Mountain Biking - Is "Magna" a quality brand?

Trying to find a bike for my daughter, something that's not going to fall apart on the trail like these Target specials probably would.

I was thinking a Specialized HotRock, but someone here is selling a Magna Great Divide that looks nice.

Is it? I don't know anything about that brand.

Thanks.

Magna is not a quality name brand.

It is just another x-mart brand bike. You would be much, much better off with the specialized.

No, they aren't a quality brand. They are heavy, and crappy.

You know, I started out on bikes like this (Huffy) and my son did too (Magna). Yeah, they're cheap and won't last for the kind of riding I do now but..Unless you have the money to buy a new fitted bike every year for your kid, why waste the money? My son has now moved up and I got him a large frame Giant Ricon SE used for $200. He never rode a bike enough to destroy it. I rode my Toys-R-Us huffy about 100 miles a week as a kid through the streets of Washington, DC. After a few years of this my parents figured out that I was serious and dropped $300 on a Urago "racing 10 speed".

I see families riding all the time. Their kids on pristine Giants that they will outgrow before they get the first scratch. There is nothing wrong with your kids starting out with bikes just like we started out with. The key is taking them out and riding with them. That is way more important than which bike. If you go into it not even knowing if a Magna is a good brand you don't need to spend the big bucks.

Just my humble opinion...I could be wrong.

Oh no.

I could be wrong.

Yes, you could be.

Lets say he does by this Magna bike for what, $100? A month later it falls apart because she rides it so much. What then, go spend another $100 on the same piece of crap? By then, he could have bought a HotRock that will last much longer. You cant put a price on a childs happiness.

The thing with say a Specialized HotRock is that you can recover the cost. The Magna is at best a single-use bike which will have to be disposed of after a season of riding. If you're lucky, the child will outgrow the bike before it completely falls apart but even then the bike will probably be left in a fairly unusable state. A HotRock can be reused and/or resold and you can recover some of the investment when the child outgrows the bike. Amortised over time, the HotRock is a much better investment and will give you less hassles during its period of ownership.

Obviously it depends on how much she actually rides as compared to how much he wants her to ride. We don't even know how old she is. It's a good thing nobody told me I needed an expensive bike as a kid, otherwise I wouldn't have been satisfied with what our family could afford.

I personally have a problem with buying stuff that doesn't get used. I have a 95 Trooper that carries bikes and canoes and needs 4wd for the places I go. It's beat up has almost 150,000 miles and is doing just fine. I have a 6 year old Gary Fisher that I am only now thinking of replacing because it's worn out from the amount and type of riding I do. I don't want to teach my kids that you need the newest latest thing every year. Maybe I'm not as wrong as I thought. I've sold three Magna's in garage sales in the last two years. For riding on the paved bike trails that most kids are on, those bikes will last. Of course, if you have the money to spoil your kids rotten, who am I to stop you. My kids will be the oness with a sense of value.

I think you caught me on a bad day. I'm being a little pissy!

I don't want to teach my kids that you need the newest latest thing every year. Maybe I'm not as wrong as I thought. I've sold three Magna's in garage sales in the last two years. For riding on the paved bike trails that most kids are on, those bikes will last. Of course, if you have the money to spoil your kids rotten, who am I to stop you. My kids will be the oness with a sense of value.

I think you caught me on a bad day. I'm being a little pissy!

Maybe it's just me but I don't think buying a quality bike for a kid is spoiling them rotten. I think of it as the difference between taking them to a nice healthy restaurant vs taking them to a fast food joint. Price (or rather lack thereof) is not the only way to teach a sense of value. That said, I did learn a good lesson in value after having grown up riding department store bikes but it was through the School of Hard Knocks. I learned that when I was fully capable of paying for my own bike, I would not buy a piece of junk Huffy.

I guess part of my issue is that to get that first Huffy (I was riding a banana seat bike 20 -30 miles every weekend) I got a paper route and saved money in a cigar box. I could never have afforded a nicer bike. In making me do that for the bike I think my parents taught me life lessons. I loved that Huffy, it took me on adventures that I still tell people about and I earned that bike. Riding that bike I felt better than spoiled, I felt proud. So today, I thank my parents for not buying me an expensive bike. Now I'm proud of my $600 Fisher Tassajara and my $350 Cannondale SR 800 as I pass people on the $4000 bikes that they had to have because they deserve a nice bike. I know that when they pass me I don't need a new bike, I just need to do some hill repeats!

