I appreciate the comparisons of lower end bikes. I’ve got 4 growing boys who I’m trying to keep in better than decent bikes without breaking the bank.

As a long time mechanic I’ve loved this series to help show customers what they are getting when they buy a bike from a shop!

One thing to keep in mind with these. You could go riding at $350ish. You can then go upgrade as you have budget. This is particularly useful for like students who maybe don't have a steady income stream so they are really limited to the funds they have in the moment. "Just save up" might take them a really long time. With this you don't have to drop that whole $850-$900 at once. A lot of these comparison videos like this make the same mistake. It isn't just about the final total spent.

Something i'd like to add is that for some of us, there is fun to be had in progressivly working on and upgrading our equipment. I won't get the most out of a $900 bike, but getting a bike for a few hundred (or an old hardtail for much less) and working on it for a few years is fun in its own way.

It’s worth doing if you consider the value of maybe learning about basic bike mechanics. If this is your first bike, and you haven’t wrenched before, there is intrinsic value in education. If you just want the best bike, I still think a department store brand for most people will be hit or miss.

The saga with this bike is quite the ride. I think we'll see it next on a flip bike episode

You have said yourself that you are a cycling advocate, and this goes one step further in proving that. We can appreciate the video showing how a beginner (or even a young kid, with not a lot of money for a high end bike) can buy his/her own starter bike, then upgrade it gradually as they see the need, without having to dish out almost 1k+ upfront. Well done.

After almost 15 years I was finally in the market for a new MTB. I literally saw the Kent Trouvaille in Walmart yesterday. I googled it and your videos popped up first thing! I went through the whole series in store and it helped me make the decision to pick it up. The bike was actually marked clearance at $150 (398 online). At that price and with the upgraded crankset and hydraulic brakes you recommended, I think i will have a decent entry level bike I can build upon. Thank you for your honesty and your detailed breakdowns. You have earned yourself a follower!

This is such a valuable series for those looking to get into MTB on a budget. I think it's important to mention though, that it's essential to support your local bike shops as often as you can because they keep this community going!

I appreciate your series! I've been wanting to get into MTB for years and this series is what actually made me pull the trigger last summer on the Giordano Intrepid from Walmart. One thing to mention is that while the cost savings is questionable, you learn a lot about bike service and maintenance through the process and can make future bikes/upgrades a breeze :)

As someone who rides a Polygon and has helped someone pick a new starter bike recently, I'd say Giant is probably your best value for an entry level hardtail but Polygon takes the cake when you get into full-sus (granted Fezzari and 1 other company that starts with a V also have some good value)

I bought a bike from Halfords (UK chain auto/bike/sporting store) for around the price bracket of the Kent. I think what this video demonstrates best is that I could probably do some essential and high value upgrades to my current bike to get it to be really something quite good. Its definitely inspired me to look into a 1x conversion.

Glad to have the Kent make another appearance!

Another good option could be something from Specialized, like their Rockhopper Comp. For $713 (with the sale), your getting SRAM hydralic brakes, 1x9 microShift Advent drivetrain, and a good looking bike with different color and size options. Yes, it does come with a SR Suntour coil fork, but because it is cheaper than the Trouvaille, you can spend to replace the fork with the one shown in the video (SR Suntour XCR). With the fork upgrade, its only about ~$100 more if your trying to get something that already has a great start and upgrade from there.

Brilliant video!!! You don't even know how much do riders all over the world learn from you, and for that we're extremely grateful!!!

thanks for posting. did the same thing to a Ardor 1x and love the result because I love the process of rebuilding. really got to know how things work together...

I started my mountain bike journey about 7 years ago on a Genisys bike from Walmart. By the end of that first season I spent most of my trail time fixing and tightening that bike up. By the next summer I had a used Giant Talon 1. Huge upgrade, Walmart bikes have their place, just not on the trail.

You can throw different dropper seat tube sizes and use a cane creek shim adapter. Works perfectly.

Great way to learn how the basics of maintenance and parts replacement of your MTB! Thank you for the share. 😎👍🏽

loved this series, not many people do stuff like this, Was much needed! I have a carera vengence and its good to see the type of upgrades I could use. Budget versions of things with your okay, always amazing to have.

