expired Posted by chaofun • Nov 25, 2022
Nov 25, 2022 1:55 PM
Item 1 of 6
Item 1 of 6
expired Posted by chaofun • Nov 25, 2022
Nov 25, 2022 1:55 PM
Kent Genesis 700C Bohe Men's Gravel Bike (Denim Blue)
+ Free Store Pickup$128
$348
63% offWalmart
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When you buy a toaster at a store, or a car at a dealership, you expect consistent quality because the product was assembled and checked for quality. Usually, this occurs at a factory and testing facility.
When you buy a bike, it arrived in parts. It was not assembled at a factory. It was assembled by whomever sold it to you because they bought it in bulk. Like 100 handlebars in a pallet. Thus, you're depending entirely the assembler.
Walmart bike techs aren't put in an environment where a bike can be consistently assembled to an adequate degree of safety and reliability. You really shouldn't trust Walmart bikes. You can put 2 "bike techs" who were only doing registers before in the backroom and tell them to "assemble these 50 bikes by today or I'll find someone else who can" but this is not conducive to quality assurance.
Technically you can just take it apart and put it back together correctly. If you aren't an experienced bike tech, consider yourself less qualified than the Walmart employees. They at least have bike wrenches.
I've seen solid entry-to-mid level bikes at REI for ~$500. That's A LOT more, but they also offer 1 year basic maintenance and care. REI has a good rep, and their bike techs are given a lot more training/resources than their Walmart counterparts. I doubt a local bike shop will be as competitive, but consider asking.
For someone getting into bikes, you need a crash course of any kind. If you can self-learn on forums and youtube, then great. You should look into used bikes with better components and then bring them up to speed. For everyone else who doesn't want to invest hundreds of hours into bike maintenance (both learning and doing), I would also suggest your local bike organizations. Search for your area + bike clinic|share|meet|club. You'll get a lot of practical insight that is specific to your climate/terrain. You might even get to talking and your infectious enthusiasm could encourage members to offer you steep discounts on their very nice parts kept in storage.
TLDR: Walmart bikes can be dangerous [youtube.com] (read the comments). Consider alternatives, or a third-party assembler.
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When you buy a toaster at a store, or a car at a dealership, you expect consistent quality because the product was assembled and checked for quality. Usually, this occurs at a factory and testing facility.
When you buy a bike, it arrived in parts. It was not assembled at a factory. It was assembled by whomever sold it to you because they bought it in bulk. Like 100 handlebars in a pallet. Thus, you're depending entirely the assembler.
Walmart bike techs aren't put in an environment where a bike can be consistently assembled to an adequate degree of safety and reliability. You really shouldn't trust Walmart bikes. You can put 2 "bike techs" who were only doing registers before in the backroom and tell them to "assemble these 50 bikes by today or I'll find someone else who can" but this is not conducive to quality assurance.
Technically you can just take it apart and put it back together correctly. If you aren't an experienced bike tech, consider yourself less qualified than the Walmart employees. They at least have bike wrenches.
I've seen solid entry-to-mid level bikes at REI for ~$500. That's A LOT more, but they also offer 1 year basic maintenance and care. REI has a good rep, and their bike techs are given a lot more training/resources than their Walmart counterparts. I doubt a local bike shop will be as competitive, but consider asking.
For someone getting into bikes, you need a crash course of any kind. If you can self-learn on forums and youtube, then great. You should look into used bikes with better components and then bring them up to speed. For everyone else who doesn't want to invest hundreds of hours into bike maintenance (both learning and doing), I would also suggest your local bike organizations. Search for your area + bike clinic|share|meet|club. You'll get a lot of practical insight that is specific to your climate/terrain. You might even get to talking and your infectious enthusiasm could encourage members to offer you steep discounts on their very nice parts kept in storage.
TLDR: Walmart bikes can be dangerous [youtube.com] (read the comments). Consider alternatives, or a third-party assembler.
Sign up for a Slickdeals account to remove this ad.
When you buy a toaster at a store, or a car at a dealership, you expect consistent quality because the product was assembled and checked for quality. Usually, this occurs at a factory and testing facility.
When you buy a bike, it arrived in parts. It was not assembled at a factory. It was assembled by whomever sold it to you because they bought it in bulk. Like 100 handlebars in a pallet. Thus, you're depending entirely the assembler.
Walmart bike techs aren't put in an environment where a bike can be consistently assembled to an adequate degree of safety and reliability. You really shouldn't trust Walmart bikes. You can put 2 "bike techs" who were only doing registers before in the backroom and tell them to "assemble these 50 bikes by today or I'll find someone else who can" but this is not conducive to quality assurance.
Technically you can just take it apart and put it back together correctly. If you aren't an experienced bike tech, consider yourself less qualified than the Walmart employees. They at least have bike wrenches.
I've seen solid entry-to-mid level bikes at REI for ~$500. That's A LOT more, but they also offer 1 year basic maintenance and care. REI has a good rep, and their bike techs are given a lot more training/resources than their Walmart counterparts. I doubt a local bike shop will be as competitive, but consider asking.
For someone getting into bikes, you need a crash course of any kind. If you can self-learn on forums and youtube, then great. You should look into used bikes with better components and then bring them up to speed. For everyone else who doesn't want to invest hundreds of hours into bike maintenance (both learning and doing), I would also suggest your local bike organizations. Search for your area + bike clinic|share|meet|club. You'll get a lot of practical insight that is specific to your climate/terrain. You might even get to talking and your infectious enthusiasm could encourage members to offer you steep discounts on their very nice parts kept in storage.
TLDR: Walmart bikes can be dangerous [youtube.com] (read the comments). Consider alternatives, or a third-party assembler.
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BznYNz
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