Need Mountain Bike Advice

Edited Date/Time 4/5/2016 9:59am
So I'm parking the 110 for a while and I want to get a mountain bike for exercise and I need some suggestions...
Full suspension and disk brakes are a must.
Im an intermediate level mx'er and could handle myself on a BMX bike back in the day,and I plan on riding trails, but nothing like gnarly downhill.
What would you suggest I buy? I'd like to keep it under $2,500 if possible, preferably around $1500 which I know will be difficult since I want decent suspension.
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RandyS
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2/17/2016 11:20am Edited Date/Time 2/17/2016 11:26am
Buy used, check out Pinkbike. Mountain bikes lose value quick, $1500 can get you a pretty nice several year old bike with at least expert level suspension, and with financing there are plenty of people buying way more bike than they needed and not really using them. High end mountain bikes are like gym memberships.
woodSMITH29
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Erwin, TN US
2/17/2016 11:20am
I opted for hard tail, 29er with all the trick compentents for that money(retail$2700 got a deal at $1800). I really wanted full suspension but the high end components were well worth the trade. You would be surprised how well the modern har tails do.

The Shop

IWreckALot
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2/17/2016 11:29am
I opted for hard tail, 29er with all the trick compentents for that money(retail$2700 got a deal at $1800). I really wanted full suspension but the...
I opted for hard tail, 29er with all the trick compentents for that money(retail$2700 got a deal at $1800). I really wanted full suspension but the high end components were well worth the trade. You would be surprised how well the modern har tails do.
I somewhat agree but some of the trails around my place make me wonder if a FS would be a little better even though it's all relatively flat terrain with the occasional hill climb. My back gets the best of me on some of my longer rides.

26ers are more agile and easier to accelerate, but 29ers maintain their speed, go faster on long straights and are easier to balance to me. I have one of both and never ride the 26. To each their own. You could get a little bit of both worlds and go 27.5.

But if you're definitively going to get a fully suspended, look at the Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Comp, and the FSR Exper, or the Santa Cruz Superlight. They all get good reviews and are in your price range.
three9zero
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2/17/2016 11:47am
I picked up this Giant Reign SX off pink bike for 1800 CDN $. If you live close to the Canadian border you'll score big as your money is worth 40% more. Sorry I do not know where AS, USA is or I'd help you find a good deal on pink bike in your area.
Panic_Rev
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2/17/2016 12:02pm
TREK

Trek ex 7 is your bike. I went with the 29 because it was on sale because they were rolling out 27.5 27.5 seems to be the new trend in mtb.
2/17/2016 12:03pm
I opted for hard tail, 29er with all the trick compentents for that money(retail$2700 got a deal at $1800). I really wanted full suspension but the...
I opted for hard tail, 29er with all the trick compentents for that money(retail$2700 got a deal at $1800). I really wanted full suspension but the high end components were well worth the trade. You would be surprised how well the modern har tails do.
Agreed.
I have both a single speed 29er hardtail, and a full squish dh rig. The ss 29er gets used the most. Raced a handful of Super D's with it, and have commuted on it. Super versatile and fun bike.
r.sal923
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2/17/2016 12:04pm
three9zero wrote:
I picked up this Giant Reign SX off pink bike for 1800 CDN $. If you live close to the Canadian border you'll score big as...
I picked up this Giant Reign SX off pink bike for 1800 CDN $. If you live close to the Canadian border you'll score big as your money is worth 40% more. Sorry I do not know where AS, USA is or I'd help you find a good deal on pink bike in your area.
Buy road bike, way more fun
three9zero
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2/17/2016 12:07pm
So I'm parking the 110 for a while and I want to get a mountain bike for exercise and I need some suggestions... Full suspension and...
So I'm parking the 110 for a while and I want to get a mountain bike for exercise and I need some suggestions...
Full suspension and disk brakes are a must.
Im an intermediate level mx'er and could handle myself on a BMX bike back in the day,and I plan on riding trails, but nothing like gnarly downhill.
What would you suggest I buy? I'd like to keep it under $2,500 if possible, preferably around $1500 which I know will be difficult since I want decent suspension.
Where do you live and what kind of trails are you going to be riding ? and what bikes are your crew riding ? No point getting a cross country 29' hard tail if you gonna be decending all the time, and no point getting a 6' plus full suspension with big brakes is you are living nowhere near any trails that you will be decending on....A good enduro style bike will work ok everywhere. Look for a nice Scott Genius, Giant Reign, Specialized Enduro or Trek Fuel, all those bikes are good for climbing, but if you take the odd trip to a resort with a chair lift or shuttle run with buddies you wont be riding POS. I have a Giant Reign SX and upgraded the bike with Shimano Zee 4 piston caliper brakes with the 203mm Ice one rotors(basically an Enduro bike with downhill brakes. Its basicall a bike that can handle resort dh trails, shuttle runs, but is 30 lbs and can still climb pretty good. Anything lighter or more "Cross Countryish" and I'd be snapping the bike like a twig. My bike is basically the yz 250 two stroke of the mtn bike community, not the best at anything, but pretty good at doing just about anything. I live in Calgary Alberta, we have lift accesed decending trails in town, GNARLY down hill an hour drive away, world class single track cross country all over the place, and WORLD CLASS ski resort down hill for weekend trips, a good enduro bike will have your covered for everything.
Happy Riding.

