Good bike for under $1000

[iareConfusE]

Anything wrong with the mountain bikes at Costco? They are usually $300-500 and seem to be pretty nice these days: disc brakes on both ends! (They sure feel nice, but I'm no expert.)

They're likely assembled incorrectly, and with all sorts of adjustment problems. Last time I was at Costco, whoever the bike mechanic there was assembling the bikes, he/she assembled the fork backwards, hahaha. I see the same at Target. Department store bicycles like that will lat you maybe... 100-200 miles before they just start falling apart. Repairs for those bikes cost 5x more than the bike itself, so I wouldn't waste my money. If you want to invest in a bike, get a good one to start so that you aren't constantly paying for upgrades and adjustments. Trust me on this one.

We've had customers come into our shop and buy some of the cheapest bikes we offer, only to come back a couple weeks later for component upgrades (one rear derailleur upgrade already costs 1/2 the price of their entire bike) and cable adjustments.

Get a decent bike, clean it, lube your chain, check it for stretch, and you'll have a bike that may last you a lifetime (At least the frame will if you don't crash it).

[cineski]

When I had my Trek 8 series a buddy of mine decided to buy a mountain bike from Costco. We made it less than half a mile when his chain broke on the trail. You do get what you pay for w/ bikes, but the used market is hard to ignore considering how much bikes devalue.

[JETLAG]

Go Specialized or Trek

[echo1]

I don't know much about the bike world, but craigslist is the bomb for all kinds of gear. As far as COSTCO goes, their bikes are assembled haphazardly, but the one I got from them doesn't see any extreme action and I was able to return it for a direct exchange, no questions, twice (I broke it). I've had it 4 years for $200 and ride it almost every day around town. PAX