Mountain Biking - K2 vs. Specialized

I have been looking at this site for a few weeks, searching and reading opinions to help me decide what bike to get. I'm just starting out and not too sure of the type of riding I will be doing, but will be riding on trails in Colorado. I am considering a Specialized Hardrock Sport due to overall favorable reviews (aside from the front fork), however the K2 Zed 3.0 is on sale for not a lot more, about the same price as the Hardrock Sport Disc. Which bike would be a better start between the Hardrock Sport and Zed 3.0? There wasn't a lot on the K2's here and little on mtbr.com, and both are 2005 models. Thanks for the help.

Id have to say the K2. Ive dealt with them before, and their CS is pretty good, theyve been around for quite sometime, and the components are a step or two up from that of the Specialized. Better bike for the money, backed by a pretty good company, give it a ride and see how it fits.

i say the specialized... those hardrocks have proved themselves over and over

Lets see...a frame thats on par, better components, a company thats been out for quite some time....

the only thing that really seperates the two bikes are the components and personal fit. Try riding both of them, because the K2 is worth its money in components.

i would get the k2,it has better components.but it actually depends what riding you want to do ,the HR frame will take more punishment.it depends if you need that.

I doubt I will be seriously abusing the frame, so that doesn't seem to be much of a factor for me. Right now I am leaning towards the K2. How much better is the front fork on a K2(Answer Manitou Six) over the Hardrock(RST Gilla T5)?

The Zed 3.0 is more of a XC frame than the HardRock Sport. I think you should actually be comparing the Zed 3.0 to the HardRock Sport Disc though. Either way, the Zed 3.0 is going to offer you better components and I think even the fork is better in overall quality but neither are great forks. The HardRock Sport has a slightly beefier frame and its fork does have more travel although the quality of the travel may be questionable. If it were me, I'd get the Zed 3.0... assuming the fit were comparable. The Zed 3.0 is going to be the more nimble bike due to its steeper head angle and shorter wheebase. Of course this means it's also going to be slightly twitchier.

I've got a zed 4.0 and love it. the 6 is a better fork, and the k2 has better deralliuers& brakes(Deore/Acera&tektro mech.)

urm....i have a question about specialized....about their M5's Frame....

pro's/con's? i know..im in the wrong thread~

The m5 frame is a high quality aliminum frame. It is only found on the S-works stumpjumper ht(i think.) But it is light and strong.

The Zed 3.0 is more of a XC frame than the HardRock Sport. I think you should actually be comparing the Zed 3.0 to the HardRock Sport Disc though. Either way, the Zed 3.0 is going to offer you better components and I think even the fork is better in overall quality but neither are great forks. The HardRock Sport has a slightly beefier frame and its fork does have more travel although the quality of the travel may be questionable. If it were me, I'd get the Zed 3.0... assuming the fit were comparable. The Zed 3.0 is going to be the more nimble bike due to its steeper head angle and shorter wheebase. Of course this means it's also going to be slightly twitchier.

It is. :rolleyes: If you're lucky you get 3 inches of real travel (although I am light but still...). :p

I ended up going with the K2 since I got a better feeling with the bike. Thanks for the help. I've rode it about 20 miles so far and it's been great! Just need to work on the cardio now... At first I wasn't sure about how nimble and twitchy the K2 was, but since I haven't rode a bike in years, that was something I figure I could adapt to and even help me out down the road. One of the main reasons for the K2 is that I felt it shifted a lot better, less noise and smoother. Besides, I like having a more individual bike that is still good quality for the price and will work well for me. Thanks for all of the advice and component comparisons.

cool .
post some pics if you can !!!

Try checking out the Novarra line from REI.

What comparosin, there is none.

:)