Customer Reviews

Schwinn Merge Men's Cross/Comfort Bike (700c Wheels)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

After my trek was stolen, I purchased a schwinn hybrid at Target thinking I was gettng this bike.
It sucked. so I returned and purchased this one from amazon.
Got it fast.
Easy to put together out of the box.. not too heavy.. a nice ride to and from work.
Wheels not to skinny, not too fat...Handles the streets and bumps well
For the money its well worth it. Big difference between the 26" and 700c wheels..

Great bike for the price. I'm a novice who has never built a bike before, but it only took me about 90 minutes to finish assembly using the how-to videos on Schwinn's website. Since then I've been using this as a daily commuter bike to get to school four days a week and I've been really satisfied by its performance. It's fast, responsive, and does great with the rough streets I have to deal with between my house and campus (the front shock does an especially good job of plowing over small potholes; I barely have to slow down). The overall performance is great and I don't have any major complaints.

If I had to say there were negatives, one would be that there really isn't anywhere on the bike to mount a u-lock; after buying a lock and trying to install the mount I discovered the bike's body is too small to accommodate the lock, but I solved that by getting a cable lock instead (the handlebar riser is actually the perfect size to coil a cable around). The bike also comes pretty bare bones and needed some additional hardware to really work as a commuter; I installed an aftermarket headlight, taillight, and rear cargo rack to make it more practical. However, I don't really consider that as a point against the bike because (a) I don't know of any bikes at this pricepoint that come fully loaded, and (b) it was actually nice to pick out my own equipment and customize the bike anyway, so it's actually almost a positive.

Overall I'm very happy with my purchase and I'd recommend this bike for anyone looking for an inexpensive, reliable commuter.

I bought this beautiful bike that is very comfortable to ride. I was smart enough to have it assembled by my local bike shop.
I really enjoy riding this bike. It does not have a rear fender for splashes in puddles, so I borrowed the fender off my old bike to protect my clothes.

It arrived on time. Not difficult to assemble. Looking awesome. First 20 miles are among the most pleasurable bike riding experiences of my life. During mile 21 my derailleur pinged during a gear change and kind of imploded on my spokes, wedging in there really good and mangling the back end. My bike shop repair bill is $110. Suddenly my nifty $250 bike is up to $360 and I'm two weeks in.

I had a few issues with the installation of this bike. The cables came twisted up with the handlebars, and to fix one brake-line that was wrapped the wrong way, I had to remove a hand-break. The hand-break mechanism came into a bunch of parts and was difficult to put all back in place one the cable went the way it was supposed to. I also had to play a lot with adjusting the cable for the front gear derailleur to get it to hit all three gears.

But now that it's all working as it should, it's a blast to ride around. I just bike around the neighborhood or to nearby parks or restaurants, and this is really a great bike for that. It's comfortable, coasts well, and looks pretty sharp, too.

The Merge replaced a Schwinn Voyager. The Merge is not as good in quality of components, and the bike was received without proper set-up (deraillure, cassett, etc.) I purchased the Voyager 6 years ago on line and it came requiring minimal set-up.

My 20-year-old Bianchi hybrid finally died, so I went to the local bike shop. They wanted $500 for any bike I wanted, so I looked on Amazon. This Schwinn looked pretty good - $225, shocks, good reviews.

It was easy to assemble, but handling the brake parts was unnerving, so light and flimsy feeling. Discovered quick-release on the front hub and seat, but not rear hub; and the quick release are far lower quality then I am used to -- again, light, flimsy material. The seat quick release does not grab properly, so you have to tighten it so much it is painful to attach/release.

The pedals are cheap plastic, and do not spin freely; plus there is no chance of attaching toe clips :(

The weld on the front rim is imperfect, so there is a bang-bang-bang when you brake.

I have ridden it less than 20 miles and it has developed a clunk with each revolution of the pedals. Nothing is hitting visibly, so perhaps something inside the crank or the pedals?
The front shock is pretty cool! Little bumps just disappear. Maybe it's the fatter tires too (my old bike had high pressure, 1 1/8" tires).

The frame is not quite big enough for me (and I'm only 5'10"); I have the seat as high as it will go...

Bottom line: I made a mistake. I loved my Bianchi; I don't enjoy riding this cheap, Chinese-made, Schwinn.