£700 budget on a downhill bike

Munch101

Hello, I am after a decent bike to start riding Downhill with!
I have a budget of around £400 and don't mind buying 2nd or 3rd hand!
What would you all recommend for me? I have seen a lot of Kona stinkys and the odd Specialized bighit around, but not sure whether i'd be getting enough bang for my buck, so some years/models to look out for would be helpful!

Now £700 budget! GIVE ME BIKE RECOMMENDATIONS!

The Rookie

We could recommend lots of bikes, but will they be available?

Better bet is to find some you are interested in, local (so you can view) and ask advice.

felix.london

impossible to recommend used bikes really as no one knows what's out there and what condition they'll be in if they are out there. A Big Hit might be a good call though as there seem to be lots of used ones about so more choice.

.blitz

Big Hits and Stinkys seem to be a popular used choice but for £400 you're going to have to look very closely to find one that isn't going to explode on the first run.

Check for cracks in the stress areas of the frame and dents. Check all suspension pivot bearings, bottom bracket, headset play/bearings, wheel bearings, wear on cassette and chainrings, discs for scuffing and wear, rims for dents and buckles, mech indexing and fork seals for signs of oil seepage

Munch101

I work at Halfrauds and have some mates that are sponsored riders for some decent teams so I have the access to people and resources to keeping a dying bike alive, can easily get new parts

pesky_jones

You can still find cracking deals on stinkys within your budget. Id go stinky over bighit. Keep an eye out

Huckfinn

A few bikes on Pinkbike within budget

welshkev

Pesky Jones wrote:

You can still find cracking deals on stinkys within your budget. Id go stinky over bighit. Keep an eye out

depends what year big hit. my 2010 is a great starter dh bike. but I doubt you'd get one for £400

Northwind

Yeah, £400 is a big ask. Get ye to pinkbike... But even then, there's a reason people are selling bikes off for £400, you're likely to pick up a bill to get it working right.

Other option- you don't need a downhill bike to ride downhill. My old SX Trail cost me a little more than your budget but it was ready to go and was totally up for any dh track I've ever ridden. You could build up a wee nugget of a hardtail too.

Munch101

I can't seem to find any sx trials for sale anywhere! I do like the look of them though!

rockmonkeysc

You wont get a good SX FOR £400 unless its stolen.
Stinkys are terrible. Big Hits are a good choice. Also look at Giant Team DH or Faith. Scott Nitrous are good if you can find one.

felix.london

RockmonkeySC wrote:

You wont get a good SX FOR £400 unless its stolen.
Stinkys are terrible. Big Hits are a good choice. Also look at Giant Team DH or Faith. Scott Nitrous are good if you can find one.

Seen a few Giant Glory's around for cheap but getting a cheap DH bike with a fubar'd fork (or frame!) could turn out to be a false economy.

rockmonkeysc

I know someone who got a Team DH recently for £500 in great condition. You just have to take time and find the right one. Glory's are ok but they weigh a ton (50lb isnt unusual) and eat bearings and shock bushes.

Northwind

RockmonkeySC wrote:

You wont get a good SX FOR £400 unless its stolen.

Not drastically above, though- one sold on Ebay for £450, looked very tidy, mine was £500 but came with enough spares to recoup about £50. And more than offset by it being ready to go rather than being a moneypit.

scottfitz

For £400 Maybe look at a HT?

welshkev

scottfitz wrote:

For £400 Maybe look at a HT?

for DH riding?

I know I've ridden my cove down a few DH tracks but I wouldn't really recommend it for someone wanting to use the bike soley for DH

Northwind

Depends what your idea of dh is tbh. I rode my hardtail down fort william, it was pretty difficult, and not really anything like doing it on my dh bike. But at innerleithen etc, a decent hardtail's well up for it.

I think on balance I'd probably rather do it on a £400 hardtail than a £400 downhill bike, though.

pesky_jones

Northwind wrote:

I think on balance I'd probably rather do it on a £400 hardtail than a £400 downhill bike, though.

+1

Saying that however, I think you should try and increase your budget by £100 and keep a keen eye out for a good deal on a full suss

Munch101

I don't want a hard tail as I have rode hard tail a lot and want a change! I have been looking around and think my best option is to get a frame for around £300 and spend more money on it over time and upgrade as I get better.

welshkev

any good for you?

viewtopic.php?f=40092&t=12929173

Rad2474

Saw this on gumtree.http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/genui ... 1023084848

Northwind

Interesting choice of rear rim!

Twelly

I've just bought a mint Kona Coiler (Stinkys 160 mm baby brother) for £400.

I pick it up next week but by all accounts its a good start for a bit of DH/FR

Munch101

Now have a budget of up to £700! Any bikes to be recommended other then Big Hit's and Stinky's?

welshkev

Munch101 wrote:

Now have a budget of up to £700! Any bikes to be recommended other then Big Hit's and Stinky's?

there's nothing wrong with big hits, I picked up my 2010 big hit 2 fsr for £700. it's handled everything I've thrown at it. Cwmcarn, FoD, UK Bike park, Antur stiniog and all of the local DH trails, it's never missed a beat

pesky_jones

http://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/list/?r ... category=1

Watch that thread. There's a price filter as well

rockmonkeysc

I did a season of DH racing on a hardtail. A downhill hardtail feels nothing like a normal hardtail. Its a lot of fun and teaches you a lot about bike control and commitment. My old 456 Summer Season would get me down a hill faster than a Kona Stinky or most full sus freeride bikes.
You can ride anything on a hardtail that you could do on full sus, I did 8' drops and big road gaps on mine regularly

pesky_jones

RockmonkeySC wrote:

You can ride anything on a hardtail that you could do on full sus, I did 8' drops and big road gaps on mine regularly

Yeah, but you can't say you ride them the same. Riding downhill hardtaills you have to be so much more precise and controlled, a small knock or wobble or dodgy landing etc that a full suss would normally swallow up, can throw you off a hardtail.

scottfitz

I love my DH hardtail, sold my glory because it was boring!!!

Northwind

On the subject of downhill hardtails, 3 people did the endurance downhill on hardtails this year. Only 2 made the podium though, the 3rd place man was celebrating in hospital

At £700... Opens up lots of options, get yourself on pinkbike, just see what's available. Once you go back a few years, some models get old very fast, frinstance my Ellsworth was only a 2007, it looked just like the present one but it had steep tall trailbike geometry, 66 degree head angle etc. Just not up to modern standards. Meanwhile you could get a 224 and in most ways it'd still feel pretty current today.

pesky_jones

Northwind wrote:

Meanwhile you could get a 224 and in most ways it'd still feel pretty current today.

I was going to suggest an old 224. Definitly find one for under £700