BMX training

Noizetek
Noizetek Posts: 98
edited January 2010 in MTB general
Was just perusing the bikradar site and was reading the "Winter Warrior" articles and saw the one about the using a BMX track to train on. Which then got me thinking 'why not just buy a BMX?'...so does anyone on here know about BMX's, whats good, whats not etc...I would budget about £150 really as it will only be to play around on...was looking at the Scorpion Torment BMX, any thoughts?

Comments

  • JamesBrckmn
    JamesBrckmn Posts: 1,360
    The scorpion looks ok, but as with all bikes, cheap ones won't be as good - there will be a compomise somewhere. Alternatively, you could get this: http://www.evanscycles.com/products/bla ... e-ec019989
    If you can stretch your budget: http://www.evanscycles.com/products/bla ... e-ec019987
  • dave_hill
    dave_hill Posts: 3,877
    Cheap usually means a high-tensile mild steel frame - which will weigh a ton and feel utterly dead.

    Cro-mo main tubes are better but if you can stretch to full cro-mo so much the better, and make sure that the fork blades are too.

    Good makes to look out for - Hoffman, Fit, Eastern, Stolen, Subrosa, GT, Mongoose, Blank, Fly. Go and have a browse through the BMX mags in Smiths too, plenty of goodies in there to get the juices flowing.
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  • captainfly
    captainfly Posts: 1,001
    At about £150 you aren;t going to get much, hi ten frame and probably a loose ball bb (heavy and need more regular work), so have a look a geometry for mountain bike type trainning (as in not flatland) you want to go for a top tube length over over 20.5 inches, so a race style bike is your best bet., as you don't need a detangler etc... I am currently on the look out for a decent team spec jump BMX for two or three times your buget for a similar purpose.
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    Mongoose Teocali
    Giant STP0

    Why are MTB economics; spend twice as much as you intended, but only half as much as you wish you could afford? :roll:
  • Torres
    Torres Posts: 1,266
    What about a 24" mountain bike?
    Merlin have got an 08 black commencal absolut on their webby for 200 at the moment. I cannot reccomend the frame enough, and it comes with rigid forks and v's, so rides just like a big bmx, just more versitile. Full cromo too!
    What We Achieve In Life, Echoes In Eternity
  • Torres
    Torres Posts: 1,266
    This is the one i meant. Now less than £180, bargin!

    Didn't notice it had cheap suss forks, but you could alway swap them out for a rigid and have a really nice play bike.
    What We Achieve In Life, Echoes In Eternity
  • What about a 24" mountain bike?
    Merlin have got an 08 black commencal absolut on their webby for 200 at the moment. I cannot reccomend the frame enough, and it comes with rigid forks and v's, so rides just like a big bmx, just more versitile. Full cromo too!

    Thats quite a nice idea...will have to make up my mind but that commencal is nice!
  • captainfly
    captainfly Posts: 1,001
    I'm not allowing myself to get a 'play' mountain bike as a cheap one would be a money pit for me as it would be 'I just uprade this' all the time and can see an easy grand by the time I;m done :roll: I mean I would NEED Argyles and Hydo brakes maybe stronger lighter wheels, it would never end. I don't have the will power or cash for that.
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    Mongoose Teocali
    Giant STP0

    Why are MTB economics; spend twice as much as you intended, but only half as much as you wish you could afford? :roll:
  • Check out Mirraco's, just picked uo two full chromo bikes from JE James for just over £200 each. :D
  • Don't know what's on the arket these days but I'd up the budget to £250 (maybe even £200). You can get yourself a decent little bike for that.

    Was even considering it myself. BMXs are great out of the box pieces of kit. Will feel very strange at first, but loads of whippy power and great fun blasting about the streets on as well as developing your upper body. It's rare to see a skinny BMXer. And perfect for plodding/blasting to the shops with.
  • spend £250 minimum on a BMX

    don't get a cheap BMX, they feel sh*T to ride and fall to pieces (hubs, cranks)

    I got back into BMX with a DK 6-Pack (around £220) and had to have 3 from my local shop before getting one that was straight and worked properly (the first 2 were very poorly aligned and had issues like undersized fork race seat, offset brake mounts, twisted dropouts)

    with BMX, they are so minimalist that each £50 pricepoint you increase, you get tangible benefits, normally relating to materials (4130 butted cromoly frame, fork, bars) and sealed bearings (hubs, cranks) and aftermarket branded finishing kit

    spend a decent amount, its going to be SO much nicer to ride, and more durable

    Macneil_Whitton_09.jpg

    I currently ride a custom built £1500 bmx (aftermarket Macneil frame, Odyssey 41T fork, S&M Redneck LT stem, Profile hubs with Ti axles, Primo Hollowbite cranks with Ti axle) but a £500 complete from FIT, WTP, etc. will feel very, very nice to ride

    Rob_Footplant_1.JPG[/img]
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  • colintrav
    colintrav Posts: 1,074
    Noizetek wrote:
    Was just perusing the bikradar site and was reading the "Winter Warrior" articles and saw the one about the using a BMX track to train on. Which then got me thinking 'why not just buy a BMX?'...so does anyone on here know about BMX's, whats good, whats not etc...I would budget about £150 really as it will only be to play around on...was looking at the Scorpion Torment BMX, any thoughts?



