should i buy this long distance

[semlin]

contemplating buying this sight unseen for the mrs and shipping it. can anybody see anything clearly wrong with it from the photos other than the many scratches or can you think of any clever questions to ask.

NSMB.com Buy and Sell - 2001 15" Kona Mokomoko - Powered by PhotoPost Classifieds



she has been riding the boy`s bike which is a 15 inch trek from the same era and looks like similar geometry to me. she is not a serious rider at all but there are mild dirt and gravel trails here. her current bike is a 1987 hard rock which she barely rides, but she rode the trek a bunch this last week on gravel roads and really likes the soft ride from the rear shock and overall feel of it so i am looking for something similar without forking over big dough.

this is trek she liked riding...

 

[ravewoofer]

Sight unseen, you're taking some chances as it is a 9 yo bike. Most frames are good for 5-6 years of seasonal riding, after that fatigue will set in at the stress points, most likely the welds.

I'd consider the shocks as merely boingers now, not performance suspension. Maybe, you'll be lucky and they're not shot or totally worn out.

If you're keen on the bike, try $400.

Surely, you can find 9 yo mtbs locally if this one falls through.

 

[semlin]

hard to get anything cheaper than this in these parts, but i take your point about the welds. i guess i need to know how the bushings are too. the shocks can be rebuilt if need be.

not a lot of all mountain or xc bikes for sale around here. it's all downhill, freeride and dirt jumpers.

 

[beaufort-fj60]

the seat post being so high... makes me think a big person has been beating the crap out of a little bike.

 

[semlin]

excellent point. seller is a girl but girls have deadbeat boyfriends...

 

[beaufort-fj60]

excellent point. seller is a girl but girls have deadbeat boyfriends...

absolutely... I can see some size 50 Birkenstock smelly ape knocking the bottom out of that 15" chick's bike.

 

[ravewoofer]

the seat post being so high... makes me think a big person has been beating the crap out of a little bike.

I didn't notice that first time around, but not only is the post too high, it really can't possibly be stock.

Nine year old bike with a 6' dude riding a tiny frame does not a good deal make.

I'd pass as you're buying sight unseen.

 

[semlin]

interesting. same seller has another older bike for sale. says she is original owner and hasn't ridden it for years. same seat height. maybe she was a kid when she got them and grew. i might email and ask how tall she is.

 

[ravewoofer]

The Stinky DeeLux actually looks in great shape, especially considering it's a down hill rig. It looks like the bike has two front chain rings and some type of chain holder to keep the chain from derailing on heavy hits.

That's the bike I'd buy sight unseen as you'd know from pictures if it were beat on.

 

[semlin]

agreed but, unfortunately, a stinky deelux weighs 35 lbs at least. the wife loves the lightness of the boy's trek, which is a racing xc frame with carbon stays and i think only about 28 lbs with the dx/lx gruppo i put on it, so i am trying to stay within shouting distance of that.

anyway i emailed on the mokomoko with a demand to know how tall she is

 

[RHINO]

have you thought about buying a complete bike, or building one with bargain price parts through a .com like jensen or pricepoint?

maybe even a good chassis with lower level components and upgrade as she needs.

 

[semlin]

oh well, turns out the bike is now sold

rhino, i bought the boy's trek bike as a bare frame with shocks and swapped everything over from an older trek hardtail. it worked great but since doing that i have looked at buying parts to rebuild the hardtail since i miss it, and the cost of doing it that way adds up pretty fast. if i want to stay under $500 i pretty much have to find an intact bike that does not need much at the upper end of that range or else an old hardtail for parts plus a bare suspension frame.

 

[RHINO]

if you want to look around the Phx craigslist i'd be happy to look a bike over for ya.

phoenix bicycles classifieds - craigslist

 

[semlin]

thanks rhino. i don't see anything but i'll keep an eye out