three9zero
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2/17/2016 12:09pm
r.sal923 wrote:
Buy road bike, way more fun
lol, about as fun as rusty nail through your scrotum.
2/17/2016 12:27pm
three9zero wrote:
I picked up this Giant Reign SX off pink bike for 1800 CDN $. If you live close to the Canadian border you'll score big as...
I picked up this Giant Reign SX off pink bike for 1800 CDN $. If you live close to the Canadian border you'll score big as your money is worth 40% more. Sorry I do not know where AS, USA is or I'd help you find a good deal on pink bike in your area.
I live in Oklahoma, but I work for the airlines and am based in Detroit.

Ill check out this pinkbike...
You guys are referring to the 26er and 29er...what brand is that?

And to the helpful guy who referred me to vitalmtb... Thanks for taking the time to contribute nothing. I don't want to talk to mountain bikers... I wanna talk to mxers.
hvaughn88
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2/17/2016 12:31pm
I live in Oklahoma, but I work for the airlines and am based in Detroit. Ill check out this pinkbike... You guys are referring to the...
I live in Oklahoma, but I work for the airlines and am based in Detroit.

Ill check out this pinkbike...
You guys are referring to the 26er and 29er...what brand is that?

And to the helpful guy who referred me to vitalmtb... Thanks for taking the time to contribute nothing. I don't want to talk to mountain bikers... I wanna talk to mxers.
Kind of a dickhead comment, don't ya think? And 26er and 29er are tire sizes, not brands. You could probably learn that on vitalmtb.com
GuyB
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2/17/2016 12:34pm
hvaughn88 wrote:
Kind of a dickhead comment, don't ya think? And 26er and 29er are tire sizes, not brands. You could probably learn that on vitalmtb.com
When you have brands like Niner out there, it can get a little confusing.
hvaughn88
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2/17/2016 12:35pm
hvaughn88 wrote:
Kind of a dickhead comment, don't ya think? And 26er and 29er are tire sizes, not brands. You could probably learn that on vitalmtb.com
GuyB wrote:
When you have brands like Niner out there, it can get a little confusing.
I'm aware of them. Wink
IWreckALot
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2/17/2016 12:38pm
r.sal923 wrote:
Buy road bike, way more fun
three9zero wrote:
lol, about as fun as rusty nail through your scrotum.
I've never heard a more wrong statement than that one. . . Well this is vital so maybe I have. But, there is no way a road bike is more fun. It's better for cardio and doing timed trials in a lot of ways, but not in the same fun category as mountain bike.
three9zero
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2/17/2016 12:42pm Edited Date/Time 2/17/2016 3:49pm
I live in Oklahoma, but I work for the airlines and am based in Detroit. Ill check out this pinkbike... You guys are referring to the...
I live in Oklahoma, but I work for the airlines and am based in Detroit.

Ill check out this pinkbike...
You guys are referring to the 26er and 29er...what brand is that?

