Decent buyers guides?

Waesfjord

I'm about to take the plunge and get a hardtail MTB, however am getting a bit overwhlmed with all the specs etc associated with each model of bike.

As a user that will at most be a moderate off terrain user, can anybody point me in the right direction as to how I can find out what the various accromyms and abbreviations associated woth each component mean and any guides that suggest what compoenents are suited for what level of bike enthusiast etc, as google is not throwing up any useful sites.

Thanks.

Raam

try www.mtbreview.com as a start.

zil

Shimano components go from low to high
alivio etc are actually commuter components and aren't really designed for mountain bikes and afaik don't support 9 gears
deore
slx
deore xt
xtr (with the 2011 xtr models split into two areas, race(places emphasis on lower weight) and trail(emphasis on features))

Sram components go from low to high
x4 and x3 are commuter components and don't support 9 gears
x5
x7
x9
x0
xx

That's the way price goes but not necessarily usefulness as the higher end components are generally more race(read light weight at the expense of longevity) orientated and might actually be less useful for general riding (shimano are trying to correct this by splitting their 2011 xtr lineup into race and trail components).

The way I see it (but I'm sure there'll be loads of other opinions) is on the shimano side of things deore is solid cheap and cheerful, slx is the best bang for your buck with xt been a reasonable upgrade and xtr only for those with very deep pockets (and with the realisation the lighter components will probably wear out qucker).

On the sram side of things I'd avoid x5, x7 is reasonably solid (though personally I've found the x7 shifters to be awful and would avoid them), x9 is a solid upgrade, x0 is race territory and xx is for millionaires with more money than sense.

Brakes and forks aren't as easy to classify and your best best would be to look at reviews, ask here or have a chat with your local bike shop.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/ has a list of all the components on your bike with an explanation of what they are if your unsure of some of the terms used.

With regards to getting a new bike you might try searching the forum for other people who have asked for suggestions and it would be useful to know what your budget is

Waesfjord

thanks for the replies guys. much appreciated.

Zil - are you saying that all 'Shimano Alivio' components are not great for MTB's, as many of the bikes have these components for shifters, front or back derailleurs.

I'm buying a bike on the cycle to work scheme, so my budget is <€1000, timeline is about 10days maximum.
I would like to include lights & headwear in that possibly though, so that means maybe ~€850 - 900 (but budget may creep) :rolleyes:

From a braking point of view I want to ensure I get a decent (hydraulic) brakes and decent suspension that can be partially or fully locked out to allwo for multi-terrain cycling, after that, I'm open to suggestion. Easy eh

The suspensions in bikes listed below vary between SR Suntour (SF8 or SF10, XCM, XCR, XCT) Rockshox (Recon, Tora, DART 1, 2, 3), Manitou Minute (LTD model), all having different model numbers within each brand.

• Can anyone offer any easy comparison?

The brakes seem to be mainly Shimano M445 (entry level Shimano), Formula (Model RX), Avid (e.g. Juicy 3, Elixir 3).

• Can anyone offer any easy comparison?

The rest of the components (shifters, cassette, crack, derailleurs) vary also, so difficult to compare.

Some bikes in price bracket after quick trip through local shops today include

• Hopefully someone can tell me some of the brands are better worse or offer some feedback

Corrotec Expert - €700 (reduced from 900)
http://www.corratec.de/en/bikes2009/mtb/classic_hardtails/x_vert_expert.php

Felt Q620 - €700
http://2010.feltracing.com/USA/2010-Product-Catalog/MOUNTAIN/Q-Series/Q620.aspx

Felt Q720 – €900
http://2010.feltracing.com/USA/2010-Product-Catalog/MOUNTAIN/Q-Series/Q720.aspx

Trek 6000 - €870
http://www.trekbikes.com/int/en/bikes/compare/#/6300e,6000e,empty

Trek 6300 - €1000
http://www.trekbikes.com/int/en/bikes/compare/#/6300e,6000e,empty

Giant Talon 1 - €900
http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-gb/bikes/model/talon.1/7877/45529/

Cube LTD PRo '10 - €900-€1000
http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=232&idproduct=31673

Lapierre Technik 400 - €670 - €745
http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=232&idproduct=38252

Lapierre Technik 500 - €850 - €945
http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=232&idproduct=38262

Orbea Sport Satellite €900
http://www.orbea.com/ch-en/bicis/modelos/satellite/#

Specialized Rockhopper €950
http://www.tredzblog.co.uk/2010/08/specialized-rockhopper-2011.html

zil

I'm not 100% sure what the deal is with alivio, afaik it's marketed more for commuter "mountain" bikes but whether this is just marketing or it actually is less sturdy I don't know. Personally I'd scrap together the extra cash and get deore.

