Confused!

Pricey117

I've been riding for a couple of months now and im really enjoying it, have a couple of mates who are very good and both have £1000+ bikes.My skills have really picked up lately and im interested in taking my biking further..but at the moment im stuck with a rather (without sounding ungrateful) crappy bike. Im looking to spend about £800 - £1500 on an XC bike, which could cope with some moderate downhill trails....Im totally confused about what bike to get.. so if anybody could help me..i'de be grateful..:)

Thanks..

Andy B

Lets narrow things down a bit.

Hardtail or full suss?

XC or All Mountain?

Pricey117

I've currently got a hardtail..but hoping to by a full suss for a decent price..

I know im being awkward..but i want a bit of both..XC and all mountain..

But to narrow it down..probably a ligh-weight all mountain..

Does that help at all..?:)

Thanks for replying:)

Pricey117

Andy_B
I've currently got a hardtail..but hoping to by a full suss for a decent price..

I know im being awkward..but i want a bit of both..XC and all mountain..

But to narrow it down..probably a ligh-weight all mountain..

Does that help at all..?

Thanks for replying:)

stayhigh65

You could do a lot worse then one of these:

http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/?fn=produ ... goryId=144

Its a light fast bike with reasonably good spec and Rocky Mountain bikes are excellent quality and bomb proof.

The Slayer is also worth looking at though will top out your budget by a few hundred:

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=19661

Pricey117

Thats helped a lot....

..thought im still open to suggestions..if anymore biking gods have more of a clue than i do:P

stayhigh65

As a slightly cheaper alternative you could try this:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Lightly-upgraded- ... dZViewItem

I've brought a couple of bikes from ebay and have found that people are pretty honest about what they're selling, if you send them a message they will send you better pics and you'll save a few hundred quid too.

Which is nice

thewaddys

http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/ ... et-3-11030

Ave that. This is "what mountainbike of the year" and deservedly so. I bought one and its immense. You are on the forum of the people who said it is the best so trust em! Looks lush too!

Hope this helps.

chilledsandwich

Top end of the budget is the Giant Trance X2, been getting great reviews everywhere, looks amazing and has a great spec.
http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-GB/bikes/mountain/1403/29660/
Rec. Retail is £1500 and I know a place with 10% off their '08 bikes on the January sales and a Trance X1 in their test bike fleet

The Big Cheese

The Trance X2 is a lovely bike - should defo be in your top 3 possibles!

Also check out deals on '07 Reign . LIke this:

http://www.tredz.co.uk/ProductDetail.asp?ProductID=7711

Sorted bike that!

Splasher

I think everyone MAY be pointing you at a heavier bike than you want. When you said moderate downhill trails, did you mean the downhill bits of the trails you are riding anyway, or did you mean specialised downhill tracks?

The reason I ask, is that if you mean the former, a 4" XC bike is probably best because it's light and fast and will cope with the DH sections of trail centres and XC routes. In mountain biking the word Downhill tends to mean the latter, and hence people will recommend a 5-6.5" bike which can manage a bit of XC and a bit of DH but may be 7lbs heavier than you need.

I hope this makes sense - I know what I'm trying to say.

iiJonnyii

spesh pitch maybe?

Pricey117

Splasher-
I have a few mates who like to do a bit of downhill, but they both have relatively heavy bikes.One has a Norco Shore 2 and the other has a kona stinky. I've tried them both out and found them really good..although, im not that big and struggled with the weight..
Downhill isnt my cup of tea, but to abvoid getting left out, i go along.I prefer to do a bit of XC so therefore..i'd prefer a lightwieght bike..which would cope with a day out with my mates(Although, im not very good at downhill,so i wouldnt really be pushing the limits)

Thanks for the help:)

Splasher

So it is indee the fabled All Mountain bike you are looking for. I reckon there are only a couple of true AM bikes around: the Spesh Enduro and the Scott Ransom and to get them to the magical 6" and 30lbs the manufacturers had to go back to the drawing board and in one case design a composite frame, in the other design their own suspension. As a result, both are hideously expensive.

Because the 6" 30lb dream was a bit harder to achieve than they first thought, manufacturers have gone back to selling 29lb 5" bikes and 33lb 6" bikes and I guess one of these is where your ideal bike sits (see above for all the ususal suggestions).

Or you can do what I did, and build your own (see Reign link for a 30.2lb 6" bike built from £950 worth of new bits plus my old bike.)

Pricey117

Compliments to your bike..looking outragously Lush!

Andy B

Giant Trance (4.2" travel)
GT I Drive 5 (5" travel)
Commencal Meta 4.3 (4" travel)
Commencal Meta 5.5.3 (5.5" travel)
Specialized FSR XC Pro (4" travel)
Specialized Stumpjumper Comp (5" travel)

All superb bikes, well worth testing.

Splasher

Thankyou kindly.

It amazes me that Giant don't do this but they want to keep the ReignX and Reign as separate bikes and so they put a Fox 36 on the Reign X (which is fine but a Reign X is too heavy for my going up needs) and a Fox 32 on the Reign (which is fine but a Fox 32 is too flexy for my going down needs) so I made my own!

Pricey117

Fair enough, i'd like to build my own bike, for my own specific needs..unfortunately..it costs so damn much.:)

Andy B

Custom builds are really expensive in comparison to a buying a full bike. Manufacturers get the components loads cheaper than we ever could due to their bulk buying.

You can always buy a full bike & sell the bits you don't like immediately, so they are sold as new, and replace them with parts you do want.

Splasher

Don't be so defeatest. You can do a lot better than you think building your own if you shop around. In 10 minutes I'd put this together. Not saying it's right for you but it shows what can be done. I doubt you'd bet a spec like this on a complete bike for £1500!

Reign frame £625
http://www.rideon.co.uk/shop/ViewProduc ... ductId=264

LX group inc wheels and brakes £300
http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/?fn=produ ... egoryId=83

2008 Pike Air U-turn £400
http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/?fn=produ ... egoryId=18

SDG Bel air saddle £18
http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/?fn=produ ... egoryId=41

EA50 post £30
http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/?fn=produ ... egoryId=55

Holzfeller bar and stem £30
http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/?fn=produ ... egoryId=74

Pair Panaracer Rampage 2.35s £46
http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/?fn=produ ... goryId=132

Tubes £10

Grips £15 for ODIs

Total £1,474

Pricey117

Thanks for taking the time to help me out and give me such great advice.
I really like the idea of building my own bike.
And i really like the Rocky Mountain SXC series, so i might mix and match, buy the bike , but at the same time looking around for any alterate parts that might personalise the bike a little..then, sell the parts that i dont need off new, like Andy_B Suggested.

This has really help, thought im still a little torn between several bikes..

But im sure i'll make my mind up soon:P