Newbie <£3.5K budget

Duffryn

Hi Everyone,

I wonder if I could ask some advice. New to MTB's looking to buy a decent bike and get into the sport though realistically it won't be to a very high level ( bit of road work, mainly forest trails, mountain paths, with mates etc) . I've got a fairly decent budget and want to get a decent bike with full suspension and as light as possible ( to compensate for being very unfit !). I was thinking of a 29er.

Ideally looking to spend no more than £3K but could go a bit higher if needed. Ive spent hours reading up on the sport but to be honest its all very confusing. I'd really appreciate any recommendations / advice

Thanks in advance

Duffryn

1mancity2

Try and ride before you buy if possible, have a look at giant Anthem 29er, gets very good reviews.

Why 29er btw?

EH_Rob

Hmm. £3k for something you don't know you're going to like seems a bit ridiculous, but it's your cash. You can get a whole lot of bike for a lot less than that.

The thing you have to remember is that bikes are designed with specific purposes in mind, so until you've got an idea of what sort of riding you'll be doing the most you're taking a risk of getting something unsuitable.

If your heart is set on a full suspension bike have a look at a Boardman Team - probably a good place to start and is a decent all-rounder.

I don't know anything about 29ers.

Twelly

Wow, 3k? Seems a bit much for just getting into it. Like buying a Ferrari to learn to drive in.

You can get a very respectable, light full susser for half or even a third of your budget.

Check out Cube bikes.

..and why narrow down to only 29ers?

oodboo

£3K budget for a newbie? That's madness. Get yourself a reasonable 29er hardtail and see where your riding takes you before spending the big money. I recently bought a Focus Black Forest 2 29er and I'm very impressed with how well it handles stuff. That was £900.

But if you must spend all your money straight away then:
http://www.biker-boarder.de/shopware/Sp ... ireusocl=1

Duffryn

Thanks for comments. I'm not fixed on a 29er but understood that they were a bit more forgiving for a novice ?

1mancity2

EH_Rob wrote:

Hmm. £3k for something you don't know you're going to like seems a bit ridiculous, but it's your cash. You can get a whole lot of bike for a lot less than that.

Exactly its his money.

Twelly

Duffryn wrote:

Thanks for comments. I'm not fixed on a 29er but understood that they were a bit more forgiving for a novice ?

Not really true. 26" wheels and 29" have their benefits and pitfalls and there is huge debate about which is better with no right/wrong answer.

Basically it is down to personal preference but because anything to do with 29ers tends to be so overpriced I'd stick with normal wheels. Money doesn't seem to matter to you though...

1mancity2

Duffryn wrote:

Thanks for comments. I'm not fixed on a 29er but understood that they were a bit more forgiving for a novice ?

They roll faster but as for forgiving I have no idea, loads of good bikes around for your budget and as said above they all do different things, the Anthem I mentioned is more race/xc.

If you want a bike that can do a bit of everthing the Norco sight gets really good reviews but its really a massive field.

Try to get to a demo day and try some different style bikes, i.e xc, am, to find the style you feel comfy on.

Duffryn

Thanks again. I am in a fortunate position where I am happy to spend up to £3,500 and money really isn't a big issue. Having said that I would hate to make a mistake through ignorance and get totally the wrong bike ! If spending the budget helps me to get a bike that makes riding as easy and as enjoyable as possible then its worth it to me. I'm not going to race or push the bike to its limits and am not as fit as I used to be. Comfort, easy of climbing /riding being a driving factor

1mancity2

Have you got any that you took a liking to from your research?

Duffryn

1mancity2 wrote:

Have you got any that you took a liking to from your research?

I've had a look in my local shop at the Cannondale Scalpal and really liked the look of it but I was advised that it was more of a race bike. Also looked at a Niner Jet XT which I was advised would be more suitable but it wasn't a carbon frame, seemed very heavy and I haven't read great reviews on it.

The problem is that I really don't know what I am looking for ! I also have a distrust for magazine reviews ( in my industry they are based on how well the writers are entertained and how much we spend on advertising) and always prefer user reviews / advice

Twelly

As said above, find the next local demo day and ride as much as you can, different geometry bikes, different travel, different sizes etc and see what you think. There will be plenty of people (sales people and fellow riders) there to advise you.

It is a fairly vague specification with a huge budget so the options are endless. I would go and ride different bikes to get a better idea of what I am looking at on the internet/in magazines.

