Korean Job Discussion Forums

[kraggy]

Are there any second hand bike shops in Seoul? If not, where could I buy a men's bike for a reasonable price?

Craigslist hasn't come through for me.

Thanks.

[soomin]

A lot of the time, bike shops will have bikes sitting outside. These are usually the second-hand ones that they have to offer.

You can also get them pretty cheap (100,000 won) at Homeplus if you find one that sells them.

[highstreet]

most bike shops have bikes in all price ranges

[kraggy]

Ok thanks.

Can you point me in the direction of a particular shop, either near Jamsil or Itaewon?

Or anywhere in between? Just so I dont end up walking the streets for hours without actually coming across a bike shop.

Thanks again.

[Troglodyte]

If you just want a cheap bike that you're going to ride around town for the summer, then don't bother buying one. The city has thousands of free bikes that it's more than happy to give you. Next time you're at a subway station or bus terminal, you might notice that some of the bikes have a sticker on them (usually those ones also have no air in the tires). Those are bikes that have been there for too long and the sticker tells the owner to take it away or it will be removed. More often than not, they're removed. If you want one, go to your local Gu office and ask who deals with abandoned bikes. Say that you want one. Some Gu offices (or city halls in other cities) will charge a small fee to claim a bike (no more than 40,000 Won at absolute most) but most give them away for free. They have so many that eventually they just give the whole lot of them to the scrap metal dealers.

If you do this, give the bike a test ride to make sure that the axle in the pedal moves without a grinding sound or else you'll be back in a month for another bike. Also, check that the wheel rims aren't bent. They're really hard to bend back into perfect shape by hand and even a little bend will make it hard to use the brakes. Still, if you recognize that the rest of the bike is name brand and good quality, then just take it and get a new set of rims at a bike shop. Anyway, you might have to get a patch kit for the inner tubes (or even new tubes altogether). Still, it's cheaper than buying even the cheapest of bikes at HomePlus which are really bad quality to start with.

If they're giving them away for free, then ask if you can have 2. Take one regular bike for riding around the city, and one of those tiny fold-up bikes for when you go on a weekend trip somewhere. If they fold up small enough, you can put them in the luggage area on the bus and ride it when you get to your destination. The fold-up bikes are also more acceptable on the subway.

[kellyciat]

100,000 won sound about right.

[kris.seoul]

Did anybody buy Folding bike in Home plus?
I would like to hear your experiences...