I don't have a lot of incomes buying relatively cheap and upgrading is the only way for me to eventually have a good bike. And let's be honest, i really enjoy the process, every spring, buying and installing new stuff, tuning the bike all summer and start all over again the next years.

For the canyon comparison, you couldve looked at the canyon stoic 2. for 899$ you get that srsuntour air fork, deore 1x12 drivetrain and so on. So i think the stoic 2 has the best value of all bikes at that pricepoint

Such great editing! Especially when moving the crown race, I loved it!

Did about the same exact upgrades to my gt avalanche 29”. Rockshox fork, pnw dropper, pnw handlebars and grips, 32 tooth front chainring to make it a 1 by, better tires, and shorter headset. Couldn’t be happier. Got all my advice from this channel.

Something alot of people aren't aware of if you get a suntour fork new (be at it after market or OEM bike spec) , register the warranty you can then get money off a new upgrade fork from suntour I had a polygon xtrada 5 and got £75 off when upgrading the OEM xcm fork (I didn't use it but it's nice to have that option (

You need to collab with Kev Central with Walmart bike upgrades.

Bought my first mountain bike because of this series ! A Kent Trouvalle ! Haven’t had no problems I’ve never worked on a bike till I bought this one. Planning a berm peak trip in march and I can’t wait honestly I am upgrading it from all the parts you did advise

Motorcyclists here chiming in. You nailed it when you spoke about the dealer cycle shop experience. The Walmart is one and done; once you buy the bike, your on your own for service support. Buying a bike from an authorize dealer will give an owner future support for any customization's. Harley-Davidson is perhaps the best example of this business model. H-D dealers don't just sell a motorcycle, they sell a whole ownership experience. When buying a Harley, a prospect should really be scrutinizing the dealership because that's really what's being sold. The major Japanese brands have not been nearly as successful with this type of dealer-to-customer support. They are better at cloning the actual motorcycle then they are at establishing dealer-to-owner experience IMHO. Great video!

You didn't account for your time/ labor in the final price. Probably at least $100-150 to swap out all those parts and make those mods. Also, as you pointed out, the seat post is an odd size, so getting a dropper on there is trickier. (You'd have to see about getting a narrow one and use a shim). And I'd say the Trek, Giant, or Canyon frame are better to begin with. Cool experiment, but in the end demonstrated that it's just not worth trying to make a department store bike actually trail worthy.

Here in Europe you can get things like either a Cube attention SL with better specs on every level, 12speed deore, Rockshox judy, hydraulic discs for $812. The Trek Marlin 6 gen3 is only $801, a Marlin 7 $866. A Scott Aspect 740 for $790. Too many options to sum up really, all cheaper than the Kent with upgrades.

Loved when you looked at all the different bike brands to compare, I feel like that knowledge alone was worth watching the video thank you!

That looks mint! So good to see some decent, low-cost + upgraded bikes like this.

Seth is the father of so many mtbers he can't even imagine

I’ve done these type of projects on a Mongoose Ardor and a Schwinn Al Comp and learning how to build an entire bike was worth it alone. Though I’ve now spent like 400 on Park Tool alone.

Really appreciate and enjoy this type of content Seth! Would love to see more ⭐️

Your videos are always informative and entertaining.

seth you forgot the canyon stoic!! its only 850 dollars and comes with a much better 140mm suntour fork!!

the bike wasn't put together by animals. the people who put the bike together are EMPLOYED by animals.

I loved this series and seeing how far you could go with this bike!

Really enjoyed the series! :)

The Kent is a perfect bike for someone who can’t afford $800 up front on a bike, but has enough knowledge and skill to upgrade it themselves. As a kid I always upgraded my bmx bikes myself, and learned how to properly maintain them. As an adult now, I can do pretty much any upgrade I want on a mtb as long as I have the tools.

I like how you have a super nice shop, a rad little shop dog and tons of fancy tools but you don’t have a $15 crown race remover😂. Entertainment value⬆️🙌🏻

Dear Bern, Thank You. Excellent review . You are a bike expert and that is to You advantage. A normal person will not have readily available quality labor like Yours... which for me is what makes the Big difference. You are a problem solver and provide solutions to what you encounter. Regards.

