mountain bike reccomendation

Last year I ended up using a mtb for a trip to Nepal. I bought a Trek 4300
(~£300) and have been
very happy with it - possibly wish I'd upgraded to disk brakes, but no big
issue.

Cheers,
Graham

"Steve W" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Although I've been cycling for ages I know very little about off road

bikes.

Quoted message said:

Now I find that I want to buy a low priced one (£200-£300) to have my

first

Quoted message said:

go at off road riding. So two questions please. One is, do you know of

an

Quoted message said:

off road specific news group that I can ask for advice?
And secondly anyone out there got any experience in this area? Any advise
would be greatly appreciated.

thanks
SW

Steve W said:

Although I've been cycling for ages I know very little about off road bikes.
Now I find that I want to buy a low priced one (£200-£300) to have my first
go at off road riding.

Honeypot MTB areas usually have hire available. Hire one (or
borrow one) and give it a go before you spend a couple of hundred,
then you'll at least know if you like it enough to justify a purchase.
I got one based on having fun first, and though I don't use it that
much it has paid back the investment over the 7 years I've had it.
Roos, OTOH, has had a go at MTBing and found it a larf but not at
the level worth paying money for her own bike just for that job.
So, my advice as a (very) occasional MTBer is "try before you buy",
at the sport level more than an individual bike model.

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

"Steve W" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Although I've been cycling for ages I know very little about off road
bikes. Now I find that I want to buy a low priced one (£200-£300) to have
my first go at off road riding. So two questions please. One is, do you
know of an off road specific news group that I can ask for advice?
And secondly anyone out there got any experience in this area? Any advise
would be greatly appreciated.

thanks
SW

Steve,

I have looked at this price range quite closely recently as I wanted a bike
for my wife in that particular price range. For £200 - £300 you are looking
at an entry level specification; I would aim to spending closer to £300 than
£200 as this keeps you clear of the recreation type bikes (might look the
business but not up to much). I can recommend a Specialized Hard Rock
Sport - You can get a 2005 model for £299 or an almost identical 2004 model
for £250. There are other bargains to be had as many cycle shops are
slashing prices on 2004 models to make way for 2005 bikes. Look on google
for web addresses for Evans, Chain Reaction Cycles and Winstanleys Bikes as
these all have offers on at the moment.

Cheers,

Andy

Steve W said:

Although I've been cycling for ages I know very little about off road
bikes. Now I find that I want to buy a low priced one (£200-£300) to
have my first go at off road riding. So two questions please. One
is, do you know of an off road specific news group that I can ask for
advice?
And secondly anyone out there got any experience in this area? Any
advise would be greatly appreciated.

thanks
SW

Keep a look out for these bikes, they're more near £300 than £200 though,
some a little over £300:
Giant Terrago FS3
Trek 4100/4300
Speciliazed Hardrock Sport
GT Avalanche 1.0/2.0
Claud Butler Cape Wrath
Marin Bolinas Ridge
Scott Voltage YZ2/YZ3
Kona Fire Mountain

I have the Hardrock, you can now get the Hardrock with cable discs for
around £330 (from £400). Good bike for a beginner.

Try to get the 2004 model and you'll save some money. Buy a MTB magazine
(e.g. WhatMTB) and check the current deals.

--

Burning_Ranger

To email: [email hidden]

"Steve W" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Although I've been cycling for ages I know very little about off road

bikes.

Quoted message said:

Now I find that I want to buy a low priced one (£200-£300) to have my

first

Quoted message said:

go at off road riding. So two questions please. One is, do you know of

an

Quoted message said:

off road specific news group that I can ask for advice?
And secondly anyone out there got any experience in this area? Any advise
would be greatly appreciated.

thanks
SW

Apollo Perpetual.
I have one, cost me £100, a few years back, they are build like
a brick [censored]. You will bust every bone in your body before the
frame is damaged - a reassuring thought when you are careering down
a steep embankment. It even has centre-pull brakes which is a bonus.

regards half_pint..

Quoted message said:

half_pint said:

Apollo Perpetual.
I have one, cost me £100, a few years back, they are build like
a brick [censored]. You will bust every bone in your body before the
frame is damaged - a reassuring thought when you are careering down
a steep embankment. It even has centre-pull brakes which is a bonus.

