Budget Friendly Mountain Bike

DaveyDave

I've decided that I want a new mountain bike and seeing as how I don't know that much about them I was just looking for some buying tips. I'll be replacing my Raleigh Switchback which I've had for about 7 years as it's in pretty bad condition and I'm tired of having to get it fixed, I also prefer disc brakes so I've decided to buy a new bike on a budget of around €300.



There's a picture of it, we've had a good run

I was looking on Halfords at the Apollo Phaze (€250) and Apollo Kanyon (€310). Both are near enough identical other than the Phaze being a hard tail and having different front mech.

Any input on these bikes?

DualFrontDiscs

DaveyDave,

With your budget, you're best sticking to a hard tail bike. Full sus at that price is a compromise too far.

Good luck with your purchase.

DFD.

Caroline_ie

Might be a good idea to have a look at the bike sale

DaveyDave

DualFrontDiscs wrote: »

DaveyDave,

With your budget, you're best sticking to a hard tail bike. Full sus at that price is a compromise too far.

Good luck with your purchase.

DFD.

I've heard that it's best to avoid full suspension at cheaper prices, but I figured this bike would be ok seeing as how there's full suspension bikes with discs for €150? I'm still undecided on if I want a hard tail or not but at least the bikes have dual disc brakes and more gears so it's a plus so far.

Caroline_ie wrote: »

Might be a good idea to have a look at the bike sale

I Couldn't see any good bikes in my price range?

at1withmyself

DaveyDave wrote: »

I've heard that it's best to avoid full suspension at cheaper prices, but I figured this bike would be ok seeing as how there's full suspension bikes with discs for €150? I'm still undecided on if I want a hard tail or not but at least the bikes have dual disc brakes and more gears so it's a plus so far.



I Couldn't see any good bikes in my price range?

Davey, just wondering what kind of rding you intend to do on the new bike, i.e. will you be taking the bike up to the trials or just using it in the city and riding primarily on the road??

In regards a full suspension bike you'd do well to get a decent one for less then 1,000 so I'd advise you to stay clear of one at your price. To be honest for your price I'd nearly avoid suspension all together as the weight penalty is not usually worth it.....

Again depending on your type of riding I wouldn't be too concerned with having disc brakes at that price range as they won't be great quality.

Brands like trek, Giant & Specialized usually hae reasonable starter bikes for your budget...

DaveyDave

Well I'll be cycling mainly on roads, but using shortcuts through fields. I don't need a high end trial bike or anything fancy, just a decent bike. What about the Felt Q220 (€410) or the Raleigh AT30 (€500)? I don't know if I'll be able to stretch my budget that far though.

Bikerguy

Felt Q220 is not a really good choice...the best part of bike is maybe the frame..:)

If u arent a pro rider visit any shop - who is seling only bicycles-eurocycles on south wiliams street or even cycleways on parnell street and ask them about the prices...if u will save up a little bit more u can walk out with really good bike which is gonna work for u for ages..

Dont do bussines with halfords or they will make u come back many times..:)

with budget up to 450 or 500 is dificult to find something good. maybe a specialized hardrock - price 469 - not bad, but some parts on bike are just simply crab - cheap..
Q220 looks a bit better than specialized but still not really a good choice.
I would sugges u Trek 4300 or even some models from focus may suit u.

make a research..:) deeper than boards..:) google.ie is working perfect in this way

good luck m8

at1withmyself

DaveyDave wrote: »

Well I'll be cycling mainly on roads, but using shortcuts through fields. I don't need a high end trial bike or anything fancy, just a decent bike. What about the Felt Q220 (€410) or the Raleigh AT30 (€500)? I don't know if I'll be able to stretch my budget that far though.

