Help with buying a new bike!

jw85

Hi Guys,

I'm looking to buy a new mountain bike. I'm a beginner and im looking for a bike to ride mainly XC and road but will be good enough to handle the occasional downhill. So basically a good all rounder in the mid price range bracket if thier is such an animal.

Two bikes I'm looking at are the Cannondal Trail SL 3 2012 & GT Avalanche 1.0 2012. Would these bikes be suitable? And which is the better bike? Or iss there a better value bike for around the £750 mark?

Your expertise is very much appreciated!!
Jake.

bartimaeus

You should look at the Boardman (Comp £650 and Team £850) and Voodoo (Hoodoo £500 and Bokor £680) bikes at Halfords, and the Decathlon Rockrider 8.1 (£500).

I have an Avalanche 1.0 - see my sig - which I think is a really great bike, but then I got mine second hand and have tweaked it to be the sort of bike I wanted. If you like the Avalanche I'd go for the 2010 model for £450 from Paul's if they have the size for you, as that looks better value. I don't think the a 3x10 you get for 2012 is worth £300 over 3x9 on the 2010. The Avalanche 1.0 spec is really solid - and while it's not as light as the Boardman or Rockrider it's a forgiving ride, so I'd rate it as a bike to start out on (more so than the Anthem - which was my first proper MTB!).

bartimaeus

also take a look at the Carrera Fury - £600, with a great spec and a more hard hitting attitude than some of the more XC type bikes.