Help in deciding a used bike

parabum

Hi

I am new to MTB (and this forum) and I need help in deciding between two used bikes. I made a post in different forum (mtbr.com) but then realised that it is mostly US centric. Here it is more UK/European based and therefore I feel the people are acquainted with German bands better. Here is the post (didn't want to copy since it spoils the comparison table in the original post): http://forums.mtbr.com/downhill-freeride/help-deciding-used-bike-984379.html

I hope this isn't against the forums. Apologies in advance. Thanks for your response.

The Rookie

If you'd gone to edit that post and then copied it from the editor it all would have worked.

Those are fairly big hitting bikes for a beginner, what sort of usage do you expect to put them to?

The gearing on the Torque will be better suited to general riding, but both will be a bit of a tank to wind up hills.

parabum

hmm ok. I did try to copy but table lost all the formatting even after manually adding spaces.

About riding: mix of forest trails, freeride and light downhill. Bikeparks included. maybe 40-40-20 mix. Not keen on touring or racing. Mostly off-road. I have a road and a commuter bike already.

13-14 kg will be heavy to ride uphill? Most Alu XC Hardtails I have seen fall in the 11-13 kg bracket.

cooldad

180mm travel will be hard uphill and not much fun on the average forest trail.

parabum

hmm interesting. I didn't think about it that way. That fork, however, comes with 140-180mm travel adjust. Wouldn't that feature help or is it to do with the geometry and stuff?

parabum

I am still confused. Could someone please specifically answer the questions asked in the original link? The radon fork is from 2005-2006 though it was functioning OK.

rockmonkeysc

I wouldn't buy either of those bikes. The Torque frame is not particularly good, I was really surprised when I rode one, it felt very old fashioned.
The Fox Talas and Marzocchi TST are both awful forks. The Marzocchi is quite unreliable as well.
Both those bikes are very heavy, pretty much downhill use only. Riding them uphill will kill you.
You would be better off looking for something like a Nukeproof Mega, Giant Reign or Specialized Enduro. They are all much better bikes and can be found for similar money.

parabum

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19675736#p19675736]RockmonkeySC[/url] wrote:

I wouldn't buy either of those bikes. The Torque frame is not particularly good, I was really surprised when I rode one, it felt very old fashioned.
The Fox Talas and Marzocchi TST are both awful forks. The Marzocchi is quite unreliable as well.
Both those bikes are very heavy, pretty much downhill use only. Riding them uphill will kill you.
You would be better off looking for something like a Nukeproof Mega, Giant Reign or Specialized Enduro. They are all much better bikes and can be found for similar money.

Thanks for your response. Gauging by your profile, I feel you are an experienced biker and I shall take your word for it. So torque is out then. I have read many reviews and recommedations to go for FLOAT instead of TALAS.

Regarding the weight, isn't 13-14 kg a good ballpark for "enduro" bikes? (AM>Enduro>Freeride>DH) Specialised Enduro is also around 13-14kg. Unless I go Carbon/hard tail, I have hardly seen any bikes under 12 kg.

Have you had any experience with Radon Slide ED 2011 frame? Perhaps, I could replace the Marzocchi fork with a RS Lyric R. I can get some good deals for 225-275 Euros used.

parabum

I have another offer for Specialized Enduro Expert 2010 in good condition for 1100 Euros. What is your opinion on this one in relation to the Radon?

http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bikes/archive/2010/enduro/enduroslexpert#specs

The Rookie

Much better bike but still really bigger than you need for your stated usage, a trail bike (circa 120-1340mm travel) would better suite your usage, something like a Spesh Stumpjumper.

Thewaylander

I personally think the Enduro is a great bike, and leaves you open to pushing your boundaries a bit... yes a lighter 130mm bike maybe slightly easier uphill and so on, but those endure climb surprising well! and is confidence inspiring on the downs for sure!