# Upgrading a Dept store bike.....



## atxjax (Sep 28, 2009)

Hello all. Newbie here. I just got a Pacific Titan21 speed full suspension bike on the cheap from my cousin. i got it for 30 bucks. It needs some drive train help. I am planning on upgrading everything to some shimano deore components. although I need help picking what I should get. here is a picture of the bike...










It has the following.

rear cassette is 13,15,17,19,21.24,28
Front cranks = 22,32,42
Front derailuer = FD TY-32
rear derailuer = RD TY-18

What I want to do is find out what parts I need as far as the front and rear DR go....and a new crankset. I can get a rear cassette on ebay for fairly cheap. and mount it myself.

do you always need a new nut for the rear cassette?


----------



## DavidR1 (Jul 7, 2008)

I wouldn't recommend upgrading this bike. Get it in good working order, then ride it till it breaks. When this happens, use the money you would have sunk into the bike in upgrades to buy a new bike. It just isn't worth the money or hassle of upgrading in my opinion.


----------



## atxjax (Sep 28, 2009)

DavidR1 said:


> I wouldn't recommend upgrading this bike. Get it in good working order, then ride it till it breaks. When this happens, use the money you would have sunk into the bike in upgrades to buy a new bike. It just isn't worth the money or hassle of upgrading in my opinion.


Thanks for the reply. I agree with you. I need to get it in good working order as my beginner bike. I am not looking at throwing gobs of money at it. I just want to put in some replacement components that are better than what it has currently that I can buy on ebay for fairly cheap. Like upgrading it to a Deore set components.....they arent the best but they are better than whats on it now and they are cheap.


----------



## Rod (Oct 17, 2007)

This is probably not what you want to hear, but I recommend getting a used bike off of craigslist that isn't from a department store. My friend has found a Trek bicycle for 100 dollars before. It would be a lot easier and better economically for you to get a cheap used bicycle.

The parts you want to put on the bike would cost more than the bike new.


----------



## bucksaw87 (Jun 18, 2007)

a bike like that literally isn't worth putting money into. as others have said before, with the money that you're gonna spend on components, you could buy a very nice bike from your local bike shop. if, for whatever reason, you can get the deore components for very cheap, your money is still gonna be better spent elsewhere...someone mentioned buying a better used bike off of craigslist. another thing i'd actually be worried about would be compatibility...i'm not sure if "aftermarket" (for lack of a better word) parts would fit on a bike like your pacific.


----------



## Dremer03 (Jun 19, 2009)

Reusable parts your bike has...possibly.

Stem 
Handle Bar
Seat Post
Pedals

The rest can go in the trash. Like everyone else has said this bike isnt worth upgrading, and is not even close to being a trail bike. Keep it on the pavement, dirt roads, and bike paths and it will work for many years. After 1 time on a XC trail, your bike wont be the same.


----------



## atxjax (Sep 28, 2009)

So.......... lets day I can get some good used set of cranks and derailuers for about 75 bucks........its not worth it? Keep in mind that I only paid 30 bucks for this bike. My total would be $105 invested for a bike I probably wont ever take trail riding or anything? All I really want it for is some excersize around a track at the lake....


----------



## Dremer03 (Jun 19, 2009)

By the time your done changing those 2 parts, you will probably want to change more until it just is not worth it. Dont forget you have to either buy tools and install that stuff yourself or pay someone to do it. I dont think it is worth it. If you can manage to keep it in the middle chain ring and like 16 or 18 tooth cog in the back you can just ride it like a Single speed bike.


----------



## Oracle7775 (Oct 31, 2008)

atxjax said:


> So.......... lets day I can get some good used set of cranks and derailuers for about 75 bucks........its not worth it? Keep in mind that I only paid 30 bucks for this bike. My total would be $105 invested for a bike I probably wont ever take trail riding or anything? All I really want it for is some excersize around a track at the lake....


If you want to spend money on it, and you're a competent mechanic who can keep it in good working order, go ahead. The parts you describe can probably be switched over to a new frame once you decide to upgrade. Remember, though, that there are other parts on that bike that will need more maintenance than the same parts on a higher quality bike. Chief among these will be the wheels. The wheels that come on department store bikes are legendary for coming out of true after only a few small bumps. If you plan on upgrading the wheels as well, you should probably just go ahead and buy a new bike because a decent set of wheels would probably at least double your total investment.

