A first mountain bike - advice please

[ferryman]

Hi guys and girls.

Despite being a cycling nut I've not cycled for too many years to remember. And when I did, it was always on the road.

Anyway, I've now got plenty of time on my hands soon and would like to get back on the bike but off road. Don't want to spend big at this stage but would like a nice bike that could be upgraded as and when. I'm thinking of a budget of £500 UK Sterling.

Any and all suggestions much appreciated for an old newbie

 

[Flamin]

Depends what kind of suggestions you have in mind which are good brands, or 'advice' on wheel, frame size etc.

 

[King Boonen]

At that price the Voodoo Bizango is the go to recommendation, how tall are you?


Lots of trail centres in Scotland sell off ex. hire bikes and these tend to be very good value as they A) have been well maintained and B) are picked specifically to ride the trails at those centres making them perfect first bikes.

http://www.tweedvalleybikehire.com

This is run by Alpine Bikes at Glentress/Innerleithen. Their website hasn't been updated for a while so their hire bikes include other models, if you give them a ring they can let you know what they have and what is coming up.


If you were to extend your budget or find one of these cheap as new models are coming in, if I had to I would honestly be happy to ride this bike and not upgrade a thing except contact points:

http://www.saracen.co.uk/bikes/trail/mantra-trail

 

[JackRabbitSlims]

surprised you have not posted this in the mtb section

this recent thread in there may be off assistance

viewtopic.php?f=16&t=30028

some reading for you: -
http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/article/best-mountain-bikes-under-500-29451/
http://www.mountainbikesapart.com/what-mountain-bike/best-mountain-bikes/best-mountain-bikes-under-500/
http://www.tredz.co.uk/top-5-mtbs-under-500
http://www.mbr.co.uk/reviews/hardtail/mbr-hardtail-of-the-year-sneak-preview-video
http://www.mbr.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?11826-Decent-Hardtail-Bikes-For-Under-%A3500
http://www.mtbtreks.com/top-5-cheap-mountain-bikes-mtb-under-500/

 

[ferryman]

Thanks for the replies chaps. As you say JBS should have posted in the mtb forum. Going to check out bikes in Sandy Wallace;s shop this weekend...

 

[King Boonen]

Re:

Thanks for the replies chaps. As you say JBS should have posted in the mtb forum. Going to check out bikes in Sandy Wallace;s shop this weekend...

If you let me know what you're looking at I can advise. Also, what kind of trails do you want to ride? Just fire roads and tow paths or single-track, trail centres etc?

 

[ferryman]

Re: Re:

Thanks for the replies chaps. As you say JBS should have posted in the mtb forum. Going to check out bikes in Sandy Wallace;s shop this weekend...

If you let me know what you're looking at I can advise. Also, what kind of trails do you want to ride? Just fire roads and tow paths or single-track, trail centres etc?

Thanks KB. In answer to your first question a few posts ago - not tall - 5,6 - on a good day Will be looking at gentle off road stuff to start with locally (Fife). Not going to rush into this now reading some of the good links posted. I may well call on you for a final recommendation if that's OK.

Cheers all so far

ps my 30 year old road bike (last seen in action circa 1990 but recently rescued from my parents attic) is looking in remarkably good shape A mix of Shimano Ultegra and 105 and classic Look clipless. The mavics look a bit dodgy though. A big bit of TLC required before it goes anywhere near tarmac

 

[King Boonen]

Re: Re:

Thanks KB. In answer to your first question a few posts ago - not tall - 5,6 - on a good day Will be looking at gentle off road stuff to start with locally (Fife). Not going to rush into this now reading some of the good links posted. I may well call on you for a final recommendation if that's OK.

Cheers all so far

ps my 30 year old road bike (last seen in action circa 1990 but recently rescued from my parents attic) is looking in remarkably good shape A mix of Shimano Ultegra and 105 and classic Look clipless. The mavics look a bit dodgy though. A big bit of TLC required before it goes anywhere near tarmac

No worries, just give me a shout. At that height I'd avoid 29ers, you'll have problems with toe overlap, barge like steering on smaller frames and they look weird

650b seems to be the way of the market these days, I still ride 26" wheels though and will until I'm forced to give them up. Those Saracen bikes are great, they're the hire fleet of a couple of shops in Aviemore and frame-wise they'll handle anything you throw at them.


In general terms, picking an MTB can be harder than a road bike. For road bikes you usually go with whatever fits and you like the look of/can afford. In MTB the geometry of the frame is going to massively affect how the bike rides on different terrain. A "trail" bike is never going to win an XC race but it'll be much more comfortable if you decide to start doing more technically challenging descents (and everyone does even if they don't think they will ). An XC bike will get you round everywhere fast, but if you don't have the confidence on descents it can start feeling nose heavy very quickly.

As for upgrading, my upgrade path followed this:

Saddle, stem, handlebar, fork, wheels, frame, fork and probably a dropper.

This kind of path is surprisingly common, especially as your goals change, but those Saracen frames would take upgrades well.

Need to see that bike!! Wheelcraft is probably a bit far for you but wheelsmith in Larbert is well rated to get your wheels looked at.

 

[42x16ss]

The big thing with getting an entry level MTB is being honest with yourself on how you're going to use it because 500 quid might get you a raceable hard tail but only a junque dual suspension. I've seen too many people spend money on rubbish duallies only to use them on fire trails and basic single track when they could have gotten a much better hard tail for the same price.

 

[ferryman]

Re:

The big thing with getting an entry level MTB is being honest with yourself on how you're going to use it because 500 quid might get you a raceable hard tail but only a junque dual suspension. I've seen too many people spend money on rubbish duallies only to use them on fire trails and basic single track when they could have gotten a much better hard tail for the same price.

Thanks for the reply 42 and KB. More food for thought. Appreciated.

 

[AJ101]

Couple of pointers -
At the £500ish price get a hardtail, there's no way build quality of a full suss bike will be good for offload at this price point.

Look at old models rather than the new 2016 models. 650B/27.5 wheel size or even regular 26" wheels if the price is good.

Get something in the sale or get one of the big local retailers to price match.

Hydraulic disc brakes are great!

With that in mind, you can get an idea of the bikes on sale across the UK retailers here - http://bikesy.co.uk/s/mountain%20bikes/?&minprice=450&maxprice=600

 

[rick james]

Hi guys and girls.

Despite being a cycling nut I've not cycled for too many years to remember. And when I did, it was always on the road.

Anyway, I've now got plenty of time on my hands soon and would like to get back on the bike but off road. Don't want to spend big at this stage but would like a nice bike that could be upgraded as and when. I'm thinking of a budget of £500 UK Sterling.

Any and all suggestions much appreciated for an old newbie

where about in Fife are you? i love cycling up there, the country lanes are amazing, some cracking cake stop