Help choosing a 'starter' womens bike please...

woodlandsfolk

Hi - I've posted in the 'Buying advice' section thought that this might be a good place to ask too.

I'm looking to get a 'starter' bike with a budget of £250 - £350...

I know this isn't much but could do with some help. I've looked in some bike shops and seen:

Giant Yukon W (hayes mech discs) £300ish

Specialized Hardrock Sport Disc (hydro disc) £370ish

Specialized Hardrock Sport Disc (mech disc) £300ish

Specialized Myka Sport (mech disc) £320ish

Could anyone advise on these bikes? The Specialized felt comfortable and controls were easy to use, but Giant Yukon maybe has better spec...

If you have some experience of these bikes or can suggest others I'd love to hear from you.

Thanks

supersonic

Hardrock is a bike you really want to be avoiding in my opinion - they are very heavy, underspecced and a bit of a handful. Check out the Trek 4500 too, nice and light and damped fork, and the Carrera Kraken. In the end your decision will be based on what feels best.

Mrs Toast

I'm no expert, but I did spend a lot of time looking at ladies bikes before I bought my own recently, so he's what I found...

I think the Myka Sport has replaced the D4W Hardrocks, so you should be able to pick a 2007 Hardrock up for a lot cheaper than the 2008 Myka equivalent. However, from what I gather, the low end Specialized don't fare well spec-wise to other brands - they're often cited as being heavy with iffy forks. If you can go up £450, the Myka Elite has a much lighter frame, a better fork and better brakes. On the downside...it's brown.

I never tried out a Yukon, so I can't really comment on it, but if you want the 14" one, you can pick it up in the sale from some places for £225 instead of £300! :P

I'd also suggest looking at the Trek WSD bikes - you can pick up a 2008 4500 WSD for £400. Of all the bikes I tried, I found it to be the most comfortable and the best value. The only downside is it has v-brakes instead of discs, but from riding hire bikes, I've found that good v-brakes are better than cheap mechanical brakes.

As a lot of people will say, the only way to be sure is to actually try bikes out - the shop where I got my Trek practically demanded that I took a couple of different makes, models and sizes out for a test run.

EDIT: Damn Supersonic and his super fast typing!!

woodlandsfolk

Hi - thanks for the speedy replies!!

I'm going to test ride a couple of bikes next week and I'll let you know how I get on. In specialized I was going for a 17" frame (5'8"). My budget probably can't stretch to the trek 4500 so I'll keep looking in the £250 - £300 range (I know its hard to find a good bike for this!)

Read some reasonable reviews of the Giant Yukon W - has anyone else tried one?

On a techhy note, I need advice on the brakes...

Specialized Myka Sport has Shimano BR-M415, mechanical disc, 6" Center Lock rotors

Giant Yukon W has Hayes GX2 mechanical discs

Are either of these any good?

The Specialized Hardrock Sport Hydro has Hayes Sole hydraulic w/ 6" v-cut rotors, but this is £70 more!

Thanks for the advice so far.

nicklouse

mech disc brakes are OK but i would be asking the shop about an upgrade to some twin piston hydros as part of the sale. will be cheaper if done now than later.

also check that the saddle is correct for you.

milese

Did you make a purchase in the end woodlandfolk?

I'm looking to buy my girlfriend a bike in the same price range and was looking at the Giant Yukon W, as its available for £225.

I cant find any reviews anywhere!

supersonic

Yukon mens scored 7/10 in a recent review at full price, but I think it represents excellent value at 225 quid, with some solid components and frame. Well worth considering.

lynseyf

I had the Hayes Sole hydraulic disc brakes on my Specialized FSR and hated them and have read a lot of other people say the same so I would not pay more for them

Mrs Toast

Heh, the better half has Hayes Soles on his FSR which he got nearly two months ago - he's already looking to upgrade them. I like them because they occassionally make odd noises like an angry turkey.