People on this forum have a (well-deserved) knee-jerk reaction to department store bikes because they can be very dangerous on the trails. It's good that you don't plan on taking it trail riding, because that bike (even though it has "suspension") probably also has one of these:









The suspension on these bikes is mostly for show, and the frame is simply not engineered to withstand any sort of off-road stress. Don't be tempted to take it off road, because there is an increased chance of injury on one of these bikes. Of course, there are people who post about how they take their Pacifics and Roadmasters on the trail every day and drop people with $3000 wonder bikes all the time, but the fact remains that these bikes are more prone to massive failure if the frame is stressed beyond its limits.


----------



## mizm05 (Sep 7, 2009)

I agree...my brother gave me a Pacific for free before I knew anything about bikes. He told me what a great bike it was and I thought I was getting a great deal. I took it to the bike shop to have it looked over and the guy said for what it would cost to get it on the road (not trails), I might as well buy a real bike. Even riding it on the pavement was pretty bad.

Cut your loss at $30 and save up for a real bike. Or keep this one off any trails and stick to pavement or gravel at the most.


----------



## Dremer03 (Jun 19, 2009)

Its interesting because as of today in the last few hours someone posted this exact same bike and i mean the exact bike right down to the picture on Criagslist.com for 120 dollars. http://austin.craigslist.org/bik/1396143291.html same town as you also  Not to be a stickler but why would you try and pass it off on someone else for 90 more dollars than you paid?


----------



## Timon (May 11, 2008)

^ lol. pwned, as they say.



> What I want to do is find out what parts I need as far as the front and rear DR go....and a new crankset. I can get a rear cassette on ebay for fairly cheap. and mount it myself.


why do you need all these new parts?
are the current ones broken, or just don't work as well as you expect them to? could just use some adjusting to get it worthy of riding around the block. there's a number of videos on youtube of how to adjust derailers....i'd suggest watching those before spending any money. i'll also +1 the posts of everyone else here. the bike's not worth putting any money into in the first place.

it also takes $50-$100 in tools just to change out parts on the drivetrain. far more than the bike's worth. you need a chain whip (hold the cassette while you undo the nut), a cassette tool (specialized adapter for a nut that holds the cassette on), a chain break (to take the chain apart), a crank puller if it has a square taper bottom bracket (very specialized tool that gets the cranks off), a ratchet set (cranks), and a set of allen keys (removing/installing derailers, shifters, etc)



> So.......... lets day I can get some good used set of cranks and derailuers for about 75 bucks........its not worth it? Keep in mind that I only paid 30 bucks for this bike. My total would be $105 invested for a bike I probably wont ever take trail riding or anything? All I really want it for is some excersize around a track at the lake....


if that's the case, and its a mellow trail....i'd suggest just doing the best tuneup job you can with a screwdriver (adjustment screws on the derailers)....leave your investment at $30, and ride it until something major breaks. you can always just find a gear that works (no rubbing/skipping/clicking), and never attempt to shift out of that gear.


----------



## mizm05 (Sep 7, 2009)

And you even lied to the poor guy who's gonna buy it saying you paid $120 for it. Unless you've done some repairs you didn't list in this thread. If you are lying in your ad...that's pretty slimy.


----------



## Rod (Oct 17, 2007)

Like I said earlier it would be much easier to look for a good used bike on craigslist. It would be cheaper, much less of a hassle, and have decent components for less than a what you want to spend. It would be at least 20 pounds lighter.


----------



## atxjax (Sep 28, 2009)

actually I lie din my first post because I bought this bike on a impulse buy.....I did pay 120 for it. I would even give you the guys number that I bought it from just to confirm. 

I feel like such a douche for paying this much for it. Being how I didnt know anything about bikes I am stuck with it now.

So in my ebay searches I found some pretty cheap stuff to upgrade it with. Found a couple of deore front DR's for about 15 bucks and a rear also for about 20. 

I measured the front DR mount tube and it is right at 32mm. Does this mean I need a 28.6 front DR or a 31.8 from dr?


----------



## Lambdamaster (Nov 5, 2008)

only an idiot is going to buy your bike for $120.. no offense


----------



## CHUM (Aug 30, 2004)

atxjax said:


> actually I lie din my first post because I bought this bike on a impulse buy.....I did pay 120 for it. I would even give you the guys number that I bought it from just to confirm.
> 
> I feel like such a douche for paying this much for it. Being how I didnt know anything about bikes I am stuck with it now.
> 
> ...


HA!....Ok....now i've got that over with....

Don't stress....we've all made ridiculous purchases...live and learn...it's really no biggee you got 'had'....

BUT....as most have posted.....it is a bad idea to upgrade this rig. Go online and do some research on tuning (parktool.com for example)....you'll prolly only need a screwdriver, a couple hex keys, a makeshift bike stand, lube and some patience.

