OT - Mountain Bikes
Turbo Mini Forums

As per my other thread i've got a buttload of stuff to replace now. One of the first things will be my mountain bike. Not to pissed about it as I was vaugely considering buying a new bike anyway.

Found Toms thread from last year and rather than reserect it, i thought i'd start a new one.

So, can any of the keen cyclists recommend any bikes or what to look for when choosing a bike.

It'll be largely used for commuting but i want to get in to off road riding more. The only requirements i have are; has to be hardtail and has to have disc brakes (is it worth getting hyraulic?)

My budget is around the £400 mark.

what about this one:



I would say hydraulic is loads better than cable brakes.

have a look around on



They have free shipping in uk too.

thanks for the quick reply, that looks like a nice bike.

Another question... Can someone explain the difference in quality/characteristics in aluminium please?

Of the 4 bikes i've looked it, they've had 3 different types, specialised hardrock (A1 Premium Aluminium) Kona Cinder Cone and GT Avalance (6061) and Merlin Malt 1 (7005 Aluminium)

And what makes hydraulic better? do they feel different?

- sorry for the novice questions, but i don't want to make a crappy ill informed choice

hi ric,
if u were after a bike this time last year i could have helped u out coz i was still working saturdays in a bike shop!

id have a look at Giant bikes, we used to sell loads of them and because they make so many bikes (more than any other company in the world) they seem to be able to offer similar specs to other makes but a little cheaper. they also make their own hydraulic disc brakes so usually put them on lower spec bikes than some other manufacturers who have to buy their components in.
specialized bikes were also pretty good but im not sure if they will do one within your budget with the disc brakes (im not familiar with the range any more after leaving the shop ive pretty much lost interest in bikes unfortunately!).

as for the discs: if u want discs on the bike id highly recommend hydraulic! ive never liked cable discs very much because IMO the feel and performance of them is nowhere near as good as hydraulic (id personally have 'normal' V-brakes rather than cable discs!). they feel very squidgey when pulled on hard and in the dry a good set of V-brakes will be easily as powerful.
hydraulic discs on the other hand can be pretty impressive!

as for the different grades of alluminium; 6061-T6 always used to be regarded as the best but having ridden many frames i really wouldnt be able to tell the difference! the frames themselves are incredably light and will be plenty strong enough the components bolted to the frame will make more of a noticable difference to how the bikes feels.

Hydrualic brakes use a fixed caliper and the cable use a floating one so you get a much better feel with the hydraulic. If you can get 'Hope' brakes go for these.

They are 10 times better than cable discs! Magura hydraulic rim brakes work well too but, you lose braking in the wet like any rim brake.

Ive always understood that T6061 is the best grade ally for a bike because of its strength, but it has been a while since the ol' biking days..lol

Wes is the man to speak to regarding spec of components as he's alot more up to date with new bikes etc.

One thing I would say is that getting a good quality group set (sprocets, shifters duralia's SP?) as they make laods of difference to how the bike rides.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Fusion-Fabri..._homepage_panel

www.fusionfabs.co.uk



1/4mile in 13.2sec @ 111 terminal on 15psi

Always go hydraulic. Cables bad..!

They stretch, corrode but are simple in operation.

Good hydraulics are a sealed system and they are nearly maintenance free to, and offer better feel IMO.

If you can find one with a hope set-up on they are guaranteed for life. Mine have latest 5yrs on my daily hack bike and still going strong.

Only ever replaced the pads.

Si

Also don't worry too much about frame material. Look for frame guarantee. Some over 5yr - 10yr of even life time.

Then you can treat it with respect or crap accordingly.

Edited by Si P on 31st Jul, 2007.

I drill holes in everything..!

Ive always used Hydraulic discs in my years of biking as teh cable discs IMHO are a cheap markeing way of getting mass production bikes to look like expensive quality products...

As Wes said, id have V brakes over cable discs as for 6061 and 7005


"A 6061 FRAME maker will reduces the weakening effects of welding by heat treating (and perhaps a better welding protocol), whereas a 7005 frame maker uses a more expensive tubeset to minimize the effects of welding with a less expensive heat treatment."

6061 has proved to be the better route and most quality frames are made out of it... Ive never noticed a differnce between the 2 when racing:)

Yep agree go hydraulic, and get a good frame that you can upgrade later.. but this can get expensive - i only use mine 'off road' for want of a better description.

im off to Wales in a few weeks to throw myself down some mountains - cant wait!

