Bike Purchase Advice (1st full susp.)

[ADKmike]

Been riding hardtails thus far - and am starting to look into upgrading my bike to a full suspension now that I've gotten more into MTB over the past few years. Currently have entry level bikes (Diamondback Overdrive Comp and a Bikes Direct Motobecane (26") I bought off craigslist and swapped out some parts on for fun.

I'm from New Joisey so nothing too crazy around these parts trail wise, but I ride in the Adirondacks often.

Not looking to spend a sh*tload, but don't wan't to get something too low end either. Ideally, I'd be looking to pick up a "last years model" at some point and spend maybe like $2500-3500 for something that's a killer deal on sale.

I kinda like the look of the Devinci Troy...something tells me my budget is way too low for something like that.

Looking for suggestions on bikes to look at that are good performers but not one of these $6k+ carbon bikes.

Also looking for advice on where to save money and where to not....i.e. carbon vs. aluminum frames and what's better to have component wise vs where to cut back.

Thanks
Mike

[mtngirl79]

Kona process 134

[doebedoe]

I'm sure you'll hear otherwise, but Alu frame is fine in my book.

Pay for:
- Good suspension design (i.e. no single pivots etc)
- Good suspension -- at that price you should be looking at Pike / Fox 36 or equiv.
- 1x gearing
- Dropper post
- Durable wheelset

[Peruvian]

If you are mostly riding Hartshorne/Allaire type trails in NJ a hardtail really is your best bet. If you start to ride more rocky/rooty type trails, that's where the full squish will shine.

Santa Cruz's new Tallboy is still made in aluminum if you need to stay under $3500 - https://www.santacruzbicycles.com/en-US/tallboy

Otherwise to get into carbon, you will likely have to find something used. Check your local bike shops or try Pinkbike or maybe MTBR.com's classifieds.

[ADKmike]

Mostly am riding Hartshorne/Allaire, but will be keeping my current bikes for that/guests.

Mostly looking for something to bring up north with me.

[Anospa]

Very strong chance I will have a size large carbon troy for sale in the coming months. Either as a frame + fork or a complete bike.

[jamal]

2500-3500 gets you a really nice new bike. Just not carbon with top level components, which IMO is a lot of extra money for not much more performance. Sram has a GX version of eagle now, SLX and XT are cheap and work really well.

And 2018 models are already on the floor and summer's almost over, so cruise some bike shops and you can probably find something on sale.

Aluminum GX troy is 3500, although on the used market that much money goes a long way.

http://www.devinci.com/bikes/bike_812_scategory_189

[ADKmike]

Anospa - What year bike?

[Anospa]

Its a 2016 frame, the first year of the revision (aka the current design).

[ADKmike]

Ok keep me posted thanks

[ADKmike]

What about Santa Cruz 5010? No one has suggested that yet (it's another one I was looking into).

[mogul5480]

Hartshorne - that place is rad. Brings back memories. Rode it all on hardtail in the day but I'm sure would be more fun on a modern bike. If you make it up to Ringwood or Cannonball trail in North Jerz, you'll need plenty of travel to fully enjoy it. I think mtngirl nailed it with the Kona 134 - great cheap entry level bike. It's like the Subaru Outback of bikes. Everything you need and nothing you don't. You can go to a higher model number for better parts, too (the 134 I demo'd in Tahoe had a noodly fork on it but that may be ok for you if you are just riding Hartshorne).

[skaredshtles]

Nice bikes in your price range:

https://www.giant-bicycles.com/us/bikes-anthem-2018
https://www.giant-bicycles.com/us/bikes-trance-2018

And if you like made-in-'Murica goodness:

http://ridegg.com/shreddogg-ride-2
http://ridegg.com/trailpistol-ride-2

[Peruvian]

What about Santa Cruz 5010? No one has suggested that yet (it's another one I was looking into).

The 5010 is more playful than the Tallboy, which prefers to roll, and is made more for the downhill. The Tallboy generally will be faster on climbs and flats. I think the 5010 is still in v2 and the Tallboy v3 is certainly more slacked out and more trail oriented than previous versions.

[doebedoe]

Just FYI, you can get corporate discount on Diamondback bikes dead easy. With corporate discount the Release 3 (https://www.diamondback.com/mountain...tain/release-3) is similar ($2750) to the MSRP on the Kona 134 but with much nicer kit: SRAM x1, Pike, Guide brakes, and internal dropper. The suspension design is a rip off of Santa Cruz's VPP once the patent expired and works very well. If you go that route PM for details on the discount.

Santa Cruz has nicer paint and easier to work with customer service though.

[sethschmautz]

I bought a first generation Tallboy carbon for $2300 last year. Came with a pike and a carbon wheelset. Even though the design is from 2010 or so, it was a big upgrade for me.

