Which Bike to get?

EQ Shaman said:

Ok, I have narrowed my list of bikes to 4, I am thinking either Trek 4100, Trek 4300, Gary Fisher
Advance or Gary Fisher Wahoo. Anyone have any recommendations based on the 4 listed above? I like
the Wahoo due to the fact that it comes equipped with Rockshox Judy, (which I am assuming is the
better fork/shock.) I am 210 lbs and will be riding about 65% on road and 35% off road, also this
will be my first mt. bike (asside from a cheap ass walmart bike)

Whichever has the better warranty, and fits you better. IF any of them have a steel frame versus an
aluminum frame, get that! (sriously at your weight a steel frame is better suited) also if given a
choice of colors; choose yellow, red or black.

On Thu, 24 Apr 2003 01:55:53 -0500, "EQ Shaman" <[email hidden]> reckoned:

Quoted message said:

Ok, I have narrowed my list of bikes to 4, I am thinking either Trek 4100, Trek 4300, Gary Fisher
Advance or Gary Fisher Wahoo. Anyone have any recommendations based on the 4 listed above? I like
the Wahoo due to the fact that it comes equipped with Rockshox Judy, (which I am assuming is the
better fork/shock.) I am 210 lbs and will be riding about 65% on road and 35% off road, also this
will be my first mt. bike (asside from a cheap ass walmart bike)

Shaman

What forks are on the other bikes? Rockshox Judy TT are ok but from what I have read they bottom out
a bit easy, especially if you are a heavier rider. Marzocchi Bomber shocks are much better if you
can afford it.

--
Not For Email

I have a Trek 4300, it's been a solid bike, nothing special, just a good, dependable ride. I weigh
230 lbs and have not experienced any mechanical problems because of the weight, but also, I'm not an
aggressive off-road rider. I rode it for about a year off-road, but have only ridden it on the
improved trails for the past year or so because of getting a Cannondale Scalpel for the more serious
off-road stuff.

"EQ Shaman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Ok, I have narrowed my list of bikes to 4, I am thinking either Trek 4100, Trek 4300, Gary Fisher
Advance or Gary Fisher Wahoo. Anyone have any recommendations based on the 4 listed above? I like
the Wahoo due to the fact that it comes equipped with Rockshox Judy, (which I am assuming is

the

Quoted message said:

better fork/shock.) I am 210 lbs and will be riding about 65% on road and 35% off road, also this
will be my first mt. bike (asside from a cheap ass walmart bike)

Shaman

"EQ Shaman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Ok, I have narrowed my list of bikes to 4, I am thinking either Trek 4100, Trek 4300, Gary Fisher
Advance or Gary Fisher Wahoo. Anyone have any recommendations based on the 4 listed above? I like
the Wahoo due to the fact that it comes equipped with Rockshox Judy, (which I am assuming is

the

Quoted message said:

better fork/shock.) I am 210 lbs and will be riding about 65% on road and 35% off road, also this
will be my first mt. bike (asside from a cheap ass walmart bike)

So many factors make the perfect bike. Some of the most important are:

Fit/Size: Does it fit you comfortably (in every dimension)? Reliability: Can you depend on this
bike for your type of riding? Price: Can you afford it? Can you justify the expense? Tires: Are the
tires appropriate for the terrain you're riding? Fork: Is the fork setup for your weight range? Can
it be modified?

Almost everything else is icing on the cake. There are dozens of brands of bikes out there, and over
a dozen major brands with bikes in your price range: Fuji, Giant, Marin, Kona, Specialized, Trek,
Gary Fisher, K2, Jamis, GT, Diamondback, Mongoose, Norco, etc, etc.

My advice is to ride as many bikes as you can possibly ride. Try them on varied terrain, wearing
both street clothes and cycling clothing. Try bikes above and below your ideal price point, to get
an idea of the differences. Remember that you can swap pedals, tires, stems and saddles very easily
- and most shops will build that kind of customization into a package price (often with free or
reduced-cost labor).

Personally, I find that Giant is very hard to beat for value. For every Trek bike, Giant has one
with better components at a lower price.

