Ozark Trail FS.2 Slalom.. UTTERLY DISGUSTING

[marvin78]

Just utterly disgusting I and my fellow Europeans don't have access to affordable, good bikes like these.

I dare anyone to find me a factory price full sus bike for comparable price, with comparable specs, being offered in the EU.

And it's stupid even more right now, because while it's Wallmarkts in house brand, they source from China like all others. I'm sure an European company could order the same base parts from the OEM's in China, have it assembled and shipped to the EU for a pretty comparable price.

... but they don't. And it's... disgusting. No other word

 

[neptronix]

Here in the states we also have bikesdirect.com.. and most of their bikes are made in Taiwan.
Actually competitive with walmart on prices.

You really don't have some budget brand out there in Europe?

 

[marvin78]

https://www.decathlon.nl/p/mountainbike-st-530-s-27-5-1x9-speed-rockrider-microshift-zwart-rood/_/R-p-311716?mc=8555876&c=Zwart

It's on sale for the same price right now, but normally it's 630.

Still, Cues vs Microshift, and SR Suntour vs cheapest coil preload only adjustable 'shocks'. And I don't like the linkage design on the St530.

Edit:

This is more what I expect at this price point locally -> cheapest SR Suntour coil fork, Tourney ( or below.. ), mechanical brakes

Marlin 4 Gen 2 2025

De Trek Marlin 4 Gen 2 past bij jou als... Je op zoek bent naar een mountainbike die geschikt is voor dagelijkse avonturen op verharde en onverharde wegen. De Trek Marlin 4 Gen 2 is de ideale fiets voor de beginnende mountainbiker, maar ook zeker voor bijvoorbeeld scholieren die op een stoere

www.12gobiking.nl

Rockrider is our budget option.

 

[neptronix]

Funny, in USD that Trek is literally the same price as here.
It is strange you don't have the hyper budget options at all over there.

 

[marvin78]

We do have cheaper bso's, just not cheap bikes. Just as with Wallmart, Decathlon is full of 'cheap bikes'. The new Ozark Trail bikes as well as for instance that Kent Trouvaille, are not one step above but a couple, and for a modest increase in price over the bso's they normally sell.

What we don't have is bikes in the 500 range with good components.

If Trek can market that same bike for the same price in USD there, Wallmarkt should be able to market Ozark Trail for the same price in the EU.

edit: they will also sell you good bikes, but you're paying for the 'premium'. And more then you should. The issue is that ~500 gap where normally department store bikes wouldn't venture into, and where lbs ( local bike shop ) doesn't offer anything except the lowest of the lowest in component choice. A gap which is imho mostly artificial, and thus frustrating.

edit: wasn't visible well in the pictures, but it seems the ST-530 if offered still with a straight headtube instead of tapered. Again, component choices influencing upgradbility.

Everything here seems to be done 'minimal required' while these new Wallmart bikes are showing what happens when you start out with 'why not' instead of 'let's not'.

 

[neptronix]

You know what? Walmart has always had this attitude of throwing ingenuity into finding out how to make things more affordable for the masses. Their super power is sourcing and bossing suppliers around with their weight. There's plenty of complaints to be had about their labor practices and displacement of smaller businesses but they are one of the most powerful forces towards that good.

I find it strange that they haven't been able to really break into the EU, probably the case of the regulatory environment and cost of dong business not fitting into their existing model. I hear they tried to make it work in Germany but they made a big mistake in forcing USA ways of doing things on Germans ( 'creative differences' )

It is strange that nobody is filling in the niche over there though!

 

[marvin78]

I always hear this 'regulatory overload' reasoning, but don't your states all have their own tax laws as well? You do need more people if you want a good costumer experience, since our markets are far more different then those in your different states. As you say, cultural differences occur quite strongly between nations ( and less so between different states in the US, closer origin story and everyone speaks English ).

Wallmart been pushing mountainbiking for quite some time, also sponsoring a lot of trails around Bentonville, I'm not really sure what caused them to start doing that but whatever the reason: I'm gratefull.

That they might run some local bike shop out of buisiness, well if the lbs was offering enough additional value he would stay in buisiness.

And with their push for better bikes, they might even start having people who can assemble a bike without putting the forks on backwards No seriously, I hope they pay decent wages but I fear it's 'US non college graduate wages'.