And to the helpful guy who referred me to vitalmtb... Thanks for taking the time to contribute nothing. I don't want to talk to mountain bikers... I wanna talk to mxers.
If you are "Otta D-Triot", go over into Windsor area and search pink bike for a nice one...
boom, here you go....
http://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/1903480/
Socia
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2/17/2016 12:45pm
I have had a lot of luck with Airborne (www.airbornebicycles.com). They build limited runs of bikes in house with great components and they'll ship them to your door, very competitive on pricing. I believe they only have hard tails in stock at the moment, but they put out full suspension models often. I have yet to find anything in the Ark-la-tx-Oma area that made me wish I had rear suspension, but that's completely up to preference.
hvaughn88
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2/17/2016 12:47pm
Socia wrote:
I have had a lot of luck with Airborne (www.airbornebicycles.com). They build limited runs of bikes in house with great components and they'll ship them to...
I have had a lot of luck with Airborne (www.airbornebicycles.com). They build limited runs of bikes in house with great components and they'll ship them to your door, very competitive on pricing. I believe they only have hard tails in stock at the moment, but they put out full suspension models often. I have yet to find anything in the Ark-la-tx-Oma area that made me wish I had rear suspension, but that's completely up to preference.
I have an Airborne road bike and have been pleasantly surprised with it. Pretty good bang for the buck.
Whitey
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2/17/2016 12:49pm
Make sure you know what size frame fits you best too.
three9zero
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2/17/2016 1:00pm Edited Date/Time 2/17/2016 1:04pm
IWreckALot wrote:
I've never heard a more wrong statement than that one. . . Well this is vital so maybe I have. But, there is no way a...
I've never heard a more wrong statement than that one. . . Well this is vital so maybe I have. But, there is no way a road bike is more fun. It's better for cardio and doing timed trials in a lot of ways, but not in the same fun category as mountain bike.
He's my brother in law..lol, he is a "Roadie" and lives in one of the best places in the world to MTN bike(Rossland B.C) but they have no lift accessed riding, as their Ski Hill, although on of the best kept secrets in North America(Red Mountian) has shitty old lifts and no detachable highspeed lift( the chair detaches from the main cable that is going fast, onto a bull wheel that is going slow so you can get off the lift and the lifty can get your bike off the rack), so its climb up or shuttle, which although fun, is not nearly as fun as lift accessed riding.lol. He actually runs shuttle(drives the truck) for my lazy ass when we are out there on vacation, thanks Rob....lol Shuttleing allows us to not climb up to go down, and lets the entire family enjoy decending, my 4 year old son who also races bmx kills it, hims and my 10 year old neice can get in on the action, where as if we were climbing to "earn" the decents, the kids would be at home......


FGR01
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2/17/2016 1:21pm
I have 3 bikes, all of them carbon and all 29'ers with trick components. One is a hardtail, one is a 100mm travel FS, and the other is a 140mm FS (Trek Remedy). I almost always ride the 140mm bike and almost never the hardtail. I've also demo-ridden just about everything the last 3 years.

My advice, definitely get full-susp, especially if you are only going to have 1 bike. Full suspension can do it all, but hardtails really suck when the trail gets rough. Nothing is more annoying than listening to the chain slap around as the bike skitters all over rough rocks and your back gets the piss beat out of it. And the full suspension bikes are so good now that you really give up almost nothing to a hardtail on the climbs.

If you are a decent MX rider, I will assume you will be like me. I tend to ride a mtb like I'm riding an MX bike... looking for crap to jump off and always expecting the back end to soak everything up. Basically I tend to override the thing and expect more of it than I should. Probably why I am not too fond of hardtails.

The Trek Fuel-EX pictured above is an awesome all around bike. It does everything really well. Climbs great but has enough suspension to handle pretty gnarly descents. I also tested the Niner Jet and was pretty impressed with how well it did on downhills for a relatively lightly suspended bike.

I've become a big fan of the Sram 1x11 drivetrains lately. The simplicity is awesome and they've gotten really dialed recently.

I prefer 29" as we have lots of rocks and rough stuff around here and the 29 rolls through better. I don't mind 27.5 too much but 26 is pretty much antiquated at this point and feels like riding a bike you borrowed from a 9 yr old kid.