Brand recognition on forks is not necessarily a guarantee of value. SR/Suntour forks are very good;
but nobody knows the name. RockShox has built plenty of unreliable forks. I don't know how the 2003
Judy's are built.

Lastly, if you're thinking of doing any "urban assault" or "hucking", be aware that you'll probably
trash just about any bike that you buy. That kind of abuse isn't what most bikes were designed for.

Let us know what you decide after you've looked at 10 or 12 more bikes.

-Barry

EQ Shaman said:

Ok, I have narrowed my list of bikes to 4, I am thinking either Trek 4100, Trek 4300, Gary Fisher
Advance or Gary Fisher Wahoo. Anyone have any recommendations based on the 4 listed above? I like
the Wahoo due to the fact that it comes equipped with Rockshox Judy, (which I am assuming is the
better fork/shock.) I am 210 lbs and will be riding about 65% on road and 35% off road, also this
will be my first mt. bike (asside from a cheap ass walmart bike)

Shaman

210 lbs on a judy, HaHa, that's funny. I had one of those on my 1st bike, a trek 7000. What a POS.
Felt like it was made of rubber as soon as you started actually using it.

That said, I guess the fork is a replaceable part, which will add a LOT to the price to get a good
one, so perhaps choose based on other factors and plan on replacing the fork if you get into more
off road stuff.

-Bruce

In article said:

Ok, I have narrowed my list of bikes to 4, I am thinking either Trek 4100, Trek 4300, Gary Fisher
Advance or Gary Fisher Wahoo. Anyone have any recommendations based on the 4 listed above? I like
the Wahoo due to the fact that it comes equipped with Rockshox Judy, (which I am assuming is the
better fork/shock.) I am 210 lbs and will be riding about 65% on road and 35% off road, also this
will be my first mt. bike (asside from a cheap ass walmart bike)

Frankly, they're all practically the same bike. The Gary Fishers are made by Trek, though they're
designed a little differently. At that level, though, there's not much difference between the
frames. Buy the one that fits you the best and the one that you like the colour of. Don't worry too
much about the stuff that you're getting on the bike until something breaks or wears out.

JS

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"EQ Shaman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Ok, I have narrowed my list of bikes to 4, I am thinking either Trek 4100, Trek 4300, Gary Fisher
Advance or Gary Fisher Wahoo. Anyone have any recommendations based on the 4 listed above? I like
the Wahoo due to the fact that it comes equipped with Rockshox Judy, (which I am assuming is

the

Quoted message said:

better fork/shock.) I am 210 lbs and will be riding about 65% on road and 35% off road, also this
will be my first mt. bike (asside from a cheap ass walmart bike)

Shaman

Thank you to all who responded. I actually decided on a Diamond Back Response after going to every
bike shop in town and riding every bike they had for under $400. The reasons for this bike were
overall comfort, double walled rims, better suspension (or at least felt better to me) and price.
Once again, thank you for all your information, I look forward to being a part of this group and
learning even more.

Shaman

"EQ Shaman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"EQ Shaman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Ok, I have narrowed my list of bikes to 4, I am thinking either Trek

4100,

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Trek 4300, Gary Fisher Advance or Gary Fisher Wahoo. Anyone have any recommendations based on
the 4 listed above? I like the Wahoo due to

the

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

fact that it comes equipped with Rockshox Judy, (which I am assuming is

the

Quoted message said:

better fork/shock.) I am 210 lbs and will be riding about 65% on road

and

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

35% off road, also this will be my first mt. bike (asside from a cheap

ass

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

walmart bike)

Shaman

Thank you to all who responded. I actually decided on a Diamond Back Response after going to every
bike shop in town and riding every bike they had for under $400. The reasons for this bike were
overall comfort,

double

Quoted message said:

walled rims, better suspension (or at least felt better to me) and price. Once again, thank you
for all your information, I look forward to being a part of this group and learning even more.

Good job, Shaman. You did the right thing, and sounds like it paid off! Very glad to hear it. Bet
you're a happy guy right about now...

Keep the rubber side down. (If that's your thing...)

-Barry

Trek 4300

MTB Ride hard die free.