Best for around £500

chuffed

I've been messing about building up existing (albeit old) bike parts I have in the garage, but recently my rear hub went on the Box Two I've had for years, and I've had a bit of a 'mare - ended up buying a set of HB-M475s to put on it, but realised I've mis-counted and mis-ordered based on the wrong number of spokes my wheels had

As a result, I have been thinking of simply going through the Cycle to Work scheme instead, and had planned to spent upto £550ish on something a bit more modern.

My commute is only approx 6 to 8 miles each way, with 2 or 3 of those being on road, and the rest being trails and tracks, including some steep ruts on the way back. As a result, a rigid front would probably make it unnecessarily uncomfortable, and I've come around to thinking that it's pointless getting anything other than a hardtail, not least for weight reasons. I'm unlikely to do anything resembling DH, Trials or Dirt jumping, so the usage case would be the commute as above.

The cycle to work scheme is this one (https://www.cycle2work.info/), so I'm more or less limited to Halfords, Tredz or Cycle Republic.


I used to be into it all back when Steve Peat was in his prime, the Box Two was still available to buy, and everything was a bit simpler back then in terms of the tech. Fast forward some 15 years, and I don't have a clue now.

Having done some research, I was swayed towards the following:

Boardman 650B https://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/mountain-bikes/boardman-mountain-bike-comp-650b-16-18-19-frames

Voodoo Bizango https://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/mountain-bikes/voodoo-bizango-29er-mens-mountain-bike-16-18-20-22-frames

Voodoo Wazoo https://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/mountain-bikes/voodoo-wazoo-mens-mountain-bike-27-5--18-20-frames

Specialized Pitch Sport https://www.tredz.co.uk/.Specialized-Pitch-Sport-650b-Mountain-Bike-2019-Hardtail-MTB_109251.htm


I think as part of the package, I get an extra 10% off Halfords, which is manifested in a reduction in the "rental" - which would technically make the Tredz Specialized the most expensive, in theory, rather than the cheapest.

The Bizango looks a good package, but I have read some complaints about the quality. Similarly, I really like the "look" of the Pitch Sport, but the review (BikeRadar, I think) seemed to pan it quite severely. I don't know enough about the spec to differentiated between them all.

Any help appreciated!

(I was briefly tempted to pay extra for the Vengence-e, but I figured it is best to get a normal MTB with decent spec, rather than a cack one with an electric motor )

CitizenLee

I'd be more inclined to go for the Bizango out of them all as the spec is slightly better overall and from all the reviews I've seen it does appear to a great bike for the money.

If your commute is mostly on road a front suss hybrid may be worth considering too. Bikes such as the Cube Nature, Specialized Sirrus Disc and Cannondale Quick Disc would certainly handle the offroad part of your route, but would be much better on the road than a MTB. There should be one in each range to suit your budget too.

jamski

Of those, definitely the Bizango.

Rowan404

Bizango is by far the best value.

chuffed

Thanks for the advice so far.

Had a quick look in Halfords - Bizango does look the best spec, just a shame it's not the best looking!

After a final scour of the appropriate sites, I put an order in for the Bizango.

Long_Time_Lurker

chuffed wrote:

...just a shame it's not the best looking!
After a final scour of the appropriate sites, I put an order in for the Bizango.

But ultimately you went for the best bike.
And at least you haven't made the mistake that I (and many others) make with my first MTB - basing my purchase on looks and colour :oops:
Waste of money - and put me off riding until someone let me borrow a decent bike so that I could see what I was missing.

Enjoy!

chuffed

Long Time Lurker wrote:

chuffed wrote:

...just a shame it's not the best looking!
After a final scour of the appropriate sites, I put an order in for the Bizango.

But ultimately you went for the best bike.
And at least you haven't made the mistake that I (and many others) make with my first MTB - basing my purchase on looks and colour :oops:
Waste of money - and put me off riding until someone let me borrow a decent bike so that I could see what I was missing.

Enjoy!

Yes, perhaps!

Picked it up earlier (boxed, prefer to assemble myself) and put it together for a quick test. No front dérailleur might take a while to get used to, but the QLC front axle is a trick piece of engineering. Only had a short blast on it, but it pedals easier than (not suprisingly, I guess) the old tech on the Box Two. Not yet sure if it's the 29ers or a lighter frame, or a combo of both.

