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Any noteworthy bike purchase regrets?

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Any noteworthy bike purchase regrets?

Old 11-07-19, 06:45 AM
  #51  
noimagination
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Originally Posted by Jim from Boston
Any noteworthy bike purchase regrets?I have previously posted:
Just curious: why do you always post in this manner? I find it very difficult to scan through your posts and figure out what is relevant to the post, even with the bolding - unless you think in snippets, I suppose. And all of the bolding is visually ... unappealing.

Personally, I skip your posts because they're a hassle to read, and frequently the bolded text is only tangentially related to the topic of the thread. Not that you should care, I'm only letting you know in case you're not aware.
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Old 11-07-19, 07:03 AM
  #52  
N00b_Cyclist
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Originally Posted by noimagination
Just curious: why do you always post in this manner? I find it very difficult to scan through your posts and figure out what is relevant to the post, even with the bolding - unless you think in snippets, I suppose. And all of the bolding is visually ... unappealing.

Personally, I skip your posts because they're a hassle to read, and frequently the bolded text is only tangentially related to the topic of the thread. Not that you should care, I'm only letting you know in case you're not aware.
I read their signature...and still can't tell what in the heck is going on. All the text resides in the text bubble, as if it's from one singular person. The sig reads "anything outside a quote box is my contribution...". I don't see any text other than "I have previously posted:" outside a text/quote box. Maybe they mean if it's not in quotes?? But that's not a quote box. The entire shaded area that is rectangular in shape is a "quote box"...so I must be reading it wrong or something.
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Old 11-07-19, 07:14 AM
  #53  
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A beautiful looking fixie bike. It was one of those fixie bikes that look great, and people stare at in awe, but is very poor quality. It's never worth it to buy a cheap fixed gear bike; the bearing covers were plastic. The ball-bearings were puny and cheap. The back tires often made a squealing type sound. The bike felt slow to accelerate. The paint job even had a huge droplet on it, indicating that it was done in a very poor quality fashion... I should have followed my instinct, and I paid the price.

I ended up trading it for a very decent quality bike (Louis Garneau)—that I converted to fixie—and am much happier now. I lost about $175 in market value, but I gained so much more in real value.

Looks certainly can be deceiving.
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Old 11-07-19, 08:43 AM
  #54  
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Originally Posted by smashndash
Here’s the “secret formula” for crank length. It depends not just on your inseam, but also your tibia length and, to a certain extent, your hip mobility, your bike fit and your riding style. You can have the shortest legs in the world, but if you’re all femur, no tibia, you can accommodate very long cranks. It’s a bit more complex than that once you factor in ankle mobility, but that’s the general gist. Hopefully you can visualize why. It wasn’t like 170s were horrible. 165s were just better and allow me to breathe with a nearly flat back. And I suspect they would be better for most people around my height if there weren’t so many myths about how shorter cranks will destroy your power. My friend got a bike fit that costs $300. He’s 5’ 5” with incredibly short legs (slams the seatpost on a 49) and the fitter said 170s were optimal for him. It’s absurd because the guy is forced to ride with his legs bowed outwards and his bars practically at seat height despite easily being cat 4 or even 3 material. He’s getting 165s soon, though.

I have a set of R7000 50/34 170s sitting in my garage. Unused chainrings but the crank arms have cosmetic wear. I guess I should list them on craigslist at some point but ofc if anyone wants them they can dm me.
Thanks, I actually have a set of those cranks already. I appreciate the extra info about your friend, I ride a 48/49 myself.
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Old 11-07-19, 08:52 AM
  #55  
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I bought a 27.5 modern geometry hardtail MTB that I dont really love and wouldnt miss if I had the money back.
It just isnt what I need to ride the twisty and narrow singletrack that is so prevalent around me. Such slack geometry makes for slow trucklike handling and the modern wide bars are too wide to make it thru some trees on turns.

Ive thought about swapping the fork out for a rigid steel or carbon one that would quicken the steering and make the bike lighter overall. 2.3" tires are plenty of suspension for most of what I ride. Then chop the bars by 4cm on each side and add a longer stem to offset the narrower bars.
Pretty sure thatll be a way more fun bike.
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Old 11-07-19, 09:01 AM
  #56  
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Originally Posted by noimagination
Just curious: why do you always post in this manner? I find it very difficult to scan through your posts and figure out what is relevant to the post, even with the bolding - unless you think in snippets, I suppose. And all of the bolding is visually ... unappealing.