Tune it up so it so it shifts clean and stops. Then, go out and have fun....gravel roads, paved paths...but i'd steer clear of anything remotely technical.

save for a while...study up on what you really want....then go in informed for your next purchase.....my .02


----------



## highdelll (Oct 3, 2008)

I think the price needs another '0' in it.
That way only serious riders will respond.


----------



## JPark (Aug 12, 2009)

CHUM said:


> HA!....Ok....now i've got that over with....
> 
> Don't stress....we've all made ridiculous purchases...live and learn...it's really no biggee you got 'had'....
> 
> ...


Absolutely perfect post.
+1...x2 ... I could not agree more:thumbsup:


----------



## Timon (May 11, 2008)

atxjax said:


> actually I lie din my first post because I bought this bike on a impulse buy.....I did pay 120 for it. I would even give you the guys number that I bought it from just to confirm.
> 
> I feel like such a douche for paying this much for it. Being how I didnt know anything about bikes I am stuck with it now.
> 
> ...


quit on this bike while you're only $120 behind, and not 150-300 in the red. used deore derailers off ebay aren't going to make much of a difference.

adjust the ones that are on there now to work semi correctly, and then ride it until something major breaks. CHUM had good advice.


----------



## Tulsa (Jun 22, 2009)

I dont think this guy is going to listen, we keep saying dont upgrade and he keeps saying the word upgrade, Its going to be a waste of money even if he buys a new chain for it, he will figure it out at some point, after he looses more money


----------



## Dremer03 (Jun 19, 2009)

At the very least what you should do is swap out that frame, which is the part that is more than likely to break on the trail.


----------



## Tulsa (Jun 22, 2009)

Vtolds said:


> At the very least what you should do is swap out that frame, which is the part that is more than likely to break on the trail.


and the fork, shock, cranks, wheels, derailleurs, shifters and brakes


----------



## 550 (Jul 26, 2009)

You are looking at the KING of impulse buys. (I have two heli's to prove this point haha)

It happens.

What I would do is. Sell the bike for what you can get. Mark it at 120 and see what happens. Don't lose you ass on it. But be prepared to go lower.

When this happens, you will want to start looking at eBay and craigslist. Search for some of the bigger name brands which you can find on here. Do some research on what you are looking at.

For instance if you find a Motobecane 700hx. Who knows if it's good, but what you do is put it into the search engine here and see what people say. Remember there is a review section here. What you could do is go to a local bike shop and size yourself up on a bike and then that way be more prepared to order a bike online. Be weary of this though as you may be in for more than you bargained for. Ask the seller questions. (Craigslist is good because you can go see the bike and test ride it, eBay is more skeptical because you only go off the words of the seller.)

Remember to do your research. Stupid purchases are minimized by doing research. 

And DO NOT upgrade this bike. Thanks. ;-)

Good luck, and ask questions it won't be a bad thing.


----------



## Dremer03 (Jun 19, 2009)

Tulsa said:


> and the fork, shock, cranks, wheels, derailleurs, shifters and brakes


I would be less worried about these parts failing than the frame. Yeah all of those are horrible parts but they will get you by until you can replace stuff starting with the wheels and moving up from there.


----------



## Evo. (Feb 3, 2009)

highdelll said:


> I think the price needs another '0' in it.
> That way only serious riders will respond.


ROFL!!!


----------



## Tulsa (Jun 22, 2009)

Vtolds said:


> I would be less worried about these parts failing than the frame. Yeah all of those are horrible parts but they will get you by until you can replace stuff starting with the wheels and moving up from there.


I dont know, the wheels are the weak link, but no point in discussing it, he is selling it and getting a better bike... right??


----------



## 3snowboards (Aug 19, 2008)

I thought at $30 it was overpriced


----------



## asheck (Jun 9, 2009)

IMO, if you trully are not going to take it off-road, do what you want that will make you happy with it. My buddy's dad put a few hundred miles on his xr-75 Mongoose, and was perfectly happy with it. Now my son rides it daily, and it has yet to magically compose it's self into a pile of scrap metal. 

BTW lieing is bad, m'kay.


----------



## NYrr496 (Sep 10, 2008)

I bet if you lube the shifter cables, it'll work as good as it's possibly gonna work.


----------



## sxotty (Nov 4, 2005)

atxjax said:


> Thanks for the reply. I agree with you. I need to get it in good working order as my beginner bike. I am not looking at throwing gobs of money at it. I just want to put in some replacement components that are better than what it has currently that I can buy on ebay for fairly cheap. Like upgrading it to a Deore set components.....they arent the best but they are better than whats on it now and they are cheap.


Do what you want, but if you insist on upgrading I would pick components that could easily be swapped to a new frame and buy better components you actually will want to keep lx-xt as a minimum.

