On 5/28/08, dragonfly@mac.hush.com <dragonfly@mac.hush.com> wrote:

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA1

  Hi, All.

      I'm sitting here in Toronto awaiting this baby's arrival.
She's now well overdue.

      It's bike month here, and we've had the launch of the
Toronto Cyclists Union, some cool fundraisers, several great
charity and political rides, and a host of other things. My friend
who is visiting me from my other home, Detroit, is in total culture
shock.

      This is a good thread. Department store bikes do suck, but I
like Noah's post and this one from Chris.

      Part of my feeling of mild distain for my fellow cyclists in
Windsor Ontario is about such silliness as riding on the sidewalk
and CLEARLY not making ongoing reparis to their bikes, but part of
it is also that most people are riding ugly and poor quality
department store or hardware store bikes.

      Some of the reasons to dislike department store bikes and
their riders are not merely about the functionality of the bikes,
about which many true things have already been said, but about
their aesthetic qualities, or lack thereof.

      They are just ugly and they have no style.

      If they have to be dealt with at all, the recommendations
that they be given complete overhauls and cared for as best as
possible make sense to me-- better any bike than no bike, and the
people who ride them probably end up actually loving them, and who
am I to disrespect that?

      The ugliness also needs to be addresssed, though. Because
they are cheap and ugly and not worth much, etc., they are actually
great for making into art bikes.

     Sand and prime and repaint the bikes, spray paint them gold
and cover them in bits of crome from old cars, cover them in broken
mirrors, decoupage pictures of naked ladies all over them and seal
in the naked goodness with some sort of top coat-- I have seen all
these things and many more odd and marvelous things (including a
bike completely covered in those little rubber snakes you can get
in toy stores) done to department store bikes, and when I looked at
THOSE (admittedly still barely functional) cheap-ass rides, I got
over my aversion and scorn, and I thought they were cool.

      I hope everyone is in a good mood and that the weather is
nice where you are.

                 Sasha
On Wed, 28 May 2008 14:23:54 -0400 "info@re-cycles.ca" <info@re-
cycles.ca> wrote:
>Recently I have seen many examples of new department store bikes
>with
>cones TOO tight and some with NO grease in the bearings or
>anywhere
>else.
>
>Most of the higher end Costco and department store bikes will last

>for
>years but they need to be totally overhauled upon purchase
>otherwise
>they will grind/seize themselves to death within a couple of
>seasons.
>Kind of puts the low end prices of a good bike shop, that checks,
>greases and adjusts their bikes before sale, into perspective.
>
>Or volunteer at your local community bike shop for a couple of
>months,
>then buy a new high end Costco bike, spend 2 evenings overhauling
>it
>yourself and laugh all the way to the bank.
>
>Chris
>--- reno bikes <renobikeproject@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> arguably dept. store bikes suck.
>> but just change your thinking a little.
>> they are not a performance machine.
>>
>> as long as the cones are tight enough, and the wheel straight
>enough
>> to
>> avoid
>> touching pads, then whomever rides it will appreciate it.
>>
>> its a step up from a bus pass.
>>
>> and some people ride roadmasters for years. they are around. you

>have
>> seen
>> them.
>>
>> i just keep them rolling and spend more time with better
>equipment.
>>
>> noah
>
>Chris Wells
>(Head Mechanic & Email Handler)
>
>re-Cycles Bicycle Co-op
>477 Bronson Ave. Ottawa
>
>re-Cycles is open 6pm-10pm Tuesdays, Wednesdays & Thursdays
>(for volunteering, DIY, bike & parts sales & donation drop off)
>AND SUNDAYS 3pm-6pm for Volunteering and Donations! :-)
>
>Bike sales and donation drop off also available during Cycle
>Salvation hours: 9am-5:30pm Tuesday to Friday, and 9am-1pm on
>Saturday
>
>(IMPORTANT: Please remember that while Cycle Salvation will be
>using our shop during the day, any public bike repair, whether
>volunteer or do-it-yourself, is still only during regular re-
>Cycles hours in the evenings.)
>
>info@re-cycles.ca
>http://www.re-cycles.ca/
>_______________________________________________
>Thethinktank mailing list
>Thethinktank@bikecollectives.org
>http://lists.bikecollectives.org/listinfo.cgi/thethinktank-
>bikecollectives.org
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
Note: This signature can be verified at https://www.hushtools.com/verify
Charset: UTF8
Version: Hush 3.0

wkYEARECAAYFAkg9qe4ACgkQ5O7ahKJmrRmh3QCfcrC2swY3dSQIrqbPG3R625/714oA
nRS0w/ofPmx/a8rXy+b5Vj6Uurvs
=lTwG
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

_______________________________________________
Thethinktank mailing list
Thethinktank@bikecollectives.org
http://lists.bikecollectives.org/listinfo.cgi/thethinktank-bikecollectives.org