Is this Walmart Schwinn MTB worth upgrading? 

The bike is noticeably quieter. Sounds like a bike that can grow with the rider. People need to keep in mind that not everyone can afford to drop even $1,000 for a decent entry level bike.

This channels about to blow up. The algorithm brought me here

One year ago, this video convinced me to get an Axum and start mountain biking. After a year of riding and upgrading 'smartly', I'm hooked. Mountain biking got me in shape physically and mentally and certainly helped me get through 2020. Still enjoying the Axum as I wait for an Ibis Ripmo on order due in July. Just wanted to share and say thanks.

Bottom line, hardtails are super fun.

The only thing that matters on a bike is the frame. Everything else is a wear item. Buying a new good frame alone is normally well over $500. So $400 for a rolling chasis that can carry the newest components on the market...... You really can't beat that.

Hummm Kev has some competition. This video was gooodddd.

I just randomly found this channel and I’m shocked your content is amazing and absolutely professional it reminds me a lot of seths bike hacks I hope you continue to grow keep going man

Also, the new Schwinn Boundary is almost identical but does come with a rear derailleur with a clutch.

Why aren’t big bike companies (Trek, specialized, giant) doing this? Tapered headtube on a $400 bike?! That’s awesome.

For a budget drive train upgrade, check out the Microshift Advent group set. 11-42 9 spd cassette, clutch deraileur, and sealed bearing shifter on Amazon for $118 . Toss in a $15 chain and you have a new drive train for under $150

Jeez I can’t wait till my Axum arrives at Walmart so I can go riding already

Not only do you have a great value bike to begin with but upgrading it increases its capability massively. Not only when you reach the end of it all you have a good performing hardtail! but you will have furthermore gained knowledge about your bike and how to build and maintain it leaving you smarter at the end. This is the perfect entry level bike.

Walmart helping rid the US of covid and offering affordable bikes that can rip..

The reason this is such a great way to go is a lot of young riders don’t have money to put into a good frame straight away and build a bike, but they most likely have enough to buy a bike like this that gets them out on the trails straight away, then they can slowly save and buy those upgrades. Also there’s nothing better than getting an upgrade putting it on your bike then going out for a test ride to see how much of a difference it makes.

This bike looks perfectly serviceable, for the average guy, that being me, I'm not John tomac, or Ned over end, good reference for the kids there, I don't have the budget for 4000 buck bikes, I ride what I can afford, it's about smiles for miles, not pretending to be a pro downhill rider, good vid very much enjoyed it,

New parts for the whole new front end! This makes it a totally different class bike!

Just came across your channel. This video showed up on my home page (probably because I am a Kev and Seth fan). I really enjoyed the video. Quality is on par with the best. I like how you encourage people to ride, no matter what they can afford. Looking forward to watching your other videos. Keep them coming.

For the seat tube... raise it to your desired height and leave about an inch below the clamp and cut everything below that off. Then you can drop your saddle all the way down

I was surprised to see this bike considered as Walmart bike. In my country, this brand is closer to the mid-range quality category, and it`s more like something good to start with...

I know some will turn up their nose to this kind of bike...I personally really appreciate the fact you are showing absolute entry level mountain bikes that are perfect for people like me who just want a good bike for all kinds of trails, paved, dirt, gravel and nothing too crazy. I wouldn't even ride it as hard as you are in the video. I just want a fun bike to ride that is durable and I can do all my light recreational riding and commuting on. This bike I think would be a good one to consider and best of all, it is affordable.

I was hoping you'd do a follow-up vid like this one, awesome. A chain guide would've helped with the drops, there are some super cheap ones that would do just fine.

Love those brakes I've rescued a hybrid from the garbage to save my good bike from work commutes. Fired those bad boys on it £34 including delivery so stoked. Also upgraded drive train rear wheel, grips n pedals. And gave it a fresh paint job using spray.bike paint. Done all the work myself for first time ever. So satisfying.

Best Walmart bike vid I've seen yet. This video is going to blow up!

You can get a ZTTO fork on AliExpress for less $200. I've had one for several years now and I would buy another one before I'd buy an entry-level RockShox fork. It's not quite as good as the RockShox but for how much money you save the difference in performance is negligible. And I own an entry-level RockShox and a mid-tier RockShox fork, so I'm speaking from experience.

Love it dude! Honestly if you plan to upgrade a lot of stuff just use that money and buy an amazing hardtail frame and build it up?