This site is awesome!

Thanks for all the replies, explanations, and discussion!

We are buying used so the difference in price is not all that much...makes the decision to avoid the Magna easy. :)

There is a useful article in the latest bicycling magazine with tips to help parents ride with their kids. I don't know how old your kids are, but it might be hlepful. take a look.

Is Bartles & James a quality wine?

A Magna is a good bike to have if you want something made out of recycled tuna fish cans.

I probably agree with both sides of this one.
As a kid (11 or 12 years old in this case), I was very lucky. I had a Huffy Sledgehammer. A terrible bike, weighed about 50-60 pounds, didn't shift at all, and the suspension was basically aesthetic. Here's where I got lucky... It was stolen after 2 weeks. Then a salesman at a local bike store convinced my dad to buy me a schwinn for about 200 bucks, and this was years ago, when a schwinn was a good bike. Not only did that bike weigh half as much as the old one, it fit me better, rode better and made me want to ride more,
The difference in price between the bikes was 70 bucks. not a huge difference really, but it taught me a very good lesson in value. that 70 dollars was like going from a Kia to a BMW. And to the other end, my dad made me work for that bike.

Obviously it depends on how much she actually rides as compared to how much he wants her to ride. We don't even know how old she is. It's a good thing nobody told me I needed an expensive bike as a kid, otherwise I wouldn't have been satisfied with what our family could afford.

Of course, if you have the money to spoil your kids rotten, who am I to stop you. My kids will be the oness with a sense of value.

We don't have the money to spoil her by any means. We are buying used because a used quality bike is not much more than a new x-mart bike. The used Specialized Hotrocks that pop up for sale around here (seen three so far) have been selling for $90-$125.

She's six, a little over four feet tall, and will likely be using this bike every day or so around the field in front of us.

That's not a bad deal if you think you can get some of the money back out of it once she grows out of it next year. Sorry about sounding a bit venomous earlier. I have personal problems with conspicous consumption. Most of my comments were aimed at parents of the younger teens who seem to be either buying their kids affection or just want their friends to see that they can buy their kids the best. I see a lot of that around my neighborhood. Obviously a six year old can't "earn" her own bike. Just watch out for the snob factor around the forum sometimes. It comes out whenever you ask about a lower price or x-mart bike. I hope she catches the bug. Being on a cheap bike is still better than being on no bike.

what about buying a used quality bike when someone else's kids outgrow it? some LBS's will sell used bikes, especially kids models, and it would cost the same or less than an x-mart bike and last longer. you could probably even resell it again. that saves you money and teaches your kids about recycling.

You can teach them fiscal responsibility too. Teach them that "X" amount of dollars spent on a quality item will stretch father than "Y" spent on a less item for seemingly immediate savings.

A non-bike example would be in spending money on a quality L.L. Bean rucksack with a lifetime warranty over several cheesy licensed Star Wars or Batman backpacks from the local X-Mart.

If your kid is going to leave the bike outside, drop it on the sidewalk when they run into the neighbors house, or leave it down the street when they get distracted and don't bring it home, then a Magna will be just fine. Personally, I think every kid should start out on a cheap bike. You can go to x-mart and buy a $50 bike that will last any non-biker kid a few years.

When your child starts asking you to ride a trail with her, or he's found a place to do jumps, THEN reward their interest (and hopefully their responsibility) with a good bike that is appropriate to their riding level.

I think everyone is exaggerating the analogies here (and how bad Magna, etc is). If a HotRock is a Toyota, then a Magna is not a moped, its a Kia or something. And let's not forget that to non-bikers, a bike isn't worth near the money that some people here spend. And its hard to classify a 6 year old when all you know about her is a couple sentences on the internet.

Granted, Magna is not a quality name. But I rode 3 Huffys in my childhood, each for about 5 years. I outgrew the first two, and finally snapped the frame on the 3rd. By then, though, I knew how to disassemble the whole thing, clean, and regrease. That's when I moved on to something more solid and pricier and I still have it after 10 years as a spare bike.

My point is that not all kids will wear out a Huffy/Magna in a year. Also consider the 'fiscal responsibility' when your 6 year old's $400 bike is stolen in a year.

I bought my daughter a Pacific 5 years ago and she still rides it all over town. The only thing I added was thorn proof tubes!

