Upgrade or replace my rockhopper?
Discussion
I bought my Specialized rockhopper new in 2006(i think) and it gets well used on trails and cross country,its always felt a little small in the cockpit but not bad enough for me to do anything drastic about it.
The spec is A1 aluminium frame,Manitou Axel 100mm travel forks with lockout/preload/rebound adjustment.Shimano hydrolic disc brakes,mavic rims,Shimano Deore gear set.
Are there any parts that scream "upgrade me" or am i better saving my money and upgrading the bike.
My wife has a Specialized Hardrock which has the same A1 frame so i'm guessing its a bottom of the range frame.
I was thinking i could move her(hardly used) Hardrock on,give her my rockhopper then buy a new bike altogether for me.
Anyone any thoughts/views?
Cheers Paul.
The spec is A1 aluminium frame,Manitou Axel 100mm travel forks with lockout/preload/rebound adjustment.Shimano hydrolic disc brakes,mavic rims,Shimano Deore gear set.
Are there any parts that scream "upgrade me" or am i better saving my money and upgrading the bike.
My wife has a Specialized Hardrock which has the same A1 frame so i'm guessing its a bottom of the range frame.
I was thinking i could move her(hardly used) Hardrock on,give her my rockhopper then buy a new bike altogether for me.
Anyone any thoughts/views?
Cheers Paul.
I had one of these and i thought it was brilliant, easily the best bike i have had.
I still miss it now and would love to get my hands on another.
It is miles better than the hardrock so dont dismiss it just because it is made from the same grade alloy, it is head and shoulders above it!
Just like you have said, the options are:
One route would be upgrades and the frame in my opinion is definitely worth it.
The other is to give it to the other half and get rid of the hardrock.
To get a new bike nowadays that would match the spec of the rockhopper would cost a few quid.
How small is too small in the cockpit? If that is the case then i would get a setback seatpost and maybe some wider bars.
For upgrades then i always thought the weakpoint were the forks, while not too bad they could be better, with some Rebas on the bike would be brilliant. The gearset is more than good enough as are the wheels and brakes.
Lighter wheels are a good upgrade too.
It depends really if you have some money to buy new, if so then you would be looking at around £7-800 for something of a similar spec and if size is the issue then try a few first.
If you want to sell the rockhopper then please let me know.
I still miss it now and would love to get my hands on another.
It is miles better than the hardrock so dont dismiss it just because it is made from the same grade alloy, it is head and shoulders above it!
Just like you have said, the options are:
One route would be upgrades and the frame in my opinion is definitely worth it.
The other is to give it to the other half and get rid of the hardrock.
To get a new bike nowadays that would match the spec of the rockhopper would cost a few quid.
How small is too small in the cockpit? If that is the case then i would get a setback seatpost and maybe some wider bars.
For upgrades then i always thought the weakpoint were the forks, while not too bad they could be better, with some Rebas on the bike would be brilliant. The gearset is more than good enough as are the wheels and brakes.
Lighter wheels are a good upgrade too.
It depends really if you have some money to buy new, if so then you would be looking at around £7-800 for something of a similar spec and if size is the issue then try a few first.
If you want to sell the rockhopper then please let me know.
I have an almost identical one (but black and v-brakes) maybe the year before model?
Superb bike, light and stiff, also "feels" small (like riding a BMX) but I think thats a good thing :-)
Can't actually think of any worthwhile upgrades (other than saddle/pedals etc to suit the rider) it just works... sure, you could mess around spending £100's making it a little bit lighter but I'm not sure there is alot to loose.
Don't think you'd have much trouble selling it but if you're itching to upgrade and your missus is happy to swap I'd do that, at least you'll know she's got a solid bit of kit to try and keep up with :-)
Superb bike, light and stiff, also "feels" small (like riding a BMX) but I think thats a good thing :-)
Can't actually think of any worthwhile upgrades (other than saddle/pedals etc to suit the rider) it just works... sure, you could mess around spending £100's making it a little bit lighter but I'm not sure there is alot to loose.
Don't think you'd have much trouble selling it but if you're itching to upgrade and your missus is happy to swap I'd do that, at least you'll know she's got a solid bit of kit to try and keep up with :-)
Hello Paul Beckett here.
Likewise I have a 2004 Rockhopper Disc (the first mark to have hydraulic Discs), so I had a fair old drool on over your later model!!
Those of us who own them generally don't get rid of them, and those who have got rid of them want another one shortly afterwards!! They are the mutts nuts in terms of simple, middle of the road quality MTB's. I mean you will probably already have a lockout front fork which I don't have and a lighter bike. However the Hardrock is not even close to this beastie!!
As for upgrades, because mine is mainly a commute machine I have taken the knobblies off and replaced them with slicks fore and aft, doing this I can keep up with some of the slower/older road bike users too.
Here in Stevenage we have a large number of dedicated Cycle Paths which we use quite a lot, only needing to use the main road for the last 2 miles back ot my place.
I'd say very firmly - replace the componentry if you need to but don't even think about binning the setup - far too valuable to get shot of!!!
Regards
Paul
Likewise I have a 2004 Rockhopper Disc (the first mark to have hydraulic Discs), so I had a fair old drool on over your later model!!
Those of us who own them generally don't get rid of them, and those who have got rid of them want another one shortly afterwards!! They are the mutts nuts in terms of simple, middle of the road quality MTB's. I mean you will probably already have a lockout front fork which I don't have and a lighter bike. However the Hardrock is not even close to this beastie!!
As for upgrades, because mine is mainly a commute machine I have taken the knobblies off and replaced them with slicks fore and aft, doing this I can keep up with some of the slower/older road bike users too.
