Merida Matts Trail 300D

dougie800
dougie800 Posts: 5
edited June 2012 in MTB buying advice
Looking for a new bike for my son for mostly trail centre riding, Glentress, etc. Have been looking at Merida Matts 300D (2009), can't see any reviews on them. Anybody know if they're up to much, this one has the Rockshox Dart 3 forks.

Comments

  • mountaingoatimnot
    mountaingoatimnot Posts: 185
    I assume fromt he description you are looking at the one on ebay.

    I almost bought that for my 10yr old son, but when i called to check the seller was legit and ask a few questions they told me they had a 500-D model too. I bought the 500-D , purely for the better components, although the 300-D would have more than sufficed. the day before i'd been looking at a new 2012 100-D at £475 in my LBS, that was good enough but the older model for less won the day.

    Arrived next day, minimal set-up required (fit handle bars, front wheel, pedals etc) and checked it over - perfect.

    I did find some reviews , mainly on mtbe and singletrack from recollection but google is your friend.

    My personal view (not that i'm any expert but i can compare to my old Carrera Vengeance and my current Spesh Pitch)..

    quality frame with nice geometry (15" frame) and enough standover height
    reasonable components for the money - ebay price is half the original RRP
    you'll struggle to find anything else with the same components for the money, even discounted models at ashcycles/paulscycles

    more importantly my son is extremely happy with it.

    another option is a Giant Revel which is available ina 14" frame, but the spec is rubbish in comparison to the Merida

    I'd say the 15" frame is suitable for 11/12 years upwards, my sone is a little taller than average at 1.5m
  • dougie800
    dougie800 Posts: 5
    Cheers, thanks for that, think i'll go for it although I'm curious now about the next model now. Can I ask which forks you got on the 500-D?
  • supersonic
    supersonic Posts: 82,708
    What is your budget?
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  • mountaingoatimnot
    mountaingoatimnot Posts: 185
    They had one 500-D - it came with Manitou Drake Super forks. When you google you will find some russian and other EU country shops still listing a webpage for the bikes - the 500-D seemed to have Dart 3 forks on most of them and the 300-D either a Dart 1 or another fork from recollection

    There's a review of the 700-D here .. http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/ ... 00-d-33658

    which shares the same frame but obviously comes with better components than the 300-D or 500-D. The 300-D still gets Tektro hydraulic disc brakes; couple those to a decent frame and OK gearset and there's not much else you can buy for £320 new that compares to my (slightly biased !!) mind. Bear in mind the 2012 100-D (bottom spec) version is £525 at all online retailers currently. Its the only MTB my LBS keep for these sort of requests, as the frame design and components are ideal for young teens etc

    My original thread from 2 weeks ago here.. viewtopic.php?f=20005&t=12858187 which might help you with other potential options / considerations

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