Hardtail - 13/14" frame, 26" wheels around £200 - advice?

Donaldissimo

Hi All,

Yet another newbie after advice. Looking for a bike for my 10 year old. 14" frame seems to suit him well. I'm thinking of getting a 2012 Diamondback Overdrive, Rockrider 5.2 (based purely on enthusiasm on this forum - do you guys all have shares in Decathlon?!) or a second hand Specialized Hardrock. Best of these? Anything else I should consider?

Any advice gratefully received. Thanks.

supersonic

The Rockrider ;-)

The Rookie

For £200 there is a lot of 'pre-loved' choice, a Lardrock wouldn't be at the top of my list though!

mcnultycop

I bought my little girl the Rockrider 5.2 Junior (24" wheeled one). It is brilliant for the cash, and the smaller adult versions look as good.

Donaldissimo

Thanks for the advice, forumites. Any views on the Diamondback? And any drawbacks with the Rockrider?

supersonic

The Diamond back has low quality 7 speed gear set, and a very bad fork. Compared to the 8 speed freehub based kit on the RR, and a better suspension unit.

Donaldissimo

OK. Sounds as if the RR is favourite. There are 2 RR 5.2's on the Decathlon website - presumably the 2012 model is the cheaper one (£199, rather than £229). Any reason not to go for the cheaper one?

cooldad

The more expensive one has a better fork and cable disc up front instead of V brake. Probably worth the extra - but SS is the expert on budget forks.