Mountain Bike

[jimmyrules712]

Anyone here know anything about mountain bikes? I want to buy one, price range is $600 max. I dont know a lot about brands or quality parts or anything, or place to buy, any help appreciated.

Should i avoid all stores that are not bike speciality stores? I dont want a cheap wal-mart bike.

but i dont want to be overcharged at a bike speciality store either.

[discodanman45]

The best way to go is to buy a bike at a specialty store. You will get a good bike, have experienced people fit you with a bike that is your size, and will get a bike with good components. Even stores like Dick's are overpriced and have some junky bikes. Your specialized stores are pretty much regulated in price because of bike companies haveing MSRP

Some decent bikes around your price level would be Specialized Hardrock or Giant Iguana. Giant has about 3 other basic mountain bikes that are a little cheaper or expensive.

You failed to mention what type of mountain bike you want. What will you use it for. How severe of terrain will you ride it through. Tell me exactly what you will be doing and i can narrow it down a little further.

[Spartan]

I agree with discodan on several points. The most important being to go to a specialty store. They sell both inexpensive and high dollar customs. You should be able to find a bike in your range no problem. Getting the right fit is the most important and will contribute the most to your enjoyment of riding. I bike that is to big or to small just will never feel right and most likely tire you out way to early and you won't get the most power from each pedal stroke. I am a pretty avid trail rider and I have a Specialized that I like alot. You also have to be honest with yourself on the type of riding you will be doing most often. I am mostly a trail rider and I picked a dual sprung bike. This means it has both front and rear shocks. It really smooths out the bumps on the trail. If the majority of your time is spent on relatively smooth or paved roadways then a hardtail may be a better fit (and they are usually less expensive).

-Spartan

[discodanman45]

Another option you may want to look into is a hybrid bike if you will be using it primarily for road and minor trail riding. You can get a real good road bike for $600 if all you are doing is road riding. The Giant OCR 3 is a great value for the price, the 2003-2004 models cost about $600.

For heavy duty mountain biking a dual suspension bike that Spartan suggested are real nice, but get kinda pricey. You can not go wrong with Specialized. The Hardrocks have been some of the best priced mountain bikes for many years. It would be a real safe bike to go into any specialty bike store and get.

[HAL9000]

Hey.. don't knock Walmart for a bike... just look closer at what you are buying. I bought one at Walmart that was called a Millenium and only had a "brand name" of CANADA on it.... I paid $300CDN for it and in reality, it's a rebadged Raleigh that was going for $475 in the specialty bike shops. I love that thing and it has the best shifters I have ever used on a bike.

[doctorgonzo]

I have had several Specialized bikes and I have always liked them. I used to have a Hardrock and now I have a Crossroads (I don't go off trails at all). It's important to go to a real bike shop so you can get a properly sized bike. I'd stay away from the no-names. I bought a Magna from Target several years ago after my Specialized had been stolen, and it completely fell apart in less than six months.

[HAL9000]

Again... ya gotta be a wise shopper.. using that advice, I would have paid $175 more for the same thing... that bike is 7 years old and going strong.. hasn't even required a tune up yet.

[SARGE]

I use these folks since they're across the street. Link has manufacturers you can read about.

http://bikemart.com/site/page.cfm?PageID=63

[lil Jimmie]

Go to your LBS also check out http://www.bikeforums.net/index.php

[Cricket]

I've been cycling since 1978 and mountain biking since 1989 and here's my suggestion...since most bikes are made in Taiwan, China or Korea anyway, don't worry about the brand of the bike but instead look at the components that come on the bike. You want a bike with the best components that your money can buy. Sure Specialized makes really nice bikes, but they're expensive when compared to Giant bikes. A $600 Specialized will come with lower quality parts than a $600 Giant. On the Specialized you might get Deore or even LX quality parts here and there mixed with some generic Taiwan parts. With the Giant you might score a XT rear derailler with mostly LX or Deore thrown into the mix. The better quality parts will operate smoother longer than the lower quality parts and most times are much easier to service. And don't feel you have to buy a 2004 model...if you look around you might find a 2003 model that has been clearance priced that will have an even better mix of parts.

My first mountain bike was a Bridgestone MB-3 that had a full Deore DX component group. For the same price, the Specialized model I was looking at (I forget what it was called, but it wasn't a Stumpjumper) only had a DX rear derailler mixed with parts from Shimano's lower line of parts at the time. I got a much better deal since I shopped around and wasn't stuck on buying a certain brand.

Most mountain bikes now will have aluminum frames and you can even find pretty decent dual suspension bikes in the $600 range...but they're going to be pretty heavy (30 pounds or more). If you aren't doing any hard trail riding, I'd stick with a nice hardtail that comes with a good fork and the best components for the price...weight will be in the 26 pound range. But if you're looking for a dual suspension bike, be prepared to deal with the weight as you don't get light duallies (24 pounds or less) until you spend over $1200 or so.

A friend of mine just got a nice Gary Fisher Hoo Koo E Koo for about $700. We shopped around and it was the best bike for the amount he wanted to spend. The mix of parts was good, it has a nice RockShox fork, it weighs under 26 pounds and rides really well. Took us a couple of weeks shopping all the local bike shops before we decided on this particular bike. We looked at Specialized, Trek, Schwinn, Cannondale, Kona, GT, Giant, Rocky Mountain, Fuji and Marin. I told him not to worry about the brand of the bike and concentrate on getting the best components for the amount he wanted to spend. He's very happy with the bike.

Cricket