Added a Velo 9 and a different saddle I already had (gel jobby). Maiden voyage will be the commute tomorrow morning.

The Rookie

Enjoy!

No front mech is easy to get used to, you just shift on the rear the whole time - simples!

chuffed

So I've done my first 10 miles:

- Brakes will need a lot of bedding in, as they're a bit weak/noisy at the moment
- Tyres might need swapping at some point; they are quite noisy and perhaps a little unsuited to roads
- Single front is, as above, easy to get used to - the ratios mean that you'll top out around 20mph though, unless you're going down hill with legs going like billy whizz.

Otherwise, pretty good. The frame is no less comfortable or noticeable over FS, and there's minimal chain slap/rattle (no doubt due to the single front chainring).

There were times on the way to work that I thought some pedal assistance would have helped, but it'll be my barometer for improvement!

CitizenLee

chuffed wrote:

- Tyres might need swapping at some point; they are quite noisy and perhaps a little unsuited to roads

That's why I suggested a hybrid

chuffed

CitizenLee wrote:

chuffed wrote:

- Tyres might need swapping at some point; they are quite noisy and perhaps a little unsuited to roads

That's why I suggested a hybrid

A hybrid would get trashed on the route I take to work.

As per the OP, it's mostly quarried trails. I used to do DH biking when younger, and the only difference between my commute route on the off-road section (3 to 4 miles or so) and the DH tracks are the absence of drop offs.

02gf74

chuffed wrote:

- the ratios mean that you'll top out around 20mph though, unless you're going down hill with legs going like billy whizz.

That seems low.

Assuming it is 29 in wheel, 32 chainring with 11 t smallest sprocket, I may got it wrong but I quickly calculated that at a cadence of 90 rpm, which is nowhere near billy whizz and pretty average for road cycling , speed is 23 mph.

You could always fit 34 or 36 t ring but then uphills become harder.

chuffed

02GF74 wrote:

chuffed wrote:

- the ratios mean that you'll top out around 20mph though, unless you're going down hill with legs going like billy whizz.

That seems low.

Assuming it is 29 in wheel, 32 chainring with 11 t smallest sprocket, I may got it wrong but I quickly calculated that at a cadence of 90 rpm, which is nowhere near billy whizz and pretty average for road cycling , speed is 23 mph.

You could always fit 34 or 36 t ring but then uphills become harder.

I don't know what my cadence was, but I found that hard pedalling (estimating maybe 1 pedal stroke per second, so maybe 60rpm cadence) was getting me around 18mph. On the 'highest' gear, pedalling down a gradient of maybe 20 degrees, I reached around 30mph. After around 23mph, pedalling wasn't adding anything at all, and it was momentum/gravity that added the extra.

I'm no athelete and only averaged 10mph both ways, but that includes an overgrown and rutty section that can only really be walked up on the way there, some junctions, and a final (but small) uphill, which is the same section but opposite direction mentioned above. I'm not fit enough to cycle up that yet, nor brave enough to go flat out on the off-road sections, of which there are heavily potholed farm tracks, a few ramped bridges, and otherwise hard but very rough tracks. If I can average 15mph (which I reckon is still is well below the gearing) over the commute, I'll be happy with that. Less traction on the tyres would help, but fitness is obviously a factor.

I'm just not sure if I had more "top end" potential on my other 3x8. Could just be a nocebo.

mattyfez

Well given that almost all cassettes smaller cogs are 11 teeth, then your cassette isn't the limiting factor in top speed.

It's the front ring. Talking generally, the big ring on a tripple crank will have more teeth than a single ring set up, as said above if it's too big it will really hamper ability to go uphill and there's no smaller ring to drop down to.

To me though this sounds more like a technique /cadence issue.

If you're in top gear and struggling to pedal at 60rpm, then you shouldn't be in top gear, drop down a gear or two to increase cadence.

What I found helpful starting out, was not to change up gear until I was struggling to get any more speed out of the gear I was currently in, not quite 'spinning out' but not too far off.

