Mountain bike rant!

[Uncle B]

In April, for my birthday, my wife got us a pair of Specialized HRXC mountain bikes. I was not happy that she spent as much as she did on these bikes, because for our riding needs, a $200 mountain bike from Costco would have been just fine.

I thought to myself, that at least we'll have nice bikes that will last us for years.

I went for the first ride and noticed that the chain is making a rattling noise on some of the gear settings as if the shifters or something was not adjusted properly. This ticked me off, because I would expect a profesional bike store to inspect and adjust everything before letting their bikes out the door.

I was planning to take the bikes back to the store to get this corrected, but since we only rode them about 5 times since April, I never got around to it.

Besides the rattling chain, the chain would sometimes completely fall off the front sprocket. Basically, the 1st gear in the front was unusable because the chain would rattle really bad or fall off.

Yesterday afternoon we went for a bikeride. Now these are pretty expensive mountain bikes that are meant to be used offroad. Here I am, riding down a sidewalk, with my 2 year old daughter in her baby seat probably going no more than 6 mph. I'm aproaching a hill, so I downshift, hear a loud clunk and the rear wheel locks up. I get off the bike to check out what happened and I see the rear derailleur (the thing that the chain goes through that hangs down below the sprocket) is wedged in between the spokes. WTF? After a 3 mile walk home I took these pics in my garage:

The derailleur simply broke off!

I have owned many bikes in my life, some of them really cheap and poorly made compared to others, and I have never seen anything like this happen.

It gives me chills to think what would have happened if this occured at a high speed since I was riding with my daughter.

Is anyone hear an expert on mountain bikes. What do you think about this?

 

[Joe]

That bike is about $300-$400 or so right? Pretty much an entry level bike. Believe it or not, it is a much better ride than the $200 bikes you speak of.

That said, it sounds like who ever assembled it did a piss poor job. I would take it back to the bike shop she bought them from and have it repaired correctly.

Also, please reconsider using a baby seat attached to the bike. I looked into this last fall and find the pull behind carriers can be more safe for the child. Just my $.02

Some reviews on that bike:
http://www.mtbr.com/reviews/XC_Hardtail/product_132325.shtml

http://www.buzzillions.com/dz_168153_specialized_hrxc_reviews

 

[Uncle B]

Both bikes will be going back to the store since the other one also has the chain rattle/fall off problem. Mine also has the rear frame all scratched up from when the derailleur wrapped itself around it....

After doing some research, we decided to go with this child seat:

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/iBert-Safe-T-Front-Mounted-Bicycle/dp/B000H4E7EO/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods&qid=1211545841&sr=8-1"]Amazon.com: iBert Safe-T Front Mounted Child Bicycle Seat: Sports & Outdoors[/ame]

It allows for the most interraction with the child during bikerides. A trailer was our second choice, but I didn't like the idea of not even being able to talk to your child while riding. I can't argue that a trailer is safer in case of a fall...

 

[Joe]

Both bikes will be going back to the store since the other one also has the chain rattle/fall off problem. Mine also has the rear frame all scratched up from when the derailleur wrapped itself around it....

After doing some research, we decided to go with this child seat:

Amazon.com: iBert Safe-T Front Mounted Child Bicycle Seat: Sports & Outdoors

They should take care of you if they are a good shop

It allows for the most interraction with the child during bikerides. A trailer was our second choice, but I didn't like the idea of not even being able to talk to your child while riding. I can't argue that a trailer is safer in case of a fall...

honestly, I've found that to be worse than the rear mount seats.

thread from here:
http://motownmuscle.com/forums/showthread.php?t=52360

thread from mmba.org
http://mmba.org/viewtopic.php?t=65658

 

[Uncle B]

honestly, I've found that to be worse than the rear mount seats.

thread from here:
http://motownmuscle.com/forums/showthread.php?t=52360

thread from mmba.org
http://mmba.org/viewtopic.php?t=65658

Thanks for the links.

So you ended up getting a trailer for your child? How is that working out?

