TinyBear

Ok so my wife has made up her mind that she wants to try riding with me. She has not been on a bike in 20 years. She refuses to spend any more than $500cdn on a bike because she’s not sure this is something she can do sustainably. I don’t see it being an issue for her as I’m not exactly a athlete either. Although I have had and ridden bikes off and on a LONG time. Injury in a motorcycle accident many years back has limited my ability. 10km rides are about all I can muster and most my rides are around 5kms.

So yesterday we where at a Canadian tire. And the wife was looking at bikes and found one she LOVES. It did seem to fit her well enuff. Has the low end tourney shift hardware and 32spoke 700c wheels. I wary of saying out right no because she really liked it but I also know the quality and assembly of bikes Like that are lacking even compared to my lower end Giant bikes (Boulder SE, and Seek 1).

My question is if I got her this bike and spent some time going threw it adjusting things to how it’s supposed to be. Do you think this bike could work for a Athena beginner? My thought was better to get a good used bike and go threw it but she’s not entirely on board with that. And I figure potentially a low quality bike she wants to ride is better than a Good one she does not?

this is the bike she wants.
https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/c...html#store=420

Jeff Neese

Your instincts to put that money into a good used bike are correct and of course you'd end up with a higher-quality bike. But, if this is the one she loves and it motivates her to ride, don't fight it. If you go through it and check and adjust everything, it will probably serve her well. It doesn't sound like you two are going to do any long or challenging rides. We have friends that have department-store bikes and after I put them on my rack and spent some time going through them, they're perfectly happy just peddling around their neighborhood. She can always upgrade later if she catches the bug.

chaadster

Yeah, those kind of bikes are always a durability risk for everyone, as you know. Adding the additional stresses of a heavy rider doesn’t help, of course.

That said, it’s unlikely that anything will fail catastrophically, so careful setup and maintenance could get it down the road a bit. I’m guessi g the wheels and seat rail clamp will be weak spots, and suggest keeping care of those as best you can.

So I’m with you: give it a go. $500 probably isn’t make-or-break money for you, though I understand you don’t want to flush it down the toilet straight away. It’s an investment in discovery, and if it puts in motion the wheels of a hobby which you can share with your wife, that’d be terrific!

JLDickmon

Don't argue with your wife's choices. You are one of them.
Hey.. if it blows her skirt up, buy it, tune it, let her ride it.
Get the basic fit dialed, be prepared to change the saddle and maybe the stem.. I'd put different pedals on it, too.. she rakes one of those bear trap jaws across her shin, she'll be done no matter what.

My wife refuses to give up her 1990 Schwinn beach cruiser.. I keep the paint & metal polished, keep the hubs & pedals lubed, and let her ride it.

Kai Winters

For casual riding, as you describe, it will be fine.
If you're worried about it being assembled properly, bring it to a trusted lbs and have them go over it. A few bucks paid for knowing it is working as it should and is safe.

bargainguy

I went through the specs and found package weight at 16.5 kg / 36.38 lb.

If that's how much this bike weighs, I'd pass.

Not necessarily because it's a heavy bike, but because it's a heavy bike + low-rent parts. Those two usually don't work well together. A bit of a boat anchor that's not necessarily easy to maintain.

I've worked on enough department store bikes to know they are made to a price point. In this case, that's what your $424.99 CAD buys.

Take that $500 budget and find a nice used bike that weighs less and has better parts. Once your wife test rides that one, it should be an easy comparo for her.

c_m_shooter

It should do fine. The worst dept store bikes are the suspended ones, and that bike is rigid, so it is a good bet. Check the spoke tension after the first ride and try to keep the derailers adjusted so it doesn't throw the chain into the spokes.

squirtdad

I am not a huge fan of the mechanical disk brakes at this price point and with no thru axle, but as noted it is not suspended which is good because they are heavy and not super functional at the price point

and I am sure someone really likes the colors

I think just learn to adjust and maintain all for your self and you will be ok...... I do like the idea of more bike by going used, but not every used market has good choices

Leisesturm

You cannot judge that bike by your usual standards. And no, the o.p.'s wife will not readily discern why a used Trek is any better than hers. In U.S. dollars that bike is roughly a (new) Trek FX2 previous year overstock. You're acting like it's a $99.00 BSO sold out of Walmart.

tdipail

Out of nowhere my wife who has not ridden in years said "I want this bike" (a Schwinn Gateway, $199 on sale) so off to Target I went. After a couple of hours of setting it up it was ready to ride. Compared to a $2000 mountain bike it feels flimsy but it gets the job done and has been reliable. For the very casual rider a properly set up big box store bike can work.

csport

... with a full SHIMING drivetrain.

TinyBear

Thanks all. My next pay I will likely head over and grab the bike for her. Spend a bit of time setting it up and get her out there enjoying riding again.

himespau 

I think making sure everything is set up properly and adjusted is key. When we first started dating 20 years ago, my wife bought a $100 Schwinn Ranger. Keeping everything adjusted and working properly was a chore over the years (eventually, I replaced it with a Cannondale ST400 that I'd modified to meet her needs much better), and I was happy when someone bought it at a recent garage sale for $15 just to get that sucker out of the garage (I'd been considering putting a free sign on it). Keeping the wheels trued enough that the brakes wouldn't rub was a major chore (and one of the reasons she gave for not riding it more until I replaced it) as, even if they looked true off the bike, they were flexy as hell with weight on them. But, if you can keep the mechanical issues from being a hindrance to her riding, it'll probably work.