Originally Posted by JTK
Yep. This complete lack of box store online bicycle availability started about a week into April.
The last few days of March, my wife and kids suggested they wanted to get me a bicycle as a very early father's day gift since everyone was home and the weather was nice.
Not wanting to spend a lot because I haven't owned a bike in like 35yrs, I mail ordered myself my Mongoose dolomite 26", 7spd fat bike off walmart for $259. I got it like 2-3days later. There were many bikes to choose from online and in-store at that point.
A week after that I saw the bike I ordered online for ~$600. Another week beyond that nothing available aside from $700+ wally-world bicycles and kids bikes.
Seth's Bike Hacks on youtube kinda liked it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9JGxBJ5hw8
Sounds a bit like my fat bike, which had similar issues. Once there is normal shipping from China you can have fun upgrading for dozens of dollars! I found a $29 7spd MEGArange rear freewheel cassette with a 34t large cog, and bought a $9 32t narrow wide front chain ring, which improved the gearing from the original 36t front and 28t rear, so it climbs almost as well as my normal bike, using the extra fat tire traction. I stuck my old flat pedals on, learned how to tune up the mechanical discs, and its actually quite capable on the trails, just not that fast on the climbs. My next upgrade is a bigger front tire as the rim is actually too wide for the 4.0" tires it came with and if you run the tire too soft it self steers and the tire bottoms out on the inside rim in the corners... I found a 4.9" tire for $50 including shipping which I think is pretty decent.
Yep. This complete lack of box store online bicycle availability started about a week into April.
The last few days of March, my wife and kids suggested they wanted to get me a bicycle as a very early father's day gift since everyone was home and the weather was nice.
Not wanting to spend a lot because I haven't owned a bike in like 35yrs, I mail ordered myself my Mongoose dolomite 26", 7spd fat bike off walmart for $259. I got it like 2-3days later. There were many bikes to choose from online and in-store at that point.
A week after that I saw the bike I ordered online for ~$600. Another week beyond that nothing available aside from $700+ wally-world bicycles and kids bikes.
Seth's Bike Hacks on youtube kinda liked it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9JGxBJ5hw8
Sounds a bit like my fat bike, which had similar issues. Once there is normal shipping from China you can have fun upgrading for dozens of dollars! I found a $29 7spd MEGArange rear freewheel cassette with a 34t large cog, and bought a $9 32t narrow wide front chain ring, which improved the gearing from the original 36t front and 28t rear, so it climbs almost as well as my normal bike, using the extra fat tire traction. I stuck my old flat pedals on, learned how to tune up the mechanical discs, and its actually quite capable on the trails, just not that fast on the climbs. My next upgrade is a bigger front tire as the rim is actually too wide for the 4.0" tires it came with and if you run the tire too soft it self steers and the tire bottoms out on the inside rim in the corners... I found a 4.9" tire for $50 including shipping which I think is pretty decent.