boomhauer

JonBailey

From now on, I will be completely prepared to fix a flat from a screw or whatnot on the bikeway. The taxi call or the ambulance call should be no longer necessary for that purpose. The VA , meaning you the American taxpayer, is footing my ambulance bill for this last Monday evening mishap. I would rather pay a cab out of pocket than put myself into a situation where I have to dial 911 on YOUR dime. The only trouble was that cab company I regular do business with changed its telephone number unbeknownst to me. I would have preferred to have gotten a cab before I hurt my body so bad as too have to dial 911. I know much better than to be too brave on a bicycle or too overconfident about my physical ability now. I have to be on some exercise to beat my obesity but I'm pretty clear now about how far it is to walk or pedal away from home. They have those ebikes to get home if you feel exerted, but you have to be prepared for a flat on those too. No pneumatic tire in the world is going to be nail-or-screw-proof. The green Slime only works wonders for goat heads or maybe carpet tacks but not for large holes. My bike tire may have as well gotten a gunshot wound for all the good that Slime product would have done.

balut bandit

(that's not how it works)

JonBailey

I don't feel comfortable asking strangers with a truck for help. I didn't have any cash on me anyway, only credit and debit cards. Mother told me never to take rides from strangers. People in Idaho are cliquish, gunshy, in regards to helping people they don't know. It's just easier to call a cab, hopefully a van or Crown Vic, and pull out the plastic. It's just a b__ch to wait out in the extreme cold or the heat for a cab in emergency with no shelter nearby for up to a 1/2 hour and Boise is a city with extreme four-season weather.

Back in the 1980's Yellow Cab had those full-size American station wagons. Cab companies are getting cheap with these dinky uncomfortable non-utility vehicles. The old cabbie told me that his company often gets calls from customers with bikes but his owners doesn't want to invest in bike racks for the taxis like city busses have. Boise, ID is a big bicycle town with all the poor and homeless around and limited free parking downtown. This town is becoming an LA with the influx of people, traffic and new building projects. They just put parking meters downtown no long ago too as well as restricted parking signs in residential neighborhood streets that never use to be here ten years ago. The cab companies here have some vans but they need many more in their fleets.

BrocLuno

I get that dark and cold can cause anxiety, and that could lead to all sorts of stuff ...

I kinda like the bike, but would be slowly upgrading it. First I would get a "door skin" at the Home Depot (or whatever) and make some side boards for rack. Just cut to fit and drill holes for Zip Ties. Make them big enough that the bags can be back a ways w/o the possibility of getting into the wheels. That should cure the heel hits.

I'd be looking at some replacement tires with a Kevlar anti-puncture belt. I don't always use them, but I always put them on when I have them around as take-offs. Lots of MFGs make them. Shop on line. Use "thorn-proof" tubes. A bit stouter. Run as high a pressure as you can. It will often deflect an object, rather than folding over it and allowing a puncture.

As time goes by, I'd prolly replace the rack with one that has clip-on panniers so they stay put when installed. I'd carry my spare tube in a seat bag along with my tire tools.

Adjust everything like brakes so they can be taken apart on the trail. Lube everything well. Most big box bikes do not come with enough lube, sometimes none... The BB and the chain will rust. The cup and cone wheel bearings will start to rust, the pedal bearings will start to stick. Just lay the bike on its side and dribble some motor oil into the hubs while spinning the wheels, same for crank-set/BB. That'll get you to spring when you can disassemble and properly grease everything.

BlazingPedals

I think that you should first get in sufficient shape to walk 3 miles per evening. Then, carry a spare tube and a pump in your kit. Would it kill you to get a good tube for $6.99-9.99, or would you rather complain about Walmart not stocking your size? Your bike may be somewhat of a BSO, but all of the problems you listed would have happened with a nice bike too.

TiHabanero

Along with others here concur that not all BSO's are crap. That Schwinn you have has two annoying oddities, the rims, but that is it. If it were torn down and rebuilt by a wrench the thing may go years with regular maintenance. Our shop stopped working on BSO's because the bikes are not set up properly from the get go and the folks who buy them typically don't take care of them. Most of the bikes are actually OK.

JonBailey

Here is that Discover of mine now with apes and the custom rack tool bag, a Walmart rubber shaving bag with yellow bungees and the Bell pump on top. The rear taillight is not blocked since the shaving (or saving, could save my life someday on the bikeway) bag has low profile. I think someday I will buy a small black, hard-plastic tool box and figure out how to neatly attach it to the rack. I put on new Bell pedals from Walmart yesterday too. I think $7/pair with tax and 9/16" adapters to fit crank arms. Much quieter and smoother than the crappy Schwinn stockers which were going clunk-clunk. These pedals are bigger and more comfortable on my feet while wearing Nike Air Monarch shoes. Pannier bags won't work because the heels of my feet hit them while pumping the pedals. I tend to pedal with the balls of my feet and my heels extend rearward. This allows me to use my ankle muscles for more power and my leg muscles work not as hard.

Reynolds 

I'd change those 24 paired spokes wheels for 36 spoke ones if reliability is a concern for you, especially if overweight.

JonBailey

I've only had to replace one broken spoke in the 18 months now that I've had this thing. Schwinn, uhmmm, Pacific Cycle sent me a whole new front wheel under warranty which I am saving as a donor for spare spokes. I don't care to dump all that money out for new wheels on such a cheesy BSO anyway. I rather save that money toward my next bike: a genuine Cannondale Quick 6 with top-drawer components from the get-go. A broken spoke won't strand me out in bum_fock nowhere like a flat will with no supplies to fix it on the spot.

