Good Mountain Bikes for Beginners ?

[pmp6nl]

Hey everyone,

It seems like you are all more geared towards road bikes, but I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions for mountain bikes or what I should be looking for in a bike?  I have not biked regularly since I was younger so I am rather new to the whole mountain biking things and what not and not exactly sure what I should look for in bikes? 

Do brands really matter?  What about the specific hardware?  Are the guys in the store going to try to trick me into upgrading this or that, basically what should I look out for?

Thanks for your help!

[pmp6nl]

Also, any comments on accessories: helmets, locks etc.  would be helpful.

thanks!

[Plantains]

Honestly if you're looking for a basic MTB the things that I would personally consider are:

1. For what purpose are you using it? Racing? Rec Riding? Excercize?
2. Disc Brakes vs. V Brakes. Im a V brake man myself. But every frame AND WHEEL I've ever ridden (race wise) have been both disc and V compatible. I know a few years ago it was very common to sell a new bike with a wheelset that was disc compatible but not the frame? So you'd be screwed if you wanted to upgrade.

The pros and cons (as I see them)
Discs Pros:
1. WAY better in the slop.
2. Better stopping "feel".

Disc Cons:
1. Need to be trued and/or resurfaced if not properly cared for.
2. More expensive.
3. Harder to fix in field. (This is really only pertinent if you're racing since in an MTB race you MUST carry everything with you for fixing. There are no service teams allowed)

V Brake Pros:
1. VERY Easy to maintain.
2. If you over use them... you probably won't have to buy a new rim (braking surface)
3. Not a pro... but I personally like the stopping feel of them better.

V Brake Cons:
1. Poor slop performance. (This can be countered however if you are familiar with the problem before its "too late")
2. Less stopping power.

Then you have to decide between mechanical discs and hydraulic discs. I would never ride hydros for anything other than downhill. You just don't need that sort of technology (and hassle) on an XC bike.

The next thing to consider is soft tail vs. hard tail vs. full suspension.

I ride hard tail. Thats because I like to use my seat to apply certain types of pressure for cornering.

The difference between soft tail and full suspension is where the rear shock is located. In both of these cases you'll end up with a heavier bike that has less climbing performance. Almost everyone I've raced with that's had rear suspension has a lock out on the suspension so that they can engage it for the long ass climbs. Its FAR more efficient to have that stiffness for climbing. I even run a lockout on my front suspension for climbing. You'll notice this from all the hardtails cresting the climbs first.

Realistically though. Hardtails are a simpler bike. They're usually cheaper, they're usually easier to handle (properly) as you don't have to think about how and where the pressure needs to be applied to the rear wheel.

As far as components. Shimano OWNS mtb. There's no two ways about it. SRAM used to have their grip shift. It sucked. Their new click shifter sucks. Shimano's rapid fire DOMINATES. Screw campy.

The groups you should be worried about are:

Shimano LX Good
Shimano XT Better
SHaimano XTR Best

The TRUE important things to consider are the front and rear deraillers and the shifters. The SHimano LX rapid fires are probably perfect for whatever you use the bike for. Crisp shifting... trim features, and reliability. The rear derailler is going to get beat up, consider that the crown jewel. The better you can afford... the happier you'll be when you hit the dump shifter on a steep uphill and your chain smoothly engages. If you skimp here... you'll here clackity clackity clacktiy as you pedal and go nowhere but backwards. Ew. Same goes for front, but it won't get hit by sticks and rocks as much. So XTR isn't "necessary".

Cranks... make sure they don't suck. No other way to describe that. My cranks are race face prodigy's. They own. As long as the teeth and the chainring are the same piece... you'll be fine.

Brakes. AVID, AVID, and AVID. Shimano brakes aren't my fav... but if you find a bike on ebay or something... whatever. I have AVID speed dial 9's. They're delicious. I've bent my right lever in half like 5 times, and just bent it back with a pipe and it still works AMAZINGLY. Plus... adjust on the fly travel. Thats neato.

Bottom line. Get a solid frame. You can upgrade components on an MTB much easier than on a road bike if you get the right frame. Don't get steel. It will get scratched and rust. My buddy bought an entry level Iron Horse with deore on it. Solid aluminum frame (Sure... not super light, but he's not racing) Now he has Avid speed dial 7's and an XTR drivetrain with LX shifters. Runs solid.

FRAME FRAME FRAME. Oh, and don't use speedplays for pedals for MTB. You'll die.

FOr helmets:

If you can find one that has an adjuster that you can adjust with 1 hand... thats neat. Bell or Giro. Thats pretty much the way to go. Lots of people will argue that a $30 helmet is the same, protection wise as a $130 helmet. They'd be wrong. But you probably, don't need a $130 helmet. MTB specific helmets are good for MTB. You can just pop the visor off for road riding. My helmet was an MTB helmet. It worked good.

Locks: Get a U-lock with a non barrel key. Thats about all there is to that.

