Which is why I get so fustrated with the broad brush painting that all Wal-Mart assemblers, associates, managers, checkers, whatever, is a complete, underpaid idiot. It just ain't that way everywhere.
Doesn't matter who's assembling them, they're still crap. I can expertly assemble a Wal-Mart bike, but it's still a POS.
The same is the case in our store and like you ,I get tired of the same old BS of underpaid know nothings,idiots or otherwise unemployable,as many of the Walmart Haters like to call us Walmart employees.
True, I won't argue that they're all incompetent. But one has to look at the source and question or verify the mechanical aptitude of those putting these things together.
You're buying a dept. store bike, it's not like there are experts in every dept. When you buy from a LBS, they're supposed to be experts. I could see someone holding an expert accountable if they were the one responsible for assembling the bike.
The same could be said for the big box home improvement stores. I don't trust half those folks as far as I could possibly throw them.
Cheers,
SZ