I read this comment of yours:

"I don't like the rear seats because I can't see her and she can't see what's going on and would get bored quick.

With trailers, they eat dust constantly, bake in the sun and as stated above, can't see a damn thing."


Currently I have the same exact opinion on the matter...

 

[Joe]

Thanks for the links.

So you ended up getting a trailer for your child? How is that working out?

I read this comment of yours:

"I don't like the rear seats because I can't see her and she can't see what's going on and would get bored quick.

With trailers, they eat dust constantly, bake in the sun and as stated above, can't see a damn thing."


Currently I have the same exact opinion on the matter...

Yeah, that was before I did some research into it.

With the two big trailer carriers being Burley and Chariot, I don't really have $300+ to spend on one right now.

There is a trailer for $189 at Costco - www.kidarooz.com Checking this one out it seems like a good trailer and a good price. Costco has a great return policy, I will get this one within a week or two and try it out.

 

[spdemon22]

Wow, I've been riding a Specialized Hard Rock SP (entry-level bike) since '05 and I've never had anything like that happen. I love that bike, actually, and it's miles ahead of the cheap-o bikes I had and have ridden before/since.

Also, one thing that will make a huge difference in gear smoothness and avoiding chain pop-offs is keeping the gears in the appropriate ratios. You've probably got 21 or 24 speeds on that thing (3 on the left, 7 or 8 on the right). Do yourself a favor and keep the two sides "equal" to each other:

Left:........Right:
1.............1-4
2.............4-7
3.............7-8

That keeps the chain from stretching too much and keeps it straight between the gears instead of being at any kind of extreme angle. It makes a huge difference.

 

[CableGuy]

Take that thing back and demand them to fix it for FREE. Where did you buy them from?

 

[Hugger Z]

Sounds to me like the derailer alignment is WAY off on both front and rear sprockets. The front one should not simply fall off. They had the derailer adjustment allowing it to travel too far. If properaly adjusted the derailer will stop and the chain will not fall off the sprocket.

Now the rear getting caught in the spokes is a terrible set-up back there too. That should not happen. I had it happen once but it was due to hitting a log on the trail that sent the derailer into my spokes and sending me over my handlebars. Definitely take those back to the store, but hopefully they do have someone that knows how to set those things up properly and not another noob.

 

[Uncle B]

Take that thing back and demand them to fix it for FREE. Where did you buy them from?

I don't know the name of the store. Some place in South Lyon.

 

[Scott @ DLS]

I bought a Cannondale 2 years ago from B3 and the chain was fubar on the first ride. I had to take it back because it had a stuck link and skipped on the sprocket, they put on a new chain under warranty no questions asked. I paid about $500.00 for it and was told besides Trek, this was the last USA made bike on the market.

 

[hangemhigh]

:icon_wink

I bought a Cannondale 2 years ago from B3 and the chain was fubar on the first ride. I had to take it back because it had a stuck link and skipped on the sprocket, they put on a new chain under warranty no questions asked. I paid about $500.00 for it and was told besides Trek, this was the last USA made bike on the market.

man, i've still got my cannondale sr1000 i bought in '85. it was about $1500 back then. (obviously still single.lol) it's been serviced 2 or 3 times throughout the years, and still performs perfectly. the dura-ace components are bullet-proof. oh, my point is def. take the bike back and demand it be repaired, n/c... sorry couldn't help reminiscing.:icon_wink

 

[xxljrfan]

i always buys treks. their the best hands down and http://www.macombbike.com/
is the best place to buy a bike

 

[4Gas$]

Check this out....

Specialized bikes are great......most of the time. If the
bike shop doesn't take care of you, then contact Specialized :

http://www.specialized.com/bc/home.jsp?a=b&minisite=10029&language=US


My wife just got me a smok'n hot deal on a Giant Yukon. New
they sell for about $800, found a used 5 year old for $375 and
a 10 year old for $250. Good Will was asking
$50 for this one............wife got them down to $20 out the door!

 

[Joe]

I picked up the Kidarooz cart today, I'll assemble it this weekend