Did a similar thing with my first bike in a similar price bracket, but it was an old used Norco Bigfoot, around 2008 if I've dated it correctly. About the only good part on it when I bought it was a 160mm Fox Talas from around 2015. Bought new breaks, bars, stem, and my buddy was gracious enough to gift me a spare Shimano XTR 1x10 from his old bike to finish it off, and the old girl feels incredible now. The bike shop that did the drive train swap and tune up absolutely loved it when they tested it out.

I’ve got the dropper model on the way (I think I got the last one currently in stock) along with WAY more upgrades then perhaps I should, however the debate surrounding should you upgrade right away or put that extra money into a more expensive bike to start with seems somewhat subjective to me. I started riding about a year ago using my 16 year old 26” full suspension Mongoose which was around three hundred dollars back in the day but certainly lacking by today’s standards. I put a couple hundred into it replacing nearly everything from top to bottom bracket and had an absolute BLAST fixing it up learning a great deal along the way and it turned in to a pretty decent bike. At age 55 this could very well be the last bike I purchase so I intend turning this in to a project bike right out of the box.

I’d recommend someone starting out spend $700-$800 range and buy a better mountain bike to begin with. Like the Vitus Nucleus- $749.99 which comes with a 11 x 46 Deore Drivetrain and better everything else. Why? Because a beginner can go ride it hard immediately with no immediate upgrades. For a beginner one of the most common things is to get discouraged and give up on the sport bc the bike makes riding not fun- kinda how the Schwinn is as purchased if you push it. And if it needs upgrades, then you have to consider costs, because a beginner will not likely have the parts lying around. So by time someone bought those upgrades, and then probably paid someone to put them on, they’ve already spent more than the Vitus and still have a crappy drivetrain. Look I get it, if that is absolutely all you can afford, get the Schwinn and upgrade later. But if you can swing $450 more, get the Vitus or something similar- they are out there. Some things are worth paying for.

This vid makes me feel a whole lot better about my recent Axum purchase. At one point I had a single tear running down my cheek at some of the comments on your last vid. Redemption man!!! Redemption!!!

I love watching your content! You are really thorough and entertaining in your videos, and you are so professional considering how small your channel is! I’m a fellow east bay rider and love seeing you test/take these bikes and gear down trials like chap or Cindy. You have also established your own style and branding which is awesome, keep up the videos!

I know there's alot of kev central audiences down here. How are you guys?

I always believed that as long afd the frame was good and good metal, you cam upgrade. Upgrades as you can afford them. Good learning experience both as a rider and mechanic.

This was a great video. I'm a total noob. This was a very informative video. Thank you.

The cool thing about cheap bikes is that they are a lot. There is a vast variety of hardtail frames to choose from and finding the right size for you is a piece of cake if you know what you want. So I got Trek 4900 from 2012 and its a beast. It was my first bike that I built and rode since my childhood. To be honest it was never holding me back until I went to a lift accessed bike park :D

I put a Shimano Acera on the back of my mountain bike now that's a 9-speed derailleur and they got a pretty good cage no clutch but they got a pretty spring in them

Worlds best bike youtuber, prove me wrong.

One of my bikes is a 26" steel bike i done loads to it upgrading it through the years. And even though i have another bike, the 26" had to much work to it to part with and why not enjoy 2, plus the 26" fits on the indoor trainer. I have all the shimano parts to fit to it hydraulic disc brakes and groupset and going from 3 by to 1 by. Only problem with it is the 1" steerer which came with it. This has no settings just a stock zoom fork with no seals just a rubber ring lol to make it look good lol.. I can never it seems find a 1" suspension fork with settings and good seals but apart from that when i have these extra parts added it will look better and less weight. i also will plan to say adios to my new coil rear suspension for a air version. Good video, as someone said its very Kev Central type of video which is good and a good friendly manner in your video which is cool. i was also suprised with the cheap parts for shimano groupset and brakes which i purchased.

This was a great video man! You showed why that Schwinn was such a good bike at this price point. It has modern, good geometry, and has a bit of upgradability; especially with that tapered headtube. Most people will not put a Fox fork on it but having the ability to put on one is really nice for someone who got hooked and is savvy enough to find used or close out parts like a decent Suntour or Manitou fork. I would personally buy one for my friends who want to ride and donate older parts I’ve upgraded on my other bikes. But I am definitely recommending this bike to new people to the sport. Just need to figure out a cheap rear derailleur solution.

Oh Yeah!

