£550 to spend on new bike

micky c

Hi all , i have a budget of £550 to spend on a new mountain bike. I have been looking at paulscycles.co.uk for a bargain but being a novice would like some expert guidance.
I am 5ft 11 and 12.5 stone and looking for a bike that will be used on paths and some easy off road tracks.
any advice would be appreciated.

oxocube1

The Voodoo Bikes are around and under your price. Slightly heavier than some other options but worth it for the decent spec/£

apreading

Voodoo, Carrera or Boardman from Halfords

Rockrider from Decathlon(http://www.decathlon.co.uk/rockrider-560-mountain-bike-id_8293151.html or http://www.decathlon.co.uk/rafal-740-ltd-edition-mountain-bike-blue-id_8314898.html)

Calibre from GoOutdoors (http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/calibre-gauntlet-650b-mountain-bike-p343871 extra 10% off with code ALLDEP10)

micky c

The decathlon bikes look good not too sure about going upto £600 though.

apreading

The £360 bike from Decathlon will almost certainly beat anything else you can get for under £550, probably anything else you can get for under £750 to be honest - its an absolute steal. And the £600 bike is even better.

micky c

On the same site is the rockrider big 8 mountain bike for 499.99 , what are your opinions on this bike , has it got better spec than the rockrider 560

micky c

Boardman Mountain Bike Comp HT 650B - 18"
Halfords
£499.99
Spec:
Frame: Lightweight triple butted aluminum
Forks: Aluminium Suntour Radon fork (120mm travel) for improved suspension
Gears: SRAM X5 27 speed gearing for better performance and lighter weight
Brakes: Avid DB1 hydraulic disc brakes for more powerful and reliable stopping
Wheels: 27.5" Continental tyres for all-round performance on all terrains

Any views.

apreading

The Boardmans are cracking bikes but the Rockrider is £140 less and has much better gears/drivetrain and more or less equivalent elsewhere. The Boardman does have the current trend in wheelsize though, and nicer looks in my opinion. If you have or can find anyone with British Cycling membership then you can get another 10% off the Boardman at Halfords too, but if you have to take out a new membership then it may not come through while the current offer is still on (they regularly run offers but the current one is better than normal).

I would probably still go with the cheaper Rockrider.

The Big 8 is great value but 29" wheels was a brief fad that seems to be in the process of dying out and is only available in Large which is probably the wrong size for you.

micky c

Only have the large size Decathlon in stock , would this size be ok for someone who is 5.11

The Rookie

Maybe, it depends on your stature and the actual sizing, the critical dimension is the top tube length which dictates the cockpit length, so if you are really gangly with long arms and legs you have a short torso and need a shorter cockpit length (contrary to what most people think the torso makes up most the cockpit length not the arms) if you are a Gorilla with short legs and arms and a longer torso the large is probably spot on.

Mattharrier

I have a Rockrider 8.0 in XL, which as far as I can tell is the same frame. I would say mine is, if anything, slightly on the large side and I'm 5'11" so an L would probably be ideal.

mattyfez

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19722175#p19722175]micky c[/url] wrote:

The decathlon bikes look good not too sure about going upto £600 though.

Problem solved:

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/rafal-740-mountain-bike-id_8314897.html#anchor_ComponentProductTechnicalInformation

micky c

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19723394#p19723394]mattyfez[/url] wrote:

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19722175#p19722175]micky c[/url] wrote:

The decathlon bikes look good not too sure about going upto £600 though.

Problem solved:

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/rafal-740-mountain-bike-id_8314897.html#anchor_ComponentProductTechnicalInformation

Only available in small.

micky c

Decathlon do not have a shop in the North East at the moment but in December are opening a store near Gateshead , may wait till then and try the bikes out for size. May even have some offers on for new opening.