#21
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OP:
Which should I buy? wrote: If the Schwinn has a frame mounted derailleur go that way you won't regret it. What difference could it make? Bikes of that genre have nice functional $14.95 rear derailleurs. If you should happen to damage one or wear it out, they are readily available. Even upgrade models at $20 and $25 . Of all the factors I can think of, this is among the least important. Get one that fits. Open bearing assemblies, grease them and adjust properly. Spend a bit of time lubricating and adjusting the brake and gear systems. Tension the wheels and ride it. -- Andrew Muzi www.yellowjersey.org Open every day since 1 April, 1971 |
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#22
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"PSB" wrote in message ... So which would you recommend? Murray or C. Itoh. |
#23
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On Tue, 28 Dec 2004 23:24:37 -0500, PSB
wrote: I'm six foot tall and about 160. I'll check closer into the Roadmaster when I go back to the department store and make my decision then. One more question, does the Roadmaster have holes where a bike rack can be attached easily? I know the Schwinn Sidewinder does. Dear PBS, Unlike the shabby sort of incomplete bicycle that Lance Armstrong is forced to ride by contract, the Fury Roadmaster offers small flanges with four holes above the rear dropout, two on either side, presumably for a rack that may well be available at WalMart. I also note a pair of bolts on the down-tube for attaching a water-bottle frame. Since I ride solely for pleasure (not sordid commercial gain like Lance), I have no idea how the rest of the rack attaches. Possibly around the seat post? Much as it pains me to say so, you should give Ron Hardin's Huffy recommendation serious consideration, since he's tested the thing for years in actual commuting and an impressive 48,000 miles, instead of stripping off its water-bottle frame, sidestand, and reflectors and then forcing it to roll a mere four miles per day through a park for about nine months. Carl Fogel |
#24
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So which would you recommend?
Murray or C. Itoh. What's wrong with American Flyer? --Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles www.ChainReactionBicycles.com |
#25
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Get one that fits. Open bearing assemblies, grease them and adjust
properly. Spend a bit of time lubricating and adjusting the brake and gear systems. Tension the wheels and ride it. Visions of Dave Stoller in his garage go dancing through my head... --Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles www.ChainReactionBicycles.com |
#26
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On Tue, 28 Dec 2004 23:46:35 -0500, "Joe Haggadah"
wrote: "PSB" wrote in message ... So which would you recommend? Murray or C. Itoh. Itoh printers are easier to find than Itoh bikes in the US...and when was the last time you saw a Murray bike available new? ISTR that Murray sold off its bike division to one of the borgs a while back. -- Typoes are a feature, not a bug. Some gardening required to reply via email. Words processed in a facility that contains nuts. |
#27
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On Wed, 29 Dec 2004 08:00:29 GMT, "Mike Jacoubowsky"
wrote: So which would you recommend? Murray or C. Itoh. What's wrong with American Flyer? If you can get the rust off, and if the rims aren't full of termites, nothing. But a JC Higgins is probably a better value. -- Typoes are a feature, not a bug. Some gardening required to reply via email. Words processed in a facility that contains nuts. |
#28
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I basically agree with this article.
If you want cheap - then buy the cheapest. If you want something suitable for commuting then start looking at more than the two cheap bicycles you indicate. When i go to garage and other sales i see so many cheap bikes - and then when i ask why they did not use the bikes the folks say the bike did not fit, it did not work properly, it did not... Cheap bikes might be OK for a spin around the block but that is IT!! Get a used bike with good components. Who cares if it does not have the latest in gadgetry?? I bought a 20 year old Peugeot at a garage sale and with several adjustments to the seat and front bars it will be great for commuting. It would be better to have fenders on it, but for $20 I guess I can get fenders and still be farther ahead than buying a new bike similar to what you are looking at. Think outside the box and look at a quality used bike that will be much more suitable for your needs as compared to the 2 new ones you are enamored with... wrote: Neither. As commuters, they would probably do OK. But they are cheap junk, and possibly like throwing money away. If you search in this newsgroup for "Carl Fogel" "Roadmaster" and "Fury", you will find the saga of a cheap dept. store bike. You /should/ buy from your LBS. But not a new bike. A used one. A decent, well-maintained, used bike can cost only a bit more than a new dept. store bike-shaped toy, and is likely to have better components. This means that you might get more life out of your used bike than you would out of a new bike-shaped toy from some *Mart. Locally, the LBSs have quite a bit of used inventory that they are willing to make deals on because in our corner of North America, it's winter, and bikes don't sell well here in the winter. Good luck. HAND, E.P. |
#29
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A Muzi wrote:
Get one that fits. Open bearing assemblies, grease them and adjust properly. Spend a bit of time lubricating and adjusting the brake and gear systems. Tension the wheels and ride it. Fix what needs fixing when it proves it needs fixing. If you have a tinkering fixation, that's another matter. You may enjoy it. My Huffys work fine until something needs attention, and then I attend to it. Bearings never have needed opening. Lubricate the chain when it squeaks. Every 10k miles or so, replace BB chainwheel chain and freewheel together, when the chain finally starts popping off the chainwheel startups. Huffy sells replacements over the phone. The wheels are the best I've ever had, in not needing any attention at all. I have 48k miles on the rear wheel, and it carries 40 lbs of groceries a good part of the time too. No wobble, no squeak, no anything. It's a MTB rim of course. Mostly it's brake adjustment or freeing-up, or the great transmission periodic replacement paroxysm. Oh a wheel bearing needed a squirt of 3-in-1 last year. It was squeaking. These aren't Campy parts that you might want to have a fascination with. -- Ron Hardin On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk. |
#30
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Ron Hardin Wrote: Every 10k miles or so, replace BB chainwheel chain and freewheel together, when the chain finally starts popping off the chainwheel startups. Huffy sells replacements over the phone. Uh, when you replace that many parts at once isn't that approaching the price of a comparable new bike? Sounds like unless you've got a cheap source of parts, at 10k miles it's time to put Huffy to pasture and get a new Huffy/roadmaster/schwinn unless the faithfull steed has become part of the family. Might even be cheaper to buy a second as a parts bike. Nobody else has chimed in on this issue, but often with a commuter you have to deal with rain, salt, snow so it's nice to have a bike on hand that you don't dread getting weathered on. Also, there may be locations you travel in wherein you want a bike the theives don't target. Slicks/knobbies is too route specific an issue for practical comment per your limitted course disclosure. If commuting cross country or primarily in snow (particularly this time of year) you certainly want the knobbies. If exclusively bike trails in S. Cal, I'd think not. -- meb |
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