3 month old supermarket bike. Here's a list of faults.

[Lilliburlero]

The supermarket probably did the old "was £200, now £89 trick", customers see`s this and think they`re getting a good deal. I have sympathy with the people that have bought these bikes, they do not know that they`re buying a bag of cack that is going to fall to bits within one Season, they trust the seller. I blame the supermarkets and further more I find it sad that these people have purchased bikes in good faith to use for what all CC`ers do..... commute, leisure, get fit etc etc, but could now be put off ever buying a bicycle again.

 

[Cyclopathic]

Mrs Aud bought an Apollo mountain bike from Halfords many many moons (about 12 years) ago. We only got ride of it last year as she got something better, but we know the latest owner of it, and its still going strong. New tyres and pads and thats it, never even had a new cable. She paid abround £120.00 i think.

Set up right, even cheapo bso's can give good service.

I agree. I think the problem is firstly in the factory where they are mostly assembled, where it must be done in a very slipshod way and secondly in the store where it is finally assembled by just a regular supermarket worker with no specific knowledge or training. I would bet my own money that they do not adhere to the British Standards for assembling a bike with the correct torques and a proper checklist, signed by the assembler. With just a bit of care these bikes might last more than 3 months. Although this one did have totally useless gripshifts which no amount of care would sort out. They just need chucking and replacing.

 

[biggs682]

What I'd expect for that money is a crock. What mere mortals expect is likely to be very different, and the fact that it's from a big supermarket must mean it's good, surely? I mean, they wouldn't sell junk, would they???

well said

 

[Gravity Aided]

What do expect for that money?

Money better invested in an old bike of good make, than a new BSO (Bicycle Shaped Object). Although I see some put in daily use, as commuter bicycles, I still wonder if those that ride them would not have a much better opinion and experience of cycling if they were using a decent bicycle.

 

[Kestevan]

These types of bikes are not bought by people with an interest in cycling. The target market for a supermarket bike is likely to be an impulse purchaser doing their normal shop. It's sunny outside, they're doing their normal shop and see a nice shiny bike for less than a ton. "Oooooh", they think, "not been on a bike since I was a kid. Lets get one and we can go off round the park with the kids....They get it home, take it out on on or two weekends for a 3 mile ride and then either it goes wrong (flat tyre, brake rubbing etc) or it rains and the bike is shoved in the shed and forgotten about - it was only cheap so no-one cares, and a couple of years later it ends up in a skip at the local tip.

 

[MontyVeda]

Same here, I was in an LBS recently when a supermarket bike was wheeled in. The LBS owner did not even allow the potential customer to speak - just said he would not even look at it and it was broken - throw it away.

A couple of weeks ago a friend of mine took her BSO into a bike shop for a quote on a service... the bloke looked at it, sneered and said something along the lines of "I wouldn't even touch that piece of sh!t". What he didn't reckon on was just how formidable this lady can be in the face of snobbery and rudeness, and soon found himself not only apologising to the bike's owner, but to her bike too

 

[Globalti]

He was right though. I have also worked on a supermarket special for a pal who bought it for his GF "just to have a little ride on " and I've given up in disgust. It's not worth the effort.

 

[raleighnut]

A couple of weeks ago friend of mine took her BSO into a bike shop for a quote on a service... the bloke looked at it, sneered and said something along the lines of "I wouldn't even touch that piece of sh!t". What he didn't reckon on was just how formidable this lady can be in the face of snobbery and rudeness, and soon found himself not only apologising to the bike's owner, but to the bike too

There is no excuse for rudeness but I agree with the sentiment, at least the older BSOs could be built into a decent bike by changing the wheels and crankset for half decent ones (maybe the rear mech and levers as well as fitting aluminium bars) I've got an old Raleigh Outlander so modified (to replace the stolen Mustang) that rides very well.

 

[MontyVeda]

He was right though. I have also worked on a supermarket special for a pal who bought it for his GF "just to have a little ride on " and I've given up in disgust. It's not worth the effort.

He may well have been right... but did he really need to be such an arse?

 

[Cyclopathic]

A couple of weeks ago a friend of mine took her BSO into a bike shop for a quote on a service... the bloke looked at it, sneered and said something along the lines of "I wouldn't even touch that piece of sh!t". What he didn't reckon on was just how formidable this lady can be in the face of snobbery and rudeness, and soon found himself not only apologising to the bike's owner, but to her bike too

I certainly wouldn't react like that to anybody. I will try and help as much as I can and share the opinion expressed by someone here that the buyer is the victim in all of this. Just making someone feel bad is going to do nothing to promote cycling or to make that person feel comfortable going to get their bike fixed. Education not castigation.

 

[Cyclopathic]

[QUOTE 3263045, member: 45"]Supermarket bikes are almost impossible to work on. I've given up a few times, or resorted to fitting replacement brakes/levers/components from the spares box because the fitted ones melt when you try to set them up.[/QUOTE]
Exactly what needed doing with the twist shifters on this bike. It wasn't that they had deteriorated in any way but that they were so badly designed as to be useless. Using all my force it was impossible to get them to shift up more than a couple of cogs. Before you ask, yes I had checked that it wasn't badly set limiter screws. It was that stiff I had to check to be sure.

 

[summerdays]

Exactly what needed doing with the twist shifters on this bike. It wasn't that they had deteriorated in any way but that they were so badly designed as to be useless. Using all my force it was impossible to get them to shift up more than a couple of cogs. Before you ask, yes I had checked that it wasn't badly set limiter screws. It was that stiff I had to check to be sure.

There are plenty of kids bikes like that too, I was talking to someone who mentioned that his sons bike was like that, and asked me how to fix it, I tried turning it whilst riding and it was almost impossible and that was as an adult rather than a child. I told him to talk it back to the shop that sold it to him.

 

[Cyclopathic]

There are plenty of kids bikes like that too, I was talking to someone who mentioned that his sons bike was like that, and asked me how to fix it, I tried turning it whilst riding and it was almost impossible and that was as an adult rather than a child. I told him to talk it back to the shop that sold it to him.

I've come across these too. Absolutely ridiculous and sad. I just do not understand the mentality behind this. Obviously it is to keep costs down but it renders the bike unusable. It may be a cheap bike but it's an expensive ornament, which is about all it's left good for.

 

[Profpointy]

before everyone castigates the rude bikes shop, bear in mind something along the lines of "I wouldn't touch that piece of shoot", might cover "I'm terribly sorry madam, but it really isn't worth my while working on some of these rather poor bikes from supermarkets"

 

[Cyclopathic]

before everyone castigates the rude bikes shop, bear in mind something along the lines of "I wouldn't touch that piece of ****", might cover "I'm terribly sorry madam, but it really isn't worth my while working on some of these rather poor bikes from supermarkets"

It still doesn't hurt to take the time to be personable and try and give them some advice.