Bike shopping this afternoon, any advice on what to look for?

[Mr N8]

I'm looking to pick up a MTB and accessories (extra wheelset with slicks, helmet, seat bag, lock) for $500 or less. The shop I'm going to sells Gary Fisher, Trek, and Specialized for MTB as well as having a good collection of used bikes. I'll be picking up a hardtail, as my budget doesn't really allow for a FS bike. I'm going to be using it to ride 18 miles to work on the weekdays and I'll be riding singletrack / doubletrack on the weekends.

Anyone got any recommendations for the brand and model or any accessories that I shouldn't be without?

Thanks!

Update:

Got a Gary Fisher Mullet! No pics of my bike, yet, as I've been riding it too much to stop and get any.

It's a great riding bike. It rode more efficiently than the Trek 4500 and Gary Fisher Marlin, and yet it will be tough enough for me to ride the better singletrack trails in the area. :thumbsup:

I got the bike, a helmet, and a set of slicks for ~$560. I ordered a frame mount pump and a seat wedge (for camera and a couple of tools).

 

[Scarpozzi]

When you go to the shops ask them for a bike with all LX or Delorme parts. Tell them that anything more would be a waste for the kind of riding you're gonna be doing. That'll give them an idea of what you're looking for. LX is mid-grade parts that can take somewhat of a beating for moderate riding. XT or XTR components are too expensive and will drive the price up.

Also, Gary Fisher and Trek can be pricey, but not as bad as Canondale. Specialized will give you the best deal from the brands listed, but I'd check out Raleigh M80s as well...they're a good balance for a cheap price...more bike for the buck.

 

[NutBucket]

Get at least 8-speeds....sorry I'm not really knowledgeable about those brands.

EDIT: If you want a Cannondale buy used That's what I did.

 

[Mr N8]

Originally posted by: Scarpozzi
When you go to the shops ask them for a bike with all LX or Delorme parts. Tell them that anything more would be a waste for the kind of riding you're gonna be doing. That'll give them an idea of what you're looking for. LX is mid-grade parts that can take somewhat of a beating for moderate riding. XT or XTR components are too expensive and will drive the price up.

Also, Gary Fisher and Trek can be pricey, but not as bad as Canondale. Specialized will give you the best deal from the brands listed, but I'd check out Raleigh M80s as well...they're a good balance for a cheap price...more bike for the buck.

So, are the stock Shimano components crap? What parts am I looking for to have those names? Wheels, brakes, hub, fork?

 

[nakedfrog]

I would suggest looking for two wheels, a chain, and a seat.

 

[jonnyGURU]

Originally posted by: Mr N8

Originally posted by: Scarpozzi
When you go to the shops ask them for a bike with all LX or Delorme parts. Tell them that anything more would be a waste for the kind of riding you're gonna be doing. That'll give them an idea of what you're looking for. LX is mid-grade parts that can take somewhat of a beating for moderate riding. XT or XTR components are too expensive and will drive the price up.

Also, Gary Fisher and Trek can be pricey, but not as bad as Canondale. Specialized will give you the best deal from the brands listed, but I'd check out Raleigh M80s as well...they're a good balance for a cheap price...more bike for the buck.

So, are the stock Shimano components crap? What parts am I looking for to have those names? Wheels, brakes, hub, fork?

Shimano makes those. There's a full range of Shimano components with different model (read: "grouppo") names. Some crap. Some good. LX is upper middle. XTR is high end. Etc.... It's still Shimano.

 

[JRock]

I have a 2002 Gary Fisher Joshua and a 2001 Santa Cruz Bullit (downhill setup)

 

[Mr N8]

Originally posted by: jonnyGURU


Shimano makes those. There's a full range of Shimano components with different model (read: "grouppo") names. Some crap. Some good. LX is upper middle. XTR is high end. Etc.... It's still Shimano.

I see. Thanks, that makes sense, now.

 

[scorpmatt]

my 2 cents is, weight (lighter is generally better), look for double or triple butted, aluminum (for the lighter folks) frames, full welding

 

[NutBucket]

What's your budget? Also, notice that on cheaper bikes they'll have say a LX rear derailleur and some cheaper components for the front derailleur, crank, etc.

 

[Mr N8]

Originally posted by: NutBucket
What's your budget? Also, notice that on cheaper bikes they'll have say a LX rear derailleur and some cheaper components for the front derailleur, crank, etc.

$500

 

[newbiepcuser]

You wont get good traction using your mtn bike tires (knobbies) on the road , you better look into slicks. But there goes your budget.


Gary Fisher is lighter of the three you mention in that price range. My buddy just got one in that price range.
Specialized built tough and reliable.

I'm not a big fan of Trek mtn bikes.


In all honesty, they are about the same in quality at that price range. Just try them all out and see whats comfortable for you.


reviews here

 

[laurenlex]

You don't have enough budget to get a decent bike AND spare wheels for 500 bones. Skip the wheelset and just switch tires before rides. Buy a nice floor pump. With practice, you can change tires in under 10 minutes.

If you could stretch the budget a bit, you would get a nicer bike. I too agree that LX componets are the best bang for the buck in the Shimano lineup.

Deore might be OK, Alivio sucks.

This would be a pretty nice bike. MSPR is 900, but you can get it cheaper than that.

The Marlin might be your best bet for the budget. 519 MSRP.

Most important parts:
Frame
Shifters
Rear derailluer
Wheels
Seat

Less important parts:
Front derailluers
stem, bars, post, ect...

Don't buy a bike that is too big, if in between sizes, get the smaller one.

Brand does not matter, Trek, Specialized, Fisher frames are all probably built in the same factory.

Find the bike with the nicest parts in important places, and go from there.

