Hello and advice requested

I think that, while they may prefer to service a bike that came from them, they will help anybody who has the money to pay for their work.

Tom Roussell said:

Hi, my name is Tom Roussell. I've been lurking for a week or so, and really
enjoy the personalities posting here, not to mention the information that's
being shared. There aren't many newsgroups this lively and this friendly,
and I'm glad I found it!

I'm want to buy a bike for recreational riding. I haven't ridden regularly
in probably 30 years (I'm 47 now). I've been looking for a
comfort/recreation bike in the $300 - $400 range just to get started. A
colleague at work mentioned he has a two year old Trek Navigator 200. I've
only seen the bike in a picture so far, but it appears to be in decent
condition. He's willing to let me take the bike for a while as a trial. BTW,
he and I are almost exactly the same size, so I imagine the fit will be
close. My question to the group is ... Is it frowned upon to bring a used
bike to a LBS for an inspection and possibly a fitting? I would, of course,
be willing to pay for these services. But since the LBS sells bikes, I
wouldn't want to offend them by not buying a bike from them. OTOH, my
colleague is willing to let the bike go for almost nothing. I don't see how
I can go wrong even without the inspection.

Thanks for any advice you can offer!

Tom

If it's a 'Trek' bike shop (one that sells Treks), just take it in and get
a basic summer/winter tune up, lube and new chain, and on the way out, be
friendly and maybe buy some biking gloves and ask 'em if it looks like you
got the fit right.

THe main thing is seat height. Just be sure you don't move the post up too
high (there's a mark on the tube). Each time you ride, move it up an 1/8"
until it feels like you're rocking your hips to do a full stroke. Then move
it down 1/8".

Just b/c the friend is the same size as you, doesn't necessarily mean that
the bike is fitted to him and thus to you. But don't worry. Most of us here
have ridden a bike that's not fitted that well for a few months and no
lasting ill effects.

The main thing you want to discover is can you make the biking a habit. To
do that you have to overcome the natural tendency to give into some called
'excuses'. Best way to get past that is to ride every day, even if it's
just for 20 minutes. If you can ride every day for 4 months then you've got
a good habit going. If you're still going strong after a year, then treat
yourself to a new / better bike.

HTH,

-B

Tom Roussell said:

I imagine the fit will be close. My question to the group is ... Is
it frowned upon to bring a used bike to a LBS for an inspection and
possibly a fitting?

No. Most LBS are gasping for air in this day and age. They'd be happy to
take (too much) of your money to service your used bicycle. You should, of
course, in the future learn how to do it yourself. It is easy and fun to
do. Very satisfying to know that you can repair your own bicycle if need
be.

Quoted message said:

I would, of course, be willing to pay for these
services. But since the LBS sells bikes, I wouldn't want to offend
them by not buying a bike from them.

If ANY shop that you go into gets 'offended', then you need to find a new
shop pronto. There's no room in the market for stores like that.

Regards,
H.

Tue, 03 Aug 2004 20:15:19 GMT, <rnSPc.201597$a24.169770@attbi_s03>,

Tom Roussell said:

My question to the group is ... Is it frowned upon to bring a used
bike to a LBS for an inspection and possibly a fitting? I would, of course,
be willing to pay for these services. But since the LBS sells bikes, I
wouldn't want to offend them by not buying a bike from them. OTOH, my
colleague is willing to let the bike go for almost nothing. I don't see how
I can go wrong even without the inspection.

Not at all. A good LBS will gladly do an inspection and minor
adjustment. They might suggest a "tune-up" and charge you for the work
they do in that capacity.

They're going to get more of your money on accessories anyway

Fitting might require more than you first suspect if your friend's
proportions are differnt from yours. Arm, leg and torso lengths could
be different and yet you're the same height and weight.
--
zk

Quoted message said:

"Tom Roussell" [email hidden]

wrote in part:

Quoted message said:

A
colleague at work mentioned he has a two year old Trek Navigator 200. I've
only seen the bike in a picture so far, but it appears to be in decent
condition. He's willing to let me take the bike for a while as a trial. BTW,
he and I are almost exactly the same size, so I imagine the fit will be
close. My question to the group is ... Is it frowned upon to bring a used
bike to a LBS for an inspection and possibly a fitting? I would, of course,
be willing to pay for these services. But since the LBS sells bikes....

