Beginner Mountain Bike

lukewalnuts

lukewalnuts

Active member
i'm looking to get into mountain biking and i don't know what bike to get

my budget is $600 maybe $700

i want to ride mainly trails and downhill

THANKS NS's
 
finding a bike in that price range that would be good for DH (downhill) and xc will be difficult... unless you buy a used rig. It's hard to go wrong in the beginning, since you haven't really found what you like in a bike yet. I would start with a bike with a little less suspension than a full DH bike, so maybe between 5 and 7 inches front and rear travel--something that would fit more as a slopestyle bike than DH, if you eventually want to get into downhill. get something more like

kona_coiler-321.jpg


in the beginning, then upgrade to something along the lines of

4477.jpg


Check out the NS MTB cult. there is some info in there, and if it gets more populated, will only become a better resource.
 
^ i know, but if he wants to get into DH, that's probably a good progression. Buying used bikes is the only way anyone could get freerider/DH rides in that price range. I can't think of any freeride bike that would fall into that range at retail price.
 
Get a used bike, there is no way you can get something good in that price range. Especially with disc brakes and full suspension. If you can find any full suspension 29ers than id go with that, definitely what my next bike is going to be
 
First bike I ever had. Got it for like 400....it's good because a hardtail makes you better at choosing the best lines instead of just rolling over everything, which makes you that much better of a biker once you get a full suspension. Definitely recommend going this way......
 
Go to Pinkbike and go under their buy/sell forum and get a used bike there. Great quality and good prices.

I actually just got a bike off there today for $800- used full suspension kona king kikapu

 
You can easily find a great used bike, perhaps 2 or 3 yrs old, for around $650 to $750. Search craigslist and pinkbike. For starting out, look at kona, specialized, trek, felt, rocky mountain, Scott, yeti. Basically search those on craigslist and you should find something that's in good condition in your price range
 
i would go with a lighter bike than a downhill to start off with. your going to hate the weight if your mostly on trails. i would recommend a specialized epic. they are a dope xc full suspension bike with a brain system (switches back and forth from hard tail to fullsuspension when needed)

deff a really fun bike. check out Ebay too as well as pinkbike
 
And try to find something with lockout, preferably both front and rear, but you could settle for rear only. You will not regret it on a full suspension bike
 
i dont know where this kids been for the last three years but lockout is all but dead. New suspension technology and suspension linkage has all but negated the effects of pedal bob ( the way suspension squishes as you pedal) and plus, lockout ruins any climbing traction you get with a FS bike. I raced XC for years and never used a lockout (even in CO).

You're gona have to get a used bike at that price range as everyone is saying, but dont get a XC bike if you want to do some DH and aggressive trail riding. You will break it. Those bikes arent made to handle much abuse. Do you have any experience dirt biking or anything cuz that will help the learning curve of riding hard. Just do some research, and it certainly wouldnt hurt to go talk to your LOCAL BIKE SHOP. just tell them you arent looking to buy a new bike but want some suggestions for a trail bike,and if they are a decent shop they'll help you out.

 
Specialized Hardrock

Kona Shred/Stuff

Norco 125

Specialized P2

Lots of options out there. To the people saying you want full suspension with 5+ inches of travel, I'd have to strongly disagree. Hardtail is definitely the way to go for a first bike. I rode DH, hit 12 foot drops, and obviously hardtail is amazing on dirt jumps. This is all assuming you want to get into freeride/freestyle, if you're looking into XC disregard this post.
 
Defs start out on a hardtail. Going immeadiatly to a fully will make give you the laziest/sloppiest technique. I rode 2 seasons of DH on a hardtail, and i got 200% faster the first day I got on my DH bike.
 
used bike all the way. i just bought a 2001 specialized stumpjumper with fox suspension. and the guy put some new forks on it to. its a great bike just an old frame. but it rides like a pro
 
I have a epic as well as others, I would not choose this as a starter...It is only good for xc, nothing else, so he would have nowhere else to go. Plus it is a fairly hard to use bike that is easy to flip, and difficult at first to manuever.

I agree with the person who mentioned a specialized hardrock! A hardtail is a very good starter, and that is a good bike for the money.
 
true, true. Bike handling will become better starting with a hardtail and moving up to full suspension. Forgot about that, haha. Disregard/add a hardtail to my first post.
 
craigslist will be your best friend.

i found a 2000 kina stinky for 500 bucks on there. even tho its 12 years old it was only ridden a handful of times and the guy upgraded the crank, grips, tires, pedals, saddle and rear derailer. its a banger bike and i love it. pretty cherished color scheme by a lot of kona collectors, plus its a great for XC and can take some DH(still has the original bomber fork so i dont wanna push it too hard with anything more than a 3-4 foot drop). im glad i waited for a good deal on a full suspension bike instead of rushing into the first cheap hardtail i could find.

stock pic for reference.
2lmmcd2.jpg


 
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