iv decided i want a... DH bike

joshtp

After spending a wonderfull afternoon watching the first round of the BNDHS yesterday the Idea of a Proper DH bike is getting more and more apealing, i have loads of DH tracks around me aswell. The issue is cash.... whats the very least i could realisticly spend on a bike? second hand or new, that has at least 170mm travel, pref tripple clamps.... you get the idea, a DH bike, im not really planning on racing, but i would preffer something that could should the mood take me that way.

i know how much stuff like a full face is, and whatever, but what is the absolute rock bottom i am likely to get a ridable beast for.... if it has to be knocked up out of a dented ebay special frame and a leaky 05 boxxer it has to be, but whats the lowest price?


thanks!

(knowing me, by next week ill not want a DH bike, but a DJ bike, or a hovercraft....)

cat_with_no_tail

SDH or Pinkbike will be your best bets imo.

I reckon you could get something like an older stinky or big hit for around £700 if you look around.

Then of course, there is the rest of the kit, armour, FF etc.

P-Jay

It's £2k MINIMUM for a new one, and even then it'll be very basic spec.

S/H is the way to go imho unless you're a tool like me and drop £4k on a shiny super spec bike you get to ride once in a blue moon.

The market for DH stuff is much smaller than other MTB stuff so tends to cost fortunes new and be worth peanuts second-hand - it's a pretty specific market too, not much 'normal' MTB stuff works at DH and vice-versa.

joshtp

Cat With No Tail wrote:

SDH or Pinkbike will be your best bets imo.

I reckon you could get something like an older stinky or big hit for around £700 if you look around.

Then of course, there is the rest of the kit, armour, FF etc.

yeah, thats kinda what i figured... SDH?!?!?

welshkev

if you're serious about it my mate has 2 specialized demo 8's (could be demo 7's actually i'll have to check) for sale. size medium. only ridden about 6 times and he's based in Barry so not too far for you to go

i think he only wants around a grand for them (each that is)

cat_with_no_tail

joshtp/mbukman wrote:

Cat With No Tail wrote:

SDH or Pinkbike will be your best bets imo.

I reckon you could get something like an older stinky or big hit for around £700 if you look around.

Then of course, there is the rest of the kit, armour, FF etc.

yeah, thats kinda what i figured... SDH?!?!?

SDH = Southern Downhill, forum similar to this but DH specific.

Good classifieds section, but you need to register with them before you can view it.

DH can be a pricey sport to get into, I thought I'd love it due to the style of riding I already have, but I didnt, and as a result, after selling everything on I ended up a few hundred quid lighter. Still, you lives and you learns.

Do you have any mates or anything that are into DH? Might be worth seeing if you can go to an uplift day with them and borrow a bike and some kit. Just to see if it's your bag.

Hercule Q

you can get some bargains on pinkbike around 700 will get you a good starter bike

Anonymous

im assuming you want a dh hardtail?

cee

look around on pinkbike....

I recently picked up a 222 - full bike for less than all the prices mentioned above......

some cosmetic damage, but nothing that bothers me.

Northwind

Are teh Iron Horses all gone from CRC? Those looked blinding.

Failing that, a Bighit, they're not full on DH race bikes but they're pretty amazing at it for the money. Don't be fooled into thinking you need to spend a packet, even at decent race levels you'll find a load of people on fairly low budget hardware. Used ones might be completely smashed to bits, or might be the result of someone deciding they want a DH bike, doing one uplift and deciding that actually they don't like this DH thing afterall because it's a bit scary

Have you actually done any DH riding? You don't need a downhill bike to ride most downhill tracks, though not in the same way you would on a big bike.

cat_with_no_tail

Northwind wrote:

Are teh Iron Horses all gone from CRC? Those looked blinding.

Failing that, a Bighit, they're not full on DH race bikes but they're pretty amazing at it for the money. Don't be fooled into thinking you need to spend a packet, even at decent race levels you'll find a load of people on fairly low budget hardware. Used ones might be completely smashed to bits, or might be the result of someone deciding they want a DH bike, doing one uplift and deciding that actually they don't like this DH thing afterall because it's a bit scary

Have you actually done any DH riding? You don't need a downhill bike to ride most downhill tracks, though not in the same way you would on a big bike.