You would be happier with a 6-800 dollar bike if you can swing it, but I know money don't grow on trees.

Good choice on hardtail, cheap full suspension bikes suck. Expensive ones ROCK, though.

<------- Used to work in bike shop 10 years ago, but still kinda smart about bikes.

 

[Kelemvor]

Huffy is normally a good brand...

 

[notfred]

You're not going to get a bike spec'ed with LX components for $500 anyway, you're probably looking at $1000 for a bike like that. And don't say "Delorme" because people will think you don't know WTF you're talknig about. I think Scarpozzi meant to say "Deore", which is Shimano's component group right below the LX level, which you might find on a $500 bike.

Also, get a pair of slick road tires, they'll be a lot faster for when you ride to work during the week. When you are going out to the trail on the weekends, swap the tires out to your knobbies just for the dirt. This will also keep you from wearing out soft tires meant for dirt too quickly by riding them on pavement all the time.

Shimano makes parts for mountain bikes in different levels, in order from cheapest to best, they go like:
Tourney
Altus
Acera
Alivio
Deore
LX
XT
XTR

Where Tourney and Altus stuff comes on crappy walmart bikes, and XT and XTR stuff comes on high end and racing bikes. Personally, I wouldn't buy anything below the Alivio level. My personal bikes have mostly LX and XT level conmponents.

Also, some bikes come with components by SRAM, who is Shimano's biggest competitor in mountain biking.

The SRAM components are, from worst to best:
X.3
X.4
X.5
X.7
X.9
X.0

Where X.0 competes with shimano's XTR stuff, X.9 competes with XT, X.7 competes with LX, X.5 competes with Deore, and so on. I've been really happy with my X.7 and X.9 level SRAM components, so don't shy away from a bike just because it doesn't say "Shimano" on it.

Also, go read what I said about slick road tires again, you really will benefit from using a smooth, high-pressure tire on the street. Also, don't forget to buy a helemt, and if you'll be riding at night, get lights as well.

Edit: Oops, I suck at reading and missed the accesories list in the original post. You wont be able to afford an extra wheelset, just get the tires.

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

what do you mean extra wheel sets?

a good front wheel with tire can cost 100 dollars easy
a back wheel is even more since you need the sprockets too

so the extra wheel sets will be half your budget, forcing you into a low end bike.

Forget the wheel sets for now

Since it looks like the most use will come from your commute I would buy for that. (is that 18 miles round trip or 36 miles round trip?) what are the road conditions like? do you need a fast bike (i.e., roadie or road end hybrid)?

 

[Metron]

For the most part, you'll see mountain bikes with the following levels of Shimano components (from highest to lowest):

XTR
XT
LX
Deore

Usually they will mix parts of various levels as well. That's not to say that Deore level equipment is crap, it's just meant for a beginning rider. You'd be wasting your money on a full XTR group (not to mention smoking your budget, since a full XTR "group" is about $1,500 just for the components), and you don't need that level of equipment unless you're a hardcore rider or racing for a living.

Shimano Group Info here...

In terms of a bike, I would suggest looking for a used model with LX or XT components. Also, check discount sites like Pricepoint for accessories. Occassionally Pricepoint will have prior year model bikes (NOS) for sale at a deep discount as well.

Metron

*edit* crap! notfred was reading from the same website, but beat me to the post!

 

[MisfitsFiend]

look for a very comfortable seat!

 

[scorpmatt]

Originally posted by: MisfitsFiend
look for a very comfortable seat!

QFT!

or padded pants

 

[vi edit]

I bought a Fisher "Marlin" back in May for around $465. It was almost the same exact bike as the Trek 6500 which was well over a $100 more than the Fisher. Same front suspension, same component group, same pretty much everything short of frame.

So far it's been good to me with the only hiccups being a user error

It's light, fast, and comfortable...once I swapped out the seat. The seat that it comes with is aweful. I dropped in a suspension seatpost from my old GT hybrid and added a gel seat. I can actually ride more than a mile comfortably now

My Marlin came with a dual-duty tire on it. Knobby enough to handle off road, but not so obnoxiously off road oriented that it hums and chugs along on the pavement either.

I looked at a bunch of different bikes and the only other bike that I could find *online* that matched it value wise was some of the stuff from Haro. But, there wasn't a Haro dealer within 50 miles of me and I wasn't willing to drive that far for a bike.

 

[Mr N8]

OK, I'll just get a set of tires, and forget the wheels for now. Maybe I can pick some used ones up sometime to save on changing time.

I have my eye on the Marlin and Tassajara (if the wife allows more $$$), so we'll see what happens.

 

[Cook1]

Originally posted by: Mr N8
I'm looking to pick up a MTB and accessories (extra wheelset with slicks, helmet, seat bag, lock) for $500 or less. The shop I'm going to sells Gary Fisher, Trek, and Specialized for MTB as well as having a good collection of used bikes. I'll be picking up a hardtail, as my budget doesn't really allow for a FS bike. I'm going to be using it to ride 18 miles to work on the weekdays and I'll be riding singletrack / doubletrack on the weekends.

Anyone got any recommendations for the brand and model or any accessories that I shouldn't be without?

Thanks!

For $500 get a Specialized Rockhopper or Hardrock. Or if you can find it a 03' Stumpjumper. You can't go wrong. The only Trek's around that price would be the 4500's to 4900's. I tried them before I got my Stumpy and they felt more "clunky" to ride. My advice would be take a test ride on each.

 

[Cook1]

http://www.bikeforums.net/

Go here, under MTB they have a whole thread for the $500 bikes.

 

[Injury]

as long as you aren't shopping at WalMart, I think you'll be satisfied

 

[Mr N8]

Updated first post with what I got. Thanks for the advice.