Aldi Bike: Assembly or minimising self destruction

[baralah]

Which one is yours?

[foo on patrol]

Just bought one of these, why I didn't get one when they first started selling them is beyond me.

Foo

[koshari]

very interesting thread,

this week they have a hybrid for less than you can get a frame and wheelset for!

[Mozzar]

That sticker on the frame saying "not suitable for off road use" is to stop people hurting themselves with a poorly prepared bike and suing Aldi for their injuries. it's just as stupid as GT having printed on their handlebars "grip firmly at both ends".

[Dan]

My favourite thread is back!
Thanks for the liability tip mozzar.

[koshari]

Ended up getting one of the metro bikes from aldi b7t when i got it out of the box and both rims were way out i promptly returned it.

I then spent my money on a giant crx with a few bits and pieces missing. Fixed it up for a total cost of $212.
50% more expensive than the $139 metro but 5 times the bike. Very happy i have a nice alternative to my vintage 105 racer.

GT-N7000

[The Fixer]

Ah, GEEZ, I'm angry!

Wrote a long, reasoned reply to this topic, explaining how a BSO like these (I have a dual-shock 'Venture' which was
unrideable from new) can be sorted into a damned good bike, went to post, and....

The site logged me out!!!! GRRRR!!!

Angryway, I had to strip the 'Venture' (got this as-new, but completely un-rideable due to extremely poor assembly and
setup), and hand-build it. Not a problem since (except that she weighs as much as the Forth Bridge).

Point I was trying to make, cheap Chinese manufacture is seldom the problem with these BSOs.

Incompetent Australian teens assembling them, IS. This is where you get gears/brakes on the wrong side, or forks installed backwards.

This dropkick's (edited) party-trick was to tighten the floating disc calipers so tightly that they wouldn't actually FLOAT. Brown marks
on undies time!!! Oh! and no brakes AT ALL. Now they will stop on a threepenny-bit, with the back wheel six inches in the air and the
front-end on full travel. Good on bike paths...

I work with BSOs daily, refurbing them for charity or to donate to 'Bikes for Humanity'. I KNOW what a true BSO is. This isn't one of them.

But it WAS...

And it's almost never poor Chinese gear, but bad Aussie K-Mart style assembly/maintenance.

Did all that, fitted some candles, and she's now a very nice, but heavy, cruiser/commuter.

These cheap Chinees aren't all junk. They're just put together that way...

See bellow...

[The Fixer]

And yes, that seat post will be shortened (Albanesed??) in the morning. Yes, it does hit the swingarm, even with li'l ol' 65kg me on it...

It does make a (marked) change from riding one or the other of my vintage Apollos...

And, unlike the Apollos (yes, that's the 1989 'Delta' sneaking into shot at left), which are only ever ridden in daylight, the 'Venture' isn't a ninja.

[Nobody]

And it's almost never poor Chinese gear, but bad Aussie K-Mart style assembly/maintenance...These cheap Chinese aren't all junk. They're just put together that way...

From page 4:


It really comes down to how particular your taste is with bikes. A friend had a "Dunlop" with a similar frame configuration to yours. I used to call it "the pogo stick" because of the amount rear shock bounce it had when I was pedaling. Good for a laugh but not something I'd want to use as a serious tool. If the rear shock was replaced with a solid bar (seen it done) the front fork was replaced with a rigid fork and the front brake was changed (also the plastic lever) then it might be OK for a short distance commuter. The problem is the modifications would probably cost more than the bike.

[The Fixer]

Yeah, I don't disagree with that.

But hey, it's my toy.

I do have several much better bikes (see the 'Apollophiles' thread), but I wanted a new dual-shock to replace
my old 'mumble mumble*', and this one fell into my lap, so to speak.

For the price ($0.00), and a few hours work, I reckon I did OK...


* An ancient, tricked-up, double-disc-braked Royce Union AXD2-built like a bridge and as heavy. But totally indestructible.

[Nobody]

For the price ($0.00), and a few hours work, I reckon I did OK...

Agree.

[The Fixer]

Another BSO-that-was...

The AXD2. It was given to me as a parts-bike, it was in good basic nick, but the rear wheel had collapsed.
I got a job, needed transport, so fixed her and put her on the road. She got updated/upgraded over the
years, scored double discs instead of the V-brakes, and a lighting kit etc.

In all my researching on the internet, I can find very little on Royce-Unions, and almost all of it is bad.

From what I've seen of most, I'd have to agree.

Not this one.

Cheap? No doubt. Junk? Not on your Nelly.

I've just retired her after seven years of being my daily transport. She's been put back to V-brake
configuration, and will be sold. Going to miss her...

**And I have NEVER seen another AXD2. Anywhere...

[kukamunga]

For a minute there, I thought I was on Boat Anchor Forums.....

[Gordonhooker]

Yikes what the heck was that?

[The Fixer]

For a minute there, I thought I was on Boat Anchor Forums.....

There's probably enough steel in that swing-arm to make a decent anchor...

[ldrcycles]

I agree with your comments fixer, your experiences mirror mine- viewtopic.php?f=9&t=51119" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

But with regards to assembly, the only assembly done locally is putting on the wheels, handlebars and seat, all of the bearings are (mal)adjusted in the chinese factory before it is boxed.

[The Fixer]

Just followed and read your link, ldrcycles.

Very interesting. Thanks!