new ht or fs frame for £600 - £800 or new bike?

craker

Bit of a general one this.

I'm itching to use my cycle to work scheme, but I'm not sure what to get. I ride a 2000 Jamis Eureka with upgrades like Marazocchi bombers (2002) hydro disks (Shimano cheapy ones) on a Bontrager wheelset (dunno which - it's heavy)


Most (all) of my off roading is at Cwmcarn or other trail parks these days :roll: , my hardtail is OK, bit heavy and not terribly smooth, I've never ridden fs though.

I'm tempted to buy a new ht frame & wheelset and have a light weight bike to upgrade (ie forks next when Mrs L's back is turned). Recommendations?

Or for the £1000 get a new fs frame (eg chain reaction have got a carbon fibre viper(?) for that money), but transferring my components onto that frame makes a bit less sense.

Or save up a bit and just get a new bike for ~£1500. fs or ht...?

bomberesque

1000 will already get you quite a lot of bike. You will certainly get more HT than FS but at that price (and cetainly at 1500), you shuold be able to find some very nice FS deals.

I would trawl around for some alternatives, build a shortlist of 5 or so then do a pro/con thing on them.

For FS, especially if it's your first one, you really want to test ride them before you lay down the cash. Many FS designs require a different style of riding (most FS bikes I have tried, for example, do not favour out of the saddle climbing) this may suit you, it may not. Only trying a few out will tell you.

For HT, you can be a little more standoffish if you put some effort in. Of course test rides are preferred but I totally understand that all the best deals are on teh interwebs so this can be tough. You need to be comfortable enough on your current bike to be able to tell what's wrong with it; cockpit a little short / long? Steering a little twitchy/slow? The best way I've found to do this (in the absense of shops and test rides) is to be a serial borrower of mates' bikes. Plus then you can go out for a proper ride, where many shops want you to decide after a ride round the carpark and that way madness lies.

Also, I bought a series of cheap stems of different lengths to muck around with cockpit lengths and handling, this was quite an education, you can also get adjustible stems from commuterbike / touring type shops which allow the same thing. Once you've ridden a range of different size and geometry bikes, you will zoom in on what suits you. Once you have dialled the overall cockpit length, head angle, stem length (which affects both cockpit and handling) and standover that suits you best, you'll effectively be able to choose a frame from its geometry, then the internets are yours.

All that said; test ride is the best way to make sure you end up with a bike that you like and that likes you.

for a grand, I'd go for a HT unless I could find a special deal. for 1500, I'd propbably hold out for FS but depends on the deal you can find.

Clarkii

As posted in the credit crunch thread there is a FS GT Sanction for around the £1500 after price reduction:-

http://paulscycles.co.uk/products.php?plid=m1b1s1p1441

craker

bomberesque wrote:

Many FS designs require a different style of riding (most FS bikes I have tried, for example, do not favour out of the saddle climbing) this may suit you, it may not.

I have had quick goes on a mate's bionicon and similarly some rental bikes in Morzine, so these are all maybe more downhill bikes than xc. Strange riding position, I was almost on top of the steerer with front wheel out in front of me, like riding a chopper or something. Couldn't ride it at the time. Probably just a matter of getting used to.