Personally, I skip your posts because they're a hassle to read, and frequently the bolded text is only tangentially related to the topic of the thread. Not that you should care, I'm only letting you know in case you're not aware.
Jim does it because he enjoys it, in spite of knowing that almost everyone dislikes it.
He views himself as the host of how a conversation is happening in real time, so he expects you to read all of it and find his thoughts within all the text. Its completely absurd and a massive waste of time because to do this he must go find the random comments he has made thru the years and link them to the current thread instead of just typing his thoughts right then and there. Its a total waste of time for Jim and for most readers since so many just skip his comments since it isnt easy to read his thought on the subject.

He is very much aware of how little benefit the nesting quotes is, but apparently personally loves it too much to stop. If everyone were speaking at a dinner party except for one person that was texting their thoughts to everyone, it would get really annoying really fast and that person would quickly not be involved in conversations due to the effort required by others to find out the person's thoughts.
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Old 11-07-19, 09:55 AM
  #57  
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I'm a generally optimistic guy so my regrets are few and fleeting. Always outweighed by many other factors: I too ignore Jim's posts, as I can only tolerate a certain level of annoyance in my life before I move on.

Couple of recent minor regrets: 1. Got a nice, early Motobecane Grand Record with Campagnolo NR derailleurs but I didn't notice that a bottle holder the owner added was attached with WOOD SCREWS to 2 holes he drilled in the down tube, so I will be contacting @ gugie for some help and may do a repaint.

2. Just got a vintage mountain bike (HK II) so early it just says "FISHER" on the down tube. In really good shape, with little wear on components, but during overhaul I found its rare headset/stem combo was cut and filed to fit with stem reversed to get a max bar drop (which explained my aching back after a short test ride). I put the stem back into normal riser position combined with a V/O Porteur bar to get some relief and began my search for a 1 1/4", Evolution, headset Don
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Old 11-07-19, 10:26 AM
  #58  
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My wife has gotten into triathlons, and just purchased a TT bike. She's ridden maybe 4 times in the month since she purchased it and is now talking about quitting.
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Old 11-07-19, 12:47 PM
  #59  
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You're not alone. Many fixie and single speed riders go through that phase. If they like the concept they move on to a better fixie or build their own.

Several local friends went through that too. They try to encourage me to join 'em in their fixie fascination but, nah, I like my gears. I might try one just for the indoor trainer. Last time I rode a fixie was on a velodrome in the 1970s and I hated the experience. But in retrospect it was just lack of experience and no instructor or mentor.

Pretty much the same experience with any first bike. Takes awhile to figure out what we really like. I couldn't give away the bike I resumed cycling with in 2015, a heavy comfort hybrid. Weighs about 5 lbs more than even the generic mountain-bike-ish BSOs popular with local street folks, and they wouldn't want a bike they can't lift easily onto the bus racks. But it's still a good errand bike so I'll keep it.

Originally Posted by bedtime
A beautiful looking fixie bike. It was one of those fixie bikes that look great, and people stare at in awe, but is very poor quality. It's never worth it to buy a cheap fixed gear bike; the bearing covers were plastic. The ball-bearings were puny and cheap. The back tires often made a squealing type sound. The bike felt slow to accelerate. The paint job even had a huge droplet on it, indicating that it was done in a very poor quality fashion... I should have followed my instinct, and I paid the price.

I ended up trading it for a very decent quality bike (Louis Garneau)—that I converted to fixie—and am much happier now. I lost about $175 in market value, but I gained so much more in real value.

Looks certainly can be deceiving.
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Old 11-07-19, 12:55 PM
  #60  
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Originally Posted by OBoile
My wife has gotten into triathlons, and just purchased a TT bike. She's ridden maybe 4 times in the month since she purchased it and is now talking about quitting.
Just curious ... what did she dislike about it, or didn't find inspiring or motivating? The bike or just the whole triathlon experience?

In my case an old neck injury prevents me from staying in the aero bar position long enough to get any effective advantage. I tried some old clip on aero bars on my old steel road bike and while there was a definite speed advantage in the aero tuck, I couldn't hold it for long. So the aero bar was just added weight and drag.

A friend gave me a Trek TT bike, probably 10 years old, and I tried it a couplafew rides but couldn't get comfortable with it. And there's a minor hairline crack in the frame (top of the seat tube, probably not even dangerous, might just be in the paint). So I stripped off the components to put on a carbon road bike frame. I'm saving those Profile carbon fiber clip-ons to try again in case the neck problem improves.