Remember it's not a race to get into top gear, make the gears work for you rather than rushing to shift up to top gear at a low cadence.

And if you find yourself struggling at 60rpm, don't be afraid to drop down a gear allow you to pedal a bit quicker so your not struggling to turn the cranks around, as I said, make the gears work for you, don't work for the gears, that's what gears are for.

As you get more used to it, your strength and fitness will increase gradually so you can pedal higher gears at a a better cadence.

mattyfez

Just incidentally, I had a mate who was struggling a bit to keep up with us on flatish bridal way /trail.. we were all running either 3x8 or 3x9.

Turned out he was on the big front ring most of the time, and pushing too high a gear on the cassette which wasn't really nessesary and he was struggling to turn the cranks.

I made the suggestion he forget his big front ring and stay on the middle ring, and guess what, his cadence was higher but he was less fatigued and he managed to keep up with us.

chuffed

mattyfez wrote:

Well given that almost all cassettes smaller cogs are 11 teeth, then your cassette isn't the limiting factor in top speed.

It's the front ring. Talking generally, the big ring on a tripple crank will have more teeth than a single ring set up, as said above if it's too big it will really hamper ability to go uphill and there's no smaller ring to drop down to.

To me though this sounds more like a technique /cadence issue.

Sorry, but I stopped taking your post seriously after this bit - what you're saying is nothing to do with anything I've said - e.g.

chuffed wrote:

- Single front is, as above, easy to get used to - the ratios mean that you'll top out around 20mph though, unless you're going down hill with legs going like billy whizz.

chuffed wrote:

On the 'highest' gear, pedalling down a gradient of maybe 20 degrees, I reached around 30mph. After around 23mph, pedalling wasn't adding anything at all, and it was momentum/gravity that added the extra.

At no point have I been "struggling" or having technique issues - the gripe I have with 1x11 is 100% the fact that the "top" gear is still too small.

When you're pedalling at a fast rate, using the "top" (smallest rear) gear, and still not finding that you can't get a good bit of pace, that's a limitation of the ratios and has nothing to do with cadence or technique.

JBA

chuffed wrote:

At no point have I been "struggling" or having technique issues - the gripe I have with 1x11 is 100% the fact that the "top" gear is still too large.

You mean too small. If it is too large you won't be spinning out.

The only way you are going to get more speed before spinning out is to change the chainring for a larger one. The downside of that is you will lose low gear capability for the uphills.

chuffed

JBA wrote:

chuffed wrote:

At no point have I been "struggling" or having technique issues - the gripe I have with 1x11 is 100% the fact that the "top" gear is still too large.

You mean too small. If it is too large you won't be spinning out.

The only way you are going to get more speed before spinning out is to change the chainring for a larger one. The downside of that is you will lose low gear capability for the uphills.

Yes, corrected thanks.

I'm not planning on changing it, but it's a realistic limitation of the 1x11 gearset. The only thing(s) I did mention I might consider changing are the tyres, as they seem to have a bit too much traction on the roads - something I feel can be altered without comprimise.


1x11 is great for other reasons, such as being able to access a range of gears quickly and easily, but it just lacks the top speed that you get on other setups.

mattyfez

chuffed wrote:

Sorry, but I stopped taking your post seriously after this bit - what you're saying is nothing to do with anything I've said - e.g.

At no point have I been "struggling" or having technique issues - the gripe I have with 1x11 is 100% the fact that the "top" gear is still too small.

Well aren't you a testy one

chuffed wrote:

I don't know what my cadence was, but I found that hard pedalling (estimating maybe 1 pedal stroke per second, so maybe 60rpm cadence)

OK, whatever.

larkim

I suppose the point of 1x11 is it's not intended for road riding particularly, so the highest gear is not well designed for whizzing down a road at 30mph. If top end speed feels like too much compromise for the rides that you are doing, but you still like the simplicity of 1x11 then you could invest in a bigger ring - you might have chain sizing issues? - and just swap the 32T for a 36T depending on the type of ride you're doing.

It might also be worth investing in a cheap cadence sensor - there is always the possibility that your natural cadence does have a preference for being too slow and working to increase it might make the gear range feel more appropriate?