Specialized Stumpjumper for just under 400 quid

danm004

Hi guys,

New to the forum here - so, hello!

I made the mistake of purchasing a bike off eBay last year to get me to and from work, worst decision ever as, although it was claimed to be high(ish) spec, it was crap, the suspension seized up and the seat wouldn't tighten.

What do I want a bike for?
Ideally it'll get me the 9km to and from work every day, be comfortable to ride and nice to look at. I'd also like to use it a lot in the summer, not to go heavy-duty mountain biking, but to go to the lakes and cycle round, maybe on different terrains, etc

I wanted to see what my budget of 400 quid would get me. Not bothered what make (I am a beginner) as long as it has a good reputation and it is a good bike. Having searched eBay I found this Stuntjumper:



Would this be fit for my purpose? It's just... the price seems too low for this bike, right?

Looks like the business, and a great price, right?

Thanks for advice!

Cheers.

cooldad

Impossible to say from a bad photo, depends on condition etc - needing new forks or something would blow your budget.
Pretty old though and sounds a bit high to me.
You might be better off looking at a new Rockrider from Decathlon, or a Carrera from Halfords.

danm004

Thanks for the reply and advice.
I'm going to see the bike tonight, but obviously as I am a big-time newbie am not quite sure what to be looking out for.

You think the price is too high if the bike is say, four or five years old but in great condition?

Could you perhaps tell me what you'd check on a bike if you were visiting it with a view to purchase it?

Thanks a lot.

styxd

Its a dead old bike with shite parts. £400 is too much.

I'd get a hybrid or a rigid mountain bike like an On One inbred. More durbable, cheaper, less to maintain etc. etc.

danm004

styxd wrote:

Its a dead old bike with shite parts. £400 is too much.

I'd get a hybrid or a rigid mountain bike like an On One inbred. More durbable, cheaper, less to maintain etc. etc.

Thanks a lot for the advice.

styxd

Thanks a lot for the advice.

No problem.

Its not even worth going to look at, dont waste your time.

styxd

Could you perhaps tell me what you'd check on a bike if you were visiting it with a view to purchase it?

I first check that it wasnt about 7 years old!

Then I'd check that it had disc brakes (if it was a mountain bike)

Then I'd check that it didnt have manitou suspension forks.

this would be before checking things like general condition etc. etc.

chez_m356

danm004 wrote:

Having searched eBay I found this Stuntjumper:




Cheers.

are my eyes playing tricks on my, or has that got hydraulic rim brakes on it ?

styxd

Yes it has, some magura hs33's by the looks of it. More hassle than they're worth.

danm004

Haha, so glad for this place! But I guess that's exactly what this part of the forum is for

Thanks guys, my mind is made up - I'm out

chez_m356

you would have been better putting a link to the "ad" on, then if it had any spec listed, you may have gotten advice from more than one person, who clearly doesn't rate it, best advice was from "cooldad". new means shop support for those times when things go wrong that shouldn't

danm004

Cheers mate **

cooldad

I actually think it's rather nice, but I am really old. Wouldn't spend anywhere near that though.

danm004

thanks!

I'm looking at Cube / Scott bikes at the minute. I'm actually living in Germany so no Halfords or Evans here, and buying new in the shops is SO expensive, hence second hand.. grr.

supersonic

Without knowing the full spec is hard to say. HS33 are good stoppers.

styxd

HS33's - Used to have a set when I rode trials back in the day. Good stoppers in the dry, great when you put coke or tar on your rims!

Not great in the wet and the mud. Awful mud clearance. A pain in the arse to set up (on frames without dedicated magura mounts like the specialized above) and a ballache if you wanted to remove your wheel. Also, rim brakes dont really have a place on modern mountain bikes (in my opinion), especially when disc brakes cost so little these days.

The Rookie

An 'interesting' bike, but almost the exact opposite of what you want, and almost exactly twice as much as I'd say it's worth!

I'm sure you have Decathlons in Germany?

Nothing wrong with Manitou forks though......

Simon

njee20

It's a base 2003 model, I'd avoid that, as folk have said, way overpriced.

styxd

It's a base 2003 model, I'd avoid that, as folk have said, way overpriced.

Even older than I thought!

danm004

njee20 wrote:

It's a base 2003 model, I'd avoid that, as folk have said, way overpriced.

Jebus, thanks for that, I thought it was dead new, too!

supersonic

I bet if in gould condition it would be a lot lighter and ride better than a new £400 bike ;-)

But you'd have no warranty, and we don't know that condition, or indeedmany of the parts.

styxd

You can tell its not a new model because it has rim brake bosses (which no one uses anymore, and havent done for quite a few years)

danm004

Thanks fella. Yep. I am looking for a second hand bike because new ones are just TOO ridiculously overpriced over here. I wanna spend max 400 pounds, so not quite sure what to go for. Don't want a street bike though as I wanna go out and about in summer and not just on perfectly-flat surfaces.

supersonic

I'd contact the seller and ask for a FULL spec, and condition.

styxd

I'd contact the seller and ask for a FULL spec, and condition.

Why though?

We've determined it's old and over priced. You can tell by looking at it that the spec is poor.

supersonic

You can't really see the parts though. You may have determined that, I haven't ;-) You can't see what the forks or drivetrain is, or indeed many of the parts. The frame is good. The brakes (though you disagree) are fine for many things.

I think if it has some decent, good condition drivetrain parts and fork, then the bike would suit the needs perfectly. Offer less of course, but damning the bike without knowing much about it is a bit premature.

njee20

The forks appear to be a Manitou Skareb, as was stock on those.

The wheels ditto look to be the standard Spesh Stout hubs on Mavic X221 (IIRC) rims. The fact it's still in one piece suggests that it's not been used that much. Those forks were utter toss, so it's probably in good nick, and as SS said it will be lighter than a new £400 bike. It's still got the Strong Arm cranks, which were alright, still square taper on those if I recall, although some were Octalink.

Basically looks stock spec to me with new brakes (which had a propensity for eating rims, but were otherwise pretty good) and new tyres.

If you can get it the price down then I'd probably go for it, but not for £400 myself. It's a solid frame, with disc mounts, so the potential is there to upgrade as you go. But they were only £1100 or so new, 9 years ago.

styxd

I admire your ability to keep an open mind...but

The forks look like Manitou Skarebs? I think they stopped making them years ago. Old Manitous - avoid
Cheap finishing kit
HS33's (they work but disc brakes are obviously far superior)
Specialized cranks by the look of it (which suggests they're original so 9 years old)

I dunno, Im a bit of a pessimist.

supersonic

I loved my Skarabs! Though were 2005 versions. Very smooth, well damped and utterly reliable.

njee20

Those ones really weren't, we had a set on our demo Epic from the same year (same spec, bouncy rear end) they were totally trashed within 6 months, had to replace them. Admittedly the bike saw a hard life, I think people thought it was their prerogative to totally abuse the bike as it wasn't theirs, but still... far too much plastic on them for my liking. Light though, 28mm stantions and what not.

chez_m356

link for standard spec http://www.specialized.com/gb/gb/bc/SBC ... &gold_ses= obviously been re braked though