That was so cool of an experience!!!!! Thanks for doing this, I'm definitely subbing 👌👍🙌

You should definitely check out the Giordano Intrepid. It looks like an awesome bike for a department store bike.

Any day Seth uploads a new video is a good day👍🏿

Thanks for making all the good videos i all this year. Keep up the good work.

My first “real mountain bike” was a hardtail that was upgraded similarly on a 2012 entry level trek frame. I absolutely agree with your conclusion, but you didn’t dig in to one of the major reasons as much as i would have. The lack of a dropper post is the largest nail in the coffin for me. That was pretty much my first upgrade. I think a dropper post and brakes and the most important upgrades to be able to progress as a rider safely. If it’ll never have a dropper post, I wouldn’t put a dime into it. Great video, thanks for doing this project! Brought back a lot of memories!

This is an awesome comparison! You never mentioned that on the Trek or Canon, you can fit dropper posts as well. The one thing you really wanted to do on the Kent travail. Yeah you can always go cheaper on items but usually the ones that are a little more expensive are for good reason. The amount of money that you have to put into research and development, it's a big cost increase on products that people forget about and usually only the large companies are really making that big spend

The thing I liked about the Kent Trouville was the affordability. It offered me the chance to get the bike and see if it was something I would enjoy, then if I chose to do the upgrades, I could. I wasn't out $800 right off the bat to find out if mtb was for me or not. I found that I liked it, and decided to continue. Knowing that its something I enjoy, my next one will definitely be one of higher quality/serviceability. As for my Kent, I've done most of the upgrades you did, except I did a seat change. The one that still has me thinking is the fork upgrade. Seeing the process of how to install a new fork is a little intimidating (which upgrading can be a big negative if you aren't mechanically inclined when buying a cheap bike). I'm over an hour away from any real mountain bike shops, and wouldn't even know where to start if I looked for one. So I was able to get a ton of information about the sport, the tools, and the knowledge that goes along with owning and servicing my own mountain bike. They sure have changed a lot since I was a kid! Now if I could just find the perfect video to walk me through a fork swap with common tools, lol.

Seth well done mate really enjoyed the breakdown and comparisons.

Man I've been waiting for you to upload I love your videos Seth

it's always a good idea to buy the best bike you can afford. you will usually spend more money upgrading a less capable bike in the long run. but, if $400 is all you can spend, the kent is a worthy platform. upgrading also forces the learning process. Seth, amazon sells an adjustable reamer that will let you safely drill the seat post tube out to 30.9mm. another youtuber did this without incident. great video, bro.

Having tools, knowledge, time needs to be accounted for. Not everyone has all the skills required to do these upgrades.

I loved this series! It was informative, entertaining, and frankly... Fun! I also agree 100% with the conclusion--the cheapo bike may get some things right, but it's not a better value in the end (especially, if you are injured before finishing the various modifications). Moreover, the comparison left out three important, real-world factors that push still harder against the Trouvaille: 1) those name brand bikes are routinely on sale for less than MSRP; 2) we should all put a value on our time; and 3) the best values out there (hands down!) are in the used market. Buy your friend's old bike when he upgrades--$500, plus a professional tune-up will take you far!

Really enjoyed the series so far! What would be your number one upgrade if you could only have one? I feel like the tires almost always have the biggest impact when upgrading cheaper bikes. So much more can become "rideable" when you get some adequate tires for the terrain you're riding on.

I spent less than that with better wheel set. Using the Schwinn Taff Comp $124 bike

Also tools. That's an important thing to consider. Most people who would be interested in doing this are unlikely to already have the same tools that you do. So it's an additional $200+ for just the tools that you used in this series. (Bleed kit, crown race setter, hex keys and a screwdriver if they don't have any, two different BB tools, just to cover the basics)

I got a Kent trouvaille for my son to gauge his interest. I like customization and upgrading as I go. Also, the Kent frame is definitely more of a medium than a large, despite what Kent might label it as.