Also I hate running and the thought of swimming in a typical Texas mud puddle lake alongside dozens of slippery strangers gives me the willies. I'll stick with bike rides. There's a state TT contest at the end of every summer/early autumn, so I'll shoot for that next year.
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Old 11-07-19, 12:58 PM
  #61  
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Regarding Boston Jim's nested quote thing, try watching the original b&w sci-fi movie "The Thing From Another World." The best part of the movie is the clever repartee and overlapping dialog. The banter is quick, lively, with lots of dynamic range between actors speaking simultaneously. I suspect that's the effect Jim is going for. It doesn't work in this format. But credit for trying.

BTW, playwright Caryl Churchill used the same effect in her play Top Girls. Very entertaining if you can attend a well directed performance by competent actors. It'd be an incomprehensible mess without good direction.
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Old 11-07-19, 01:48 PM
  #62  
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Originally Posted by canklecat
Just curious ... what did she dislike about it, or didn't find inspiring or motivating? The bike or just the whole triathlon experience?
I wish I knew. She can be pretty pessimistic at times, so a couple minor things go wrong for her and she's ready to quit. But, even as recently as a week ago she seemed pretty into it. The interest in triathlons had started entirely on her own initiative and she did her first one back in 2018, so I/we figured the purchase of a TT specific bike was justified (also, because she has a 2018 Liv bike, that, like the Giant bikes, has this silly mechanical/hydraulic converter for the brakes on the front of the handlebars which prevents using clip-on aero bars). She's been getting up early to swim regularly but that has tailed off a bit too. The weather isn't great here, so she hasn't actually ridden the bike outside, just on the trainer. But, last year she was pretty consistent on the trainer. This year, nope.

It was to the point that she got me swimming and running. I like to joke that they need to do a triathlon where the swim and run are removed as I'm not too fond of those parts (particularly the swimming). Sadly, if you want to do any sort of TT type riding, you pretty much have to to triathlons where I live (Ontario). They have one official TT race per year here that I'm aware of (if someone knows otherwise, please let me know).
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Old 11-07-19, 03:43 PM
  #63  
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Originally Posted by canklecat
Regarding Boston Jim's nested quote thing, try watching the original b&w sci-fi movie "The Thing From Another World." The best part of the movie is the clever repartee and overlapping dialog. The banter is quick, lively, with lots of dynamic range between actors speaking simultaneously.

I suspect that's the effect Jim is going for. It doesn't work in this format. But credit for trying.

BTW, playwright Caryl Churchill used the same effect in her play Top Girls. Very entertaining if you can attend a well directed performance by competent actors. It'd be an incomprehensible mess without good direction.
Hi @canklecat,

Thanks for that reply.

Whenever criticism of my posting style comes up unrelated to the topic of a thread, I usually don’t reply until a couple more syncophants chime in as on this thread, including the particularly snarky post by @mstateglfr. Lately I have waited until the involved thread seems to have run it’s course before I reply.

Your post though was particularly insightful. While I have been posting this way for years, a thread last year, "Writing shorter posts..." elucidated for me what I was really doing:
Originally Posted by Maelochs
Jim from somewhere between New Jersey and Vermont gave us a post which is more than one foot long---about short posts..

The rest of you just need to surrender and bow down.
Originally Posted by ksryder
Wow. That is masterful. I've always thought it was just self-indulgent and convoluted, but now I see that they are really performance art.

Bravo, sir. Bravo
Originally Posted by Jim from Boston
(from a now-closed thread) I think that the use of quote boxes, which I have not seen elsewhere is a remarkable way to graphically diagram a dialogue.
Read my posts like short story with (hopefully) "clever repartee and overlapping dialog.” Or else maybe just stream of consciousness.

In particular though, with reference to sci fi movies like “The Thing from Another World,” I don’t recall the dialogue as you describe. But I realized an excellent example of ”clever repartee and overlapping dialog.” is one of my all time favorite TV programs, “Mystery Science Theater 3000.”

The basic format of the show is
Originally Posted by Wikipedia
[The characters] watch the [often schlocky sci-fi] film in the Satellite's theater, and to keep from going mad, the trio frequently comment and wisecrack atop it, a process known as "riffing".
It’s not the kind of program you can watch without attentiveness because to paparphrase a critique of me by the aptly named @noimagination, “frequently the interjected dialogue is only tangentially related to the narrative of the film.” To me, my riffed "conversations" are at least consistent with the topic of the thread or quoted posts.

Last edited by Jim from Boston; 11-07-19 at 04:10 PM.
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Old 11-07-19, 09:26 PM
  #64  
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Jim - I'm still just as confused as I was before. But the great news is, it doesn't matter! You do what makes you happy. I just wish I knew what I was missing.

It feels like when my oldest daughter comes home from school and tells me what she learned in algebra at school using the new "boing a doing hoing method" that they invented 4 years ago. I'm sure it's great and that it works perfectly, but I just nod and go back to doing whatever it was I was doing before.

