Really horrible BSO's - why do people buy them?

[SkipdiverJohn]

I just get cant past thr irony in this post

Spare parts are spare parts. I don't care if they came from a BSO or not so long as I can get some useful service out of them. The BB out of the Dunlop full-sus is now fitted to a 27 year old Raleigh rigid MTB whose original BB was worn out. It actually looked to be in perfect condition when taken from the BSO. By the time it or any other salvaged spare wears out I will have probably found another BSO or two to strip, there's no shortage of them!
What I do find bizarre is how people can buy such bikes in the first place. I'm glad they do as it means free parts, but from an economic perspective junk BSO's are not good value because they are either so horrible to ride they get stuffed in a shed and forgotten about or they do get ridden but soon fall apart under the strain of regular use. You can buy cheap without buying total rubbish, but it seems a lot of low-budget buyers just can't look beyond the flashy appearance inherent with BSO's.

 

[Gravity Aided]

A lot of the problem with BSOs is the hardware, which is of a very poor quality, almost like they weren't intended to be fixed. And the forks surely weren't designed to be fixed.
Buy a good bike, and you only cry once.

 

[Biff600]

Thicko here - what does “BSO” mean?

It's a term of endearment given by cycle snobs to any cycle that costs less than the bike that they own, it's not just limited to inexpensive cycles that are purchased from shopping channels or warehouse sales either. It can be absolutely any bike, when I started cycling again a couple of years ago, I bought an £800 Cannondale which was referred to as a BSO !!

What a lot of folk fail to realise is the fact that some people may not have a great deal of money or buy the bike just to get to work/school/paper-round etc

I have since bought a Pinarello Dogma, (to which I also got flak as it's too good for my level of riding !!) and it's great to see the looks that I get when I use it to nip to Tesco's and ride home with a plastic bag on the handlebars

Another great snobbish line is 'Not a proper cyclist'

 

[Gravity Aided]

How in the world can anyone refer to a Cannondale as a BSO? Nice choice on the Pinarello, BTW. Fine looking bike, that.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

It's a term of endearment given by cycle snobs to any cycle that costs less than the bike that they own, it's not just limited to inexpensive cycles that are purchased from shopping channels or warehouse sales either.

Another great snobbish line is 'Not a proper cyclist'

I've heard the Raleigh Pioneers called commuter hybrid BSO's before now, despite them being decent bikes - and the ones like mine having a Reynolds double-butted frame FFS!

"Proper cyclists", in the eye of the snobs, are the ones with expensive bikes AND who always wear all the gear to go with it. Anyone who rides in casual wear, or on a cheaper bike, isn't "proper".

 

[Johnno260]

It's a term of endearment given by cycle snobs to any cycle that costs less than the bike that they own, it's not just limited to inexpensive cycles that are purchased from shopping channels or warehouse sales either. It can be absolutely any bike, when I started cycling again a couple of years ago, I bought an £800 Cannondale which was referred to as a BSO !!

What a lot of folk fail to realise is the fact that some people may not have a great deal of money or buy the bike just to get to work/school/paper-round etc

I have since bought a Pinarello Dogma, (to which I also got flak as it's too good for my level of riding !!) and it's great to see the looks that I get when I use it to nip to Tesco's and ride home with a plastic bag on the handlebars

Another great snobbish line is 'Not a proper cyclist'

I got abuse for my Boardman, I joined a local ride group and one guy in particular dropped loads of comments, I made an excuse and dropped out mid ride, Then in the mornings I started seeing Mr Snob and he would pass me and drop snide comments, but it helped as I got fitter and started passing him, to which my nice bike comment retort drove him insane.

My Merida isn’t a top flight bike by any degree but I was told by a guy at work who used to do Iron Man comps that it was wasted on me, it makes me happy so I don’t care what others say.

 

[Gravity Aided]

I live in the States, and I think about anything above a grocery store bicycle is not a BSO. Some of the bikes referred to in this thread are not BSOs, rather something most of the people I know would aspire to.

