Advice Sought

tafer2uk

Hi All

I am wanting some advice please.

I have a 10 year old Kona Fire Mountain with a few extras such as Tioga Suspension Forks.

However sadly my bike has been gathering dust for a few years as I somehow lost my way and enthusiasm for riding. However i'm getting the urge back.

The dilemma I have is this.

My bike needs a good service and probably new tyres, tubes maybe wheels etc...

Looking at how much bike technology has come on since the mid 90's I don't know wether to spend my hard earned cash on doing this bike up or should I buy a low end bike that maybe has dual suspension and front and rear disc brakes?

Would my old bike (particularly the frame and forks)still be better?

I am looking at a budget of around ¶œ150 to initially get me back riding, with a view to further upgrades later should I keep the bug.

All advice gratefully appreciated. Thank You

PS Most of my riding initially will be light to moderate off road.[:)]

whyamihere

Definitely do the old bike. A bike with dual suspension and disc brakes for œ150 is really not worth it.

munchkin2

tbh you wont be able to upgrade much with œ150, nor can it buy a decent bike. This may be a bit unhelpful, but save up a bit more.

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tafer2uk

thanks for the quick replies guys, just to clarify the œ150 is to service my current bike and get it running not to upgrade it, or I wanted to know if technology had moved on enough so that a œ150 bike today was comparable to my œ500 bike in the mid 90's. Hence why was considering buying new depending on your answers. I'm reluctant to spend another œ500+ on a decent bike until i'm up to full speed again.

paulf2007

Hi, it all depends what you call decent. œ500 doesn't buy much these days, but you do get more for your money than you did several years ago. However the sky is the limit. Just recently I questioned my sanity when I handed over œ4500 for a new carbon giant trance, but it is the nuts. But you can probably have as much fun on your kona. Get your trusty Kona sorted and see how you get on, if you keep it up you could buy another bike when funds allow and keep the kona for the winter.

Rockhopper_Ecosse

Hey! I reckon you should get the old Fire Mountain back in working order, get rid of the cobwebs and hit the trails! So much has changed in the world of mtb'ing now, it seems to be split into different genres like freeride, jump, downhill, trials, xc etc...when i used to ride, mountain biking was just 'mountain biking'. Once you get a taste for whats going on and what you enjoy you could save up for a bike specific to the genre you have more interest in. I wouldn't even bother upgrading the Kona, just get out and get the bug back!

tafer2uk

Thanks guys, looks like getting the Kona ship shape is the way to go. I suppose it shouldn't surprise me that œ500 doesn't get you much these days. Even my computer just cost me three grand to upgrade. If I get a few pounds off (physically not monetary), and get that buzz back, I will start planting the seed with my wife and get my credit card on standby. Hopefully I will be asking your advicer again, only next time it will be asking which serious mountain bike you recommend. It sounds like that with the different genre's around now i'll need it. [:D]

miggillicuddy

Can't add much to that^^^^

...But my both my middle-aged parents have old fire-mountains (maybe about 8 years old) and they are really reliable bikes. Bits and pieces have been upgraded over the years but the bikes have lasted well.

Definately see how far you can get on upgrading it with the money. Maybe try Ebay for bargain parts.

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