The Vitus Nucleus VR or VRS is a really good shout, air forks and hydraulic brakes as standard with better wheels and much better finishing kit.

Did the same to my Schwinn AL comp, nothing stock but the frame, it was a fun project and has been great for mild trail rides

I've been looking for a video exactly like this but for a 26" dirt jumper. Props on the cost breakdown and analysis.👏👏👏

I loved this series cause it's helping me build my custom full squish on a budget cause I've been worrying about the price of hydraulic brakes and stuff like that

Love your little black and white shop supervisor helping out lol

This series is excellent! Entry level for most of regular people than want to ride on the mountains

Side bar, your workshop is dope. Love the balcony inside

Awesome video dude, very fun and interesting!

Getting my excited to ride again. Thanks Seth

The SunTour XCR fork is a great fork for the money. I’ve been running it on my Diamondback Recoil for several years now with zero issues.

Hello I subscribed Because I enjoyed the walmart bike videos. They were fun Can't wait to see more of you host!

I like what you have done. I'm on a budget and found buying the entry level bike and do upgrades along the way to be reasonable value for money. Often buying second hand almost new and on special parts. I end up with almost top spec of the same model over time. Love your work, keep it up.

I really enjoyed watching this series and if nothing else it shows you can buy this bike on a budget and slowly upgrade over time. For $400 you can ride today and every paycheck or 2 you throw $50 to $100 at it until you have a decent bike.

Good knowledgeable bike shop techs will take care of ya, we love em!

Please do more of the showing bikes online and reviewing their stock setups it helps me learn what to look for

Love the series. As someone who's been riding and upgrading/overhauling high-end and lower end bikes i think it really comes down to money you want to spend up front (which most will look at). As you stated when it comes down to price it's either spend $600+ dollars on a bike with worse geo or go with a Wally World bike (Trouvaille, Axum, Ledge X1/2 or Ardor) and do some mild upgrades and still come out cheaper, better components and better geo. Also as stated, the 3 major things to put money towards are forks, brakes and crank but that's with all of them. Not to mention that most of the popular Walmart bikes can except tapered forks where as none of the bikes that are compared can not.

I love everything you are doing here thank you

I've been slowly building my Trouvaille up and while I could have gotten a LBS bike I wanted something to learn to work on bikes. I've done a tubeless conversion and changed to knobbier tires. I got some wider more grippy pedals. I changed out the bars and grips for much better ones(the ones when I bought it had one of the bolts stripped out so I couldn't take them off). While MAJOR overkill I put some magura MT7 hydraulic brakes on it. I haven't yet changed my fork and I didn't need to change my crankset/chainring. I love it and I'll continue to make it better.

So the common argument is to compare total cost vs buying a comparable bike up front. What’s missing is that, you can upgrade at your pace and spend when you want. Big upfront purchases are harder. For my dad who’s 62, we bought the Kent last summer and added mt200 brakes. That got him riding and seeing if he liked it. This year we are doing a little more to it in prep for the second season. At the end of the day, he’ll either buy a new frame and swap over the upgraded components we’ve bought, or he’ll be done with it and I’ll have a nice hard tail to use. So yeah if you just wanna upgrade immediately and all at once, that’s not a good idea. But I’d budget is tight and you’re exploring the sport, that’s where this option shines.

Great video as always!!!

Great series you earned a follower

I like how on almost every video when you are talking about specific parts (like the dropper post) you explain it for ALL audiences

I still tinker with my old (now wife's) Trek Marlin 5, *because* it's so easy to work on. It taught me a lot on bike maintenance & upgrading that I now use on my Polygon Sisku T8. I'll be the first to admit that it's not for everybody though, and lots of folks would and maybe should just pay the LBS to do things.

As an enthusiast of the bike customizing, this Walmart Bike is an indefinitely better deal for me than any other you've shown in this video :)

Very good breakdown! The only sense it makes is if you wanna spend less on bike purchase and build what you want, it makes ok sense. Amazon makes it so easy and affordable. Like you said, now it's a good bike but at builder's expense

Learning a lot thank you!

