Walmart, Kmart, and IKEA probably aren’t the first places you’d look for a trail-worthy bicycle. Unless you make a modest YouTube living testing box-store bikes, that is.
You might think there are a million reasons not to buy a bike from Walmart. But Kevin Watkins has cultivated millions of views and over 30,000 YouTube subscribers showcasing a few reasons why you might.
Nearly every week, he posts a ride review of an off-the-shelf box-store bike on his channel, KevCentral. He’s also spun this into an Amazon-influencer page for products he recommends. From Huffys and Schwinns to IKEA’s short-lived Sladda cargo bike and Walmart’s infamous full-carbon mountain bike, Watkins (better known to viewers simply as “KevCentral”) videos his experience, the good and the bad, on the trails near his northern Alabama home.
KevCentral: Box-Store Bike Reviews
Walmart Bikes: Good, Bad, & Ugly
How to Modify a Walmart Bike
Walmart Hyper Carbon X Modified Build
- RockShox fork
- Shimano Deore cranks
- Shimano bottom bracket
- Race Face Chester pedals
- Race Face 30t single chainring
- Shimano SLX 10-speed cassette w/SLX derailleur
- 760mm alloy bars
- Silicone foam grips
- Shimano hydraulic disc brakes
- Converted from 26-inch wheels to a 27.5-inch wheelset
with Kenda Honey Badger tires - Total (including bike): $965
- Suspension: Most big-box bikes come with a cheaply built suspension fork that looks like it can do more than it can, so that’s usually an area that can make the ride noticeably better.
- Drivetrain: I like to go to a 1x setup to save weight and keep things simple.
- Handlebars: These bikes usually come with narrow bars, so wider bars will help with control and comfort.
- Quality pedals.
- A better saddle and/or grips. However, some of the most recent bikes come with decent saddles, so it’s your call.