 

[Chalo]

Just utterly disgusting I and my fellow Europeans don't have access to affordable, good bikes like these.

That's not a good bike. It's not even a good "bicycle shaped object". It reaches for too much, for too little cost, and fails to grasp any of it. It also comes in one size, which is very unlikely to fit any given buyer. One-size bike models are a telltale sign that the bike was never intended to be ridden, but only purchased.

 

[neptronix]

Yeah our states have their own tax laws, but that's easier to navigate than say, labor law.
Walmart brings those prices down by pressuring labor and the EU is usually not a fan of that.

I think they would flee the first time someone said 'unions'

 

[marvin78]

It comes in one size because they don't expect enough sales to inventory different sizes. While this limits the market, with their 'medium' 5'4'' to 6'0'' it would fit most.

It also has components which do not 'reach beyond where they should' that's exactly the point. We can discuss each component in detail if you wish, but I recon you just posted without knowing the actual components on the bike.

 

[rafalg]

You can get some good deals in Europe too. Timing is important, for example January is a nice month for shopping (for bikes). And shipping from Italy or any other EU country is pretty fast and affordable, don't be afraid to shop abroad. Sometimes politics are helpful, for example there were some great buying opportunities during Brexit. I bought 3 carbon bikes this way, two roadbikes from the UK, and recently one MTB from Italy.
(but anyway a decent MTB for $500 is still hard to beat)

 

[neptronix]

..both me and Chalo are above average sized humans
..i'm more of a bikesdirect kinda guy for this reason so i can get an XL size ( around 21" frame )

Walmart bikes are also bottom tier in frame quality, so i shy away from that!

 

[rafalg]

The less standard your size, the better (for buying a bicycle). Usually the best deals are for some unsold inventory in XXS or XXL size.

 

[marvin78]

You can get some good deals in Europe too. Timing is important, for example January is a nice month for shopping. And shipping from Italy or any other EU country is pretty fast and affordable, don't be afraid to shop abroad. Sometimes politics are helpful, for example there were some great buying opportunities during Brexit. I bought 3 carbon bikes this way, two from the UK, and recently one MTB from Italy.

Ow I agree we got a much better second hand market with a lot of decent offering. International shipping ( and in Europe that happens quite fast ) does limit how much I look abroad though.

And it's not really the topic I was trying to address, the lack of ~500 new bikes in Europe which are not bicycle shaped objects but come with components which are worth maintaining and upgrading down the line.

I haven't bought a new bike I think ever, second hand market is always to enticing. But I would if I could do it for the same price or cheaper then a second hand name brand, just because of the warranty.

Second hand market in this price range is also less upgradable. There will be a time when we won't be able to get any decent 1/8th straight stearer forks, non boost wheelsets and so on. I'm still riding a Giant Talon with 27.5 a non boost qr wheelset ( and non tapered headset ).

edit: reading it again, I don't really know why I'm assuming you do mean second hand, it's not like you actually say 'second hand'. If you meant new, I find it hard to believe you found deals on 500 euro new carbon bikes so I'm sticking with second hand

..both me and Chalo are above average sized humans
..i'm more of a bikesdirect kinda guy for this reason so i can get an XL size ( around 21" frame )

Walmart bikes are also bottom tier in frame quality, so i shy away from that!

If you go through socials/youtube you will find lots of Kent Trevaille's and Ozark Trail Ridge mentions, and I haven't found one with a snapped frame. Not saying there aint one, it's always possible, but these are not bad frames, the weld quality from what I can judge is quite good.

Other Wallmart / big box bike frames.. no comment

 

[marvin78]

The less standard your size, the better (for buying a bicycle). Usually the best deals are for some unsold inventory in XXS or XXL size.

Not always, you're still reliant on manufacturers actually offering those outlying frame sizes in enough quantities to have the luxury of having unsold framesets on the shelfs.

I think it's more advantagious to be perfectly average, more products available ( though ofc commerce will exploit you being 'perfectly average' and thus needing this 'exceptionally perfectly average bike' lol ).

