Choosing a bike for a newbie

Josh103

Im wondering if its possible to get a decent full suspension bike for under £500?
By decent I mean, it will take a beating and I wont get laughed when I turn up at the trails
Thanks in advance

cooldad

Second hand. New no.

Josh103

where is best for picking up second hand ones?

mtb crazy

alot are over 500, infact i cant say that i have seen any under that. MBUK mag and what mountain bike mag have loads of bikes that they review and test so maybe worth looking in those.

Josh103

Ok thanks, I seen one for £206 but Im guessing that wouldn't be very good

cooldad

Probably not but without any details....

Josh103

Hydroformed alloy Vectra frame with Kind Shock suspension
RST Gila T8 forks with 100mm travel
Suntour XCC chainset
Shimano 21 speed gear system with EZ Fire shifters
Kenda tyres on Diamondback trail double wall alloy rims
Tektro alloy V brakes & levers
Quick release alloy hubs

http://www.bikes2udirect.com/B3025.html

cooldad

I wouldn't.

waby1234

Why do you need a fs? Why not a decent hardtail?

Josh103

I live very close to the Fort William tracks, all the people I see using those trails have Full Suspension, but if a decent hardtaill will do the same job as a bad FS then Im open to suggestions

cooldad

A decent hardtail will make it down.
A rubbish FS will just break. And you may die.
What do you ride now?

supersonic

There are a few decent FS for this price, but HT will be lighter and better made.

waby1234

I'd go for a hardtail, you'll get a better bike for the money

mtb crazy

if youre gonna get a decent bike then its worth spending that little bit more. go into a shop and ask what they would recommend for the type of riding you do. i have a cube ltd comp which is a hardtail and its a good confidence booster

snowden_88

what about this Giant Yukon FX1?

http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/products.p ... 1b4s1p1748

cooldad

OK if you are very small.

snowden_88

Yeh only 15" left.

nozzac

Rockrider 6.3 is a decent FS bike for £300 - as well specced as many HT's costing more with a frame shared by more expensive bikes in the range. The frame is worth upgrading parts if you grow out of them.

If you wanted to spend the other £200 then you could swap in some air forks and maybe lighter pedals and tyres.

Josh103

Thanks for all the feedback guys

I was considering going for a http://www.winstanleysbikes.co.uk/produ ... _Bike_2010

hainman

i got the rockrider 9.1 FS.ended up with the 2010 model and paid 600quid for it,crackin bike with some good quality kit,dont even think you'd get the kit on this bike on a hardtail at this price,tora air shocks,hydraulic brakes,rear air shock(maybe not as good as some on the market)have a look out in decathlon josh,you might be surprised.

waby1234

What about a hardtail;

Voodoo Hoodoo 2011 - http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... PDPz1#dtab

Air forks & hydraulic brakes.

felix.london

like cooldad said...what do you ride now? - are you looking to upgrade from something else?

For a first bike I'd work out what type of riding you're going to be doing and then look at eBay - some real bargains there. You can pick up something that someone has already upgraded with better components at cheaper than the originally specced bike costs new.

Just a thought

Daz555

Josh103 wrote:

Thanks for all the feedback guys

I was considering going for a http://www.winstanleysbikes.co.uk/produ ... _Bike_2010

I thought you wanted a mountain bike?

Jack80

Josh103 wrote:

Thanks for all the feedback guys

I was considering going for a http://www.winstanleysbikes.co.uk/produ ... _Bike_2010

Don't do it I would check out a hard tail from CRC ht it will be much better.
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Cate ... oryID=1986

waby1234

I'd say you need to try before you buy, visit some bike shops.