Not if you're riding technical trails. A poor bike can be downright dangerous, not just a hassle.

What about this bike they carry:

Iron Horse Sinister 6.3

Granted this one is $418, but the 6.2 version is $345 and the 6.1 version is $313

I heard Iron Horse was at one time, a good manufacturer of mountain bikes.

FYI, Sears also sells the Iron Horse Warrior Series

Wait a minute. You're in Wyoming ...have the kid buy a handgun and, no wait, I'm thinking Detroit.

What the heck, walk in the local shop, see what they have and put the cash on the counter. Pay close attention to the frame, forks and wheels. The rest is easily swapped for better.

Craiglist the entire state. I'd bet Cheyenne, Casper or Jackson Hole will have a decent selection. Maybe Laramie too.

Look online for sure. There may be some closeouts or last years models. Pick a bike like Diamondback as a good starting point and see what you find. Upgrading components is really easy. I know they're nice, but you probably don't need to start with a full suspension bike. You could maybe get away with a decent fork set for a year or two and see where it goes.

Good luck, post pics. Apparently, there are a lot of MB fans here!

I have experience with Bikesdirect.....Decent stuff for starting out.  Just stay away from the Gravity Brand.

OP, you did well!

Trek is still good

Excellent choice!!!

Also keep in mind that a roughly $300 hardtail (front suspension only) from Bikes Direct or a used bike store brand will be under 30 lbs while a $200 Walmart bike will be most likely north of 40 lbs, especially if it's a full suspension.

Buy a used Cannondale of off eBay, one of the late 90's early 2000 models with the CAAD2 aluminum frame and take it to a good bike shop to get a tune-up.

dammit

correct craigslist all the way



$100 buys a ton of bike on Craigslist

and $20 buys a great tune up from some part time guy that works in his garage



 

No, Walmart bikes suck. I just got rid of one and bought a Giant, it was $394 out the door. Maybe check your local craigslist and look for a good used TREK, Giant or Specialized.

I will never own another Walmart or big box store bike anymore, for a little more you can get a good quality bike from your LBS.

FPNI...


NO NO NO

I know this really ain't what your kid's looking for but I bought this Mongoose boys 26" dirt-jumper from Wally World shipped to my door for $160.  Showed up in three days in perfect working order less 15 minutes of build time.  



My buddy is a bike nut and was really surprised at the quality and parts that came with this rig, namely the 3-piece micro cranks and quality of the frame/welds.  I swapped out the handlebars for a set of BMX bars, added a more comfy seat, and swapped out the tires with a set of Maxxis 26" Holy Rollers.  I also stripped this rig of all the stickers and reflectors and swapped out all the orange accents for black.  I have about $300 tied up in this bike.  This is now my beach cruiser since my Jamis was stolen out from under my house by a member of the FSA a few weeks ago.  Next purchase is a legit MTB from PricePoint this week.











Also, check out bikesdirect.com for closeout rigs at nutty prices.

I'd post pictures of the new bike and is rider, but apparently, Photobucket says I'm a bandwidth whore.  

Good job OP. That is the bike that most of our High School MTB team uses. It will do him great!

I can't see your state because I am on a different site But check this out. They might have a team for him
http://www.nationalmtb.org/nica-leagues/

Glad you got a good bike for the kiddo, can't go wrong with a Specialized.

Any recommendations for a bike for a 6'5, 220lb fellow like myself?  I've got a Specialized Roubaix for road work but could use something for the dirt.

I used to manage a bike shop and have turned a lot of wrenches in my day.  I bought my 13 y/o son a Walmart bike that was on sale.  I purchased it online for $250, and for what it is, it was a better equipped bike (component grades, etc.) than the $400-$500 bikes at the bike store.  Because it was purchased online, I was able to assemble to bike to my standards (chasing threads before assembly, pre stretching cables, centering and truing the wheels, etc.), so it works well.  I told my son if his riding and abilities ever get to the point where he exceeds what the bike can deliver, I would upgrade him (and the old bike gets passed down to his younger brother).  

Used bikes are a crapshoot because they may not always have been taken care of, or had been "worked on" by their clueless owner who overtorqued fasteners, or has components that are worn to the point that they cannot be properly tuned.  You could spend a few hundred on a used bike replacing the deraileurs, failed bottom brackets, and other components that have been damaged or used excessively by the previous owner (usually the reason people sell a bike that was previously decent), thus negating the savings.

The most obvious drawbacks to a cheaper bike is that the derailuers will not shift precicesly when under load, there will be brake fade under heavy braking, and any really heavy riding you will notice frame flex and just a general failure to deliver performance.  This is usually not noticed by a novice rider.  I think that your son would enjoy his bike thoroughly for a couple years during which time he could save for a better one (if that is what he wants).  When I say better, I mean a bike that is using at least mid level components, and utilizes more advanced frame construction/materials - plan on spending over $1,000 for an entry level bike, and over $1,500 for one that can deliver decent performance.  Add $500 if you plan on going with a full suspension bike.

Bikes in the $250-$500 range are all going to perform equally as well IMO.  Just stay away from full suspension bikes in that price range because they will be junk.  They will generally lower the grade of the componets in order to offset the cost of the full suspension and keep it at the pricepoint they want.  You really won't see any truly significant increases in performance until you are spending over $1,000.

