Budget £400 - Trail - New or Used

monstreme
monstreme Posts: 5
edited August 2016 in MTB buying advice
I started mountain biking a year or so ago on a old 2009 Giant Rock acquired second hand for £30. I live near some woods that are pretty great for mountain biking but i feel like i need more of a challenge and have therefore started looking into mountain bike parks with a friend that also enjoys mountain biking. The problem is that my bike is not of high enough standards for me to proceed onwards with mountain biking. Therefore i am looking for a new bike.

I have read many outdated articles on this price range which tend to conclude by saying that a second hand bike is best for such a budget - however they never delve into specifics.

The friend i previously mentioned recently purchased a 2016 Giant Stance and it takes bumps and jumps very well - but its far out of my price range and even second hand it goes for well over £600. Many articles i looked at about new cheap full suspension bikes resulted in saying that they break very easily and its better to buy a second hand one. But again many of these articles are very old or don't include examples of bikes.

So i would like to ask for help in finding a bike suitable for an amateur such as me that will help me improve my abilities and endure future more advanced trails. Any advice and or links would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

*I am rather short so looking for frames 17"-19"

Comments

  • turpinr
    turpinr Posts: 255
    Have you had a look on eBay??
    I bought a pipedream sirius off there a couple of months ago that I'm chuffed with.
    Paid £500 for it but I've seen plenty of bikes for less.
    You may not get a 27.5" or 29" frame for your money but 26" isn't dead yet.
  • cooldad
    cooldad Posts: 32,599
    viewtopic.php?f=20005&t=13068514
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  • monstreme
    monstreme Posts: 5
    turpinr wrote:
    Have you had a look on eBay??
    I bought a pipedream sirius off there a couple of months ago that I'm chuffed with.
    Paid £500 for it but I've seen plenty of bikes for less.
    You may not get a 27.5" or 29" frame for your money but 26" isn't dead yet.

    Yes i have looked on ebay. The trouble is i'm not exactly sure what to look for hence the post. Thanks for the bike suggestion though.
  • Danieljephcott
    Danieljephcott Posts: 334
    Mentioned quite a few times but for the money the voodoo hoodoo wins from Halfords. Purchase the online Halfords vouchers for an extra 10% off makes the bike £360.

    I love mine.
  • The Rookie
    The Rookie Posts: 27,812
    2009 isn't old, my main bike has a 2006 frame and my commuter a 2005 frame...they are feeling offended!
    Currently riding a Whyte T130C, X0 drivetrain, Magura Trail brakes converted to mixed wheel size (homebuilt wheels) with 140mm Fox 34 Rhythm and RP23 suspension. 12.2Kg.
  • turpinr
    turpinr Posts: 255
    monstreme wrote:
    turpinr wrote:
    Have you had a look on eBay??
    I bought a pipedream sirius off there a couple of months ago that I'm chuffed with.
    Paid £500 for it but I've seen plenty of bikes for less.
    You may not get a 27.5" or 29" frame for your money but 26" isn't dead yet.

    Yes i have looked on ebay. The trouble is i'm not exactly sure what to look for hence the post. Thanks for the bike suggestion though.
    I originally looked on eBay for a cross country bike and it was a Cube that caught the eye but I didn't want to travel too far for one.
    Then I considered Whyte 901 and 905 but none were near enough or would only sell on meeting eye to eye, which is fair enough
    I sold my mate a rock lobster tig team SL which I'd upgraded over the years for £300 and even though its 10 years old I'd have it back in a heart beat.
  • supersonic
    supersonic Posts: 82,708
    Have a look at the 13 Incline Alpha at £360
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  • monstreme
    monstreme Posts: 5
    After much thought and help i have decided i am going to purchase the VooDoo Canzo as it's on offer at Halfords for £640 with interest free payment of £50 month. I am going for it due to its insanely positive feedback and the fact my employer has offered to pay the rest for 30 hours of labour. Thanks for all your help.
  • Danieljephcott
    Danieljephcott Posts: 334
    You defo wanting full suspension? its just I think the bizango is a better bike and is stupidly highly rated. I'm a noob but I'm sure the equipment is much better quality. I'm sure plenty of people will know more than I do but your betternoff with a better quality hard tail that a budget full suspension.
  • monstreme
    monstreme Posts: 5
    Danieljephcott wrote:
    You defo wanting full suspension? its just I think the bizango is a better bike and is stupidly highly rated. I'm a noob but I'm sure the equipment is much better quality. I'm sure plenty of people will know more than I do but your betternoff with a better quality hard tail that a budget full suspension.

    That's what I had always believed but after looking at many reviews and individual specification the Bizango doesn't seem to outperform it's less expensive counterpart (HooDoo). Furthermore I was surprised to be unable to find a single negative review about the Canzo - and many agree with a little bit of proper setup it rivals bikes almost double it's price. This combined with its offer price has just really set my mind. However I am going to the local Halfwords in order to check it, and the other bikes, out. Once again thank you for all your useful help on the subject. I will get back to you after a more detailed look in store.
  • Danieljephcott
    Danieljephcott Posts: 334
    As said I'm a total noob so my knowledge is very basic.

    Sounds like a top bike. Have fun :)

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