# help with new mountain bike



## steve from wath (Dec 12, 2008)

Right time to get a new bike,I used to cycle to work everyday and not having done it for a few years am getting back into it so I need help on picking a new bike and sourcing one as its a few years since I've been into bikes
Looking around I like the looks and style of either a ghost or a cube
I would like front forks,hardtail,discc brakes preferbly in white
So over to you bike gurus,where do I get one from,upto 500£
I welcome any help you can give me and suggestions etc


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## ikon66 (Jul 23, 2008)

I'm no expert but you say you're getting a mountain bike to travel to work on or for mountain biking?

If for work why not a road bike?


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## steve from wath (Dec 12, 2008)

ikon66 said:


> I'm no expert but you say you're getting a mountain bike to travel to work on or for mountain biking?
> 
> If for work why not a road bike?


no not for work ,i work 27 miles from home so 54 a bit much after a 12hr shift

just for off shift pleasure riding mainly on trails etc,and to get some fitness back

i know i have to take it steady ,re jig my diet etc etc

just after advice on whats people opinions of the above bikes,where best to buy from ,good dealers,mail order etc etc


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## avit88 (Mar 19, 2012)

my experience and advice is for £500 and the types of bikes u can get for that amount of money differ very rarely in the quality of disk brakes and the frame etc what u really want to spend ur money on is a bike with a decent drivetrain aka gears and chain. Im sorry to say that most bikes at £500 come with a drivetrain that will wear out pretty fast. Some will disagree with this im sure. 

But from experience what I do is i buy a bike for a bit cheaper than £500 use it until the gears go then upgrade the gears. I spent £280 on a shimano deore kit on mine and its one the of the best around for the money. u have to spend big bucks to get better.


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

Buy the best bike you can afford in terms of gear train, stay away from shimano gear trains they're crap, get SRAM if you can. Halfords do some good carreras around the £500 mark, they won best bike <£600 last year.


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## Lump (Nov 6, 2008)

Buy second hand, someone selling last years model on Ebay will give you a better bike and better spec.


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## Barchettaman (Dec 16, 2007)

Regardless of make of drivetrain, your maintenance of it will be the key to its longevity. Fact.
Now, with that budget, I would be looking at an offering from Decathlon from new, second hand, goodness only knows.
Best of luck.


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

Lump said:


> Buy second hand, someone selling last years model on Ebay will give you a better bike and better spec.


Winstanley are good for that, the bike is brand new but last years model. When I bought my Mtrax 4.0 the only difference was a slight colour change but 50% off.


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## DampDog (Apr 16, 2011)

Sorry to interrupt thread. But 5-6 years back I bought a Marin Muirwood, off a lad a work for £50. I know nowt about bikes but bought it anyway, as he said it was a decent bike. It seems a good quality bike but needs some TLC. (it's sat at the back of the garage since I bought it) It's got no clever suspension or anything but seems quite light weight.

Are they any good and is it worth sending a few quid to bring it back to it's best?

Thanks for the PM..:thumb:


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## Jem (Aug 10, 2007)

I was in a similar boat a few months ago and looked into all the options. A Specialized Hardrock Sport Disc fitted the bill perfectly, for £499 it's hard to beat. Comes in white too: http://www.specialized.com/gb/gb/bikes/mountain/hardrock/hardrocksportdisc










I've changed a couple of bits on mine since though:


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## archiebald (Sep 7, 2009)

Boardman second hand on the bay would be ideal. Or build a bike for that from parts off the bay, so much kit for so little money


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## avit88 (Mar 19, 2012)

bigmc said:


> Buy the best bike you can afford in terms of gear train, stay away from shimano gear trains they're crap, get SRAM if you can. Halfords do some good carreras around the £500 mark, they won best bike <£600 last year.


how can u say shimano gears are crap they practically invented it all and nearly every bike around has shimano. u cant just go saying they are crap!

word of warning to the OP on bikes from halfords i bought a carrera and it was a decent bike but put together by a teenager who couldnt wait for his dinner break.... just saying


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## avit88 (Mar 19, 2012)

Jem said:


> I was in a similar boat a few months ago and looked into all the options. A Specialized Hardrock Sport Disc fitted the bill perfectly, for £499 it's hard to beat. Comes in white too: http://www.specialized.com/gb/gb/bikes/mountain/hardrock/hardrocksportdisc
> 
> 
> 
> ...


