Help upgradeing this bike..

Unfortunately, like a great many companies, Iron Horse sold out to Pacific. This throws them in with Schwinn, Gt, Mongoose, and a host of other companies that were once good. As for your bike, ride it like it is till you break it. No sense in upgrading something like that, cause I got news for ya, upper end [censored] breaks too. I even downgraded to a LX rd cause I got sick of my XTs failing in the same spot.

As for online bike shops:
Pricepoint.com
Jensonusa.com <- my fav
Supergo.com

Nashbar and Performance have good clearance sales, but their service sucks. The above shops ship the order the same day it is recieved, in most cases.

Ride it till you break it, maintain it properly, and ya should be ok for a while. Next time, go to a REAL bike shop. Even a $300 LBS bike is better than anything you will find at Sports Authority.

Well, like I said earlier..there are NO 'real' local bikeshops here in Port Richey. I don't have a car, I rely on my bicycle, since its cheaper then driving. I really can't afford to make a 50 mile trek down to the 'local' bike shop in tampa/st.pete.

So, anyway, I was sort of hopeing this was a good strong-framed bike that would last a while if I replaced the wheels. I can't afford a 500$ bike anyway..I don't make enough $$$ per check to just lay down a big wad of cash. 🙁

id replace the fork first thing, cuz u said theres alot of stuff out there that basically would chew up your RST fork alive, thoughs forks are cheap...so get sumn else, anything would really be better then that i suggest just a 100 dollar marazochi or rock shock

~Scott

I'm with triguy, ride it till you break it. That's the best way of upgrading a cheap bike, and it will help make sure you replace the bits that more urgently need replacing.

I bought a cheap(ish) bike a couple of years ago with a nice frame, with that specific aim - replace bits when they broke, or be came realyl run down or causing significant problems.

I've replaced almost everything now - the frame, fork & stem are original, but that's it. Oh, but I just broke the frame....that will need some replacing now.... (fortunately I bought it less than 3 yrs ago, so should be able to get it replaced free)

well...now that i think about it...thats what im doing...lol...i bought a decent bike for 500 bucks in thought that it will do me good till i break it, plus it came wid disc and that was my selling point...now that the forks bottomd out to many times and it about to break im replacing, then im going to replace the componets then just get a whole new full suspension frame, all this over the period of a few years,....ill spend probly 2000+ dollars to make my dream bike but in the end it will be worth it because of the small amount spent at a time.

The basic rule though is to go out and have fun, if your bike breaks oh well you wont feel to bad about it because of the price, and think of a breaking point as an opratunity to start a great bike

~Scott

If your fork is bottoming out, get the springs changed out and get the fork adjusted. I am 190lbs on an old Rockshox Judy, and it NEVER bottoms out, and I beat the [censored] out of it.

Having a bike to beat around while saving for a nice bike is a good idea. Much like driving a Honda beater while saving for whatever.

As for the Florida situation... There are some really GREAT places to ride here believe it or not. You are NOT stuck in the sand. You are a LITTLe out of the way, but in Riverview there is Alafai River State Park. It's guaranteed to raise your heart rate. Further north in Ocala are Santos and Razorback, both are excellent XC rides. I meet a great many people that drive the distance on the weekends, the rides are THAT good. If its not your thing, thats cool.

As for bike shops, i have no personal experience with any of em but:
yellowusa.comFort Myers FL.htmlOpen ↗

It would be nice if I lived closer to those places. North of hudson is a place called Aripeka and the Sun West mines. That area is a pretty nice for biking.

Also I am not to worried about being 'stuck in the sand'. I enjoy urban rideing alot actually. While I can't say its as fun as rideing the dirt roads of aripeka like I did as a kid..its still pretty fun to go see all the different local places.

As for my bike..I'v only had it a few days..I can take it back LoL..30 day satisfaction garantee. That will put 200$ back in my pocket..and I can add in my next check..that would give me 450$..annd I might be able to borrow 150$ from my dad since he is getting some backpay soon. 600$ I think would be a fair investment for the only other thing I use as much as my computer, that being my bike.

Now I just gotta find a decent shop around here. I am going to go exploreing tommorow. 😄

triguy98 said:

If your fork is bottoming out, get the springs changed out and get the fork adjusted. I am 190lbs on an old Rockshox Judy, and it NEVER bottoms out, and I beat the [censored] out of it.

Having a bike to beat around while saving for a nice bike is a good idea. Much like driving a Honda beater while saving for whatever.

theres the problem though it wouldnt matter if i did or dint replace the springs because my fork is the cheapest rock shock they make, a JETT and it would cost me like 50+ bucks to do...and i just dont have the money for that if ima buy my self a bike wid FULL SAINT shimmano :-)

~Scott

Welll, I went and bought a good bike. Took back the ironhorse, got my 200$, combined it with a 250$ check and bought a 03' Marin Novato. It came in the mail today, took it over to the (soon to be closed) LBS and had my friend there put it together...

😄 Wow. 😄

Now, I just need to make it a little less hard on my back..and the rest of my body..:o Soo, I am buying a adjustable stem and some suspension for it(suspension fork/suspension seatpost). Just to note, I am not takeing a serious hit in weight for this I don't think..the fork and seatpost that come with the novato are not butted or anything and are rather heavy in comparison to the rest of the bike.

Thanks for replying to this post, unlike the snobs in the cycling equipment forum that have ignored two of my posts already.

I would stay away from the adjustable stems, they weigh a ton and are a PITA. Figure out the correct size stem for you if it is not already on the bike, or upgrade to a lighter stem.

triguy98 said:

I would stay away from the adjustable stems, they weigh a ton and are a PITA. Figure out the correct size stem for you if it is not already on the bike, or upgrade to a lighter stem.

Well..too late now. It is pretty heavy compared to the one I had. Meh, its ok, because I now know that a 30 degree rise is perfect for me on my bike. Maybe one day I will find a decent stem with just that amount of rise..LoL.

The Suspension fork is a Rockshox Judy TT. It works alright...but it added way more weight then I expected..ouch.. 🙁 Oh well..the suspension seatpost was too big for me so I had to send it back..at least I am enjoying the shoulder pack..nice place to put my hex keys n' stuff.. :o