Edited by MarkGTT on 31st Jul, 2007.

i bought a FELT Q620 there rrp is £400 but my cycle shop did it for £350, american make and very well specc'd same spec kona specialized ectect were around the 500-600 mark

http://www.feltracing.com/products/product...18,23,34&pid=38

Edited by wolfie on 31st Jul, 2007.

dont go full susp unless you will use it offroad to its capacity. i prefer the Hope mono fully hydraulic discs, Specialised do a good entry level range which you can tweak. if its for around the doors dont waste ure money on XT spec gears ! the deaore spec will do the same job be selective on tyre choice, crank wise i like the XT hollowtech 2s but iam sure there is summit else on the market now. as already mentioned chainreaction cycles are the cheapest but dont get wheels made up by them coz they are shite wheel builders !!!

if going metal for frames go summit like 7005 T spec alloy with replacable rear dropouts and the usual life time guarantee on welds (most specialised bikes are this spec, summit like the rock hopper comp)

Richie

Edited by Richie on 31st Jul, 2007.

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In short.
Cable brakes bad, hydraulic good
Frame material doesn't matter that much.
Try the bike for size before buying.
Get something that will 'do the job' for now but tbh anything can be upgraded at a later date if the bug bites..

I started with a specialized hardrockXC, which was upgraded, new forks, wheels, chainset etc, then bought a Stumpjumper Pro.
I can now fall off at much faster speeds :)

Rich

Here for the craic..

Supercharged Arden powered

regarding the brake side of things, i use a magura HS33 hydraulic rim brake on the rear, and it stops on the dot. On the front i have an avid digit 7 rim brake (cable, caliper type) and that is used in conjunction with ceramic brake pads and ceramic rim. again, it stops dead.

i ride trials, which requires a ridiculous amount of stopping power, and personally i do not like any type of rear disk. And if i would have to look into a front disk, it would definately not be a cable type. if anything it would be a hope hydraulic disk brake.

But for what you have described you would use your bike for, i would look no further than hydraulic rim brakes as you will feel they are 10x better than standard shimano rim brakes (caliper type) and a fraction of the cost of hope's hydraulic disk brake range.

i would never yous a hydrolic break on the front of a bike i use a cable avid disk on the front from there ballbearing 7 range and its much smoother and better than any hydro disk i have used. as for rear hydro rim is the best break you could buy stops you instantly. thats why all good trials riders use them :)

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Searching is all you need on TurboMinis

Yes but trials riders don't ride across mountains, forests and through loads of shit where any sort of rim brake becomes useless..

Its surprising how many mountain bikers there are on here!

Here for the craic..

Supercharged Arden powered

I think Ot Pi would have something to say about that. MONTY trails bikes ( the original and still the best manufacture of trails bikes in the world.) have always run hydraulic brakes front and back.

I drill holes in everything..!

Of course you should go to the shops and look at/try the bikes, but I bet you get a better price at chainreaction that you normally get at the shops...

Both myself and Vegard have worked in bikeshops too, so there are many people on here with knowledge on the subject it seems!

i have cable operated disc brakes and they work very very well

i think you were impressed with my budget bike ollie?

to be honest, i have riden few cable disks, all of them were poor except yours. the bike was light, braking response was great and was an all round comfortable and easy ride.

your bike suits your needs, its perfect for what you wish to use it for.

lisa's bike however, i was scared i would knock people off their feet, there wer eno brakes, lol

Edited by Ollie on 1st Aug, 2007.

Ollie

If you like trails have a look at this and the link to.

http://www.monty.es/riders/index.asp

European BikeTrial Championship 2007 6/11/2007

The European BikeTrial Championship took place at Terchova (Slovakia) The past 2nd and 3rd June 2007. César Cañas won in Master category (26”) with notable superiority respect his rivals.

Si

Also note rear disc.

Edited by Si P on 1st Aug, 2007.

I drill holes in everything..!

Ahhhh, your all making me think about digging my old Kirk Precision out of the loft!

I'ts made from seawater you know!

I think the guys have covered most of the key issues but hears my 2p.

First off what are you going to use the bike for?

Second get a frame that's the correct geometry for you. Everything else can be changed over time (I've upgraded all but 4 parts of my bouncy bike due to braking the original parts over the years)

I do a few thousand miles a year on my fully ridged, Vee braked single speed, as 90% you don't need all the fancy trim. Admittedly I've also got a big bouncy bike which I use to the likes of Cwmcarn & Affan, however for the small stuff (<5 miles) the single speed is definitely quicker than anything else out there, then it is really well balanced and I can pick it up with one finger.

.

Edited by Rob H on 1st Aug, 2007.

Single speed is the future..!

I'm going to hopefully build one up soon.

A mate of mine rides endurance events and he swears by it. And its fast as.

I drill holes in everything..!

So, here's the 3 i've narrowed it down to...
http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=70058
http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=60195
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=15126 (thanks miniminor :))

Any feedback on choices would be cool. I guess the best way forward is to go and try a few out and see what 'feels' right.