Here in Stevenage we have a large number of dedicated Cycle Paths which we use quite a lot, only needing to use the main road for the last 2 miles back ot my place.
I'd say very firmly - replace the componentry if you need to but don't even think about binning the setup - far too valuable to get shot of!!!
Regards
Paul
Thanks very much for all the replys,It still looks pretty good to be honest,i tend to look after stuff that i pay hard earned for,that said it has a job to do and i'm not afraid to give it a pasting
The more i think about it the more i think that i would have to spend knocking on £1000 to get something appriciably better,truthfully i'm still the weak link,i think i will explore the suggestions regarding seatpost and was thinking slightly longer stem as well.
It doesn't wear toe clips anymore,i generally don't commute on it as i have a road bike for that.
Have a friend at work that bought a Boardman MTB on the cycle to work sceme when it was last run,i have ridden that and really liked it,perhaps i'll consider again if and when the sceme opens up again.
No matter what i wouldn't sell it,just pass it on to my wife as mentioned,it feels very different to ride compared to her Hardrock which has cable discs.
Cheers Paul.
The more i think about it the more i think that i would have to spend knocking on £1000 to get something appriciably better,truthfully i'm still the weak link,i think i will explore the suggestions regarding seatpost and was thinking slightly longer stem as well.
It doesn't wear toe clips anymore,i generally don't commute on it as i have a road bike for that.
Have a friend at work that bought a Boardman MTB on the cycle to work sceme when it was last run,i have ridden that and really liked it,perhaps i'll consider again if and when the sceme opens up again.
No matter what i wouldn't sell it,just pass it on to my wife as mentioned,it feels very different to ride compared to her Hardrock which has cable discs.
Cheers Paul.
Keep it, they take so much abuse they are the Captain Scarlett's of MTB's.
Ive got an 07 that has had minor upgrades as its my trails/X-country bike, prob done 4000 miles on it, cannot find another bike like it,
So much so I bought an 06 V brake to commute on, the lad I bought it off abused it over the fells where he lived in Cumbria, rides lovely, gonna sort the tyres for next years commuting.
Ive got an 07 that has had minor upgrades as its my trails/X-country bike, prob done 4000 miles on it, cannot find another bike like it,
So much so I bought an 06 V brake to commute on, the lad I bought it off abused it over the fells where he lived in Cumbria, rides lovely, gonna sort the tyres for next years commuting.
How well have you maintained it, how hard have you used it?
I'd just service it. if you wanted a significantly better bike buy one or you'll need to price up the individual components your going to change and how much each is Vs a much better bike.
I'd say you could get better bike than say a Trek 6900 rrp £1400 by changing to the following components on your current frame for
1. Fork = Reba Shock (£275)
2. Wheels = Mavic XC717 Rim/ Hope hubs (£330)
3. Groupset = SLX 10 speed group (£250)
4. Brakes = Avid Elixir Carbons (£200)
5. Cockpit Race Face Deus XC £100)
6. Lizard North Shore grips (£20)
7. Hope Headset & seat collar (£80)
8. Pedals DMR V8 flats or Shimano M520's (£25)
Total Cost = £1,070 all on Merlin.
I'd just service it. if you wanted a significantly better bike buy one or you'll need to price up the individual components your going to change and how much each is Vs a much better bike.
I'd say you could get better bike than say a Trek 6900 rrp £1400 by changing to the following components on your current frame for
1. Fork = Reba Shock (£275)
2. Wheels = Mavic XC717 Rim/ Hope hubs (£330)
3. Groupset = SLX 10 speed group (£250)
4. Brakes = Avid Elixir Carbons (£200)
5. Cockpit Race Face Deus XC £100)
6. Lizard North Shore grips (£20)
7. Hope Headset & seat collar (£80)
8. Pedals DMR V8 flats or Shimano M520's (£25)
Total Cost = £1,070 all on Merlin.
OneDs said:
How well have you maintained it, how hard have you used it?
I'd just service it. if you wanted a significantly better bike buy one or you'll need to price up the individual components your going to change and how much each is Vs a much better bike.
I'd say you could get better bike than say a Trek 6900 rrp £1400 by changing to the following components on your current frame for
1. Fork = Reba Shock (£275)
2. Wheels = Mavic XC717 Rim/ Hope hubs (£330)
3. Groupset = SLX 10 speed group (£250)
4. Brakes = Avid Elixir Carbons (£200)
5. Cockpit Race Face Deus XC £100)
6. Lizard North Shore grips (£20)
7. Hope Headset & seat collar (£80)
8. Pedals DMR V8 flats or Shimano M520's (£25)
Total Cost = £1,070 all on Merlin.
Cheers for taking the time to post,and thanks to everyone else who has posted as well,i have been given plenty to think about,i'm going to hang onto it for the forseeable,i have a couple of upgrades in mind to keep me intrested in the bike but truthfully it does what i need,but you know how it is,bikes are like cars in some respects,they are lovely things and as a bloke you can't help but lust after shineier onesI'd just service it. if you wanted a significantly better bike buy one or you'll need to price up the individual components your going to change and how much each is Vs a much better bike.
I'd say you could get better bike than say a Trek 6900 rrp £1400 by changing to the following components on your current frame for
1. Fork = Reba Shock (£275)
2. Wheels = Mavic XC717 Rim/ Hope hubs (£330)
3. Groupset = SLX 10 speed group (£250)
4. Brakes = Avid Elixir Carbons (£200)
5. Cockpit Race Face Deus XC £100)
6. Lizard North Shore grips (£20)
7. Hope Headset & seat collar (£80)
8. Pedals DMR V8 flats or Shimano M520's (£25)
Total Cost = £1,070 all on Merlin.
I shall just keep on enjoying it for what it is.Cheers Paul.
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