They also sell the services you want so what you want to do is perfectly
acceptable. I'd only add two caveats. First, call ahead and talk to the LBS.
Tell them what you want and ask for a service appointment. Second, expertise
varies. Ask around and find a good shop.
Since part of what you want- the fitting- requires you to be there I think it
is only fair to add that the labor rate for the inspection will vary depending
on whether you are there or not.

"Labor Rates Are As Follows:
If you leave the bike-
$30 per hour
If you wait for it-
$40 per hour
If you watch-
$50 per hour
If you watch and offer advice-
$75 per hour
If you watch, offer advice, and complain-
You can't afford us."

Regards,
Bob Hunt

Thank you to everyone who replied! Lots of great information, as usual!

FWIW, I picked up the used bike just last night and will use it for a week
or so on a trial basis. It looks a little more "used" than I thought a two
year old bike would that's been sitting in the garage for the last year. But
it's in decent condition, AFAICT. It rides and shifts smoothly. The fit
feels fine to me, but of course, I don't have the expertise to know if it's
wrong ... yet! ;-)

My colleague is being very generous with the price. He had the bike in his
local paper for $100 last Fall, but no one bought it. He was about to donate
it to a charity when I came along and mentioned I might be interested in it.
Now he's saying "Name your price." I don't want to cheat they guy out of
anything, but I don't want to pay too much either. $100 for a 2 year old
bike that cost $389 originally seems very reasonable to me. I know it needs
a tube for the front tire, possibly the back. Heck, it might even need
tires. He said he'd pay for the tubes. I don't see how I can go wrong for
the money. I can probably sell it for $100 next year if/when I "treat myself
to a new/better bike". Do you think I should offer more/less than the $100?

Thanks again for your help!

Tom

Tom Roussell said:

Thank you to everyone who replied! Lots of great information, as usual!

FWIW, I picked up the used bike just last night and will use it for a week
or so on a trial basis. It looks a little more "used" than I thought a two
year old bike would that's been sitting in the garage for the last year. But
it's in decent condition, AFAICT. It rides and shifts smoothly. The fit
feels fine to me, but of course, I don't have the expertise to know if it's
wrong ... yet! ;-)

My colleague is being very generous with the price. He had the bike in his
local paper for $100 last Fall, but no one bought it. He was about to donate
it to a charity when I came along and mentioned I might be interested in it.
Now he's saying "Name your price." I don't want to cheat they guy out of
anything, but I don't want to pay too much either. $100 for a 2 year old
bike that cost $389 originally seems very reasonable to me. I know it needs
a tube for the front tire, possibly the back. Heck, it might even need
tires. He said he'd pay for the tubes. I don't see how I can go wrong for
the money. I can probably sell it for $100 next year if/when I "treat myself
to a new/better bike". Do you think I should offer more/less than the $100?

I went the "cheap bike to good bike" route, myself. In my case it was
a pawnshop deal on a 20 year old Raleigh road bike. (75 bucks!) It's
a good way to learn precisely what you want in a nice bike.

The main thing is this: does the bike fit you? If yes, then a
hundred bucks (tubes inclusive) sounds reasonable, and you're off to
the races.

-Luigi

Quoted message said:

Thanks again for your help!

Tom

On Thu, 05 Aug 2004 15:08:50 -0400, Luigi de Guzman <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

The main thing is this: does the bike fit you? If yes, then a
hundred bucks (tubes inclusive) sounds reasonable, and you're off to
the races.

-Luigi

Quoted message said:

Thanks again for your help!

Tom

I have to echo what Luigi is saying. You have to get on the bike, raise the
seat to a high enough level and be able to reach the handlebars
comfortably. Then pedal it around for a few minutes if you really want to
be sure. Try a small hill and try pedalling standing up.

If the bike is too small, you'll end up raising the saddle to the highest
point (there's a mark on the post), and it still not being correct for your
leg length. Beware of this. Be sure and try raising it up to make sure it's
not rusted.

