At that price range I would not consider purchasing a dually. Basically these bikes are made to look like down hill / trail bikes but on most occasions, have a sticker near the BB saying that they are not suitable for off road conditions 😄.
Go to you local bike store and get fitted on a Giant hardtail. Better to get a bike that fits without disk brakes and has pedalling efficiency. If this is for commuting, then a hybrid / flat bar road bike would be the way to go.
you guys are killing me. I was hoping for someone to agree with me. Can someone explain exactly the problem with softtail at this price, without quoting the bad old days when every softtail was [censored]. What exactly is the extra $1500 buying me?
There is a reason that almost all dual sus frames have a dual pivot rear swing arm - this is to counterract pedal bob (and, allegedly, braking bob, but I've not seen them do that successfully). When it is done well, you can shove almost any rear shock in the frame and it will work well. If you want to use a single pivot swing arm, and you'd only do this if you wanted a really light bike or you were using an old frame that you couldn't part with, then you need a stable platform rear shock or you'll be stuck with a pogo stick of a bike. Both these bikes are single pivot designs. Neither has a stable platform shock. Ever seen a dual suspension huffy on the road? - up/down/up/down goes the rider as he trundles along. These bikes will behave like the huffy. If you get a good hardtail frame, you can upgrade it with better components as you go. The first thing that you'll want to replace with these bikes is the frame. Don't know anything about that shock other than that I can't find any reviews of it on the net and that it isn't Fox, Manitou, Rock Shox, Cane Creek, Magura or Marzocchi.
Being new to this forum I should behave, but can I ask a bolshy question:
Have any of you guys actually ridden a sub $500 softtail in the last 6 months?
regards
Danien
No, but the design on those low end bikes haven't changed for the past 10 years. Put it this way, I find that the maestro system on my mtb could still be a lot better, and it is light years ahead of what is offered in those two examples. If your heart is set on getting one, then by all means purchase one. But you'll end up cursing the bike while you're on it after the initial euphoria. Let's face it, $500 can get you a deposit on a nice hardtail with Deore LX / Hone groupset which will ride circles around those bikes - in all environments!