Either way...cheers and all that good stuff!
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Old 11-07-19, 09:34 PM
  #65  
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I purchased a Specialized Camber a couple of years ago because I just knew I wanted to do more than straight road cycling. I have used the Camber once. I probably should not have bought another bike or should have bought a bike that I would have used more on the road in winter crappiness. Now it sits in my garage.
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Old 11-08-19, 07:27 AM
  #66  
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My regrets are about lack of foresight post-puchase; not saving all of the original parts that I "upgraded". I would have quite the stash of nice old parts right now.
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Old 11-08-19, 12:44 PM
  #67  
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Wheels...bought a set of fancy carbon wheels - I won't name names - with great hubs that were slower (for me) than an old set of Ksyrium Equipes. Didn't lose much when I sold 'em, but they were a bad match for me - when you cross the 200# barrier, the dominant parameters for performance with 'typical' cycling gear are not the same. Bought another set, much, much better, but still with niggling issues (although I kept them for aesthetic reasons), and am now onto a 3rd. Rolling resistance, system stiffness and bearing size in the hubs really matters. I'm well educated now on the important parameters for me, but the lessons were not free, and it turns out as you add requirements like this, the field of choice narrows considerably.

BTW, I still have those Ksyriums from ca. 2007, have never done maintenance on them, and they are still nice to ride, true etc. Pretty good engineering, there.
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Old 11-08-19, 12:50 PM
  #68  
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Originally Posted by cgates66
Wheels...bought a set of fancy carbon wheels - I won't name names - with great hubs that were slower (for me) than an old set of Ksyrium Equipes. Didn't lose much when I sold 'em, but they were a bad match for me - when you cross the 200# barrier, the dominant parameters for performance with 'typical' cycling gear are not the same. Bought another set, much, much better, but still with niggling issues (although I kept them for aesthetic reasons), and am now onto a 3rd. Rolling resistance, system stiffness and bearing size in the hubs really matters. I'm well educated now on the important parameters for me, but the lessons were not free, and it turns out as you add requirements like this, the field of choice narrows considerably.

BTW, I still have those Ksyriums from ca. 2007, have never done maintenance on them, and they are still nice to ride, true etc. Pretty good engineering, there.
I don’t see why you shouldn’t name names here. It will help people avoid making the same mistake as you. At the very least, what hub was it that you ended up liking?
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Old 11-08-19, 01:55 PM
  #69  
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VERY fair points, so I bite.


Wheels that didn't work for me: Mavic CXR60 (clinchers). Spokes were too few and too spindly resulting in lots of wheel flex that was noticeable, and rolling resistance from skinny, skinny tire was too high. The Mavic hubs by and large seem well designed - they use comparatively large bearings etc. - but this wheel was not a good match for a heavier guy. They look awesome, though, and for a lighter guy, probably are great. I sold these (to, coincidentally, a lighter guy). This is an example of a wheel with probably the best aero but for which other factors can dominate. So too few spokes with too little material, and too skinny tires = bad combo, despite super-duper aero and aesthetics, and I expect good hubs.


I still have a set of the older Boyd 60mm wheels (toroidal) which have 28 spoke drilling that mostly work. These wheels are appropriate for a heavy-ish rider, and are very stiff (short spokes, lots of them, and decent hub geometry). The rims are good, and the customer service is very good - I like Boyd as a company. The hubs from the era I own are "fine" but I have discovered some minor issues, which I believe have been largely corrected in their new hub. Main problem: 6802 bearing on the NDS, which is small, and a 6902 on the DS, which is fine. The new stuff they put out is 6902 on both sides. The result of this is accelerated wear on the NDS and maybe increased drag. I should note that for most riders, smaller bearings have less drag and Carbon-Ti, for example, uses a very similar setup. So there is a reason to do this and I still have the wheels - and servicing these things is baby-simple - but I wish I had their newer hub.


Recently had a set of HED Vanquish GPs (28-spoke drilling in the rear with CX-Sprint spokes) built with White Industries hubs, which uses 6902s. The 6902 is pretty similar to what Mavic uses in a lot of their wheels, and has about 3x the load capacity of a 6802, but these are brand-brand new so no comments yet. They are among the very few all-carbon wheels available that are aero-matched to 28c tires, and also offer 28-spoke drilling. White Industries also uses a titanium sprocket carrier.