If the handlebar is too low, you might be able to raise it up, but do this
before you buy to make sure it isn't rusted out.

(If the bike frame is too big for you, it's usually not going to be that
bad, but you may need to change out the stem if you can't put up with the
reaching and pressure on your hands.)

-B

Gotcha. So far, the bike seems a very good fit. The original owner is 6'2"
and so am I. I understand our proportions may be slightly different, but we
stood next to each other and compared extremeties (woo hoo!) and we're a
pretty decent match. I'm about to bring the bike to me LBS to see what they
think of it. I already called and they said they'd be happy to look at it
for me. I plan to buy a helmet and lock from them while I'm there, and I'll
pay them for their time if they spend a great deal of time with me and/or
the bike. If all goes well, I'll buy the bike and then go back to the LBS to
see if they'll fit it to me.

BTW, I gave the bike a little cleaning earlier today and the after-market
seat post came out no problem; no rust at all. It's after-market because
the original was stolen.

Thanks again for the advice. This newsgroup is great.

Tom

"Badger_South" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Thu, 05 Aug 2004 15:08:50 -0400, Luigi de Guzman <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

The main thing is this: does the bike fit you? If yes, then a
hundred bucks (tubes inclusive) sounds reasonable, and you're off to
the races.

I have to echo what Luigi is saying. You have to get on the bike, raise

the

Quoted message said:

seat to a high enough level and be able to reach the handlebars
comfortably. Then pedal it around for a few minutes if you really want to
be sure. Try a small hill and try pedalling standing up.

If the bike is too small, you'll end up raising the saddle to the highest
point (there's a mark on the post), and it still not being correct for

your

Quoted message said:

leg length. Beware of this. Be sure and try raising it up to make sure

it's

Quoted message said:

not rusted.

If the handlebar is too low, you might be able to raise it up, but do this
before you buy to make sure it isn't rusted out.

(If the bike frame is too big for you, it's usually not going to be that
bad, but you may need to change out the stem if you can't put up with the
reaching and pressure on your hands.)

-B

Tom Roussell said:

Gotcha. So far, the bike seems a very good fit. The original owner is 6'2"
and so am I. I understand our proportions may be slightly different, but we
stood next to each other and compared extremeties (woo hoo!) and we're a
pretty decent match. I'm about to bring the bike to me LBS to see what they
think of it. I already called and they said they'd be happy to look at it
for me. I plan to buy a helmet and lock from them while I'm there, and I'll
pay them for their time if they spend a great deal of time with me and/or
the bike. If all goes well, I'll buy the bike and then go back to the LBS to
see if they'll fit it to me.

Well while you're there, might as well test ride some bikes, eh? Pick a
couple like the one you're choosing so you can compare more easily.

The LBS probably will want to charge you to 'fit it to you'. That's
probably not necessary. You can do it yourself. Just get the tools you
need, and make sure you don't need a presta valve type pump.

-B

Quoted message said:

BTW, I gave the bike a little cleaning earlier today and the after-market
seat post came out no problem; no rust at all. It's after-market because
the original was stolen.

Thanks again for the advice. This newsgroup is great.

Tom

Thu, 05 Aug 2004 17:45:29 -0400,
<[email hidden]>, Badger_South

Quoted message said:

Just get the tools you
need, and make sure you don't need a presta valve type pump.

IOW, you get one to fit presta valves rather than swapping the tubes
for those with inferior type valves.
--
zk

Tom Roussell said:

Gotcha. So far, the bike seems a very good fit. The original owner is 6'2"
and so am I. I understand our proportions may be slightly different, but we
stood next to each other and compared extremeties (woo hoo!) and we're a
pretty decent match.

Eh, compare torso lengths as well. That's going to affect the
saddle-to-handlebar distance, which is important and not difficult to
adjust (within limits).

The real test, as you pointed out, is to ride it. If something doesn't
fit, some part of your body is going to start aching. Sheldon Brown's
got some great stuff for beginning cyclists, including Bicycling and
Pain, at http://www.sheldonbrown.com/beginners/index.html .

Just have fun. :-)

-km

--
the black rose
proud to be owned by a yorkie
http://community.webshots.com/user/blackrosequilts