Philadelphia Mountain Biking Association - Forums

I have a chance to get a new bike TODAY and I have been thinking about it for a little while, but I just need some help!  What do you think about this bike?  Will it work well in Wissahickon?  ANY and ALL opinions wanted--fact-based or not!

http://www.rscycle.com/s.nl/it.A/id.25433/.f?sc=19&category=18750

Thanks,
Jeremy

That's a nice little hardtail. Normally I would recommend full suspension bikes cause they are a lot more fun to ride and easier on your body, but this is just my opinion really, since you may be a rider that prefers a hardtail. There's plenty of guys riding in wiss with no suspension at all. Sick bastards.

That said. That bike would be great at wiss, and since it's a nice stout frame makes it worthy of upgrades down the line.

Freeride!!

What type of rider are you? (marbles to bowling balls)

What type of rider do you want to be?

How much $$$ do you want to spend initially?
( less now/ may =more later )

Are you set on Hardtail or Full? ( teeth chattering?)

Thanks!

What kind of rider am I? careful (I DO ride a singlespeed track bike in the city, though...)
What type of rider do I WANT to be? A little less careful
Well, I ride a hardtail now--a late 1990s mid-range, steel frame GT with rockshox front suspension that I added and a mishmash of other components that I have added over the years.    My dilemna rests with a "less than supportive of the idea of a new mountain bike" significant other--so my slim budget is completely MAXED at ~$700.  I thought that, at that budget, I would be able to get more for the money (better components, etc.) with a hardtail.  I have never ridden full supsension, so I kind of don't know what I'm missing (!).  I found this bike today and it seems like a good chance to get a "better than $650 bike" for $650 with free shipping--the only catch is that this sale ends TODAY.  What do you think?

I say " Go For IT! " but hey, thats me, I'm a risk taker...
 ;)

With all that in mind, ever thought of going for a used full suspension?

For $700 you could get a decent used fs if you look around a little bit. If you wanna be less careful then fs will let you take risky lines with less of a penalty. The more travel you have the more room there is for error.

Still if wanna stick with the ht then that bike is a good buy.

I agree, I think for the money it's a nice deal considering what it has on it.

If by any chance you don't get that one because of the time restraint, here's one to consider. Similar set up, but Motobecane has the Tora 302 fork with lockout (Iron Horse has the Tora 289), plus it's
about 5-6 lbs lighter !
Also has free shipping, and only $145 more then the Iron Horse, but I think worth it for the weight savings and slightly better fork.

http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motobecane/fantom_comp08.htm

Nice find. 5-6lbs is significant when you're talking hardtails. There two things that would still swing me to the Ironhorse:

Better tube set

Better head angle at 70.3 compared to the Moto at 71.5 (that will be sketchy on fast downs). Plus the Ironhorse looks cooler..if that's important to ya.

Once again these are just opinions based on personal preference.

Awesome advice!

Word.

I know this one's really late- but here's something to consider..going by Durb's post, if you have a working hardtail you might wanna find a decent used fs. When I searched around to buy a new hardtail my LBS at the time said I should just go for the dually b/c it'll be inevitable I buy that at some point. So I bought my hardtail last March after telling myself I was good w/just a front shock. 5mos later I was buying a dually & significant other almost shoved my hardtail up my endo.  :P

Disc brakes alone will be a huge upgrade.  If you didn't end up buying the bike yesterday, look at performance bikes on Columbus Ave.  They had the same Ironhorse bikes for a similar price.  They even had some FS bikes in the $600-900 range.  The FS bikes had worse components but you could upgrade over time.  You can always find nice components on e-bay at affordable costs.  By the way, I edited this post because I felt like I was being too negative on the last one.  I just wanted to make basically the same point that Bonkers just made.  If you're going to upgrade........then upgrade.  But money limits us all, I know.

This may not work for you, but, I just buy what I want and tell her later.

Please don't blame me if you try this and get your ass kicked.

Did you "awesome advice" yourself?

Totally agree. Buy something for $1200 and tell her you got it on sale for $700. Just remember, it's not a lie if you believe it.