Last time I tried to climb any kind of gradient on a brick [censored] it
nearly killed me. I suspect that "You will bust every bone in your body
before" you get anywhere near the top of any serious climb. Do you live
somewhere where all the hills only go down?

--
Rob

Please keep conversations in the newsgroup so that all may contribute
and benefit.

Steve W said:

Although I've been cycling for ages I know very little about off road
bikes. Now I find that I want to buy a low priced one (£200-£300) to
have my first go at off road riding. So two questions please. One
is, do you know of an off road specific news group that I can ask for
advice?
And secondly anyone out there got any experience in this area? Any
advise would be greatly appreciated.

I'd go for a cheapy to be honest - either scour your free ads paper for
something that's been bought and used just once or twice, or get something
fully rigid and new. Buying a second hand MTB that's actually been used for
MTBing is difficult IMO, as it's very easy to wear stuff out when it's
constantly covered in muck, and so you can easily get yourself something
that needs a fair few new bits fairly quickly. Merlin are chucking out some
very cheap frames at the moment, and you may be able to put something
together with basic kit for your budget - stuff like shifters, brakes etc.
don't really die due to mud and so you can pick em up second hand. Stuff
like bearings, rims, forks and drivetrain components do.

If you like it, you'll probably want something a bit fancy to ride around on
fairly soon, and so I'd recommend buying something cheap to learn on, and
save the rest towards a better bike if you like it. Marzocchi forks seem to
be the only suspension forks that cope well in UK levels of mud, and they
only start getting specced on 5 or 6 hundred pound bikes.

My post's assuming that you'll want to be doing proper off road stuff,
rather than fire road and towpath riding. If that's what you'll be doing,
pretty much anything with mildly chunky tyres will be up to it.

Steve W said:

Although I've been cycling for ages I know very little about off road bikes.
Now I find that I want to buy a low priced one (£200-£300) to have my first
go at off road riding. So two questions please. One is, do you know of an
off road specific news group that I can ask for advice?
And secondly anyone out there got any experience in this area? Any advise
would be greatly appreciated.

At that kind of price I'd try for a decent quality second hand one
rather than buying new. ebay is over there --> (well it is on my
monitor at the moment 🙂 )

Peter Clinch said:

Honeypot MTB areas usually have hire available. Hire one (or
borrow one) and give it a go before you spend a couple of hundred,
then you'll at least know if you like it enough to justify a purchase.
I got one based on having fun first, and though I don't use it that
much it has paid back the investment over the 7 years I've had it.
Roos, OTOH, has had a go at MTBing and found it a larf but not at
the level worth paying money for her own bike just for that job.
So, my advice as a (very) occasional MTBer is "try before you buy",
at the sport level more than an individual bike model.

If someone offers me one in my size for £50 I'll buy it but I can't be
bothered to go out and look for one. Would be useful at times for a
ride-in for walks.

Roos

in message <[email hidden]>, Steve W

(') said:

Although I've been cycling for ages I know very little about off road
bikes. Now I find that I want to buy a low priced one (£200-£300) to
have my first
go at off road riding. So two questions please. One is, do you know
of an off road specific news group that I can ask for advice?
And secondly anyone out there got any experience in this area? Any
advise would be greatly appreciated.

OK, how seriously off-road do you want to go?

If you are planning to use well made, hard surfaced tracks and paths
then you don't need knobbly tyres and would be better off without them.

If you are planning to go places a landrover can go, you need knobbly
tyres but you don't need suspension, although front suspension has
merits if you will be going fast.

On the other hand if you're planning on taking a bike places a landrover
could *not* go, then suspension is definitely worth it - and _good_
full suspension is better than hardtail.

In summary, to quote a post I wrote back in september in answer to a
very similar sort of question:

"'Pretty bumpy' looks like this:
<URL:http://www.c8h10n4o2.org/content/mtb/dalbeattie/pages/page6.html>
(it's even steeper than it looks in the picture)
<URL:http://www.c8h10n4o2.org/content/mtb/dalbeattie/pages/page12.html>

This is what you need a moderately competent bike for - although good
cyclists (and serious nutters) can do this sort of thing on rigid
bikes.

This is smooth:
<URL:http://www.c8h10n4o2.org/content/mtb/dalbeattie/pages/page16.html>

It's OK without suspension, but you'll go faster and and be more
comfortable with. Big tyres definitely indicated.

