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Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Urban Outfitters and Republic Bikes



I like the mass-customization process that Urban Outfitters put together with Republic Bikes. I picked out my colorway up top. I cannot vouch for the quality of the components, but $400 bucks is still a fair amount of money, so it's no beater. Unfortunately, you can't customize every little nut and bolt, but the options are enough to get you going on your way to customizing a bike and perhaps a primer for becoming some sort of gearhead. I am sure bike snobs out there are turning up their noses, but everyone has to start somewhere.

I think it's a great idea and I would get one if it weren't for the problem of finding space in our shoebox of a nyc apartment to store a pair of them.

via Nylon.

4 comments:

  1. How does this bbike ride? It is really cool looking

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  2. Your paying for the crankset. The rest of the bike is less than mediocre. It'll ride just fine if all you want is jaunts to buy PBR, go down to the MGMT cocnert and, well, check new merch at Urban Outfitters. Apart from that, like I said, the crankset is the only decent component on that bike. With a bit of effort and some hunting on craigslist, you can build yourself a faaar better fixedgear for 400$*.

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  3. I bought one of these on a whim. I had a little mad money in my pocket and thought what the heck! I was attracted to all the colors I guess. These bikes have been getting a lot of bad press, mainly because a lot of people with strong opinions about commercialization. Frankly I like to make my own decision.

    Breakdown on the bike: The bike is a show piece no doubt ( if you get vibrant colors) people will look for sure, you may even get some negative comments from some but hey you don't care what others think. You just want to ride and have fun! As for the ride, you may have to True the wheels as they don't come balanced right out of the box. but this is minor.

    The tires are decent, I feel the road when riding and for street riding they stick, even in heavy cornering.

    the chain is basic, so is the handle bars but you can upgrade that fairly easily and inexpensively. but out of the box you can start riding and it's pretty comfortable too.

    as for the frame, a lot of people complain about being heavy. My question, have you ever really held on of these? light as day for me. I can pick it up with 2 fingers without a strain. Then again, I work out 5-6 days a week am 6 feet tall weigh 195 pounds. so I'm not your typical skinny vegan.

    the cranks are sugino, not the top of the line sugino but mid grade. They do just fine. depending on how strong your legs are you may need to have the rear wheel adjusted so it is either tighter or looser on the hubs. I personally had to have them tightened to get better speed when riding. If you legs are not as strong you may not have to do anything.

    so far, I have had this for a week and ridden it for about 150 miles with no complaints. in my opinion a fun, attractive, and sturdy bike, with the possibilities to upgrade as you see fit.

    as for being name brand or lack there of, that's up to you. some people find comfort in buying name brand and that is perfectly fine, and in most cases a sure bet. but for price and customization right out of the box it's pretty hard to get the look without spending a fortune.

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  4. 400 dollars is not a lot of money for a bike. 3000 is a lot, 400 is department store money.

    the frame is sub-par hi-ten steel, which is the cheapest garbage that you can make a frame out of.

    the chain (from reviews ive read) is highly prone to snapping and the cranks are prone to bending. basically this bike is made out of the cheapest components available, and selling it for anything more than 150 bucks is a travesty.

    and no, you cant customize every nut and bolt, thats because there are NO options other than color coordination. i honestly also dont see how this could be a primer to becoming a bicycle "gearhead" because that would involve actually knowing more about your bike than what colors it is.

    if you want a half-way decent road bike, do yourself a favor and go to craigslist, get a nice old trek or something. you get no color options, but you spend less money and get a better bike, that is if you dont mind if your rim and tire color doesnt match your shoe color.

    ReplyDelete

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