I think the general statement I'd make is, be realistic about all aspects of your wheel because they cost a lot. If you are bigger / stronger, the things that matter (in my experience) are: larger bearings, more spoke material (e.g., if you are stuck with 24 spokes, consider CX-Sprint instead of CX-Ray) / shorter spokes, and higher-volume (25 or 28c) tires have a proportionally greater impact on you than say ultimate aero or bearing drag in a lab.
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Old 11-08-19, 02:00 PM
  #70  
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Originally Posted by Phil_gretz;21177695[b
]I've had a few, but then again, too few to mention.[/b]

Actually, it's only money and they're only things. So with regard to purchases, no I cannot recall anything that I've regretted. I guess if there was a catastrophic failure that injured someone, I'd regret that. But it hasn't happened to me.

I even try to not regret having sold things that I enjoyed or had sentimental meaning. Regret will only ruin your present and throw off your future.
Sounds like Frank Sinatra.
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Old 11-09-19, 02:12 PM
  #71  
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Only as a newbie... I purchased a Trek 5.2 Madone not knowing anything about bikes except it was amazingly sexy and beautiful. BUT... The geometry was wrong for my middle-aged back and neck, the Double chainring and 25max cassette was too large for my local hills (some are 9%), and the steerer tube was so short there was ZERO stack.

I kept it about a year and almost gave up riding because of that beast. Later, I bought a Specialized Roubaix and I felt like a new person!
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Old 09-18-21, 10:33 AM
  #72  
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Old thread, but I'm not afraid of zombies.

Originally Posted by Jno
what is a memorable bike purchase that turned out to be one you regret?
This is an easy one: my Enigma. Due to the expense, this was meant to my last bike, thus a pretty memorable purchase.


simplespeed

Really wish I'd gone for a Van Nicholas instead, as they had what turned out to be a much better warranty, and were still offering a singlespeed model at the time. At least I had some fun translating the experience into that video.


Further down the scale of regret, shoes. I wish I'd bought *more* pairs of the best I've ever had: Lake LX 50. Here is the last one, about to enter retirement. As you can see, I got every last mile out of it.



If I had a time machine, somewhere on my to do list would be stocking up enough to see me through to the end of my own particular timeline.

Originally Posted by canklecat
maybe missing some group bike rides, especially after hearing their stories and seeing some photos. Darned social media pressure.
I hear you.

The pandemic has made me wary of large group rides. Although I figure they're probably as safe as a group activity is going to be these days, it's not worth it to me and mine to take the chance.

For a number of years now I've taken part in a nocturnal social ride from London to the coast (I've written about it here). I spend a lot of time on my own, so it helps keep me from becoming a complete hermit. Having to take the train to the start and from the finish puts me off, as does the inevitable bunching up and conversation, normally one of the joys of the event.

Anyway, a few months ago one of the routes in particular attracted me because it has a lovely big hill, and I could at least cycle home at the end. I hemmed and hawed, but finally decided against. It turned out to be a beautiful clear night (rather uncharitably, I was kind of hoping it would at least rain!). This was of course made worse by reading about how a great time was had by all, without a single puncture or mechanical problem.

<shakes fist at minuscule virus>

Last edited by 905; 09-18-21 at 10:43 AM.
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Old 09-18-21, 11:53 AM
  #73  
TX_master
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Originally Posted by Koyote
Once you've been through an expensive divorce, you will realize that most other financial losses are no big deal.

In other words, I don't really regret any bike-related purchases.
There's the old saying "Why are divorces so expensive? Because they're worth it." I own two of them so can attest to that.
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Old 09-18-21, 12:50 PM
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Frank S
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I wanted to buy a rigid mountain bike for bashing around on the city streets. I test rode one, and thought that it was perfect. But, the saleskid said that it was too big for me. So, I let him talk me into ordering the next size smaller. I guess that, because it's a mountain bike, it's supposed to be too small.

It's a nice bike but, even though I've fitted a longer and taller stem and riser bars, I still haven't been able to get comfortable on it. It's mostly used as a loaner, to short friends, or for a rare short trail ride.

It's a waste.

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Old 09-18-21, 01:25 PM
  #75  
shelbyfv
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Originally Posted by Frank S
I wanted to buy a rigid mountain bike for bashing around on the city streets. I test rode one, and thought that it was perfect. But, the saleskid said that it was too big for me. So, I let him talk me into ordering the next size smaller. I guess that, because it's a mountain bike, it's supposed to be too small.

It's a nice bike but, even though I've fitted a longer and taller stem and riser bars, I still haven't been able to get comfortable on it. It's mostly used as a loaner, to short friends, or for a rare short trail ride.

It's a waste.

That's a pretty cool bike. I expect that over your 30 or so years of ownership you could have easily moved it along. Going back to the original thread, let's give thanks for the demise of "nested quotes" or whatever that affectation was called.
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