Have you considered a hybrid style bike, something like one of these:

http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/showSearchResults.asp?customfield=0&SearchValues=&exact=0&iPageCurrent=1&keyword=&priceFrom=0&priceUntil=9999999&idCategory=32&IdSupplier=0&withStock=0&IDBrand=0&SKU=&quicksearch=&order=5

At your price range and for the intended use of the bike I'd recommend going for a test ride on something like this:

http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=32&idproduct=36597

It will be much lighter then a suspension mountain bike and still more then capable of cutting through a few fields etc...

c montgomery

I saw this bike on ebay. Just want to say that i dont know the seller, i only came across it when as im looking for a second hand downhill bike.

For the money he is asking you will not get better value anywhere.

http://cgi.ebay.ie/2009-Lapierre-Tecnic-500-Hardtail-mountain-bike-/180537495168?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Bikes_GL&hash=item2a08df8e80

DaveyDave

I think too much thought is going into this, I'm really just looking for a bike to cycle to the gym, shops and fo fun but dual disc brakes and front suspension are a must. Weight isn't an issue for me with a bike, I was just wondering if there is any other bikes with dual discs and suspension for around €300.

What advantages/disadvantages is there in getting a hard-tail?

at1withmyself

DaveyDave wrote: »

I think too much thought is going into this, I'm really just looking for a bike to cycle to the gym, shops and fo fun but dual disc brakes and front suspension are a must. Weight isn't an issue for me with a bike, I was just wondering if there is any other bikes with dual discs and suspension for around €300.

What advantages/disadvantages is there in getting a hard-tail?

At your price range and intended use it seems silly to buy a bike with suspension but if that's what your after then something like this:

http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=232&idproduct=36522

Your just not going to get a decent bike for 300 euro with suspension forks and disc brakes.

There is no advantage in getting a bike with suspension unless you cycle off road regularly. I still cycle off-road without any suspension or disc brakes and have no problem with it as I use my bike mainly on the road.

If you can call into a shop then I'd recommend taking a test cycle on a hybrid (like the Giant escape linked above) and see what you think against a test ride on a hard-tail mountain bike. The hybrid will be more 'fun' to cycle as it won't be as hard work as a mountain bike on the road.....

In order to get a double suspension bike with disc's you may need to try places like Aldi, Lidl, Smiths or Halfords. The money used on the disc's and suspension will mean the overall quality of the bike will be poor and heavy.

mtbireland

no disadvantge in getting a hardtail.. only advantages.

1. Lighter
2. Less moving parts to fix
3. all your effort goes to the back wheel which means it's easier to cycle and faster

€300 full suspension bikes are just big heavy bikes with a spring on them. Hardtail all the way... Worth taking a trip in somewhere like the cyclesuperstore.ie as they have a huge range in there and you can see them in the flesh..

DaveyDave

Just had a look at Cycle Superstore and there's some nice bikes on there. Might pop in on Saturday and have a look, but €500 still is a lot of money, maybe I can get my ma to throw in some money as an early Christmas present, it's probably best as I'll likely have the bike for at least 5 years.

DaveyDave

I've been looking at the Lapierre Tecnic 200 (€495) and Giant Revel 1 (€520)

I want to get into mountain biking next Spring/Summer, I'm assuming those bikes will be grand for some beginner trials? I'll still be cycling on the road with them, too. To the gym and hopefully college next year. I've always wanted to get into mountain biking but my bike isn't fit for anywhere but the road.

I just wish there was some sort of scheme for this, I've decided to get a bike instead of a motorbike but the Government is too busy getting older cars off the roads in place of newer cars, don't get me started on Brian Cowen, that fat ****e can't even drive his own car. Instead of offering money off new cars they should offer money off on bikes to keep cars off the roads. Not just the bike2work scheme. Where's the poor2bike scheme? Ah I'm just thinking of reasons for me to get a cheaper bike. It's funny though, you get money off buying a new car to get your old one off the road and to continue damaging the environment and you get nothing for cycling.

At least cycling has other benefits, cheaper up front, almost no running costs, good for my health and it's fun, it's just expensive, but so is €2,000 for motorbike insurance.

I'm bloody dying to get my hands on a new bike, gonna be ages before I can get a new one