I have made a few small upgrades, but the bike is light (~26lbs), stiff, it climbs well and descends well. It is a great trail bike with a preference towards xc.

The devinci bikes are all split pivot designs which are generally really well liked. I was looking at the atlas also. Other manufacturers use split pivot designs also including salsa. The salsa spearfish is a short travel full suspension bike that gets great reviews and the horsethief is a little longer travel. There are a bunch of other options out there that could fit your needs... Let me know if you want any more suggestions.

Seth

[Schemeboat]

If you are considering another hardtail, let me suggest the Chromag Rootdown BA.

It will shine on all trails. I take mine down PNW double black trails without hesitation. Thing can climb very very well. Where it isn't great is in the Whistler bike park and hitting drops. Everything else it absolutely slays. Kind of a do everything bike.

I will qualify that I also have an FS bike, so it's merely a biased opinion, but I thought I would share.

[bluenext]

The new Rocky Mountain altitude in alloy is like $3300. Comes with the 2018 fox 36. Great deal and it pedals very well with single pivot design and goes downhill like mad

[smmokan]

The best thing to do is just go out and demo a few bikes that you're interested in... otherwise all of these recommendations don't mean shit if the bike don't fit.

Fit and your personal style of riding are the two most important factors when considering a bike. Honestly, there are SO many good bikes out there, that once you figure out what fits and what kind of bike you want (27.5 vs 29, 130mm travel vs 150mm, hardtail vs FS), you can easily find a deal on something that fits your budget.

Different bikes fit very differently- for instance, I have BMC and Ibis demo bikes. I ride a large Ibis and a medium BMC. I am inbetween sizes on Yeti and Niner, so I don't bother with either of those because they feel too big or too small regardless of what size or setup.

[bagtagley]

^^That. Otherwise, get a GG.

[Shredhead]

Fall's the best time to buy. The deals will probably get a lot better in a couple of weeks.

[El Chupacabra]

Saw this earlier today on Colorado Cyclist:

https://www.coloradocyclist.com/devi...-complete-bike

https://www.coloradocyclist.com/devi...-complete-bike

[detrusor]

https://2ndtracks.com/2016-rocky-mou...-msl-bike.html

In store only but there are ways around that. .

[creaky fossil]

"demo demo demo"

GapicMTB?

if you've never ridden FS bikes for long periods (i.e. owned & rode one a lot for a while), you don't need to demo anything because the demo won't tell you anything. more likely you'll find variability in the way the shops set up demo bikes -- if they even have demo bikes -- in such a way that you'll never be able to discern "I like THIS bike" from "boy they sure failed in the setup on THAT bike."

I've never demo'd any of my FS bikes before buying them. always just got used to whatever I'd bought. now, after riding them for 15 years, I can tell you a few things about how they've been different from one another, but I couldn't have told you that when I first rode a FS bike.

pick a bike, buy that bike, then ride that bike.

I don't think Ringwood requires FS by any stretch of the imagination, especially since people have been riding there forever, and many rode there prior to FS being anywhere close to even 10% of all bikes on trail.

if you buy a bike for your "sure dream about going to ________ someday" whims, you'll probably have the wrong bike for the 95-99% of rides you actually do near home.

just like buying 110mm waist skis to ride manmade hardpack 99% of the time.

if you want FS, I'd suggest 4" rear travel 29" or 5" rear travel 27.5. an efficient, shorter travel FS that suits your near-home rides will not be undergunned if you travel up the Appalachian chain toward Canada.

[ACH]

The best thing to do is just go out and demo a few bikes that you're interested in... otherwise all of these recommendations don't mean shit if the bike don't fit.

Fit and your personal style of riding are the two most important factors when considering a bike. Honestly, there are SO many good bikes out there, that once you figure out what fits and what kind of bike you want (27.5 vs 29, 130mm travel vs 150mm, hardtail vs FS), you can easily find a deal on something that fits your budget.

Different bikes fit very differently- for instance, I have BMC and Ibis demo bikes. I ride a large Ibis and a medium BMC. I am inbetween sizes on Yeti and Niner, so I don't bother with either of those because they feel too big or too small regardless of what size or setup.

This...

Fit is key.
In my mind, getting a bike that fits your build is important, you also want to make sure it "fits" relative to how and where you like to ride, or perhaps more importantly where you will do the majority of your riding.
After that, the n+1 rule starts to apply.

I would recommend not getting too caught up on the actual suspension design, instead focus on how it feels climbing and descending. It is efficient on the up, no wasted energy or pedal feedback when rolling up and over roots, supple and compliant providing good traction? How does it feel on the down, are the wheels planted, does it track, how is the balance of small bump compliance and the ability to suck up the big stuff?

As someone else mentioned earlier, suspension set up for your weight and riding style needs to be taken into consideration. A poorly set up bike that might otherwise be a good fit might give you the wrong impression.