What 29er? £1,000

caterhamboy

Looking for a new bike, have decided on a 29er ht as don't want another full sus.

currently looking at,

Trek x-caliber "hired bottom of the range and loved it"
on one inbred 29er "look good and am interested but don't know much about them, is steel a good thing?"
cube 29er. "seem to offer fantastic value"

Is there any others worth looking at? think specialized is out as don't seem to get "value"

JokerZero

As an owner Id be happy to reccomend a used giant xtc 29er 1, as long as you dont mind noisy breaks in the wet. Stretch a bit and you can still pick a 2012 for £1200 new.
On Ones always get a lot of respect on the trails.

oodboo

I bought a Focus BlackForest 2.0 29er and really like it. Seemed to be a decent spec for the money as well.

Also have a look at the Radon ZR 6:
http://www.bike-discount.de/shop/k1275/ ... ml?mfid=52

bazmcg

I bought a Canyon AL 7.9 29er on Monday. Price is around £950. Excellent spec for the money fox forks, avid brakes, mavic wheelset. I took it for it's first spin last night and I 'm very impressed. Bike is very light around 11.50kgs. Only problem is that you are buying online so can't try it first.

VWsurfbum

the Canyon seems the best spec for that money

Cycling is Forever

caterhamboy wrote:

Trek x-caliber "hired bottom of the range and loved it"

I'd say you've already found it

As a 2010 owner the ride is superb.
While the X-cal spec is decent, without even looking it won't touch the canyon. That'll be your VFM choice but since you can't test ride. Tough choice
But spec is only one aspect.

You should be able to find a 2012 X-cal with a good discount so any saving could be put back into upgrading.
The first thing I recommend to do is to covert the Tyres to tubeless and bontrager tubeless system is very good.

Cif

Clank

I've ridden an Inbred 29er. Sure, it's cheap, but its very reflected in the ride - being a baffling combination of very harsh and not particularly stiff. Very unrefined. Both my hardtails are steel and they ride beautifully, so it's not just the material!

caterhamboy

canyon look good, but will only buy a bike that i can sit on. Also will be taking up a 0% finance deal. Interesting about the inbred.

Clank

Whats more interesting is the owner sold it to fund a Supafly - he claims it's in a completely different league and is grinning like an eejit, but I haven't had chance to swing a leg over it myself. It does seem thoughtfully specced for the price.

theblender

try the Whyte 629 - excellent bike at £999. Light frame, which is UK designed for good mud clearance, crud catcher bosses etc and has geometry specifically for UK riding. Butted rear stays give it a supple feel at the back, taking the sting out of drops etc and crucially for a 29er, Whyte spec quality lightweight tyres which roll really well. Decent SRAM 2x10 kit and Rockshox fork. The ride quality is superb - try one. Avoid the Cube - frame quality is poor and warranty back up is poor too.

JokerZero

theblender wrote:

has geometry specifically for UK riding. .

Wow, do we have special mud, or is gravity different here ?

chez_m356

theblender wrote:

try the Whyte 629 - excellent bike at £999. Light frame, which is UK designed for good mud clearance, crud catcher bosses etc and has geometry specifically for UK riding. Butted rear stays give it a supple feel at the back, taking the sting out of drops etc and crucially for a 29er, Whyte spec quality lightweight tyres which roll really well. Decent SRAM 2x10 kit and Rockshox fork.

RockShox XC-32 TK 29, 100mm Travel, Alloy Tapered Steerer and Lock out and rebound

yeah, that really compares with the reba and fox units you get on the radon and canyon bikes in the same price bracket

rockmonkeysc

Charge Cookery is the only 29er I have ridden that I liked. It steers so much better than the trek 29ers I tried and almost as good as a good 26" bike. The steel frame has a real nice spring to it as well. It's the only 29er I would consider buying.