Site Designed and Maintained by Steven Willis

What makes the difference?

These hands make the difference.

Why buy a Bike from The Bike Stand instead of a Mega Mart!

Bike News

      Most name brand bikes sold today, including some brands which we sell from our site and our shop are outsourced from a few large factories in Asia. So what, then, makes the difference? The hands do. Almost every day I am asked these two questions: 1) Why do you sell only Raleigh, Jamis and Sun bikes, and 2) Why should I buy a bike from you and not from Mega Mart? The answer to the first question is that all of the big brand name bikes are the same. They are all the same. Sorry to burst your bubble, but these companies just source their bikes from big manufacturers all over the world. I found a site that shows where they all come from, take a peek at Who made my Bike? An article I found and copy to my web site.
      I choose Raleigh, Jamis and Sun because they are less expensive. Because they do not advertise, their prices are lower. The big four companies advertise heavily, so their prices are higher. It is not magic; it is just good business.
      The answer to the second question (the one about the Mega Mart) is a whole different story. I will try to minimize my ranting about these bikes, but the truth is that these questions evoke lengthy responses. I understand buying a toy car from these Mega Mart places. Your little angel goes into his/her room and safely plays with it. Or maybe you buy them a small airplane and they go out in the yard and toss it up into the air. What I cannot get past is the part where you would allow your child to ride a bicycle from a Mega Mart in the street along side a 4000 pound all-wheel-drive vehicle driven by a distracted person talking on a cell phone. There is more than one thing wrong with this picture. First of all, this Mega Mart bike is the cheapest thing that a fat, cigar-smoking suit can get his hands on. Secondly, the bike was assembled by a kid with no proper tools or training. Then to add insult to any person that has dedicated their life to proper, safe assemblage of bikes, the owner of the Mega Mart bike brings it into the shop for service only to get angry at me for pointing out that the bike is not safe, is falling apart, and will need extensive repair work.
     A bike built by a talented mechanic is in fact greater than the sum of its parts. The fact is that most shops and mail-order companies try to maximize profits by skimping out on the quality of assemblies and repairs. We, however, have Steve Willis. Steve is a veteran bike mechanic and former racer who has been building, racing, and loving bikes since the early seventies. For those of you who are wondering why you should buy a bike at a shop instead of a Mega Mart-type-store, take a look at this comparison of a mountain bike page or comparison of a childs bike. Thank you.

Not bike related, but I opened up a web page for my art work. If you are interested, pop over here for a peek!

We are putting together an E-Newsletter. If you would like to get regular updates and special offers on labor or parts sent right to your computer, click on this link E-Newsletter.

Come visit our Miscellaneous Mechanical Ramblings. I will be posting problems and events that have happened here at The Bike Stand with some answers and insights to what we did to solve the problem with out getting too preachy in the meantime. I will be updating these from time to time. If any thing I mention on the page seems to pertain to any problem you are having, feel free to e-mail me at The Bike Stand smwillis@verizon.net.

When you get a chance, take a look at the assembly page and take a look at your bike. Pull out the brake cable pinch bolt and see if there is any grease on it. If not, take some time to go over your bike or bring it down for me to go over it with you.

I have been in this field for a little over thirty years now so, as you can guess, I have acquired a lot of NOS and used older bikes and bike parts. I started to list some of the older parts we have under the heading Vintage. Feel free to e-mail me with any needs you have, and I may have the answer. Keep checking back. I will be adding to the list every few days or so, and if you have some free time take a look at the new page of component weights.

We are trying something different here. Quality labor has a value. I will try and do it right or not do it at all.

The Bike Stand
1778 East Second Street
Scotch Plains, NJ 07076
Phone-908-322-3330
Email smwillis@verizon.net
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