That would be me :oops:

Hercule Q

i love DH but i got rid of my big bike as it was far to much and i wanted to be able to get out and ride so i bought a more freeride biased bike that i can use everywhere cos i only have room/budget for 1 bike

P-Jay

Hercule Q wrote:

i love DH but i got rid of my big bike as it was far to much and i wanted to be able to get out and ride so i bought a more freeride biased bike that i can use everywhere cos i only have room/budget for 1 bike

Fair point, having a DH bike as an 'only bike' is very restricting. You can technically ride it anywhere, but it makes climbing almost impossible and any less then mental descent easy/boring.

joshtp

sheepsteeth wrote:

im assuming you want a dh hardtail?

obviously!

it wouldnt be my only bike.... it would sit alongside my 140mm HT, and my 120mm HT thrash bike.

Iv ridden a few DH race tracks on my current bike, and its fine, but i have a DH cource with 15mins ride and loads within a short drive, i would love to really give it a go.... i supose ill have to wait for money and stuff first though.... i do think i would really like it, and i think (withought wanting to sound stupid) i would be pretty good, im a fast technical rider, and im not afraid to learn and progress. i just think a DH/big bike would be reall nice to help me learn and improve, and maybe one day have a go at racing, or maybe not, ill just see how it goes.....

Hercule Q

if you can do the dh tracks on a HT reasonably quick you will scare yourself at how much faster a dh bike will allow you, i took everything i learnt on a HT and applyed it to my DH bike and was hitting rock gardens like they were tarmac

GHill

In the same situation I'd buy a full-face, some armour and keep riding those tracks for a while (saving some money as I go). Hopefully then I'd be able to figure out if I liked DH and if I wanted to race.

Without racing, I'd be thinking of a Spech Big Hit II (if buying new).

For racing, I'd be saving a lot of money.

cavegiant

+1 on the spesh big hit for value for money, ugly as a $5 whore though and probably as fun ;-)

I use my Niner WFO with dorado's as a do it all bike. I can do a lot of DH on it, but not like the real thing, but I can ride back to the top again.


Don't by a specialist bike untill you have tested it.
For the amount you need to spend on a big hit bike and how rarely you get to use it is a seriously good idea to rent one each time. best thing is, when you break a rental, you take it back.

The Northern Monkey

Main problem with the big hit is that fork though.

el loco pollo

Unless you have pots of cash for uplifts or loads of DH trails right on your doorstep I wouldn't bother. Why not go for a bike that's rideable up and down but can also handle an uplift day every few weeks? Speaking with the lads up at Cwmcarn this weekend it seems loads of the locals have sold their big bikes and gone with stuff like orange 5s with big forks.

Not trying to put you off but proper DH bikes have a very narrow window of use - trying to ride a normal trail on a slack 45lb beast is virtually impossible.

mrfmilo

Like CWNT said, pinkbike is your best bet. Get a decent starter DH bike for 700-800 squid.
Just got myself a DH/FR HT frame from there

Phonk7

I wouldnt go for a "full on" DH bike, rather a freeride one with beefy sc forks like 66's or totems will be a bit lighter and more agile , somthing like a Kona stinky or spesh big hit, they go for around ~600 ish on ebay

joshtp

So the plan is to save for a bit and then get either

A. a second hand 160-200mm travel FR/ Light DH bike, not neccesarily a race bike, as thats a bit much for what im likely to use it for.

B. build up a 160+mm HardHardHard HT with a Race bike like spec.


ill also get myself a FF fairly soon.

Radixmatrix

My 2006 BigHit 3 was advertised on Pinkbike, but I ended up getting it through eBay for £675.00.

It's in great condition and bought to take to the Alps this summer, rather than hiring out there for a week - which offsets some of the cost.

I think it's a great bike to develop my skills on and I will be the limiting factor.

I'm fortunate to have a more AM bike as well - the BigHit is great fun but couldn't live with it as my only bike.