I bought my daughter a Pacific 5 years ago and she still rides it all over town. The only thing I added was thorn proof tubes!
Time to buy her a real bike

I had a Yard Sale Magna a long time ago. Not a bad bike for the 3 bucks I spent on it.

I had a Yard Sale Magna a long time ago. Not a bad bike for the 3 bucks I spent on it.
Considering that's about what it cost to make it :lol:

I'm curious to hear how many 10yr olds broke their bikes from so much hardcore trail use. I used to own a few wal-mart bikes in my younger days I road them hard and never had one break on me.


I think you all have just gotten so used to better equipment you make it seem like its the only way to go. I mean yes it is. But for a little kid. Please.



Buy what you can afford for your kid, when he/she gets old enought to work let them buy what they want.

I grew up on and beat the crap out of a huffy BMX bike that went through two of my older brothers first. If it broke I learned how to fix it and if I would have had a younger brother it would have been handed down to him. Point being you don't need to spend $400 on a bike for a 6 year old.

Don't let the bike snobs on here scare you away from an x-mart bike for your kid.

How are we bike snobs? I guess im a snob because at 7 my mom bought me a Gary Fisher Mudpuppy that costed around 200$,was ridden hard, and properly taken care of, and I eventually outgrew it. What we are trying to say is that you might as well spend the money on a high quality bike that will outgrow the child rather than a POS X-Mart bike-shaped object that will last for a year tops, even less if not taken care of.

Don't let the bike snobs on here scare you away from an x-mart bike for your kid.
Oh no don't believe the people who work on the things everyday. :rolleyes: We're bike snobs and have a secret hidden agenda to get you to buy a quality bike rather than a boat anchor. :roflmao:
Don't like it log off and go to Wal-mart

Heh. I had a Magna a couple of years back. It's from toysrus right? I weighed a ton, but it held up fine. As long as your daughter's not doing anything too extreme and is just riding on streets then won't break on her. If you're actually going to take her on trails tehn i suggest getting a better quality bike.

How many people that refer to people as "bike snobs" do you think have actually ridden/owned a "real" bike. I used to think it was pointless to get a good bike too until I finally rode some and got mine, now I'd never get another cheap bike.

How many people that refer to people as "bike snobs" do you think have actually ridden/owned a "real" bike. I used to think it was pointless to get a good bike too until I finally rode some and got mine, now I'd never get another cheap bike.
There are a few here that think that if you own a LBS bike over say $500 you're an elitist or "bike snob". Personally I don't start on that until you get to the guy's with the high end Colnago and De Rosa dust collectors. The guys that do a 10 mile ride once a month.
If you're really going to ride it, then spend the money. More power to you, but if you're going to let it sit.............

There are a few here that think that if you own a LBS bike over say $500 you're an elitist or "bike snob". Personally I don't start on that until you get to the guy's with the high end Colnago and De Rosa dust collectors. The guys that do a 10 mile ride once a month.
If you're really going to ride it, then spend the money. More power to you, but if you're going to let it sit.............

I have the same opinion of anyone who lets their bike just sit around regardless of its price.

How many people that refer to people as "bike snobs" do you think have actually ridden/owned a "real" bike. I used to think it was pointless to get a good bike too until I finally rode some and got mine, now I'd never get another cheap bike.

no one is saying not to get good bikes. But if your young and dont ride the hard trails is there really a need to have a expensive bike especially for a kid? I mean do you all go out and buy your kids BMW's, Infinities, Mercedes for your 16yr old because they are good cars
:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

I'm 15 so I wouldn't know about buying my kids anything, but all those cars you listed are reputable brands, which also are required to meet certain safety standards. The bikes are not only heavy and crappy, but also unsafe in many situations. Kids use a lot of things they aren't intended for and would have no problem taking their bike which is "not suitable for offroad use" off road and maybe try jumping it, that is when they are even more dangerous. Also, the crappier something is, the more discouraging it is to use it.

I'm going to answer this with a question. Would you start your daughter with a Corvette ZO6 the day she got her license, or would you get her a little 4-cylinder to get her used to the road? Thats how I look at it.