A walmart bike is fine if you know what you are doing when you put it together.  Order it online though, and do not buy one off the floor of their SG department.

Walmart is one of the best places to get cheap "Cruiser Bikes."

Not a moutain bike, if he intends to take it off road.

No, get a Kona

i bought a mountain bike from wally world

piece of shit nearly fell apart after a month

pedals fell off. seat fell off. handlebars fell off.

finally someone stole it out of my front lawn, i hope the sob killed himself on the damn thing

Kind of depends on the level of "technical". For XC riding, a lot of Walgoose bikes are actually very durable....the frames are ridiculously heavy and overbuilt (lawyer proof, and frankly without much consideration to weight and svelt styling).





I've bombed around my trails which are wicked technical on a Walgoose and while it sucked pretty hard up the hills, it soaked up the abuse without any issues for months and months of hard riding. I still have that bike, and it's still perfectly functional but looks like a monkey raped it.





I've seen more taco'd wheels and broken frames on high end carbon and upper-end bikes on my local trails than I've ever seen or even heard of a Walmart bike hurting someone.


There's a "tree of shame" on one of the local trails with broken
parts and wheels and it's littered with high end parts and I don't see
any Walmart or Schwinn hanging from it. Yes, I realize few people ride
those bikes compared to better bikes, but I see people out on the cheap
bikes now and again and they seem to survive.





I ride a good bike (GT Zaskar Pro), I appreciate what it is and where the quality matters (components, wheels and brakes), but unless I was doing downhill or trails, I wouldn't be afraid of riding a Walgoose - even if it is a poor tool for the job - on a typical XC trail. If it's assembled properly, it'll survive more trail riding than you'd imagine.





But I readily admit that for a few hundred more, you get orders of magnitude better ride and comfort.





 

I say hit up craigslist or Pinkbike.com

Ive gotta both of my mountain bikes from there, I even picked up a specialized Demo (big downhill bike) bike for less that a grand. I rarely ride the bike and probably going to sell it soon., i only got it because i had always wanted one.

you can general find some bike in great shape that retail over 1500-2k for around 5-600 or less.

I just bought a new 29" Mongoose from Wally. Shimano derailleur, front disc brake, 21-speed. So far, so good. Its a heavy beast, though.

My last Chinese Wal-Mart bike lasted me over 3,000 logged road miles (via digital speedo). I had a bike shop repair the crank bearings once when the originals failed at about 1,000 miles.

As a side note- a buddy gave me an old '82 Raleigh Grand Prix aluminum-frame road bike. It was fairly high-end back then. I can't believe how light it is nor how hard and crappy the so-called "saddle" is.

ETA- I'm a casual trail rider for the cardio/ fitness benefit. This tier1 mega-$X,000.00 bike nonsense would be completely wasted on me. I'd rather invest in more guns or ammo.

Have you looked at Dicks, Sports Authority, or the like? They sell better than Walmart quality bikes but not quite bike shop only bikes for around the price range youre looking at.

Best bet is to get one there for around that price and assemble it yourself.

Edit: Missed the post where you bought the bike already.

its all about the groupo

http://www.walmart.com/ip/26-Mongoose-Hex-Men-s-Fitness-Bike-Matte-Blue/22861850

As a parent help your kid buy a decent one from a shop.
I just dropped 1K on my SONS BMX Bike.

Why?

I have a Gravity Liberty and love it.  Even the mechanic at my local bike shop says it's a pretty good bike.

Dick's?

that's just retarded. my parents would have told me to get fukd

No.  All of Walmart's bikes are made of cheap Chinese rolled steel.

No.

Go to a bike store.

As opposed to whose frames? Nearly everyone except very very high end boutique bikes are making their frames in China or Korea.



BTW, about 50% of Walmart's bikes are aluminum framed (usually hydroformed).



In all honesty, I'd put the durability of a modern manufactured steel framed bike made in China up against the Huffy's of my youth. They're certainly heavy enough.



 

$300? Life's too short for a $300 bike. Maybe he could save up a little more then he could afford a Next.

Order online or buy used. I've broken a big box store bike on it's first visit to the local trails. (Was 16, didn't know to buy quality stuff back then.)

I'm with you, mostly. My biggest concern (and I saw some fail in a bad way) is the brake components you're gonna get on a wally world bike.
Also, everyone I looked at was geared too high for trails, imho.

I wasn't saying to buy a 2500 dollar Trek or Giant. Only to beware of most wallybikes for any real trail riding. I DID get my wife's Schwinn Rocket there and it was a lot of bike for the money.

GOOD WORK.

When I was 14, my parents and I bought a full rigid Gary Fischer for $300 over a walmart model. I rode the piss out of it for a few years, then it sat while I drove through high school. I took it to college, and it was my main transportation for 4 years. Fast forward - I'm 26, live in Denver, and with skinnies, it is my city commuter. That bike has lasted ten times longer than it should have because of proper maintenance and spending the extra hundred off the bat.

Teach him how to clean and lube a chain, NOW.

walmart's cruisers are only good for a year or so of use I wouldn't trust a mountain bike put together by those monkeys.