To the OP: this is what i mean, flash bike yeah great would be happy with it. But it has Shimano Acera 9-speed gears which are average..... so wud b better getting a cheaper bike and going on the bay for a better set of gears... just my opinion. nice bike tho!


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

avit88 said:


> how can u say shimano gears are crap they practically invented it all and nearly every bike around has shimano. u cant just go saying they are crap!


I can based on my experience and comparison to SRAM which are far far superior. They're much more precise, quicker, more reliable, don't need adjusting every other week and cheaper too.


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## Jem (Aug 10, 2007)

avit88 said:


> To the OP: this is what i mean, flash bike yeah great would be happy with it. But it has Shimano Acera 9-speed gears which are average..... so wud b better getting a cheaper bike and going on the bay for a better set of gears... just my opinion. nice bike tho!


But where do you stop? Cheaper bikes will have mechanical disc brakes, so you'd want to upgrade those too, and most cheaper bikes are only 24 speed, so you're then changing shifters, derailleurs, cassettes etc. That said, I can't fault the gears on mine, but I will be upgrading to Sram X0 at some point.


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## Dirtymonkey29 (Jul 22, 2012)

Try singletrack world classifieds. I bought some bits off there when I custom built mine. 
Got a cheap on one 456 carbon frame and went from there.


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## avit88 (Mar 19, 2012)

Jem said:


> But where do you stop? Cheaper bikes will have mechanical disc brakes, so you'd want to upgrade those too, and most cheaper bikes are only 24 speed, so you're then changing shifters, derailleurs, cassettes etc. That said, I can't fault the gears on mine, but I will be upgrading to Sram X0 at some point.


well exactly u could go on for ever. i just focused on making sure the thing that makes the bike move is as good as it can b the rest i couldnt care about.


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## Jem (Aug 10, 2007)

avit88 said:


> well exactly u could go on for ever. i just focused on making sure the thing that makes the bike move is as good as it can b the rest i couldnt care about.


I couldn't agree more. I was looking at bikes in the £325 region, but decided I wanted hydraulic discs. The Specialized seemed to have the best spec for under £500.


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## Andy1983 (Mar 21, 2012)

Avoid mechanical discs. Get v brakes or hydraulic discs.

The voodoo bantu from halfords is a great bike for the money.


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## Grommit (May 3, 2011)

bigmc said:


> Buy the best bike you can afford in terms of gear train, stay away from shimano gear trains they're crap, get SRAM if you can. Halfords do some good carreras around the £500 mark, they won best bike <£600 last year.


Gonna disagree with that big boy. I've had shimano XT and XTR and even Deore and not had a single component fail yet. And that's 10 years of riding.......hard.

If you want to spend 500 notes, if you want best bang for your buck, look at Specialised, Cube, or my current favourite brand Ghost.

Bikes can differ dramatically, but at that price they are generally on a level playing ground. But the speccy bikes, particularly the Specialised rockhopper will skin you 550 Notes, but that model has been tried and tested through decades and is still a firm favourite. If you wanna spend less, try the hard rock / hard rock sport.

:thumb:


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## archiebald (Sep 7, 2009)

To be fair the only way you can do this is to pay your money and take your choice. I love my Kona Kula not much love for them but it's a great climber which is what I wanted


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## steve from wath (Dec 12, 2008)

really liking the look of this
in fact might go and have a look at one in the morn

i take it you like yours,but can i ask why did you change bits on a new bike

thanks for posting the pics :thumb:



Jem said:


> I was in a similar boat a few months ago and looked into all the options. A Specialized Hardrock Sport Disc fitted the bill perfectly, for £499 it's hard to beat. Comes in white too: http://www.specialized.com/gb/gb/bikes/mountain/hardrock/hardrocksportdisc
> 
> 
> 
> ...


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

Specialised make good bike but the hardrock is the bottom of the range and quite heavy imho, take a look at this


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## rizo (Jul 14, 2012)

have a look on pinkbike.com there are loads of second hand bikes on there.


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## jonnyMercUK (Apr 19, 2012)

steve from wath said:


> Right time to get a new bike,I used to cycle to work everyday and not having done it for a few years am getting back into it so I need help on picking a new bike and sourcing one as its a few years since I've been into bikes
> Looking around I like the looks and style of either a ghost or a cube
> I would like front forks,hardtail,discc brakes preferbly in white
> So over to you bike gurus,where do I get one from,upto 500£
> I welcome any help you can give me and suggestions etc


Steve go to my mates shop, Fosters Cycles, it's in Rotherham.


