over and over i see "don't build walmart bikes...". well fyi, ive built 6 with no problems out of the ordinary, so what is the issue??? elitism???
As a mechanic for one of the few shops in town that will agree to work on department store "bicycle-shaped objects"-- actually, I'm the mechanic at my shop who won't turn away any kind of bike unless it will be more expensive to fix than to replace-- I think I have some relevant observations.
Understand one thing right up front about department store BSOs: The seller's interest in and commitment to the bike ends at the point of sale. Walmart doesn't care whether the bike works when you get it; they don't care how well or poorly the bike works, or for how long. They don't even care whether it has intrinsic design problems that render it fundamentally unrideable, as long as someone will buy it. That's what the bike is for. Walmart has no values about bicycles specifically. We can think that's good or bad, but it's just a fact. And it's the source of all the problems with BSOs and all their differences from bike shop bikes.
BSOs come in one size per model. Considering that bikes have to fit their rider's bodies, that's sort of like having clothing come in just one size per item: pants come in one size, shirts in one size, coveralls in a different size-- but just one each. That's a problem if you are not very close to the size the manufacturer intended. Because the folks at the store, being indifferent about bikes, don't know how to make it fit better, nor do they offer any of the parts that might help you work that out yourself.
BSOs are assembled by people who are not necessarily qualified in assembling bikes, and who are paid a very small amount per unit. This is critical to getting the cost down, but it means that the bikes usually have grave mechanical problems from the beginning. Many times I have seen bikes on the sales floor with their forks turned backwards, or with cables routed such that normal operation of the bike will cause interferences and damage. And I know from having to work on these bikes frequently that often they have less conspicuous but serious problems like derailleurs that are poised to get caught on the spokes, or brake pads that wear their way through the tire sidewalls when they're used.
And as you'd expect, every single component on a BSO is contrived to look like a normal component, but to be as cheap as possible to make-- even if that impairs their proper function. Some of these parts are thus "broken" by design, in that they can't be made to work to a normal standard at all. Suspension components are a perfect example. Not one department store bike has a suspension fork or rear shock that actually helps the bike in any way, and those parts are frequent points of failure, and they add a lot of weight, and they're not even repairable, and you can't buy replacements for them. But they're selling points for people who are ignorant of the problems, so BSOs often have these components, because BSOs are for selling.
So here are some questions for you. Would you buy a car from a department store? Would you do it if it were made to sell at a price of say one quarter of the price of a similar-looking car from a dealership, and if it were assembled by someone making four bucks for an amount of work that should take a few hours? Would you do so if the car had never been driven, and was not known to start or run or stop, and you didn't get to try it out before buying it?
The answer is probably "no" if you have any experience with other cars. But many people have never used, let alone used up, a real bike from a full-service bike dealer. So they can't recognize the comprehensive and dire problems with BSOs, because they have no standard of comparison. These people would be well advised to take experienced riders' word for it, and stay away from department store bikes.
If you have to pay bottom dollar for a bike, but you want that bike to be worth the money you pay for it (and you don't care about having a relationship with your local bike shop), here's what you do: Go online and buy a bike in your size from a place like bikesdirect. DO NOT TAKE IT OUT OF THE BOX. Take it directly to your most service-oriented local bike shop and pay them to assemble and tune it. If their assembly doesn't include comprehensive tuneup adjustments, pay extra and have them do it all: true and tension wheels, adjust bearings, set derailleur limits and cable tensions, the whole deal.
This initial service and adjustment is worth more than any other feature of the bike. Have qualified professionals do it the first time, even if you think you know how to work on a bike. However good you are, you're not as good as someone who does it every day. If you don't already know that initial setup is this important, you should just respect your limitations and take my word for it. If you have a good running bike, you can ride it enough to learn what you need to learn about it. Or you won't. But that's the trick-- the less it matters to you how well your bike works, the more you need the help of someone who does care about it and knows how to make it work right.
