Mountain Bike Riding Techniques
What would be the best mountain bike for my price range?
Hi, Im looking at getting into mountain biking. I will ride by how my technique is but I want something that can take some abuse too. So I want to get a decent mountain bike that I can upgrade over time. Obviously im keeping my eyes open for second hand bikes, but so far I havent had any luck. So if it comes down to buying a new one then I dont want to spend anymore than £350 (€425). The two main bikes im looking at are:
Decathlon Rockrider 6.3
http://www.decathlon.co.uk/EN/rockrider-6-3-2010-m-l-xl-112194093/
Giant Yukon
http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/bikes/mountain/product/yukon-08-28703
Are there any better bikes in this price range?
Also what are the pros and cons of Full Suspension VS Hardtail?
Any help would be great. Thanks!
Do not touch the decathlon. A full susser for that price with warnings not to ride it off the pavement? The Yukon isn’t bad.
So, what sort of mountain biking do you want to do? If you want to go over your local fields and woodland, you do not need much travel. 100mm front fork. If you want to do all day rides with some bumpy bits, 120mm. Trail centres with technical bits, rock gardens, etc. 140mm. All mountain, 150 mm. Anything bigger gets you into downhill teritory.
At your price bracket you will get 100mm. This will allow you to do some trail centres like Sherwood Pines, The Dog run at Cannock and Thetford. Coed Y Brenen might be beyond this much travel, so rent something from the bike shop if you want to do this.
Hardtail. You get more bang for your buck. If you try to pack in a full susser at this price it will have very cheap components that will not last. It will be heavy. So keep the bike simple. V brakes, reasonable frame and branded componenets like SRAM or Shimano. Go for trigger shifters rather than twist.
Here is what I recommend:
Giant Rock SE.
Specialized Rockhopper.
Scott Aspect.
However, keep looking at the Bikeradar site. It has relatively accurate reviews.
As for pros and cons of full suss vs hardtail. You need to spend at least £800, although you can get a reasonable system for about £1400. Hardtails are good at climbing and powering along. However, they are not so good at downhill bumpy bits. So a full susser allows you to keep the rear wheel on the ground when going downhill. It also allows you to keep the rear wheel planted when going up hill. However, if you power up the hill you may lose some forward momentum as energy is lost through bounce, so some of the better rear shocks have traction control and/or lockout settings. This reduces or eliminates bounce. The good thing with these is that you can continue applying power over obsticles or bumpy ground that would have you wallowing on a hardtail. Hardtails are simpler and cheaper to maintain. A typical hardtail service would cost about £30 + parts. To get a full service including bearings £50 + Parts. For a full susser I expect about £200 for a service. If you run it through the winter, more like £400.
Hope this helps.
Luck
Mountain Bike Trail Riding Tips & Tricks : How to Do a Bunny Hop on a Bike: Part 3
