Mountain Bike Question

rosborn said:

I am considering the Specialized Rockhopper and the Trek 4500. My local bike shop says that the Specialized is better for real trail riding and that the Trek is better for riding on gravel roads. For those who own one or the other, please share your thoughts with me as to which would be better in the long run in both gravel road riding and trail riding.

Thank you for your thoughts.

REO

I have a 05 specialized rockhopper. I know nothing about the 4500 trek. but my rockhopper is made of aluminum making it light. it has specific alloy manipulation, reducing the weight. the rockhopper is a step up above the hardrocks. ALL of them. Mine has manitou axel shox which is a great shox company. better than the rst shox. better than the rst gila shox. these shox are better than rst but below of course fox racing shox. although it does not come with disc brakes the brakes are amazing, that don't need to be upgraded. it shifts nice and smooth and is a rugged bike that takes uphill riding, river crossin, gravel. all terrain. this bike will give you a nice smooth ride anywhere you are. besides overall specialized make more popular mountain bikes.

Mazi said:

I have a 05 specialized rockhopper. I know nothing about the 4500 trek. but my rockhopper is made of aluminum making it light. it has specific alloy manipulation, reducing the weight. the rockhopper is a step up above the hardrocks. ALL of them. Mine has manitou axel shox which is a great shox company. better than the rst shox. better than the rst gila shox. these shox are better than rst but below of course fox racing shox. although it does not come with disc brakes the brakes are amazing, that don't need to be upgraded. it shifts nice and smooth and is a rugged bike that takes uphill riding, river crossin, gravel. all terrain. this bike will give you a nice smooth ride anywhere you are. besides overall specialized make more popular mountain bikes.

Mazi...
do you have lockout on your Rockhopper?

how do you still like it?
any....PIC'S?

thanks

Rosborn....
what bike did you get??????????

thanks

I was browsing comparing your choices
here is the rock site.
The Trek is the basic entry level mtb to the masses.
I see the Rockhopper 06 range came out with rockshocks.
the Rockhopper is quite a bit more expensive than the Trek
and has some better components,the v brakes are tektro,entry level
now the Rockhopper pro is a geniune step up.

specialized.comSBCBkModel.jspOpen ↗

bellsguns said:

Mazi...
do you have lockout on your Rockhopper?

how do you still like it?
any....PIC'S?

thanks

Rosborn....
what bike did you get??????????

thanks

Didn't buy one yet. I didn't get much feed back on my question until very recently was was waiting until I heard from someone. That being said, I am leaning towards the Specialized Rockhopper Comp. Of course, it has to be understood that I am a Specialized slappy. 🙂 I also ride a Specialized Tarmac Comp road bike.

Rob

I started searching for an MTB three months ago. I looked at and rode the RH and the 4500, and many others. Many variants of the RH, and many different Treks. IMHO, the RH and the 4500, are virtually the same. A part, or two, here and there, may be a bit better on one than the other. But, on a scale of 1 to 100, the differences in parts is only 1 or 2 out of 100. Very slight differences. Not significant. The idea that one bike is better for trail riding, and one is better for gravel roads, is totally stupid. The differece in riding surface has nothing to do with frame, or shifting components, or brakes, or even forks. Tires would affect how a bike rides on any surface. But look at the tires on these two bikes. There is no significant differece.The choice comes down to personal perference, LBS support, and extras.