As someone who works as a bike tech for REI, and a former bike mechanic for an independent local shop, I can honestly say that Seth is totally right about the service side of the equation. We want your bike to last and work for you. The best way for that to happen is to get the a decent bike from a reputable retailer. I know that some of the larger REI stores have a division of labor in the bike area, so assemblers and shop techs aren't the same role. Considering that, it may be a good idea to bring your bike in for your free service sooner rather than later to ensure that a tech can go over the bike. If you're buying from a smaller REI or an independent local shop, the bike will be good to go from the jump. The other factor to consider here is labor and tools needed for these upgrades that Seth did to the Kent. It's still going to be cheaper for you to buy a nicer bike and only pay for the fork upgrade instead of paying for all of the labor he has in this bike. All that said, it's still cool to see a bike from Walmart that actually has some "good bones" in it.

This is some really good content!

Thanks for the videos! Really enjoyed watching these. I would make one suggestion. We need more appearances from the dog, please. 🤣

Forked up is my move !!! Well done series.

I would love a review and breakdown of one of the bottom line REI mountain bikes

This is really useful for someone like me who is VERY cheap and happy with a bodged-together "good enough" mountain bike.

@ Berm Peak , great video Seth! I scored a Diamondback Sync'r for $750 during their black Friday sale. For basically the same money, I think the Sync'r is a better overall package. I know that's not the point of the video, but I thought it was worth mentioning. Keep the awesome content coming!

I wish this video was out last year! Blew my budget on something not MTB related but this would have been so much better

Another great video Thanks

I like those valve caps..just bought the same color for mine.

Love the upgrade series. Can you do upgrade series on a giant revel 0 ?

I actually did something similar when I first started getting into mtbing. I got a used hardtail Diadora Corso for under $200 CAD (which is a Canadian tire brand bike) but saw that it had the ability to be upgraded with more standard parts and over the course of 3 years I upgraded the wheels, tires, drivetrain, fork etc until the only thing orginal is the frame itself. Id estimate that with the bike plus the all the upgraded parts, I more than likely spent the same amount as a bike of similar performance but what was great about doing it this way is that everytime I made an upgrade it also made an upgrade on the riding experience which got me to excited to ride it more. and or someone that wasnt 100% sure i would enjoy this sport this was a great way to get started in the sport without the burden on spending $1000+ straight out the gate . Now I have a bike with a great riding experience and when im ready to buy a decent frame ill have lots of well performing parts to install on it.

Seth, thank you for this video! Oh man, it rings so many bells. I've got BCA 29er bike from Walmart 6 month ago for $148, didn't know anything about bikes back then. For the fun of it I've started upgrading it with everything I can. Acera derailleurs front and back ($40), M361 hybrid crankset ($25), Acera shifters ($30), bottom bracket ($12), KMC chain ($15), headset ($18), Rockshox Recon air fork ($190), handlebars and stem ($25), seat with seatpost ($30), pedals ($15), QR axles ($12), 34 teeth Sunrace freewheel ($20), $10 derailleur hanger, $15 grips, Shimano brakes ($50). Except the fork which is a major upgrade to any sub $900 bike, it is $300 right there, lol, making this $148 bike a $450 bike cost wise or a $650 if you add the fork, ahahaha. Not counting all the tools and supplies I had to get for it. And I still have a crappy rear hub with 48 spokes (!!!!) and a freewheel wobble that I may have to upgrade to a new wheel with a cassette (another $120) and a cheap frame without rear disk brake mount. Was it better to get Kent Trouvaille - a much better bike for less money? Absolutely! Do I regret not getting it? No, because I've learned so much about bikes. I do not remember when was the last time I had so much fun as during this project. Watching your videos, reading about parts, how they work, how to replace wheel axles and make the wheels true. To me it was like taking a an advance bike class and paying a $600 fee for it, while getting an OK rideable bike in the process. Just need to keep it secret from my wife so she doesn't kill me, or better yet get her Kent Trouvaille:))))

Good series Seth

Awesome content as always. I'm pretty sure this video was made back before all the crazy sales, but I just saw a polygon d6, full sus for 900 bucks on their site. Of course with shipping that's 125 bucks more than the Kent, but I believe it is the best value full sus I've seen recently.