And this is smoother:
<URL:http://www.c8h10n4o2.org/content/mtb/dalbeattie/pages/page17.html>
<URL:http://www.c8h10n4o2.org/content/mtb/dalbeattie/pages/page1.html>

This is fine on rigid bikes, and even fine on touring or hybrid bikes
with 28mm or 32mm tyres.

You need knobbly tyres primarily for soft mud and very loose surfaces.
On any reasonably firm dry surface a road type tyre, with or without
slight tread, will be fine."

On our Haloween night ride I led our club around the routes pictured in
the 'smooth' and 'smoother' pictures above, in the dark. Some people
were on mountain bikes, some on hybrids, some on tourers; nobody had
problems except for one puncture.

To answer the other half of your question, there's no UK newsgroup which
deals exclusively with off-road cycling, but you'll find plenty of
expertise here; other than that, try Singletrack
<URL:http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/list.php?f=2&menu=14>,
although most of the people who hang out there are at the 'pretty
bumpy' end of the scale.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

;; may contain traces of nuts, bolts or washers.

in message <[email hidden]>, half_pint

(') said:

"Steve W" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Although I've been cycling for ages I know very little about off road

bikes.

Quoted message said:

Now I find that I want to buy a low priced one (£200-£300) to have my

first

Quoted message said:

go at off road riding.

Quoted message said:

Apollo Perpetual.
I have one, cost me £100, a few years back, they are build like
a brick [censored]. You will bust every bone in your body before the
frame is damaged - a reassuring thought when you are careering down
a steep embankment. It even has centre-pull brakes which is a bonus.

Look, it's one thing being an [censored] when you're dealing with people who
know what they're talking about, and it's another thing being an [censored]
when you're giving advice to a beginner who could end up getting
seriously injured if they followed it.

Centrepull brakes are definitely not safe off road; you need at least
cantilevers, and V brakes are on the whole an improvement on cantis.
And I have one of those super-heavy steel framed Apollos in the shed at
present, given me to cannibalise - the chainstays have broken, both
sides. How did this happen? It was ridden off a kerb.

Heavy does not equal strong. Steel does not equal strong. Badly made
cheap rubbish is still badly made cheap rubbish, no matter how much it
weighs and what it's made of.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

;; An enamorata is for life, not just for weekends.

Steve W vaguely muttered something like ...

Quoted message said:

Although I've been cycling for ages I know very little about off road
bikes. Now I find that I want to buy a low priced one (£200-£300) to have
my first go at off road riding. So two questions please. One is, do you
know of an off road specific news group that I can ask for advice?
And secondly anyone out there got any experience in this area? Any advise
would be greatly appreciated.

I'd agree with Andrew P, Simon Brooke, and Burning Ranger, though limit the
list maybe to Specialised, Kona and Marin or three that are available to
you.

If possible, have a ride on the different, short-listed bikes. Some will
feel 'right' some will feel awful. In many cases this is down to geometry,
in some cases it's down to bar/seat/pedal positions, crank lengths etc etc,
but essentially for a first bike comfort and fit are of great importance,
IMHO You'll go much further, travel better and arrive fresher of you feel
comfortable straight away.

I'd be wary of buying a 'cheap' mountain bike second hand unless you know
for certain that it's been well maintained. It can take less than a day to
wear out brake pads ...

I'd steer well clear of really cheap brands from supermarkets, garages and
the like.

Enjoy yourself, whatever you get. Fall into mud if possible, not trees ..
😉

--
Paul ...
http://www.4x4prejudice.org/index.php
"A [censored] is a [censored], no matter what mode of transport they're using."
(8(|) Homer Rules !!!

Simon Brooke [email hidden] opined the following...

Quoted message said:

Centrepull brakes are definitely not safe off road; you need at least
cantilevers, and V brakes are on the whole an improvement on cantis.
And I have one of those super-heavy steel framed Apollos in the shed at
present, given me to cannibalise - the chainstays have broken, both
sides. How did this happen? It was ridden off a kerb.

I think that half-wit believes cantis to be called centrepulls. He's
probably not old enough to remember / have encounter the original
centre-pull calipers.

Jon

Simon Brooke [email hidden] opined the following...

Quoted message said:

Centrepull brakes are definitely not safe off road; you need at least
cantilevers, and V brakes are on the whole an improvement on cantis.
And I have one of those super-heavy steel framed Apollos in the shed at
present, given me to cannibalise - the chainstays have broken, both
sides. How did this happen? It was ridden off a kerb.