LOL. No. It looks like I did because Durb decided to edit his post after I commended him on his wisdom of married life.

Do you ride that track bike (fixed?) in the city because you like it over a more normal geared road bike?  Because of the simplicity?  Because its kinda fun to ride something that takes a bit more concentration and effort?

If yes to any of these, then I have to say stay away from the gears and maybe even the suspension.  Plenty of us are riding fully rigid single speed bikes and loving it.  29" wheels (29er) make it even better IMO, smooths things out just enough, makes a stable bike...and rolls like crazy.  Check out bikes like the Raleigh XXIX, Jamis Exile, Haro Mary, Redline Monocog....etc.   Many of these can be upgraded to front suspension down the road and some can upgrade to gears as well.

Side effect of no suspension or gears is that it's less expensive and easier to maintain.   I like to work on things, but I like to ride my bike more.

IMO of course, we all like different stuff....

This only cost me $700 at Performance on Columbus. Certainly not top of the line, but I like it and I'm having a lot of fun on it.
(I think it's up to $850 now though)

Nice ride fightnut. You got that for $700! Sweeet.

That's what I'm talking about.  That's a bike that will give you suspension and be upgradeable in the future.  Sorry about that earlier, Lust, I was editing that post as you posted and then should have just left it.  I tried to make some points to the other guy about buying a bike but when I re-read them the next morning, I felt like I was bagging on the bike he wanted to buy too much and wanted to make it more politically correct.  That's what I get for being on vacation and getting semi drunk every night.......I just second guess myself the next day.  Should have just told it how it is.  My biznatch knows......ohhh, she knows!...........................................................................OK I have to go to bed now...she's yelling at me...............I'm scarred!!!!!!!

Naaaahhhhh! I'm just kidding.  She's actually passed out and I should go see what's up........

Thanks everyone...I bought the ironhorse!  I can't wait to get out there and meet some of you in the wiss!  Thanks again for all of the advice.

J.

That's great ! ... Nothing like riding a new bike...


K

Oh, cool!
I was looking at Performances website and they had leftover '07's for more then what you paid for your '08, so you definately got a nice deal.
(and it is nicer looking then the Motobecane that I linked to!)  Have fun!

If anyone is looking for a 29er, I'm unloading the Cannondale Caffine F29 that I got last year.  Liked it so much that I got a GF HiFi to replace it.

I'm a huge Mongoose fan; my $300 frankin bike off eBay lasted me in the Wiss for years. Of course I had to change everything on it over time but the frame did surprisingly well.

I also have a 2005 Teocali Comp as my London bike. It's a bit heavy but it's also strong, and a good budget 9speed. But frankly I would not buy the COMP for the Wiss, unless you a lightweight; you'll want to upgrade the fork and rear shock which means you should immediately go for the Elite.

You have 4 great All-Mountain/Freeride/DH choices with Mongoose; the Tocali, Khyber, Black Diamond and EC-D.  Check out the first video on the Khyber Super here (http://www.mongoose.com/mtn/ProductDetails.html?id=2636); that may be my next bike.   

All these bikes are MSRP with good specs much less than similar level competitors. But I would go Super or Elite, not Comp if you can afford it, and for the Black Diamond only go double or triple; not the single.

These bikes also all have the floating BB which has pretty good reviews.

C'mon, Jess - you're not THAT huge...

Hahaha, good one Jon

There's a lot more of me to love now than there will be at the end of the summer.

Yeah, I keep saying that too...

Well, as you probably saw when you met me today at the beginner clinic, I'm no lightweight! LOL!
But I bought what I could afford, and it's holding up for now. Hopefully it will get me through the year.
I have a little list of bikes that I'd like to look into for next year, but for now, the Comp is getting me out there and having a blast.
(oh, and yes, the Khyber is on my list too! ;D)

Oh no- fightnut stop!! hahaha.. you could become an addict buying bike after bike after bike.. no wait, that's me.. nevermind..  ;D

Mountainbiking is addictive. There may possibly come a point where the used car you are driving is worth less than your bike.

 :D ;D :P

....Jon's on a roll ...