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## steve from wath (Dec 12, 2008)

bigmc said:


> Specialised make good bike but the hardrock is the bottom of the range and quite heavy imho, take a look at this


thanks for the link but its priced at 650 not near the 500 mark


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## Jem (Aug 10, 2007)

steve from wath said:


> really liking the look of this
> in fact might go and have a look at one in the morn
> 
> i take it you like yours,but can i ask why did you change bits on a new bike
> ...


Yeah I love it, nearly done 1000 miles on it now. I've not changed much really, just the saddle, grips and pedals because they are always crao even on really expensive bikes. I've changed the handlebars for the carbon fibre ones, because I have a carbon fetish, and last week I changed the wheels for a set of Mavic Crossride's because I wanted some lighter wheels with better hubs. I've added mudguards, a computer and led lights too. All of that I would have done to a bike costing three times as much, apart from the wheels.


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

steve from wath said:


> thanks for the link but its priced at 650 not near the 500 mark


10% off for now in halfords. You're in between a cheap bike and a decent specced one at £500, have you thought of a hybrid??


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## Jace (Oct 26, 2005)

Dont be a sheep & follow the crowd, blinded by the marketing..

Look at this Diamondback, £500, 27spd deore,445 Hydraulic brakes, Rockshox XC28 forks & truvativ bars & chainset..nothing is close to it

http://www.diamondback.co.uk/MTB/ProductType/ProductRange/Product/Default.aspx?pc=1&pt=10&pg=7901


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## Lump (Nov 6, 2008)

To be fair thats a cracking ride


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## VAG-hag (May 14, 2012)

Steve , keep your eye on the bay for a Boardman. As somebody has said it's the best way..... they are fair value anyway but I've seen some bargains lately.good spec, decent frame.... I'm happy for u to try mine if you like?


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## BeeDubz (Mar 26, 2011)

I've got a 2012 boardman pro comp, it's a great bike. I use it for a mixture of road and off road, got some intermediate tyres for going to work (12 miles).

Did about 5 miles in the woods today it was a great blast


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## possul (Nov 14, 2008)

I bought a Carreras kraken (2009 model) for £270 second hand, it already had rock shox forks with adjustable bump/rebound and lock out fitted.
All about the spec, unless you start spending over £500 the specs are roughly the same, cheaper hubs, gear mechs etc etc, 
By the time ive done what I want to it, it will be better spc than some bikes costing around £750 ish?
I use mine on and off road. Only sherwood pines off road until my fitness is back up, gets used hard, jumps rocks etc etc and hasn't let me down yet
I don't believe you need an expensive bike to ride, I frequently over take people on the trials on £3000 bikes!


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## Matt. (Aug 26, 2007)

It would be good if you could post your routes up possul?

My commute to work is 10 miles each way. I was leaning more towards a road bike, but is it really worth it when I could get a Mountain bike and have twice the fun?


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## possul (Nov 14, 2008)

I was tempted with a hybrid, changing tyres all the time takes the mick some times!
When I use it on the road its 8 miles total a day
Which routes?


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## possul (Nov 14, 2008)

http://www.mountainbikerides.co.uk/routes/21-nottinghamshire/16-sherwood-pines-map-a-guide.html
Kitchener trial everytime I go and the downhill section


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## Matt. (Aug 26, 2007)

The routes around Sherwood Pines. 

So would you consider 20 miles a day on Tarmac to be a pain then?


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## possul (Nov 14, 2008)

Maybe, I like to be home for 5.30 and see my little boy! I run slicks so its not to bad anyway. Maybe If i trained i got my average speed up maybe
im just lucky to live close to work!


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

Matt. said:


> It would be good if you could post your routes up possul?
> 
> My commute to work is 10 miles each way. I was leaning more towards a road bike, but is it really worth it when I could get a Mountain bike and have twice the fun?


Which way do you come in?, where in Mansfield are you coming from?


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## Matt. (Aug 26, 2007)

From Berry Hill, which is near the College. I always drive down the A60 onto Blidworth Way, so that would probably be the way I would cycle.

Possul - I finish work no later than 4pm. So travelling at 10MPH, would take me 1 hour ~

That is of course, if I can maintain 10MPH.


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## deano_uk (Apr 29, 2007)

Steve,
I bought a Boardman Urban Mountain bike from Halfords and although Halfords have a poor rep the Boardman kit is good and well respected.

Your more than welcome to pop up take it for a spin.