 

[fatjel]

Welcome to the 21st century Mr Skipdiver
You finally discovered bikes get better the more you spend
Won’t be long before you’re on a carbon aero bike with etap

 

[Smokin Joe]

Welcome to the 21st century Mr Skipdiver
You finally discovered bikes get better the more you spend
Won’t be long before you’re on a carbon aero bike with etap

One of these, perhaps?

 

[Drago]

One of these, perhaps?

View attachment 425725

If it weren't for the name on the frame I might not even have recognised that as a bike! Jim Felt has a lot to answer for.

 

[Alan O]

Welcome to the 21st century Mr Skipdiver
You finally discovered bikes get better the more you spend

Up until you've got £250 in your pocket and access to eBay, maybe

 

[classic33]

It's a term of endearment given by cycle snobs to any cycle that costs less than the bike that they own, it's not just limited to inexpensive cycles that are purchased from shopping channels or warehouse sales either. It can be absolutely any bike, when I started cycling again a couple of years ago, I bought an £800 Cannondale which was referred to as a BSO !!

What a lot of folk fail to realise is the fact that some people may not have a great deal of money or buy the bike just to get to work/school/paper-round etc

I have since bought a Pinarello Dogma, (to which I also got flak as it's too good for my level of riding !!) and it's great to see the looks that I get when I use it to nip to Tesco's and ride home with a plastic bag on the handlebars

Another great snobbish line is 'Not a proper cyclist'

And right now someone who may have had theirs taken, will be wondering why people take bikes.

First port of call should have been the police, even a phonecall to let them know what you'd found, not breaking the bike up for spares you can't afford otherwise.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Welcome to the 21st century Mr Skipdiver
You finally discovered bikes get better the more you spend
Won’t be long before you’re on a carbon aero bike with etap

Bikes have always got (marginally) better at each incremental increase in price, and is nothing new. Once you get into the high hundreds, any further improvements get very small and very expensive. If I desired a carbon bike with etap/Di2, I would already have got one. I don't like either carbon bikes or electronics on bikes, so I'll be sticking with Reynolds steel and nice-looking lugged frames.

One of these, perhaps?

View attachment 425725

My view on that is pretty much the same as @Drago - it doesn't even look like a bike in the normal sense. It's just a big ugly slab of plastic acting as a mobile advertising medium for the makers of it's wheels. I know how expensive those TT bikes are, but I still wouldn't give one house room. Total Mingers to look at. I'd sooner ride my Apollo out of the skip!

Up until you've got £250 in your pocket and access to eBay, maybe

I'd agree with that. If you buy used you get a lot more quality for your money, and £250 can buy you a bike that was £1k new. I've never even paid over £20 secondhand, and I got a time-warp 30 year old 531 flat-bar for that, with very little wear & tear. £30 more spent on tyres & tubes and it's back on the road pretty much as good as the day it left Nottingham..

 

[Gravity Aided]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUHrJpM6W6c

 

[mgs315]

It's a term of endearment given by cycle snobs to any cycle that costs less than the bike that they own, it's not just limited to inexpensive cycles that are purchased from shopping channels or warehouse sales either. It can be absolutely any bike, when I started cycling again a couple of years ago, I bought an £800 Cannondale which was referred to as a BSO !!

What a lot of folk fail to realise is the fact that some people may not have a great deal of money or buy the bike just to get to work/school/paper-round etc

I have since bought a Pinarello Dogma, (to which I also got flak as it's too good for my level of riding !!) and it's great to see the looks that I get when I use it to nip to Tesco's and ride home with a plastic bag on the handlebars

Another great snobbish line is 'Not a proper cyclist'

Aye you can’t win really! Either it’s a BSO or you’ve more money than sense apparently. I’ve had both comments on my TCR.

One I like is when you beat said BSO critics up the local climbs. Should offer to swap bikes then!