I am overfat, not overweight. My body-fat monitor indicates 34.3 % as I should have a fitness level body fat percentage of 17%.

I use the body composition model for health and fitness, not the BMI model.


Muscles and bones weigh a ton.

Bicycles really build leg muscle.

Thomas15

I have a well deserved reputation for being stingy with complements but I got to say that BSO is truly bad * looking!

The thing about bicycles is no matter how much money you throw at them in a very short time you want to throw more money at them. It's like a monster that eats and eats but never gets full.

katsup

JonBailey, out of curiosity, how tall are you?

veganbikes

Schwinns are cheap and the wheels that come on those and similar BSOs are ridiculously garbage. Cool spokeing patterns look neat but build a garbage wheel unless you are building by hand and are someone like Campagnolo and even then it is goofy. Deep section wheels that use Schrader valves are even more goofy and probably most shops don't carry those tubes because they are hard to find and for odd wheels that don't really exist much on most of the bikes out there. It is sad really, they are trying to make scrap metal into a cheap bike for masses of people but make wheels that don't hold up well and use odd standards that are hard to find.

If I were the designer at Wally Mart Bike Co. Doral or Pacific or whatever crap they call themselves these days, I would go for a single speed with 36 hole wheels front and rear (with lower profile alloy rims that can fit a standard schrader valve) with cheap sealed bearing hubs, use cheap sealed bearings for the headset which would be threadless (and use a 4 bolt stem), 27.2 seatpost, linear pull brakes so you can cram some wider tires on and cheap 2 piece cranks that are 24mm spindle (I am sure someone in China could produce some cheaply). That would give someone a bike that makes sense and while still garbage at least would be less likely to have problems and since the people buying it have no clue about bikes (generally) it will be low maintenance and relatively durable. No more geared bikes because those tend to be all problems but a simple single speed would be great and if for once they started hiring someone to check over each bike before it hits the floor who knows what they are doing maybe just maybe they could introduce a 3 speed Sturmey Archer model for those who need gears.

Teamprovicycle

Holy crap i just got chest pains and vaginal itch reading this novel .

LesterOfPuppets

Check out Performance Bike. But soon. They're going out of business and have tubes for less than $5.00 at most stores.

rollagain

On two occasions I've had men in pickups stop and ask if I needed a lift while I was walking up hills that were too steep for me to pedal. Both times out of the clear blue. It does happen.

rollagain

I agree. Those things look like trouble.

JonBailey

Not worried about the spokes still. I can handle replacing one or two a year.

My bank account can't handle buying new wheels unless those spokes start breaking once a week or worse.

dedhed

https://www.oregon.aaa.com/join-aaa-...cycle-service/

JonBailey

So, if I want a geared bike worth a damn I will have to go to a mom-and-pop shop and get a premium brand like Specialized or Cannondale. Yes. And pay the price accordingly at the cash register.

The best cheap bike I ever bought was a $99 marron Murray Monterrey single-speed with coaster brake at Montgomery Ward in the fall of 1989 while in the service at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma. No mechanical trouble with bike except the aftermarket generator light set was bit crappy. Did not stay engaged with front tire reliably. Had to fiddle with the mounting bracket a lot. Three months later I got $5,000 from my mother at Christmas to put down on a brand-new Oldsmobile coupe and the bike was left at my unit's bike rack abandoned by me unlocked for some POV-less soldier to grab as a gift in kind. I was in really good shape in the army at age 25 and could ride that single speed for 15 miles or more on a single outing with hilly streets and whatnot but it was still so much nicer back then to step into a shiny new silver GM car. I got discouraged riding the bike on post anyway because an MP one night lectured me for not wearing an orange vest even though I had working lights and reflectors.

Reynolds 

Problem is not cost or work - fewer spoked wheels tend to deform more when a spoke breaks (a bit less with deep section rims, but still) often rendering the bike unusable. With 36 spokes if one breaks (less likely than with 24) your chances are greater, maybe just opening the brake is enough to let you get back home.

JonBailey

I've been lucky so far with the spokes. "Schwinn" put this novelty on this particular model to look cool. But no, the Discover isn't the most practical bike invented.

Many people are casual bicycle users and not competitive athletes, not cyclists.
They may ride for fitness, pleasure, socialization or cheap/convenient local transportation.
My car is still more desirable in inclement weather and on longer errands.
Thank god my car is a reliable Toyota product.
I wish my "Schwinn" were "Toyota reliable".
My Toyota has never stranded me somewhere where an ambulance had to be called.
I have driven my '95 Corolla through the blazing hot summer 105-degree desert of Nevada in 2016
from Idaho to California where being stuck in that heat could kill me and my cell phone may be out of service.

A practical bike for casual use should not be expensive or high maintenance.

wipekitty

I've had it happen a number of times as well, while on the side of the road changing a tire or working out a mechanical.

One time my tire had worn through and I had not yet learned how to do my own boots, so I gratefully accepted the ride!

BikingTech

Hah! Now when I pass this part of the zoo on my way to Lucky Peak I'll think of this story. Glad you are ok.

Rollfast

Don't get on him so harshly. you try walking a bike that weighs a lot and try to hold it up so as not to damage the rim(s) or whatever...I ride some old and heavy bikes and quite frankly it can hurt some. It doesn't matter if it's a 'BSO' or a 1954 Schwinn Hornet which I'm proud to own and can't afford new rims and such every other month.

And BSO is an orchestra that John Williams has experience with, more or less.

PS I've run over nails as well. Things happen. Be careful and don't be too down on yourself. I'm thankful that you are alive and you are too.