At your pricepoint you would definitely have to buy used to get on a decent full-susp bike.
RandyS
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Grass Valley, CA US
2/17/2016 1:31pm
RandyS wrote:
Even new bikes drop quick, this was a $4800 carbon bike 3 years ago. $2600 OBO brand new. http://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/1913513/
GuyB wrote:
Yeah, feel free to buy a bike from a guy with that avatar. [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2016/02/17/124376/s1200_Screen_Shot_2016_02_17_at_12.30.40_PM.jpg[/img]
Yeah, feel free to buy a bike from a guy with that avatar.



I called him and he asked if I would pick it up at his house, after 10, come alone :O
He does live in Spearfish after all.
Forty
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Saint Paul, MN US
2/17/2016 1:46pm
So I'm parking the 110 for a while and I want to get a mountain bike for exercise and I need some suggestions... Full suspension and...
So I'm parking the 110 for a while and I want to get a mountain bike for exercise and I need some suggestions...
Full suspension and disk brakes are a must.
Im an intermediate level mx'er and could handle myself on a BMX bike back in the day,and I plan on riding trails, but nothing like gnarly downhill.
What would you suggest I buy? I'd like to keep it under $2,500 if possible, preferably around $1500 which I know will be difficult since I want decent suspension.
three9zero wrote:
Where do you live and what kind of trails are you going to be riding ? and what bikes are your crew riding ? No point...
Where do you live and what kind of trails are you going to be riding ? and what bikes are your crew riding ? No point getting a cross country 29' hard tail if you gonna be decending all the time, and no point getting a 6' plus full suspension with big brakes is you are living nowhere near any trails that you will be decending on....A good enduro style bike will work ok everywhere. Look for a nice Scott Genius, Giant Reign, Specialized Enduro or Trek Fuel, all those bikes are good for climbing, but if you take the odd trip to a resort with a chair lift or shuttle run with buddies you wont be riding POS. I have a Giant Reign SX and upgraded the bike with Shimano Zee 4 piston caliper brakes with the 203mm Ice one rotors(basically an Enduro bike with downhill brakes. Its basicall a bike that can handle resort dh trails, shuttle runs, but is 30 lbs and can still climb pretty good. Anything lighter or more "Cross Countryish" and I'd be snapping the bike like a twig. My bike is basically the yz 250 two stroke of the mtn bike community, not the best at anything, but pretty good at doing just about anything. I live in Calgary Alberta, we have lift accesed decending trails in town, GNARLY down hill an hour drive away, world class single track cross country all over the place, and WORLD CLASS ski resort down hill for weekend trips, a good enduro bike will have your covered for everything.
Happy Riding.

Good advice. Get a bike that suits the majority of the MTB disciplines.

Where we are it's tight twisty single track stuff with ALOT of trees, narrow switch backs, some high speed stuff but best suited for a hard tail. I have a really good bike that I picked up on CL, not abused, 110 fork, added a few quality parts and for less than $1000.00 I'm out there. I love my bike.




A $2500.00 budget will get you a lot of bike if you pay attention.
ACBraap
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2/17/2016 2:04pm
Check out the latest Dirt Rag, which has reviews of sub 3K bikes. Ride a few, get the one you like the best, that fits you the best, and that will suit your type of riding. Demo days and trying some rentals is a great way to see how you like them. If you can make it to the Sea Otter there are tons of demos available. Specialized and Trek are very popular, both suck as companies. Specialized in particular is overpriced relative to other quality brands, IMO.
bvm111
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Las Vegas, NV US
2/17/2016 3:27pm
So I'm parking the 110 for a while and I want to get a mountain bike for exercise and I need some suggestions... Full suspension and...
So I'm parking the 110 for a while and I want to get a mountain bike for exercise and I need some suggestions...
Full suspension and disk brakes are a must.
Im an intermediate level mx'er and could handle myself on a BMX bike back in the day,and I plan on riding trails, but nothing like gnarly downhill.
What would you suggest I buy? I'd like to keep it under $2,500 if possible, preferably around $1500 which I know will be difficult since I want decent suspension.
I have a lightly used 2012 Specialized Enduro Comp Medium frame I would be willing to sell you. it is probably one of the best all around do everything bike out there.



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