Yeah i have those mt200 brakes paired them with 180mm rotors and they're smooth and has a great stopping power

Would love to see you review a Diamondback Atroz.

if you upgrade the drivetrain do it with a Box Components drivetrain. 9 speed drivetrain with 11-50 gearing for under $270 or 8 speed for $155 and gearing of 1-42. great alternative to big box brands

Lol.when the fork cost more than the bike itself lol

I couldn’t find an Axum in stock anywhere, so I wound up buying a Schwinn Boundary for my gf. Gave $250 for the bike and all the rest was spare parts I had taken off of previous bikes. I upgraded it with a shorter stem, Odi grips, Shimano mt420 4 piston brakes, 180/160 Sram rotors, and a KS dropper. My only complaint is the fork. But it’s right there with a Trek Marlin 7 for 1/3rd the price. The Boundary actually has a clutched derailleur, idk how that didn’t make it on the Axum.

5:18 but really you need a chain guide too, if going on the rough stuff, or riding stairs.

Its a nice looking blacked out frame. Looks like a Specialized Rockhopper

I have a similar XC 29er hardtail from 2012, and I was thinking about upgrading it, but ultimately decided against it. I just measured the angles and it was really weird. Also fork and new wheel costed more than the whole bike. So I just slapped a new Suntour XCR fork for now.

As a 21 year old Schwinn Moab 3 rider, I like this.

I bought a chain tensioner on amazon for $10, put it on my sons bike and the chain never drops. It just zip ties to the chain stay and pulls the slack out of the chain.

Trying to find this bike in Canada. Your upgrades proved the frame is future proof. The closest would be a Trek Marlin 6. But that's a almost double the price of the Axum. Drive train; upgrade to the Microshift Avent 9. Tried it and rides better than the AXE.

remember when schwinn, mongoose and gt were good bikes?

Awesome man! My all time favorite bike was my Schwinn 4/banger, way way back in the day. Back when Schwinn owned Yeti.

Do those shimano brakes come with pads?

I like the big front triangle for bikepacking potential.

I thought DHR means "DOWNHILL REAR" and DHF means "DOWNHILL FRONT"

I had a spare Yeti SB150 frame sitting around so I bolted that to my hardtail. Just changing that 1 part completely changed my hardtail.

Who has a Fox fork layin donw in the garage

Finally Walmart gets some decent bikes.. I used to go through at least four a year.. then I switched to the Roscoe 8 by trek.. then upgraded to the carbon chameleon. !!! But definitely keep up the videos great review looking forward to getting this one for my GF. !!

La suspensión vale 2 veces más que mi bici😭

And here I was being told that too much travel increase on the front fork is taboo ! You just gave me hope !

God dang it I thought you were sending it to me. 😢

Zero frame size choices will be a deal breaker for many of us. I need an XL or XXL. Some need a small or x small. I have tried to compensate with stems, bars, seats, seat posts to no avail. A wrong sized frame set tweaked to fit often becomes scary at speed. Geometry & CG get weird. Wasted lots of money and time. Glad it works for you.

This is awesome. If you want to upgrade the drivetrain and u can get a different and microspline hub, the best deal right now is the 1x12 slx groupset on Merlin cycles.

I took a cheep full suspension huffy Teton gave fox shocks and fox mid shock a new seat and handle bars, my favorite bike

If you have a Fox 34 with Kashima stanchions as a leftover fork, you're living the dream.

Nice video! Thats what i actually did with my first scott aspect. Updated to an 120 fork new breaks and new bars! New bike!

I changed my suck mechanic brake with Shimano Mt200 too...and it's worth it

Bought this 2 weeks ago! Love it! Love it love love love ❤️ I love my heavy tank!

I just bought a £350 own-brand bike from halfords (outdoor equipment store in the uk) and it's quite similar to this. It's already got hydraulic disc brakes, it's got tubeless ready tires, and nice comfy grips. I was already half thinking about upgrading the forks (suntour xcm 100mm) since they have a nice warning sticker saying not to use them on downhill trails lol. This vid has shown me the potential of what I thought was just a cheap bike to get me around. Cheers!

That was awesome. Thank You. I don't know if the have a fully suspended bike that you could do that to I am to old to ride a hard tail. But I am going to upgrade my forks on my MTB thanks to you.

Most don't have the luxury of having spare parts, much less a Fox 32 laying around. There would be safety and reliability concerns if the swap isn't done right. You can get yourself a Specialized Hardrock 29er stock for less than the Schwinn's build cost.

Sweet video! I want to ride that trail! Yeah, it sucks when they do tapered headtube but not a thru axle front but I know price was the goal. Not a bad bike for $400 and that's awesome you threw a 34 up front! Take care

I’m watching this today, scored an axum dp for 150$ brand new in the box. Not even built yet. So some would say it’s not worth upgrading for the cost, but at what I spent on the bikes. Leaves a big budget for upgrades

An upgrade is always better than buying a pricey one as a beginner. First thing you'll notice the changes , you'll learn about the parts you are riding with. As a beginner this is also something you have to an idea about.