[Toaster]

I agree with Dave (or guardrail as we know him as on the road/trail) for most of what he says, but I do feel the need to put my two cents in. I also feel like now would be a good time to mention that Dave has WAY more MTB experience than I do. I have never been in a MTB race (yet) and only have about a year of trail riding experience under my belt. However, I do have a lot of experience with different components from working at the shop. That being said, most of what both of us have to say is really only pertinent if you are planning on doing some serious riding. If you just want to get to class and back, it helps to have a nice bike, but just about anything will do (although we will laugh at you if you roll up on a Wal-Mart special)

Brands: mostly doesn't matter. Pretty much any bike shop brand is going to be of good quality. The biggest thing to pay attention to is the geometry that a particular manufacturer uses. There all about the same, but there can be little things that make one frame superior to another. For instance, if you look at the top tube on a Giant mountain frame, there is what looks like a divit in it. This one thing helps a lot with frame clearance and standover height. Also, what kind of tire clearance does the frame have? Can you easily fit a 2.5 inch tire? It always sucks when you find out that your chainstays are too narrow to fit those fatties that you've been dreaming of.

Frame material: I'm pretty much opposite of Dave here, I think steel is the way to go. Although steel does rust easily, if you properly care for the frame, chances are that it will last you longer than an aluminum or carbon frame. As long as you treat the inside of the frame with frame saver, and make sure to cover any external scratches with nail polish or touch up paint, your steel will last a long time. Steel can also take a beating, if you dent that aluminum or carbon frame, chances are that the frame is finished, chances are also high that a steel frame wouldn't have been  dented in the first place.

Breaks: Dave is pretty much right on. I LOVE V-breaks. Discs are nice too, but don't get anything other than avids (bb5's or bb7's), the adjustment capabilities of the avid caliper are way superior to any other offerings out there, I could explain it, but it would take a while. If you go disc, go mechanical. Hydro is way too much cost and maintenance. Is easy to replace a cable, it sucks to replace a hydraulic line.

Gear Stuff: Shimano is awesome. the deore (LX) line is relatively inexpensive and works beautifully. But I also think that SRAM has some very strong products when it comes to their rear derailur and shifters. The shimano and SRAM rear derailurs are very differently engineered. The spring mechanisim on the shimano derailur will allow it to bounce up and down when you hit a bump, whereas the SRAM derailur is locked in place vertically, which is nice because nobody likes to listen to their derailur bounce around. The SRAM shifter (not the gripshift one) works really awesome, although I think the finger positions are a bit awkward, and I wish it had a bit more "clikiness" or a better feel when you shift. The shimano shifter is sweet too, not too much more to say about that. I'm not the biggest fan of the SRAM front derailur, but it works, and actually, I pretty much hate all front derailurs.

Suspension: Some people like it. I don't. I feel like I have much better handling and control on a hardtail bike with a rigid fork. Not to mention the extremely high cost of overhauling a suspension fork or the shock in your rear linkage.

Helmet: get one that you like, it's the one that you're most likely to wear. One hand adjustment makes life a million times easier.

Locks: U-Lock or high quality chain (from a bike shop, not a hardware store) if you want to keep your bike. Kryptonite makes the best (in my opinion)

[pmp6nl]

Hey,

Thanks for the comments, I appreciate it.  Right now I was just planning on using it for casual riding, maybe a bit of off the streets riding (dirt trails maybe).

I will be sure to keep your suggestions in mind as I look.

Thanks again.

[Meest]

The front suspension is what i HATE about my Trek 820 basic mountain bike... I would love to switch to a solid fork... How much would I be looking at to do that? I would much rather have a solid fork for the way I ride. If i walked into Ski and Bike would they have some idea's to do this? I know its a cheap bike, but I just ride around town and down by the river. So it works great.

[Plantains]

The front suspension is what i HATE about my Trek 820 basic mountain bike... I would love to switch to a solid fork... How much would I be looking at to do that? I would much rather have a solid fork for the way I ride. If i walked into Ski and Bike would they have some idea's to do this? I know its a cheap bike, but I just ride around town and down by the river. So it works great.

1. Toaster works at Ski Bike.
2. What type of fork do you have?
3. Complaints about suspension are usually due to the use of low end forks. On most high end forks you can adjust everything from bound, to rebound, to dampening, to the air pressure in them. Also... being that you cats are in ND, and there's not as many high speed descents, or the trails are rather smooth I can see the dislike for suspension. But I'm telling you, a front fork will save your arms. The amount of vibration dampening is UNCANNY and even WITH my Manitou Mars Elite (which I added the lockout to to essentially make it identical to their top model) my entire upper body would be sore from racing. Granted... the speed has alot to do with comfort levels, but I doubt very highly that a rigid fork would've been able to keep their front wheel planted on and at the speeds for those descents. Mind you, this is for XC mtb riding. NOT downhill. Downhill sucks.

Also, regarding the aluminum vs. steel. MTB frames aren't like road frames. They're ALL built to take a beating. I don't think Aluminum is any weaker than steel, especially the way they engineer the frames these days. Toaster is right though, if you put a serious dent in your aluminum frame... I prolly wouldn't ride it, if you put a serious dent in your steel frame though... I would consider it. But the arguments are nil. If you aren't bombing the trails, you probably won't dent your frame.

Also, for the deraillers. Toaster commented on SRAMs rear derailler. The fact that it stays locked is in fact its biggest weakness. If you hit a rock or a log with it, your derailler hanger is bent. Ride is over, and if you're lucky... you didn't bend the lower chainstay. You'll probably also need a new rear derailler. It depends on what and where you're riding I suppose, but I would NEVER ride a SRAM group for MTB. Just so you don't think Im a hater... Im trying to get a SRAM group for my road bike. But Shimano owns MTB. Period.

PS - Brakes... not breaks. Jeeze yost!