There are not that many things you can transfer though. Shifters, rer der, it looks like it can take disc brakes so you could get a decent wheelset + disc brakes. And you can find all this stuff cheap if you are willing to go back a generation in parts. Then someday you get a new frame and all you need is a front derailleur and a few other parts. There is nothing wrong with upgrading components, but make sure if you do you get something you will actually be happy with. Otherwise you will just buy them now and later again. No point in that.


----------



## jeffj (Jan 13, 2004)

atxjax said:


> actually I lie din my first post because I bought this bike on a impulse buy.....I did pay 120 for it. I would even give you the guys number that I bought it from just to confirm.
> 
> I feel like such a douche for paying this much for it. Being how I didnt know anything about bikes I am stuck with it now.
> 
> ...


The good news: Congratulations! You bought a bike! Cycling is a great activity to be involved in and we all have to start somewhere.

The bad news: The bike you bought isn't what you'd hoped it would be, so your cycling debut is a tad rocky. One day, you'll smile and chuckle about this, but today isn't likely to be that day.

My first "mountain bike" was purchased from Sears. I am 6'5" and those kind of bikes only come in meduim (18") :madman: The truth is that many of us have our own similar "douche" tales that prove you're not the first to do something like this.

I think the best thing to do is to admit to yourself that it was not a great investment for what you want to do. It seems you're still a bit in denial since you're talking about buying shifters, derailleurs, cranks and such. Take a breath, give yourself a small kick in the pants (you meant well, but just didn't make a great decision). We ALL make mistakes. It's how you recover that matters most.

Don't feel too badly about it. If the worst thing you do in regards to buying something bike related for $120 that doesn't work out, you're probably doing better than most. The thing is, don't compound the situation by throwing more good money after the bad you've already spent.

It's like losing $120 on blackjack in Vegas and trying to win it back on the slot machines. Better to consider it a lesson learned and recover with a solid plan. If you're determined to keep it, I think you'd be better served to invest in a few tools to work on it and see if you can tune up what you have instead of sinking ANY money into any part that's not truly broken.

It'$ a $lippery $lope once you $tep out there and if you $tart, I bet you won't $top until you replace ju$t about everything. Take a breath and ponder that $cenario. There'$ a rea$on $o may here warn again$t it, but much like your original fib here, it'$ tough for u$, err I mean them  to come completely clean about our own trip down that $lippery $lope.

You can ride the Titan on trails so long as you're not riding too aggressively and you go over it to make sure things are mechanically OK. In the meantime, save that money toward a different bike. That may not be what you're hoping to hear, but it's a better path than trying to make a silk purse from a sow's ear. For now, see if you can lube the cables, maybe replace them and the housings if they don't respond to some TLC. But I seriously wouldn't be buying shifters, cranks and such items :nono:

OTOH, you may be like the 2 year old that finds cat poop in the flower bed. It's interesting and looks like it might be chocolate :eekster: . You picked it up and smelled it and it cost you $120 to do so :madman: . It smells bad. Don't make the situation worse by eating it (spending more money on this bike).


----------



## fda47 (Aug 26, 2009)

*say NO to dept store bike upgrade*

To OP, I suggest you listen to these guys/gals. My son had a XR-75. Did ok but it limited him a lot on the trails so we got him a used GF Wahoo from CL. I still ride my Mongoose E303 (from Sports Authority) and so far it hasn't shredded down to pieces  But it's definitely struggling on the intermediate trails.

Bottom line, say NO to upgrades on dept store bikes. That's what I'm doing and just waiting, rather impatiently, for parts to fall apart or the frame to break. Not successful just yet :madman:


----------



## Spawne32 (May 22, 2009)

you bought a very cheap department store bike, ok its not the end of the world. dont listen to EVERYTHING everyone says on here, the frame is not gona snap in half, ride the hell out of it, just dont invest any money in it, and i wouldnt go doing any crazy jumps with it, assuming you can get that heavy thing off the ground lol. My brother does technical mountain bike trails with a 80 dollar huffy stalker, but he doesnt mod it with expensive parts, thats just stupid, its a throw away bike. Its not gona shift or brake as well as a better equipped bike but its a bicycle, and it will serve its purpose.

Remember though, bikes are bikes, saftey first regardless of how much your spending on it, we ride past guys on the trail who break parts and injure themselves on 3000 dollar gary fishers so i dont want the LBS sackriders on here giving you the impression that a more expensive bike is impervious to the trail.


----------



## LordDRIFT (Jul 10, 2009)

What a train wreck this thread is... just rubbernecking along..


----------