I understand your point MadHatter, but it doesn't really apply here. My question for you is, whould you start your daughter ina 200 dollar P.O.S that didn't have seatbelts or would you buy her that nice 4-cylinder thats say 3-4 thousand? You are comparing two perfectly safe cars, i'm comparing a safe bike and an unsafe one. It's not the matter of money I'm talking about, if it was I would entirely agree with you, but my concerns with those bikes are safety issues, you can't put a price on someones(in this case your daughters) life.

What the heck is his 6 year old gonna do that a little huffy can't handle. A magna is not a quality name brand and will tear up if you dont take care of it, but so will any other bike. What I'm saying is buy the ****ty 100 dollar bike and have it tear up in less then a year and buy a new one, compared to buying the 400 dollar bike and have it put through weather extremes and get tore up the same way. Just get her a little two-sprocket bike one gear for all they never go bad unless the chain comes off then its hell gettin it back on but what else does a 6 year old gotta do? Chances are and I dont mean to be sexist or anything but when I was that age I didn't see ONE girl riding a bike offroad or anywhere for that matter

MadHatter, after reading some of your other posts it seems as though safety isn't a real concern of yours, so I think I understand why you are not getting my point. Also with the whole buying her a little four cylinder comment. First those cars are not as safe as a larger car due to their small size. Second, having a small car would make her suck at driving anything larger, so starting with a larger car would make her learn to drive better while keeping her safer.

I would understand if she was riding down a mountain or something. I would agree wholeheartedly but chances are the most she is gonna do is ride up and down the neighborhood street

I'd really like to see a 6 year old break a STEEL FRAMED bike. Seriously !!!! These are for 6-10yr olds, not the KONA Mountain Biking Team or any MTB team for that matter.

So you would want your daughters bike to fall apart beneath her? Also a 400 dollar bike is not what i had in mind, 2-3 hundred maybe. A good bike will not have any problems with getting torn up due to "weather extremes" if you don't leave it in the rain. If you take care of it, it will last.

So you would want your daughters bike to fall apart beneath her? Also a 400 dollar bike is not what i had in mind, 2-3 hundred maybe. A good bike will not have any problems with getting torn up due to "weather extremes" if you don't leave it in the rain. If you take care of it, it will last.how long does a bike for a 6yr old need to last :) Till their 16 or what lol

I'm not refferring to the frame snapping. I am talking about mechanical defects such as bad brakes and/or other components. RubenZ, I'd like to see you snap a steel frame(while riding it). Say your daughter is riding down the street and her brakes fail on her, she has no means of stopping and could potentially injure herself or possibly even be killed. If it is a difference of a hundred dollars, I would definitely be willing to spend the money. Would you not get your daughter a helmet and just tape a metal bowl to her head because well, shes not gonna fall hard if she does at all, so whats it matter.

safety is not a big concern for me I've taken just about the hardest wrecks you can take on a bike including blacktop, dirt, mailboxes, trees, ramps, hills everything even broke my collar bone jumping off a go-kart one time but a 50 dollar huffy isn't just gonna crack and break off a front tire while riding down the street their not that damn dangerous

between 6 and 16 a girl or boy will probably have gone through 4 sizes of bikes. say you buy the good stuff at like 200.00


200 x 4 = 800.00 on bikes between the ages of 6 - 16 they may even go through more sizes, kids at 6 to like 12 grow like a MOFO.

You could probably buy them 80.00 wal-mart bikes every year and still be under the price of 4 good bikes. Thats a STEAL !!

10 bikes for the price of 4 LBS quality bikes.

You said yourself, 6-10 so thats a good 4 years right there.

Looks like you need to take a trip back to math class there genius, 10 x 80 is 800 also.

you could pay 1,000,000 dollars for brakes it still isn't a guarantee that they will pull through theres still a small chance but hell its apart of growing up I ride my bike with no brakes right now every where i go my poor soles do the stopping works for me I lost the front brakes just recently on that monster crash i had on a jump about a week ago

its ok MadHatter he'll never understand as he probably never had to pay for anything himself. . .


I have 25 cousins, boys and girls. I've seen cheap wal-mart bikes get handed down to like 2 generations and 10+ years of use. I've never seen a bikes brakes give out, or frame break or whatever. Why because like I've tried explaining, little kids arent going to be jumping of 10foot building and blazing down Mt Everest.

Also, to consider size is really a one-sided thing. Toy-store bikes do not come in sizes, LBS bikes do. So to say that they grow out of a bike every three years all you are doing is sayin that your child would only have a properly sized bike for 3 years.