JE James near parkgate have a fairly big shop and occasionally have some good deals although some of the staff have disappeared up their own bottoms....


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## Matt. (Aug 26, 2007)

Any reason you asked Shaun?


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

Matt. said:


> Any reason you asked Shaun?


It's just you can get through thieves wood and into newstead abbey then into Linby all through the woods, I know the woods very well as I was brought up around Newstead abbey, it's far safer than those busy roads.


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## Matt. (Aug 26, 2007)

-R- said:


> It's just you can get through thieves wood and into newstead abbey then into Linby all through the woods, I know the woods very well as I was brought up around Newstead abbey, it's far safer than those busy roads.


Ok. Thieves Wood starts near the main lights at the junction of A60 / A617 does it not?

Is there a map of the route in there?


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## steve from wath (Dec 12, 2008)

deano_uk said:


> Steve,
> I bought a Boardman Urban Mountain bike from Halfords and although Halfords have a poor rep the Boardman kit is good and well respected.
> 
> Your more than welcome to pop up take it for a spin.
> ...


went to james the other morning

not a lot in shop,at least at my level now if i had 3/4/5 grand id be laughing

assistants not very helpful apart from one lad i found.might go to halfords and have a look at them


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## Ric (Feb 4, 2007)

I got a 2011 cube attention in white the other week for around £400 on eBay

There are a few more available from other sellers.

This is the design:


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## Matt. (Aug 26, 2007)

Was it new or used Carbon?


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## Ric (Feb 4, 2007)

Used but hardly, looks like new.


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## SteveTDCi (Feb 8, 2006)

I went for a specialized cross trail sport disc, it's hybrid bike as we don't do enough off roading. You can get money off or 0% , I'm happy with mine it's quite big though as I needed size xl. I found it best to set a budget, decide what you want to use it for and then go and visit a proper bike shop. If your close to sherwood you could always rent a bike and see what you think, if you buy one they usually knock the rental price off the bike. 

Rutland water do the same thing which is where we bike around, although they want £99 for a full strip down service... That's as much as a car


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## Jem (Aug 10, 2007)

Steve, I'm just down the road near Tallington.


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## SteveTDCi (Feb 8, 2006)

Jem said:


> Steve, I'm just down the road near Tallington.


Ah, I'm Stamford, well just outside up by the a1 :thumb:


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## Danno1975 (Mar 30, 2009)

Jem said:


> I was in a similar boat a few months ago and looked into all the options. A Specialized Hardrock Sport Disc fitted the bill perfectly, for £499 it's hard to beat. Comes in white too: http://www.specialized.com/gb/gb/bikes/mountain/hardrock/hardrocksportdisc
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I'm looking at getting this through my work cycle to work scheme, to replace my 2000 Rockhopper FS comp which needs forks and shifters.

Looks nice, top of the entry range too and better than the Carrera Kraken I was considering only problem is do I go 2012 26" wheel of the 29'r 2013??, still getting my head around mtb's with 29" wheels after 8 years out the game, anyone got a 29'r?.


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## Danno1975 (Mar 30, 2009)

Ps Jem, love those bars and the mud guards, what are they and where from .


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## Tabbs (Aug 3, 2009)

avit88 said:


> my experience and advice is for £500 and the types of bikes u can get for that amount of money differ very rarely in the quality of disk brakes and the frame etc what u really want to spend ur money on is a bike with a decent drivetrain aka gears and chain. Im sorry to say that most bikes at £500 come with a drivetrain that will wear out pretty fast. Some will disagree with this im sure.
> 
> But from experience what I do is i buy a bike for a bit cheaper than £500 use it until the gears go then upgrade the gears. I spent £280 on a shimano deore kit on mine and its one the of the best around for the money. u have to spend big bucks to get better.


got to agree get what you like the look of and then upgrade parts as you go
I got this frame for £100 then got the parts I liked off my old bike then upgraded the important bits
















































full build click


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## Barchettaman (Dec 16, 2007)

Careful of that seatpost Tabbs - they have a reputation for shearing


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## Tabbs (Aug 3, 2009)

Barchettaman said:


> Careful of that seatpost Tabbs - they have a reputation for shearing


cheers but so far, touch wood, this has been great :thumb:


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## Jem (Aug 10, 2007)

Danno1975 said:


> Ps Jem, love those bars and the mud guards, what are they and where from .


The bars were from eBay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Integrate...keparts_SR&hash=item2a1e3e4d03#ht_1327wt_1166

And the mudguards were just from Halfords.


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