    It depends on what your wanting to do with it some come with those trick nuts fitted some don't ,Yet trick nuts do have there draw backs .. again thats just my personal opinion on them ...

    ..The BMx's I've seen kicking about my area again they are few don't have the viusal appeal and look bloody awfull in my eyes ...

    And Councils went through phases of building tracks and skate parks for those skate boarders ... because of complaints and people wanting the councils to do something for them and still to this day there is a bmx track lyin disused in Barshaw Park Paisley .

    I couldn't even tell you if there is still organised BMX races etc ..
  • colintrav wrote:
    ..The BMx's I've seen kicking about my area again they are few don't have the viusal appeal and look bloody awfull in my eyes ...

    Besides the budget apollo crap, most BMXs are pretty much exactly the same to the eye. Ulike MTBers BMXers don't spend most of their day showing off their new components, opting to actually ride instead and use the bike for the purpose it was built for.
    And Councils went through phases of building tracks and skate parks for those skate boarders ... because of complaints and people wanting the councils to do something for them and still to this day there is a bmx track lyin disused in Barshaw Park Paisley .

    Skateparks go unused for a mixture of reasons, but it's generally not down to lack of demand. Unfortunately there's a lot of politics involved in their development. Sometimes you get a cracking good park plonked right in the center of a run down estate where the locals are more interested in setting fire to it, or throwing bricks at those who dare to venture in to use it, hence most young kids (and many adults) skating/riding the local Sainsbury's carpark instead. The local councils call this regeneration. It's what they woo you with when you vote for them, and statistically, they follow through. Job done.

    Same goes for skatepark design. When skating boomed big 10 years ago, demand was huge and local councils were under pressure to produce the goods. But they weren't interested in anything other than getting a job done, so they went out and contracted playpark companies to design and build skateparks. Of course, none of them had a clue and the result was poor, and often dangerous. Around that time I attended meetings as funding was granted for a local skatepark, and they weren't interested in the slightest in my 10+ years experience, opting instead to listen to 14 year old kids who had started skating 3 months previous after they played that Tony Hawk's game. They'd commited to listening to a newly constructed youth group to increase positive public perception. The skatepark hasn't been used to this day. It was a complete waste of money.

    BMX racing is a different subject as it doesn't have the same presence in this day. The big tracks are the only ones that are going to be guaranteed use on a regular basis. Stuck out in the small towns and suberbs it's going to depend very much on the locals. But still, it's good that they're there. A lot less money goes into these things than does on MTB trail parks and I dare say people will travel 100s of miles to ride these tracks because of their rarity. We certainly done it with skateparks when there was only one in each region rather than each town. You may not see it, but if it's a decent track, people will be passing through.
    I couldn't even tell you if there is still organised BMX races etc ..

    Depends very much on the local scene. It's generally down to shop owners to organise such events, and a lot of these shops are struggling to survive, especially with chain stores stealing their revenue and not putting back into the sport with these kinds of events. MTBers have it easy.

    rant over :wink:
  • if your going to use a bmx for training on, it depends on what sort of training.

    get a race bmx for bmx tracks, as they are designed for speed, acceleration manuals, jumping etc due to the weight, geometry and components

    i have both the 20" wheel and 24" race cruiser version in the shop
    www.urbanair.co.uk

    alternatively, if you fancy a bit of street, skatepark, and trails/dirtjumps, then get a street/dirt bike, which are heavier but made to be cased on hard surfaces so they are less likely to break,

    definately look to pay from 280 upwards to get something thats going to work for more than the day.
    8)
  • i had a nyquest replica bmx for dirt jumping and street riding a few yrs back and i learned alot which helped me improve on my ht mtb but as with most bike related stuff u get what u pay for if uve only got around £150 to spend then u need to be looking at a quality well used bmx ebay seemes to be flooded with them at the moment!! my haro was middle of the range yet still cost me just under £500 :?
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  • rhyko7
    rhyko7 Posts: 781
    on your budget def go 2nd hand
    Dont look at it-ride it! they are tools not f*cking ornaments

    my riding:
    http://www.youtube.com/user/rhyspect

    Some of my Rides Data/maps:
    http://www.trimbleoutdoors.com/Users/527337
  • captainfly
    captainfly Posts: 1,001
    Well I've narrowed my choice down to either an mongoose legion or fraction [both 08 NOS].
    Now am being too anal about the chainstay length it being a half inch difference? Or for general skills, a mix of dirt and park jumping with some beach trail riding is it going to make the slightest difference? If not then it's down to colour 8)
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    Mongoose Teocali
    Giant STP0

    Why are MTB economics; spend twice as much as you intended, but only half as much as you wish you could afford? :roll:
  • Salsa
    Salsa Posts: 753
    Well in general a short chainstay makes a BMX spin easier but less stable in the air, longer is the opposite.
  • captainfly
    captainfly Posts: 1,001
    Salsa wrote:
    Well in general a short chainstay makes a BMX spin easier but less stable in the air, longer is the opposite.

    Indeed, but that doesn't actually help as in what is better for skills trainning that helps MTB :roll:
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    Mongoose Teocali
    Giant STP0

    Why are MTB economics; spend twice as much as you intended, but only half as much as you wish you could afford? :roll: