Help picking new mtb
Discussion
Having recently got back into mountain biking I have decided to get a replacement for my 2006 Carrera Vulcan. The riding is through the forest and road use. I have decided to treat myself to a Specialized and am torn between:
http://www.cyclesurgery.com/specialized-stumpjumpe...
http://www.cyclesurgery.com/specialized-camber-fsr...
The Camber is the cheaper of the two, looks as it is more than upto the job and I prefer the white and black colour scheme.
The Stumpjumper has the pro pedal which is perhaps a feature I should have (is it a must?), generally has a better components and I like the angle of the front forks.
Opinons please.
http://www.cyclesurgery.com/specialized-stumpjumpe...
http://www.cyclesurgery.com/specialized-camber-fsr...
The Camber is the cheaper of the two, looks as it is more than upto the job and I prefer the white and black colour scheme.
The Stumpjumper has the pro pedal which is perhaps a feature I should have (is it a must?), generally has a better components and I like the angle of the front forks.
Opinons please.
I wouldn't worry about bobbing unless you are racing or all your riding buddies are much quicker than you. Mountain bikes should have plenty of bounce, it's what makes them fun on the down! Also having a bit of movement generally makes you climb better on loose surfaces.
Having said that, I have pro pedal on a 6" bike and it makes a bit of an improvement in climbing.
Having said that, I have pro pedal on a 6" bike and it makes a bit of an improvement in climbing.
the stumpy is by far and away the better bike as reflected in the price difference.
prodpedal isnt that much of a bonus to be honest, my commencal has just hi and lo rebound settings and works fine. rarely when you are riding do you think "oooh, what is my rear shock setting?" and then you find that you have ridden down a big section whilst not in the optimum setting but loved every minute of it and didnt notice the difference.
pro pedal works best if you are climbing in the saddle but then if you are experiencing pedal bob in that postiion your cadence is too high or you are pushing too small a gear.
the spec of the camber is not that bad if thats what your budget allows, the important bits like fork, shock and wheels are good but drive train components will need updating quite soon as there is no place for Alivio on a £1500 bike these days.
however there are better spec'd £1500 bikes out there. I would recommend you do some more hunting. cycle surgery are ok but there are lots of other places/manufacturers around.
prodpedal isnt that much of a bonus to be honest, my commencal has just hi and lo rebound settings and works fine. rarely when you are riding do you think "oooh, what is my rear shock setting?" and then you find that you have ridden down a big section whilst not in the optimum setting but loved every minute of it and didnt notice the difference.
pro pedal works best if you are climbing in the saddle but then if you are experiencing pedal bob in that postiion your cadence is too high or you are pushing too small a gear.
the spec of the camber is not that bad if thats what your budget allows, the important bits like fork, shock and wheels are good but drive train components will need updating quite soon as there is no place for Alivio on a £1500 bike these days.
however there are better spec'd £1500 bikes out there. I would recommend you do some more hunting. cycle surgery are ok but there are lots of other places/manufacturers around.
£1500 is a very good budget and you will definitely get a decent bike for that money.
One thing I'd question - and you may have already considered this - is whether you actually need full suss, or if a hardtail would suit better? If is very rocky/rooty where you ride, then fair enough, but otherwise, you'll get a bit better component spec for your money if you leave out the expense and complication of rear suspension. You'll also have less maintenance over the years.
One thing I'd question - and you may have already considered this - is whether you actually need full suss, or if a hardtail would suit better? If is very rocky/rooty where you ride, then fair enough, but otherwise, you'll get a bit better component spec for your money if you leave out the expense and complication of rear suspension. You'll also have less maintenance over the years.
Now I realise that you specifically stated buying a Specialized but please humour me on this.
Other than the fashion side or just a personal liking of the brand identity (both of which are perfectly valid), the main reasons for Specialized could surely be applied to Giant. I changed from a Specialized Epic to a Giant Trance and the quality is similar with any minor difference in that department probably in Giant's favour.
I note that you are looking at £1500 - £2000 and 120 - 140 mm. Your description of riding preference makes me think that 120 is probably more than enough and 100 would be fine too. Which brings me on to these recommendations for a quick look at least:
120 mm:
Giant Trance X1 - £1,700 from £2,700
Giant Trance X2 - £1,500 from £2,000
100 mm:
Giant Anthem X1 - £2,000 from £2,750
Giant Anthem X2 - £1,500 from £2,000
The biggest problem with Giant over the last few years has been their colour schemes but I like having a bike that people do not look twice at because it reduces the chances of it being stolen, in my opinion of course.
On the X1 variants above you are getting far better kit for the money than on the Specialized and the Giants do ride very well indeed.
Other than the fashion side or just a personal liking of the brand identity (both of which are perfectly valid), the main reasons for Specialized could surely be applied to Giant. I changed from a Specialized Epic to a Giant Trance and the quality is similar with any minor difference in that department probably in Giant's favour.
I note that you are looking at £1500 - £2000 and 120 - 140 mm. Your description of riding preference makes me think that 120 is probably more than enough and 100 would be fine too. Which brings me on to these recommendations for a quick look at least:
120 mm:
Giant Trance X1 - £1,700 from £2,700
Giant Trance X2 - £1,500 from £2,000
100 mm:
Giant Anthem X1 - £2,000 from £2,750
Giant Anthem X2 - £1,500 from £2,000
The biggest problem with Giant over the last few years has been their colour schemes but I like having a bike that people do not look twice at because it reduces the chances of it being stolen, in my opinion of course.
On the X1 variants above you are getting far better kit for the money than on the Specialized and the Giants do ride very well indeed.
mr2haz said:
The reason I am looking at specialized is they have a special offer giving accessories to 10% of the value of the bike and the shop is giving a further 5%.
Fair enough but that is only £300 against a bike price of £2,000 and the accessories will be accounted for at full RRP.Shopping around for any make / model will yield big discounts if you buy last year's version and companies like Chain Reaction Cycles sell accessories at serious discounts. Taking the example above you could get £2,000 "worth" of bike and £300 "worth" of accessories for £1,500 + £200 max (probably), totalling £1,700 max instead of £2,000.
I do realise that going to one shop for everything is easy and touching before you buy is good whereas online bargains are probably more hassle and sold unseen, although you are protected by distance selling regulations.
mr2haz said:
The reason I am looking at specialized is they have a special offer giving accessories to 10% of the value of the bike and the shop is giving a further 5%.
thats a pretty poor deal to be honest, you should be looking to get some free stuff thrown in, espcecilly as its a pricey bike that wont come with pedals. you should get at least 5% off RRP at any shop these days when buying a £1K+ bike, the shops arent exactly flooded with customers given the deals that chain reaction, wiggle and other internet based dealers can offer... have a look atwww.pedalon.co.uk they do a points scheme, you basically get 1 point per £50 spent. it works out far better in terms of value for money than the specialized deal.
http://www.pedalon.co.uk/acatalog/Podium_points.ht...
£1650 bike = £400+ of free stuff....
Massive amounts of choice at that price range.
A couple of tasty offerings from the 2011 Boardman range, which I'm personally very interested in, and looking forward to the upcoming reviews. Both at £1600:
Full Sus :
http://www.boardmanbikes.com/mtb/fs_pro.html
Carbon hardtail:
http://www.boardmanbikes.com/mtb/ht_procarbon.html
mmmmm Carbon.
A couple of tasty offerings from the 2011 Boardman range, which I'm personally very interested in, and looking forward to the upcoming reviews. Both at £1600:
Full Sus :
http://www.boardmanbikes.com/mtb/fs_pro.html
Carbon hardtail:
http://www.boardmanbikes.com/mtb/ht_procarbon.html
mmmmm Carbon.
How about Canyon, their bikes seem incredible value for money - the only problem is that you can't try before you buy as they are order online only. However, I have heard good reports of their body assossor frame size thing.
Price £1541
Rear Shock Fox Float RP2 Boost Valve XXV
Fork Fox 32 F120 FIT RL
Rear Derailleur SRAM X9 Long Cage 10-speed
Front Derailleur SRAM X.9
Shifters SRAM X9
Brake levers Avid Elixir R
Brakes Avid Elixir R 185/185
Hubs DT Swiss X 1700
Cassette SRAM PG-1070 12-36 10-speed
Rims DT Swiss X 1700
Tyres Schwalbe Nobby Nic 2,25" Evolution Line
Cranks SRAM X9 10-speed
Chainrings 44/33/22
Bottom Bracket Truvativ GXP BB
My next bike I think.
Price £1541
Rear Shock Fox Float RP2 Boost Valve XXV
Fork Fox 32 F120 FIT RL
Rear Derailleur SRAM X9 Long Cage 10-speed
Front Derailleur SRAM X.9
Shifters SRAM X9
Brake levers Avid Elixir R
Brakes Avid Elixir R 185/185
Hubs DT Swiss X 1700
Cassette SRAM PG-1070 12-36 10-speed
Rims DT Swiss X 1700
Tyres Schwalbe Nobby Nic 2,25" Evolution Line
Cranks SRAM X9 10-speed
Chainrings 44/33/22
Bottom Bracket Truvativ GXP BB
My next bike I think.
To be honest the most important bit of teh whole bike is the frame, its quality and technology and how it fits you. This will give you the ride experience which is the determining factor of whether you will get on with it. Low end brands with little R&D budgets rip of older designs and splatter them with some good kit...but it doesnt make the bikes any good.
The best 5" bike you can buy is a Trek Fuel EX they start from £1400 and go up to £6k. Th ereally interesting technology starts at £2300 with the amazing DRCV shock taht gives you eth best of a large can and small can combined and eth whole thing has a full floating design which gives you teh most plush travel with no bob.
trek are also doing 10% of teh value of the bike with free accessories so you can get a great deal from your local dealer who will then give you free servicing and great aftersales advice and support - unlike buying from el cheapo place a million miles away.
The best 5" bike you can buy is a Trek Fuel EX they start from £1400 and go up to £6k. Th ereally interesting technology starts at £2300 with the amazing DRCV shock taht gives you eth best of a large can and small can combined and eth whole thing has a full floating design which gives you teh most plush travel with no bob.
trek are also doing 10% of teh value of the bike with free accessories so you can get a great deal from your local dealer who will then give you free servicing and great aftersales advice and support - unlike buying from el cheapo place a million miles away.
Crippo said:
To be honest the most important bit of teh whole bike is the frame, its quality and technology and how it fits you. This will give you the ride experience which is the determining factor of whether you will get on with it. Low end brands with little R&D budgets rip of older designs and splatter them with some good kit...but it doesnt make the bikes any good.
The best 5" bike you can buy is a Trek Fuel EX they start from £1400 and go up to £6k. Th ereally interesting technology starts at £2300 with the amazing DRCV shock taht gives you eth best of a large can and small can combined and eth whole thing has a full floating design which gives you teh most plush travel with no bob.
trek are also doing 10% of teh value of the bike with free accessories so you can get a great deal from your local dealer who will then give you free servicing and great aftersales advice and support - unlike buying from el cheapo place a million miles away.
With Trek, Specialized and other big name manufactures you are to a certain extent paying for the name as with all these things. I think getting out and riding a few bikes is the best thing you can do, even if this means seeing if anyone local to you would let you have a quick spin on their bike. The best 5" bike you can buy is a Trek Fuel EX they start from £1400 and go up to £6k. Th ereally interesting technology starts at £2300 with the amazing DRCV shock taht gives you eth best of a large can and small can combined and eth whole thing has a full floating design which gives you teh most plush travel with no bob.
trek are also doing 10% of teh value of the bike with free accessories so you can get a great deal from your local dealer who will then give you free servicing and great aftersales advice and support - unlike buying from el cheapo place a million miles away.
Also it should be noted that although not so well known over here, Canyon bikes are very popular Europe, and recently won the WMTB bike of the year award (although I am always dubious about magazine reviews, as I am sure you would see some correlation between advertising budget and score).
As has been mentioned previously on here, there is a whole plethora of choice at £1500 to £2000, so don't limit your options to just two bikes.
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