Hi!
Been looking for a way back into BMX after a 14-year lul
I've been scouring the used and new market and It's incredibly hard to find the perfect starting spot….especially when you think you know what's good and what's not….but times are a changing as they say lol
That said, I have the opportunity to pick up a NEW Eastern Shovelhead for around around $500…
https://easternbikes.com/collections/bmx-bikes/products/shovelhead
I know it's full chromoly. But I would probably swap some parts to customize the look and feel right off the bat (seat, tires, grips, possibly bars and forks, add a gyro etc.). I guess the question is if it's a solid foundation to build off of overall or should I continue to look for deals on a WTP, Sunday, Kink etc?
by Krossrunner
7 Comments
$500 is decent if it’s brand new, rrp is of course $200 more. You won’t find anything new (outside of an on sale price) with full 4130 frame, fork, bars for $500 now as that’s the entry level cost for pretty much any branded bmx now. Eastern aren’t quite the brand they were, and if it was at its full rrp I’d definitely look at wtp or Sunday over and eastern. But since it’s a fair bit cheaper then, it offers good value for money
Looks like a great starter bike. If you’re tall enough for a 21” top tube I dunno of you could do much better. Kink Whip is also an option to consider.
$500 is a good price for that bike, do you like the geometry? Depending on how far you intend to go with customization you may not end up that far ahead financially, I recently built fully custom from S&M and am in it for around $1500, but got exactly what I wanted.
I feel like the value in the Shovelhead is in buying it and just riding it. If you’re gonna get way into customizing immediately, it begs the question
– why not start with a frame that is exactly what you want and just do it once instead of customizing a compromise?
Or – Buy the shovelhead, ride it, customize it gradually as you go, then eventually take all your new custom parts and swap them to a custom frame. The nice part here is that you’ll have the data from riding the Shovelhead and can say “OK I want a longer or shorter chainstay, top tube, standover, etc”
Fuck eastern. All I’m gunna say.
Definately a good starter bike ,Look at sundays stuff too .Sundays are a bit more expensive but have a better build quality .
I’ll recommend scouring FB marketplace. Someone in my town was selling a Sunday Darkwave for $500 in great condition. I just picked up a United martinez pro in great shape for $200. Of you’re patient there’s good deals and if you end up not feeling it you didn’t invest too much.
I was considering a kink whip xl I ordered it and they actually didn’t have one in stock im 36 had a 24in a few years ago I sold anyway…. they refunded the kink I found a fit series 22(22in bmx) threw a custom wheelset on it and its super fun fun pump track Dirt jumps and fast carving I recommend any of the 22in completes there’s a guy selling a wtp audio 22 on my for 500 in my town rn
https://preview.redd.it/82wzia5iqhuh1.jpeg?width=3060&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=efded1d980d6ac5db556b792c22022ec1e26af1d