 

[rafalg]

we got a much better second hand market

No, I was talking about brand new bikes from dealerships. I can't really recommend buying used bikes over the Internet without seeing them first. You don't really know what you're getting and one time i bought something that obviously was stolen at some stage of the supply chain.

 

[marvin78]

Well you found yourself some killer deals if you got carbon bikes for even close to the price point we're talking about lol

There are some websites which will facilitate buying second hand abroad, they will hold the money untill you clear the item and so on, but I agree it's not something I would advice either. I do buy second hand, but I buy in person only for items like this.

 

[rafalg]

Yeah, kind of hard to resist offers. Like a carbon roadbike on full Ultegra groupset, decent wheels and other components. For the price of just the Ultegra R8000 drivetrain alone. Like 900EUR. Combination of January, Brexit, and non-standard size
(unfortunately that bike was stolen from me few years after purchase)

BTW i'm not a pro cyclist and dont really need carbon bikes. But there's something inspiring in riding a nicely built bike meant for cyclists much better than you. A motivation to get better. If it can be had for the price of a typical bike...

 

[Chalo]

It also has components which do not 'reach beyond where they should' that's exactly the point. We can discuss each component in detail if you wish, but I recon you just posted without knowing the actual components on the bike.

The ones of most concern are the non-interchangeable ones like suspension pivots, but understand that I've worked on more such bikes than you've probably ever seen even in pictures. They're not worth it. My time and other people's money is wasted on them.

 

[neptronix]

An alternate good buy is a used bike TBH..

I can.. especially around the winter.. find all kinds of expensive frames from bikes costing thousands of dollars/euros for hundreds of dollars/euros and throw parts on them.

$4000 bike frame for $250
$100 of parts from my local communist bike shop
$250 leafmotor wheel ( hey this was 2014 )
$700 of RC Lipo
$100 controller
$200 etc
= a 60mph ebike that makes corvette owners envious for $1700 total



Beats the pants off any prebuilt on the market in every dimension, especially back then.

You can still do this today.. batteries are cheaper but motors are a bit more expensive.

 

[marvin78]

The ones of most concern are the non-interchangeable ones like suspension pivots, but understand that I've worked on more such bikes than you've probably ever seen even in pictures. They're not worth it. My time and other people's money is wasted on them.

It does look like it might be using bushings instead of bearings for the linkage.

But even name brands have done that in the past, and those bikes rode quite decently for years ( even if you would need to replace those bushings a lot more often as you would bearings ).

I am not contradicting your past experiences, I would go as far as subscribing to the notion that department store bikes were evil results of planned obselense being accepted by consumers. Were. Because Wallmart has been bringing out some models which are pretty decent and those have been pretty publicly documented over the past few years ( not many, it's a recent thing ).

As I said, look up bikes like the Kent Trouvaille. These bikes are getting really close to entry level lbs bikes, and they offer the same upgrade paths which is what imho should differentiate a bso from an actual bike -> industry standards.

Even if some parts might be industry standards from a decade ago for the name brands...

 

[marvin78]

An alternate good buy is a used bike TBH..

I can.. especially around the winter.. find all kinds of expensive frames from bikes costing thousands of dollars/euros for hundreds of dollars/euros and throw parts on them.

$4000 bike frame for $250
$100 of parts from my local communist bike shop
$250 leafmotor wheel ( hey this was 2014 )
$700 of RC Lipo
$100 controller
$200 etc
= a 60mph ebike that makes corvette owners envious for $1700 total

View attachment 365291

Beats the pants off any prebuilt on the market in every dimension, especially back then.

You can still do this today.. batteries are cheaper but motors are a bit more expensive.

I always advocate second hand, haven't bought a new bike in my life I think. It's just basic economics. I don't think I could get away with a 60mph ebike over here, some negative nancies already complain about ~28 on our protected cycle paths

 

[rafalg]

Remember that every used bike had to be bought new at some point, so no matter how many rational arguments you have supporting second-hand, you still need a huge group of people in 'buy-brand-new' camp. It only works if these two camps are more or less in balance.
Or, some might say that it's better to be a carnivore than a herbivore. But....

 

[marvin78]

Absolutely, which is why I love people overspending money, they have to much appearantly and because of that I can get their scraps at decent prices

 

[rafalg]

Neither herbivore, nor a carnivore. A scavenger