..and as far as weight goes, I doubt you will notice a difference with the riding you are expecting to do (unless you buy some 20kg DH monster of course)

Duffryn

TwellySmat wrote:

As said above, find the next local demo day and ride as much as you can, different geometry bikes, different travel, different sizes etc and see what you think. There will be plenty of people (sales people and fellow riders) there to advise you.

It is a fairly vague specification with a huge budget so the options are endless. I would go and ride different bikes to get a better idea of what I am looking at on the internet/in magazines.

Thanks - Your right I think that is the next step

mrmonkfinger

Duffryn wrote:

want to get a decent bike with full suspension and as light as possible ( to compensate for being very unfit !)

Just so as you know... neither of those things will in the slightest way compensate for being very unfit.

Duffryn wrote:

The problem is that I really don't know what I am looking for !

Find a demo day, or test ride some bikes at a local shop. Then you've at least sat on and ridden the thing you're buying.

njee20

Yep, good advice that - demo plenty, and buy what you like. There's not really a duff bike out there to be honest, just depends what you want to do with it. The Scalpel is an excellent bike, but they are very racey as full suspension bikes go - only 75mm travel, and stiff with it. The rivals from the other big brands (Spesh Epic, Trek Top Fuel (or Superfly 100 29er), Scott Spark, Giant Anthem) would all be my choice as a lightweight trail type bike. But you may disagree!

Just so as you know... neither of those things will in the slightest way compensate for being very unfit.

Unfit person on expensive lightweight bike goes faster than same person on cheaper, heavier bike.

Nowt wrong with wanting to buy a nice bike, even a novice will be able to tell the difference between your average 3k and your average 1k bike, so go nust!

Thewaylander

My only reservation about spending a fortune so fast, is if you decide you want to into more technical riding (maybe an uplift day or too) I know a guy who got into DH within 6 months of starting.

Then you'd have an outlay of another bike, as a light wieght 75mm-100mm bike isn't much fun on a DH trail. But there are wonderful get fit and cover mileage type bikes for maximum speed. i personally do XC and Dh on 1600mm bike because it's comfy lol.

But there are soem solid suggestion on here, Njee knows about bikes that move fast up and across for pedally types.

mrmonkfinger

njee20 wrote:

Unfit person on expensive lightweight bike goes faster than same person on cheaper, heavier bike.

That's a discussion for another thread...

Any spend over the 1k+ region will be small differences anyway.

mrmonkfinger

Thewaylander wrote:

i personally do XC and Dh on 1600mm bike

1.6m of suspension

Twelly

mrmonkfinger wrote:

Thewaylander wrote:

i personally do XC and Dh on 1600mm bike

1.6m of suspension

You could ride over small children and not notice with that much bounce.

cooldad

TwellySmat wrote:

mrmonkfinger wrote:

Thewaylander wrote:

i personally do XC and Dh on 1600mm bike

1.6m of suspension

You could ride over small children and not care with that much bounce.

FTFY

Twelly

I don't care either way, it would just be nice not to feel them rolling under my wheels so I can continue riding my bicycle uninterrupted.

Pesky kids.

lawman

buy a decent £1k or so hardtail, either 29er or 26er, and spend the rest on a decent gym membership to shed the excess cash billowing out of your wallet... :roll:

cooldad

Rockrider or Voodoo?

Twelly

cooldad wrote:

Rockrider or Voodoo?

Is there a thread on this forum where these two haven't been mentioned at some point?

'My budget is £500'
'Buy a Rockrider'

'My budget is £3.5k'
'Buy a Rockrider'

'My budget is £200'
'Work harder, buy a Rockrider'

waby1234

Is anyone going to blame Wiggle?

Twelly

waby1234 wrote:

Is anyone going to blame Wiggle?

I blame you.

cooldad

I blame Wiggle

waby1234

TwellySmat wrote:

waby1234 wrote:

Is anyone going to blame Wiggle?

I blame you.

Thank you! :-)

mrmonkfinger

lawman wrote:

buy a decent £1k or so hardtail, either 29er or 26er, and spend the rest on a decent gym membership to shed the excess cash billowing out of your wallet... :roll:

For £3.5k I can certainly supply a suitable off road bicycle for sir's needs.

It might say "Apollo" on the side, but rest assured, it will be a most capable and dependable steed.

Greer_

mrmonkfinger wrote:

njee20 wrote:

Unfit person on expensive lightweight bike goes faster than same person on cheaper, heavier bike.

That's a discussion for another thread...

Not when going down a hill!