RockShocks forks go dart, tora, recon, reba and after that I'm not sure. I believe all the suntour range are entry level forks but it's possible that one or two of the models are better spec.

With regards to the bikes you linked the the trek 6300 looks pretty good. The rockhopper you linked actually looks better (air sprung recon instead of coil sprung which means it's a lot lighter) however I was looking at the specialized website and the specs they have listed for the rockhopper are a fair bit different(and worse) than the link you posted.

If you can get the rockhopper with the specs listed then it seems like a good deal however if the specs are incorrect then I'd go for the trek.

Waesfjord

zil wrote: »

With regards to the bikes you linked the the trek 6300 looks pretty good. The rockhopper you linked actually looks better (air sprung recon instead of coil sprung which means it's a lot lighter) however I was looking at the specialized website and the specs they have listed for the rockhopper are a fair bit different(and worse) than the link you posted.

If you can get the rockhopper with the specs listed then it seems like a good deal however if the specs are incorrect then I'd go for the trek.

Cheers, Zil.

The specs I posted were incorrect - previous link was for the Rockhopper Pro, hence the better components. Correct link is below.

http://www.specialized.com/gb/en/bc/SBCProduct.jsp?spid=51636&scid=1000&scname=Mountain

You mention the 6300 being the best, assuming due to Rockshox forks and Deore parts.

What did you make of the Corratec Expert spec? From link below, do you think it''s a good price (700) for the spec, as €300 less that the Trek 6300 - comparison showing that the 6300 having the better Rockshox forks (recon v DART2), better crank (Shimano M543 v M442) and possibly brakes (Juicy 3 [on Trek 6300] v Deore), however unsure of worst of these upgrades for a beginner.
http://www.bikester.co.uk/bicycles/mountain-bikes/hardtails-up-to-1000/223253.html

Do you know if the Avid Elixir 3 brakes are any good, with respect to (entry level) Shimano M445 or Deore etc?

Of course, the bike you mention is on the upper of price range, suppose no surprises there, you get what you pay for!!

Pity prices are still so high Ireand. The bike is €1000 here, however only £700 (€800) in UK - rip off Ireland still in play!!

zil

Yea with the standard rockhopper specs it's not as good a deal.

With regards to parts etc I would say buy the bike with the best fork you can. You can upgrade parts later on but upgrading a fork would be a much larger expense than anything else. Re the corratec, the difference between a dart and a recon fork is quite large but you said at the start you'd only be doing light offroad, so depending on what you mean by this then perhaps there's no point in getting a better fork? However if you think in the future you will get into mountain biking then the recon will last you a long way.

The elixirs are good brakes, they have good stopping power but it can be annoying to change pads on them and very annoying to bleed them. The standard deore brakes are decent but possibly not as strong as the elixirs, however the deore brakes are much simpler when it comes to pads and bleeding.

With regards to buying form the uk and bike to work, check the wiki I believe depending on what btw supplier your company is signed up with it should possible to get a bike from a uk company.

Waesfjord

zil wrote: »

With regards to parts etc I would say buy the bike with the best fork you can. You can upgrade parts later on but upgrading a fork would be a much larger expense than anything else.

thanks, that's the sort of advice I'm looking for, now at least I know what kind of decision I need to make.

zil wrote: »

With regards to buying form the uk and bike to work, check the wiki I believe depending on what btw supplier your company is signed up with it should possible to get a bike from a uk company.

can you provide more info here - I've looked on the bike to work website below and can't see any detail about purchasing from a UK company. Is there another FAQ/wiki you are referring to?

http://www.biketowork.ie/bike-shops/

Waesfjord

silly me - founnd what you're on about on the boards wiki :rolleyes:

http://wiki.boards.ie/wiki/BikeToWork

zil

I don't know much about the btw scheme but according to http://wiki.boards.ie/wiki/BikeToWork you don't have to buy the bike inside ireland. However if your work has signed up with a specific company that implements the btw scheme rather than your hr department handling it then you may be more restricted. There's been a fair few posts about the btw scheme on here so I'm guessing the buying from outside of ireland question has been answered before if you have a search for it.

Waesfjord

cheers - just searching for it as you speak!!!

Info from my workplace is that it just oints to biketowork.ie website. I know my wife's workplace is tied to 3 shops only.

I'll have to ask the administrator of teh scheme at work on Monday about this.