I love this, and am actually kind of surprised that it handled that big a fork travel and still retained a 73.5 seat tube angle!?!?

7:50, finally said it. It's about the geometry of the frame and your body. Since it can handle the upgrades, I think you can build a great bike on the cheap if you like the geometry.

I like how he puts a half bottle in the cage, all that space unlike my pivot mach 6

I've been running those brakes on my bike for a few months now and I gotta say, for how cheap they are they're incredible! In gentle to medium braking they're fantastic, but I do think they're a little lacking once you really start digging in. Which means I went back to my old (from 2004) noisier and less reliable, but more powerful Hope mono M4's

That's definitely a nice bike the extra money for the fork is definitely worth it. Still on the fence about a one by. I really like them on fat bikes. Other than that they're a little too limited for me, every once in a while I ride on the street I can't be getting smoked by neighborhood kids on their Walmart BMX bikes.

I bought the Full suspension hydro form ( some reason mines called Viking trail pro ) but put on an upgraded rear shock, better breaks and tires , better handle bars and forks and it rides like a dream, and I still spent less then 1000$ including the price of the bike itself, can’t really go wrong with that and I’m not nearly as worried about breaking it as I would be one of my more expensive bikes.

I got the slightly newer version of this bike. The only thing I did was pimp it out with accessories like lights and then tightened the brakes and replaced the seat with a spring version so it's more comfortable. That's pretty good for me. The last thing I'm going to is replace the pedals with metal ones. This is actually my first modern mtb because I've been using a 1st gen bike from the 80s that was also a Schwinn

It’d be interesting to see a more budget oriented upgrade build, like an SR Suntour fork with QR, and maybe swapping the calipers for Avid mechanicals.

just ordered the mt200 brakes for my hardtail, excited to see how they are!

I got lucky and found a Schwinn Taff still in the box at a Walmart in the suburbs of Chicago two weeks ago it's quite similar to the Axum (which was not in stock) I plan on making the same upgrades ASAP! Thanks for the information!

i bought a mongoose 29er that i upgraded. the only origial part on the bike is the front der. my most favorite bike ever!

A Deore M6000 10-speed group can be snagged for $150 on ebay pretty often, and I would recommend the SR Suntour Raidon as it's available with a tapered steerer, QR bosses, can be adjusted to 140mm of travel internally, and can be had for under $200. Also, you can pick up a set of MT501 levers from Shimano for even more braking power later down the line; you get Shimano's Servowave lever and are typically on Universal Cycles for $34 a piece.

What we learned, a frame is a frame and if it’s upgradable it’s good. If you find a frame that looks good you can make the bike good if you have the parts

I don't have a bicycle but still watching the video.

how i didnt have this in my recommended before holy shit this video is good like really good your voice is clear the camera work is very good too and just everything else good job my man

Honestly not a bad bike at all! Especially finding a used set of forks for a deal and buying parts from amazon this could be a great bike! I ride a fathom 2, and this looks great

There are some cheap walmart-style bikes with frames that are also used in 1000 dollar bikes. Mostly I view all af these as "Buy the frame, get some stuff to test the frame with for free"

Really curious on the Box Four derailleur you ordered. Looking forward to your next video. Thanks.

Awesome video, nice upgrade... Deore 10 speed (w/clutch) should do for a non super expensive upgrade and a Sunrace Casette 11-42t or 46t... and you good to go...

Everything has a beginning and an end. This is a good pick, when your starting out the first MTB you use will become busted and bruised just like it's rider rather quickly.

There are plenty of tapered forks with quick release dropouts so you dont necessarily need to replace the front wheel

Nice i ride a huffy explorer 27.5 inch downhill on rock gardens and steep technical trails with lots of roots and turns never had any issues i replaced the rear suspension and brakes i slso bottom out my front suspension on bigger rocks the only issue i have im waiting for my suntour fork with 120 mm travel to come on monday i may put a carbon fiber seat post carbon fiber handelbars and new pedals and a crank set/ chain when i can afford it

Man, Grab one of these and hit the Pinkbike classifieds for a fork and drivetrain! That thing is a gateway drug for new riders!

SOunds like a perfect setup for the Box Prime 9 I think I am actually going to buy one of these bikes for my everyday rider.

Has upgraded: bar and stem, fork, wheel, Tyre, and brakes. Want to upgrade: drivetrain, dropper. I bet you that when the bike is actually usable for a intermediate rider that the only thing left on this thing that is original is the frame.

Box 4 derailleur is 8 speed with a clutch.