
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Old 05-20-19, 02:39 PM
  #46  
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WalMart's return window is 90 days for breakage. We see many Walmart bikes at our co-op within 30 days of purchase because the bearings were never properly lubed at the factory... the 1 piece cranks frequently fall out and the axle cones become fried. Save the receipt and take it back.

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Old 05-20-19, 04:04 PM
  #47  
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you get what you pay for when you go to WallyWorld. Its not the place to buy a quality bike even though 2 members of the family have started a new line to be sold through Wally World stores that are real bikes, with a real world $2300-2800 price tag. If you want junk go to a yard sale.
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Old 05-20-19, 04:24 PM
  #48  
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Unless I missed it posted, how old is your daughter? is she still growing? As bad as the Wally bikes are, she may not be ready for a better quality bike.
If she commuting to school or a pre-teenager plus, I'd return that bike asap and get her a something better to grow with. I'm old now, but remember taking my dad's 3 speed rudge because it worked better than my bike as I grow and at 16, I got my first good 10 speed (Raleigh gran sport). A year later I moved to the International and so on up to a custom bike.
For many of us, bike are like getting that perfect balance for our bodies and needs. Most kids don't go that way unless peers pressure and desire pushes them to see the bike as something more.
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Old 05-21-19, 11:39 AM
  #49  
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It is a kids bike. It ranges from literally nothing to adjust on a toddlers balance bike, to incredibly simple to deal with on the single speed pseudo-BMX that most kids ride until their early teens. Tighten the fasteners, adjust the brakes, pump up the tires, and you should be good to go. Bonus points if you want to lube stuff up.

I'd never bother with a kids bike from a bike shop, until they were old enough to want one and care for it and mostly full grown , or were in competition and needing of a proper bike.

Also, I don't understand the "I'm the man and my wife screwed up" attitude. If you passed the job off to her, you got what you deserved, if they wanted to do it without you, maybe they got exactly what they wanted and its now your job to make it usable.
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Old 05-21-19, 11:52 AM
  #50  
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Saved the sales receipt ? walmart will give you your money back ..
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