Read this if your child is getting a bike

[Coyote]

And if an American company built a bike with a plastic stem, the product liability lawyers would swarm them like flies. How do the Chinese get away with it?

Why anyone would buy a new plastic bike at a Mega Store when perfectly good steel bikes exist locally on CraigsList
(or at the Town Dump) is beyond me.
A wad of Nevr-Dull, a little grease and some air for the tires and you are good to go!

Of course, we might be biased here....

 

[J-wagon]

Why anyone would buy a new plastic bike at a Mega Store when perfectly good steel bikes exist locally on CraigsList
(or at the Town Dump) is beyond me.
A wad of Nevr-Dull, a little grease and some air for the tires and you are good to go!

Town dump bulk find hopefully some salvageable for white elephant gift

 

[Girlbike]

Perhaps to vex me, my wife snuck out and bought a Huffy/WalMart mountain bike for herself. Anyway I would wind up spending a few hours working on it.
The rear derailleur was so way out it barely worked at all. I ended up truing the wheels so the brakes wouldn't rub, oh yeah those needed adjustment too. I didn't think to check lube on axles etc.
Now that I write this, I probably should have taken it back.
Well, she likes it. It is a really pretty green.