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Full Sus or Hardtail

sloppychopssloppychops Posts: 9
edited March 2008 in MTB beginners
Greetings folks!

Virgin poster here, so be gentle with me. I have an old Trek 7500 which i bought off a friend for £50 a couple of years ago. Its a little on the large side for me so now i want to buy a correct size bike for me. I mainly use it for work and gentle trails nothing serious, but i would love to do some more challenging stuff. I've just had the weekend in Peebles and visited Glentress and thought it was excellent. My question is hardtail or full sus? I have about £1000 to spend but obviously if i don't need to spend a £1000 then why should i?

Some suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks

Posts

  • papasmurf.papasmurf. Posts: 2,382
    you won't get a great full suss for 1k so get a decent hardtail and save some money
    Meta5.5
    Duster
  • ceecee Posts: 4,553
    hardtail hero
    Whenever I see an adult on a bicycle, I believe in the future of the human race.

    H.G. Wells.
  • gaz.gaz. Posts: 7
    My sore bum says full sus , but i ride a hard tail so id say hard tail
  • FatBurtFatBurt Posts: 70
    For the type of riding you do in the main a HT would be more suited. However, a FS will provide a more comfortable ride and will be ready made for anything you do that is a bit heavier than your usual stuff.


    There are a few decent FS bikes at the £1k mark (mine was £900) but you will get a better spec bike if you bought a HT.
  • AnonymousAnonymous Posts: 79,667
    as already mentioned, you get better spec for your money with a hardtail, but in my opinion, you get a better bike with a full sus.

    pick whatever you fancy then compare full sus to a hartail around anygiven route and see what you like best.
  • sloppychopssloppychops Posts: 9
    Still none the wiser. Obvious points seem to point to hardtail for better spec, but getting a full sus will enable me to tackle the more challenging stuff.

    How much more maintenance will a full sus be compared to a hard tail? I have to admit i am a bum wit when it comes to bike maint.

    Thanks for the input folks...
  • nferrarnferrar Posts: 2,511
    Can't say I do any special maintenance on my full sus (jsut clean the rear shock carefully and dab a bit of dry lube on it then dry the pivot points with kitchen paper).

    I'm a full suss fan to - I grew up on fully rigid bikes and really can't see the passion people have for going back to them (or HT's) :p I wouldn't want something with 6" travel but the 3.5" I have now suits me and my next bike will prob be 4.5-5".

    If you've 'only' got £1000 to spend and are looking at a full suss I'd go for a 2007 model, should be able to get £1500 worth of bike then.
  • don_dondon_don Posts: 1,007
    I think I would start by test riding a few bikes, both HT and full-sus, within your budget. Ideally the shop would have some demo bikes that you can take off road for a day. At least you will then be able to get some sort of meaningful comparison.

    £1k will get you quite a lot of hard-tail, which will be pretty light compared to the equivalent priced full-sus. Personally I think this makes more difference if you are riding XC with as much up as down. Unless you are getting into serious downhilling, I don't think there is anything that can't be ridden on a HT. It will also make you choose your lines a bit more carefully and make you a better rider to boot. A decent sized rear tyre will help soften the trail a little.

    Ultimately, I would again recommend test riding a few bikes before deciding. You may find that a particular bike (whether HT or FS) blows you away and that'll be the one you buy.

    For the record, I'm lucky enough to have both, which I think is the best compromise :wink: I get equal enjoyment out of each. Hope this helps.
  • dirtbiker100dirtbiker100 Posts: 1,997
    go buy the latest dirt mag and then decide :wink: it'll help you save up money for a full sus next year :D
  • mediamonkeymediamonkey Posts: 128
    You can get some bargains on last year's models. I just got a 2007 Specialized FSR XC Pro (RRP £1300) for £999... in fact more like £650 as I got it through the bike to work scheme so I don't pay tax :D

    I only got it last week and it's very different from a rigid bike (I didn't even have front suspension on my last bike). It's rapidly growing on me though - it's weird, it *feels* slower than the rigid bike, but in mph terms it isn't! I think it's just because the intense bone-shaking vibrations on the old bike made me feel like I was flying along when I wasn't really :oops:
  • bikeperson45bikeperson45 Posts: 415
    This is like my favorite bike at the moment anyway.


    http://www.24sevenbikes.com/mainpage.html
    Me like trials biking me do
  • OllyUKOllyUK Posts: 230
    The Focus Super bud on wiggle is a decent full sus for 1k, however I think they are in high demand so limited stock.

    http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetail.a ... Bud%202008
  • GhallTN6GhallTN6 Posts: 505
    I think you've got to look long term here, one thousand pounds is a lot of money to spend on a bike, no matter what anyone says, so you've got to ask yourself.. In 2-3 years time, what am I going to want to ride.

    Plus if you do get pretty keen you'll want all the kit.. shoes, jacket, camelbak, clothing, etc.. which is going to cost..

    My humble opinion, go for a full suss, maybe a decenst second hand one as long as the frame and suspension is decent, then as time goes, you'll find that brakes, chainsets etc will wear out, just replace these with higher spec componants as you can afford them.

    Within 12 to 18 months you'll find you'll have a kicking bike.
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/grizzer_mtb/
  • Steve_FSteve_F Posts: 682
    I've got a FS Carerra Banshee X, around £600 now and it more than copes with everything at GT/Inners.

    I agree that there are a lot of 2007 fs bargins around at the moment and a bit of hunting will get you a fairly light FS bike that will keep a smile on your face.

    You have to think if you spend a grand on a HT is there going to be a point in 6 months time when winter starts again when you think if only I'd got a FS?
    Current steed is a '07 Carrera Banshee X
    + cheap road/commuting bike
  • BloodMonkeyBloodMonkey Posts: 130
    If your new to mountain biking you have to go hardtail. Your skills will improve much faster on a hardtail than a full sus because they dont get you out of sketchy situations quite as easily.

    Well.......thats my opinion, but its up to you mate
    My True Identiti.....
    http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/1750312/
  • Steve_b77Steve_b77 Posts: 1,680
    Try a few within your budget and see what you like best.

    I had a HT for 6 months and then boutha full susser, quality move in my opinion.

    As my missus has taken owner ship of my HT i'm considering buying another HT for weekend rides with her as my full susser is kinda overkill for what we'd do together
  • JCJCJCJC Posts: 162
    mediamonkey wrote:
    You can get some bargains on last year's models. I just got a 2007 Specialized FSR XC Pro (RRP £1300) for £999... in fact more like £650 as I got it through the bike to work scheme so I don't pay tax :D

    Hi - I am looking at doing the ride to work scheme but struggling to find a shop that will do a deal on a last season bike, Can I ask where you got yours from ?
    FSR XC Pro would be sweet

    Cheers
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