Bicycles

[SanadaUjiosan]

I'm assuming that is sarcasm, but I'll forge ahead anyways.

If it's old, it's good.

If it's not old, it's not good.

Hooray for lugged steel frames. Working on getting one ride-able (and fast).

[REVENGE]

Mine says "Schwinn", is that good?

I think Schwinn has some great carbon fiber bikes, and anything that was made by Waterford is awesome. Now if you're talking about that Walmart/Target stuff, that stuff is crap.

I'm assuming that is sarcasm, but I'll forge ahead anyways.

If it's old, it's good.

If it's not old, it's not good.

Hooray for lugged steel frames. Working on getting one ride-able (and fast).

IMO, costs too much, weighs too much, too much of a chore to maintain. Nice bikes, but I wouldn't own one for practical riding.

[Caydr]

Errrmmm... Well actually it's a bike I got from my father. He probably would've bought a low-end one, but not the shittiest of the shit if you know what I mean. Still, probably something bought at a Wal-Mart or something rather than a specialty shop.

Lemme see. He would've probably bought it about 10-15 years ago. The frame is metal not some kind of space-age stuff. It's... ah... blue?

It has indexed gears though, that's nice.

Is there a way to figure out what model I have? I'm a little curious now to know whether it's a good one or not.

[SanadaUjiosan]

A picture would be the easiest way. If it was bought 10-15 years and it's a Schwinn it's more than likely nothing noteworthy.

An easy to way to figure out what the frame is made out of is to look at the welds. If the welds are large and look like this:



Then you've got an aluminum frame. If the welds are smaller and look more "normal", like this:



Then you've got a steel frame. You could also just pick it up and determine if it's heavy or not

[Caydr]

I would venture a guess that aluminum is the better choice?

My bike is sort of garage-buried right now so I can't take a picture. Hopefully this will change soon.

edit: Also, I'm retarded remember, but IIRC aluminum is nonmagnetic... right? Right? ...I think I'm right....

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HA! I did SO learn something working at a machine shop!! So if you've got a magnet, this would be the definitive way of figuring out whether it's aluminum or not.

(or a rockwell tester)

[SanadaUjiosan]

True, a magnet would do the trick. The welds thing is just a faster, easier way. Gotta know these things in a bike shop, haha.

Aluminum nowadays is considered the norm. Even low end bikes are starting to come in aluminum. That being said, quality bikes from a long time ago are often steel, and they can sure be dandy bikes. Everything has it's place... a definite in the bike industry is that there is no perfect setup. Much like computers, as I often say.

[REVENGE]

Caydr, if you really want to know, just post a picture.

[Caydr]

Ha! You sound like people who don't carry magnets with you at all times.

Srsly, it's hot out, if you are asking me to go out there just to take a picture, you're going to be disappointed. First day where my shoes don't melt, I'll get my camera.