Steel Hardtails - Thoughts?
Discussion
After nearly 9 years of service my Merlin Malt 1 is at the stage where it would cost serious money to bring it up to a decent standard. The groupset needs replacing, rear caliper, saddle and the frame coud do with a respray.
So man maths has kicked in and I would like a replacement. I fancy steel this time but to maximise my spending power I think 2nd hand would be the way to do.
Max. budget £500 but that hasn't got board approval yet (ie. the wife) so if I can get something cheaper all the better.
I will use it in the Peaks when I stay over in Sheffield during the week and the occasional days in the Lakes, Wales etc.. Also for towing the youngester's tag-along on Monsal Trail, Tissington etc..
I don't know much about steel framed bikes so suggestions, links etc.. would be appreciated.
So man maths has kicked in and I would like a replacement. I fancy steel this time but to maximise my spending power I think 2nd hand would be the way to do.
Max. budget £500 but that hasn't got board approval yet (ie. the wife) so if I can get something cheaper all the better.
I will use it in the Peaks when I stay over in Sheffield during the week and the occasional days in the Lakes, Wales etc.. Also for towing the youngester's tag-along on Monsal Trail, Tissington etc..
I don't know much about steel framed bikes so suggestions, links etc.. would be appreciated.
I have a Ragley Blue Pig and love it! Cost a bit more than £500 to build but the ride is excellent, I love the feedback you get with steel and also like riding something that you don't see loads of on the trails.
Blue Pigs have quite a relaxed head angle so if you want something more aggressive they are probably not for you, but they have a little brother called the Piglet which is much more XC capable, trouble is both are quite new so you probably won't find them for the £500 mark.
A great buy, and well respected steelie, is the On-One 456 - usually quite a few pop up on eBay so keep your eye open!
Blue Pigs have quite a relaxed head angle so if you want something more aggressive they are probably not for you, but they have a little brother called the Piglet which is much more XC capable, trouble is both are quite new so you probably won't find them for the £500 mark.
A great buy, and well respected steelie, is the On-One 456 - usually quite a few pop up on eBay so keep your eye open!
I have a Genesis Altitude 3.0 hardtail,with Reynolds 853 steel frame, XT brakes and transmission and Rockshox front fork.
It's a great bike giving lightness, strength,speed and suppleness over all sorts of terrain.
The bike was £1500 new in 2008 and is probably worth around £500 now.
A recommended buy!
It's a great bike giving lightness, strength,speed and suppleness over all sorts of terrain.
The bike was £1500 new in 2008 and is probably worth around £500 now.
A recommended buy!
Absolutely love my Dialled PA.
Spends most of its time on shorter rides and thrashing round Ashton Court and Leigh Woods.
but has also done a stint with number boards on the front.
tis probably my favourite bike even though my ghost is a much more accomplished machine up and down. The PA is just tonnes of fun
Spends most of its time on shorter rides and thrashing round Ashton Court and Leigh Woods.
but has also done a stint with number boards on the front.
tis probably my favourite bike even though my ghost is a much more accomplished machine up and down. The PA is just tonnes of fun
Was looking at Cotic Souls recently only to realise that it's the same tubing (853) as my '99 Kona Explosif which has been sitting in the garage since buying a fs a couple of years ago, and having the use of a C'dale f900.
After a couple of rides I'm now wondering why I stopped riding it. Rides brilliantly. I've fitted some Fox 100mm forks which possibly messes the geometry up slightly, think they were designed for an 80mm fork, but makes no difference to the handling. Just need to get the rear sorted for a disc setup.
If you're thinking of getting a steel HT, go for it.
After a couple of rides I'm now wondering why I stopped riding it. Rides brilliantly. I've fitted some Fox 100mm forks which possibly messes the geometry up slightly, think they were designed for an 80mm fork, but makes no difference to the handling. Just need to get the rear sorted for a disc setup.
If you're thinking of getting a steel HT, go for it.
If you have time to build it up yourself then you can do it on a budget. You will be able to pickup a 2nd hand steel h/t frame with a headset for £200-ish, possibly less then buy the other bits as you go!
Most expensive stuff will be forks, wheels and groupset, although again if you buy the groupset in bits as/when it comes up on fleabay you will be able to save a bucket.
Most expensive stuff will be forks, wheels and groupset, although again if you buy the groupset in bits as/when it comes up on fleabay you will be able to save a bucket.
I built this;
Pink 456 Driveside by kieranpbennett, on Flickr
for under that budget.
New frame from on-one (other colours are avaialble) £150
Secondhand fork and front wheel from ebay £150
Although its got an XT groupset in this pic I built it up from a load of old bits from ebay and that I had lying around that came to about £100 in total
Pink 456 Driveside by kieranpbennett, on Flickr
for under that budget.
New frame from on-one (other colours are avaialble) £150
Secondhand fork and front wheel from ebay £150
Although its got an XT groupset in this pic I built it up from a load of old bits from ebay and that I had lying around that came to about £100 in total
kieranbennett said:
I built this;
Pink 456 Driveside by kieranpbennett, on Flickr
for under that budget.
New frame from on-one (other colours are avaialble) £150
Secondhand fork and front wheel from ebay £150
Although its got an XT groupset in this pic I built it up from a load of old bits from ebay and that I had lying around that came to about £100 in total
Wow! That colour is a bit.....sudden!Pink 456 Driveside by kieranpbennett, on Flickr
for under that budget.
New frame from on-one (other colours are avaialble) £150
Secondhand fork and front wheel from ebay £150
Although its got an XT groupset in this pic I built it up from a load of old bits from ebay and that I had lying around that came to about £100 in total
Fantastic value when you do it like that.
To the list of saveable bits I could probably include my old forks but they do need a service.
Trouble is I know that I will never get around to building the bloody thing hence why a complete bike would be preferable. It will just be hung in the garage next to my single speed project!
I got a Charge Duster for £600 last year, just to get me back into mountainbiking. It's obviously a touch heavier than an alloy hill-whippet (but then so am I) But I absolutely love the ride quality and frame geometry. It's a fantastic bike, IMO. Have a hunt on evans/wiggle and see if they have any 2010 stock knocking about.
WeirdNeville said:
I got a Charge Duster for £600 last year, just to get me back into mountainbiking. It's obviously a touch heavier than an alloy hill-whippet (but then so am I) But I absolutely love the ride quality and frame geometry. It's a fantastic bike, IMO. Have a hunt on evans/wiggle and see if they have any 2010 stock knocking about.
Again lovely bike. Its not helping!There's a 2011 model on Ebay but its £650 + £20 postage (located in Bournmouth).
Its in the green which looks fantastic IMO.
Edited by GreatGranny on Wednesday 29th February 12:27
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