Genesis, commencal or???

drtobiasfunke
drtobiasfunke Posts: 95
edited January 2012 in MTB buying advice
A friend has asked for help in finding a decent bike in the janauary sales, just for general trail riding mostly.
So far two deals have caught my eye

Genesis core 20 £485 for the 20.5 inch
http://www.winstanleysbikes.co.uk/product/37277/Genesis_Core_20_Bike_2011

Commencal premiere pro £467
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=66723

Spec seems better on the commencal but i recall hearing stories of the frames breaking (not this model specifically)

What do others think? or has anyone else found any good deals around the £500 range
Radon team 7.0

Comments

  • Torres
    Torres Posts: 1,266
    Have a look at Decathlon too, they always seem to do well in terms of spec.

    I wouldn't worry too much about the Commencal frame, the issue seemed to affect 09/10 frames; the vast majroity were large meta 5's so it shouldn't be an issue.

    It's always best to sit on them first so encourage your mate to try a few before parting with any money. :D
    What We Achieve In Life, Echoes In Eternity
  • Sammiye
    Sammiye Posts: 61
    Purchased a Core 30 from Winstanley's for 550 Not sure why it is now 680!?!

    Quality bit of kit for the price. Totally happy with it! I would like to upgrade the cranks as they're a bit heavy (Alivio) Plus i had to purchase flat pedals as it came with SPDs. (think you'd have to with the core 20 too so add an extra 30 odd quid for them!). Finishing kit, although genesis own branded seems good quality and the raw look alu bars loom great! Have noticed the bolts on the stem clamp arent stainless though and are going fairly rusty.

    Check with Winstanley's and ask if the bike is fully set up and checked before sending as mine said it had been checked but the gears weren't set up properly at all - not best pleased on my first outing as a new rider. But they offered to cover the cost of a full gear set up at a local shop.

    No problems with the bike so far - I've probably done a good 150 miles on it in the past 2 months. Everything about it is solid, despite a few offs entirely due to poor technique! :D

    Definitely don't feel i need anything more at my level. And will be keeping it and riding it into the ground for the foreseeable!!

    All in all, great bike. Just check with winstanley's that it'll be set up proper.

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