I think that half-wit believes cantis to be called centrepulls. He's
probably not old enough to remember / have encounter the original
centre-pull calipers.

Jon

half_pint [email hidden] opined the following...

Quoted message said:

Apollo Perpetual.
I have one, cost me £100, a few years back, they are build like
a brick [censored]. You will bust every bone in your body before the
frame is damaged - a reassuring thought when you are careering down
a steep embankment. It even has centre-pull brakes which is a bonus.

While searching for this bike online I encountered the following image
on the Halfrauds site:

http://www.halfords.com/opdImages/00005053.jpg

You have to admire the set up of the handlebars wrt positioning of the
brake levers. I suspect that the builder had not test-ridden this bike.

Jon

half_pint [email hidden] opined the following...

Quoted message said:

Apollo Perpetual.
I have one, cost me £100, a few years back, they are build like
a brick [censored]. You will bust every bone in your body before the
frame is damaged - a reassuring thought when you are careering down
a steep embankment. It even has centre-pull brakes which is a bonus.

While searching for this bike online I encountered the following image
on the Halfrauds site:

http://www.halfords.com/opdImages/00005053.jpg

You have to admire the set up of the handlebars wrt positioning of the
brake levers. I suspect that the builder had not test-ridden this bike.

Jon

Jon Senior said:

Simon Brooke [email hidden] opined the following...

Quoted message said:

Centrepull brakes are definitely not safe off road; you need at least
cantilevers, and V brakes are on the whole an improvement on cantis.
And I have one of those super-heavy steel framed Apollos in the shed
at present, given me to cannibalise - the chainstays have broken,
both sides. How did this happen? It was ridden off a kerb.

I think that half-wit believes cantis to be called centrepulls. He's
probably not old enough to remember / have encounter the original
centre-pull calipers.

Yebbut, Jon, he's from a Position of Science and Engineering so what he says
must perforce be Correct. Hence cantis WILL hereinafter be called
centre-pulls.

So there!

--

Dave Larrington - http://www.legslarry.beerdrinkers.co.uk/
World Domination?
Just find a world that's into that kind of thing, then chain to the
floor and walk up and down on it in high heels. (Mr. Sunshine)

"Simon Brooke" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

in message <[email hidden]>, half_pint

(') said:

"Steve W" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Although I've been cycling for ages I know very little about off road

bikes.

Quoted message said:

Now I find that I want to buy a low priced one (£200-£300) to have my

first

Quoted message said:

go at off road riding.

Quoted message said:

Apollo Perpetual.
I have one, cost me £100, a few years back, they are build like
a brick [censored]. You will bust every bone in your body before the
frame is damaged - a reassuring thought when you are careering down
a steep embankment. It even has centre-pull brakes which is a bonus.

Look, it's one thing being an [censored] when you're dealing with people who
know what they're talking about, and it's another thing being an [censored]
when you're giving advice to a beginner who could end up getting
seriously injured if they followed it.

Centrepull brakes are definitely not safe off road; you need at least
cantilevers, and V brakes are on the whole an improvement on cantis.
And I have one of those super-heavy steel framed Apollos in the shed at
present, given me to cannibalise - the chainstays have broken, both
sides. How did this happen? It was ridden off a kerb.

Heavy does not equal strong. Steel does not equal strong. Badly made
cheap rubbish is still badly made cheap rubbish, no matter how much it
weighs and what it's made of.

You don't half post some garbage.

Quoted message said:

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

;; An enamorata is for life, not just for weekends.

"Jon Senior" <jon_AT_restlesslemon_DOTco_DOT_uk> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...
half_pint [email hidden] opined the following...

Quoted message said:

Apollo Perpetual.
I have one, cost me £100, a few years back, they are build like
a brick [censored]. You will bust every bone in your body before the
frame is damaged - a reassuring thought when you are careering down
a steep embankment. It even has centre-pull brakes which is a bonus.

While searching for this bike online I encountered the following image
on the Halfrauds site:

http://www.halfords.com/opdImages/00005053.jpg

You have to admire the set up of the handlebars wrt positioning of the
brake levers. I suspect that the builder had not test-ridden this bike.

Jon

*****************
Thats the wrong bike!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
******************