BMXmuseum.com Forums

Are you going to ride street, park or trail? Or are you just looking for something to cruise around the neighborhood?
First you need to decide what your going to use your bike for.
I agree completely with Jerry
Top tubes on new school are considerably longer and a better fit for your size. Somewhere in the range of 20-21" is probably best.
The threadless 1 1/8 integrated headsets are a much bettter design than old school.

chakuech wrote:

Are you going to ride street, park or trail? Or are you just looking for something to cruise around the neighborhood?
First you need to decide what your going to use your bike for.

Thanks for the advice so far. Probably cruise around the neighborhood...maybe a little park/trail when my son get a bit older - so probably something that is ok at all would be great. I will not be on half pipes or the skate park. Too many injuries from that stuff in my teens and 20s and surfing is my main thing now anyway. Also, my budget is max $500-600. Definitely looking for a complete bike that I can then modify slowly.

When I'm cruising with the kids I ride my old school stuff nostalgia! But if you want to RIDE the thing new school stuff is amazing. I am a made in America kinda guy so i have a few s&m's and standards. I'm with Jerry above though, retro might be the way to go. For your price range you can pick up a cool retro quad or similar... BTW I am also 5'11" and have kinda settled in on the 21" top tube if that helps.

chakuech wrote:

My advice is to check out the local bike shops. Im sure something will catch your eye in your price range. Fit bikes seem to be popular in my area and I really like mine. Definately not as nice as my S&M but to build a new school from the frame up is COSTLY!!! SE also has some really nice retro bikes out now. Search around a bit and try and test ride as many as you can. If your looking for a "rider" new school is the way to go. There are plenty of nice old school bikes on this site but I wonder how many are actually ridden on a regular basis.

Thanks, yea i definitely need to check out my local shops. I know there are a bunch right around my house. I do want to ride on a regular basis which is why I figured I should probably get a new bike but I guess I am still figuring that all out.

After you find a modern bike, I think you should find yourself an old school one to play around with.

The Retro SE bikes are really nice riding, IMO.  I finally obtained one myself (2010 PK Ripper looptail) and it's really sweet. I've ridden a few other guy's retro Rippers and a Quadangle, and they're all nice.
A big thing I have found in my over-40 age now is the 24" bikes, which I hated BITD, are way more comfy to ride now!  A retro Floval Flyer is on my wish-list for this year. I rode a couple of 24" SE bikes recently and they were both stellar.

Definitely go out to some shops and try a few bikes.  Maybe find an old-school ride or swap meet event in your area and go meet some people, see what they're riding now. Most of those guys will probably be in your age range and can help point you in the right direction.

lanceBurkhard wrote:

....

6. What sizes are good for me? I guess this is preference? I assume anything 20-21 is normal?

Thanks!

I agree with previous post, go for 24" wheels !  Almost everybody I know who took a long break from bmx, especially taller guys, feel like 20"s feel weirdly smaller than they remember. And it's not just the wheels. The front ends are lower because of compact fork design, integrated headsets and short steer tubes. So you'd need to basically run 10" tall bars to make the front end feel like a 1988 Haro Master did.

A 24" freestyle bike on the other hand will make you feel like a big kid again, instead of a gorilla on a circus bike.  Just IMO !

Thanks for the tips. I do like the PK bikes. I checked out S&M but it seems like they are only custom and pretty $$$ unless I am missing something from their site? I really want a complete as my first bike...then maybe I will pick up a retro GT Performer like I had when I was a kid. I am going to check out some shops in my area and see what they have - at least that way I can try out some different sizes and such.

lanceBurkhard wrote:

Thanks for the tips. I do like the PK bikes. I checked out S&M but it seems like they are only custom and pretty $$$ unless I am missing something from their site? I really want a complete as my first bike...then maybe I will pick up a retro GT Performer like I had when I was a kid. I am going to check out some shops in my area and see what they have - at least that way I can try out some different sizes and such.

If a complete is what you're looking for,check out Sunday completes,they are the best value for the money.

Don't waste your money on that new GT crap.

spyker wrote:

Don't waste your money on that new GT crap.

Any other companies I shouldnt be looking at? What about DK?

Leatherman wrote:

lanceBurkhart wrote:

84master wrote:

Hey Lance North Shore was a great movie:cool:

Lol, yea one of my all time favs. Too bad I wasnt paying attention when i created my screen name and put a 'd' instead of a 't' on the end of my name lol.

Fixed.

Thanks!

The SE retro bikes are VERY sweet...!
And I have some good deals on them at PlanetBMX.com

Figure out if you want a 20", or a 24" first. 24's are a bit more comfortable to some guys.  Either way, it's cool that you are back into BMX!

Just to let you know.


You need to spend 500.00+ to get a full chromoly bike. Anything less is hi ten steal garbage these days! SE series of bikes are full chromo for the most part or alum. So your getting some value and style there.



Your looking to spend 600-800 bucks for a complete sunday bike