Mountain Biking - Best bike for a beginer...around $300

I have your avg. wal-mart specialy peice of junk bike...and ive started to get alot more experienced now...the bike isnt holding up tot eh beating i give it. What is a good bike for around 300 bucks that has full suspension. It needs 1) to be durable 2) to have good suspension 3)to be as light as possible. any suggestions?

to the*

Dual Suspension for $300 :o! A dual suspension for that amount 1) Wont be durable 2) Wont have good suspension 3) And will not be the lightest either. With $300 you should consider a really good Front Suspension bike.

Specialized Hardrock.

The rule of thumb is to never buy a Full suspension bike that costs under 1000$ I would look into a Hardrock Sport. They are good reliable bikes.

Woops I should also ask what your planning to do with the bike? What types of riding in other words (downhill, freeride (jumps), cross country ect. ec.t)

i dont want a hardtail..i cannot stand them...i like to jump a little bit some small dropoffs (like 3-4 ft) some dh, some rocky sections...a little bit of everything NOT A HARDTAIL..ugghh

i dont want a hardtail..i cannot stand them...i like to jump a little bit some small dropoffs (like 3-4 ft) some dh, some rocky sections...a little bit of everything NOT A HARDTAIL..ugghh

Well then there is no way your gonna get a durable, lightweight Full Suspension bike for $300. Sorry :).

ok even if it isnt "lightweight..what i mean is..lightest for the price range...mainly i just want something that i wont have to fix evertime i go riding

ok even if it isnt "lightweight..what i mean is..lightest for the price range...mainly i just want something that i wont have to fix evertime i go riding

$350 could get you this (http://www.mtbr.com/reviews/xc_full_suspension/product_123056.shtml). Not that its gonna hold up to Down Hill riding though...

You can look, but I know there is no such thing as a light and durable full suspension bike for $300.

Well maybe there is a full suspension bike for under $300. I'm not a full suspension fan, but I am a Nishiki freak. There is a Nishiki Blazer on ebay for under $300. Maybe someone else knows how reliable this bike was when it was new. I would have bought it, but I'm only 5'9" and it has a 24" frame (or so the owner claims). Good Luck. If someone else knows more about the Blazer, please follow this post.

Yeh, Blastrider 88, you'de probalby get more for your money if you bought a 2nd hand bike or something off ebay. Really, there are NO decent FS bikes for $300-ish. If I were you I would start saving or get a hardtail!

whats wrong with the hardtail? if youre doing 3-4 foot drops, A hardtail would be fine in my opinion. John Cowan does thoes 50 foot doubles with a hardtail!

I was just wondering if there was somehting with full suspension out there that i could ride without having to fix on a daily basis for about 300 bucks...guess not..ill just have to continue fixing my pos.

I was just wondering if there was somehting with full suspension out there that i could ride without having to fix on a daily basis for about 300 bucks...guess not..ill just have to continue fixing my pos.


When I worked in a bike shop, there was a saying "The cheaper the bike, the harder/longer it takes to fix". I must say that seemed very true. You would be wasting your money on a $300 FS bike, honestly just keep the money and save up...or...you can buy a pretty good HT for that money (for some reason you despise them). Yeh a FS would feel smoother because of the extra suspension, and it would look cooler, but the truth is a Hardtail would... 1) Last longer 2)Better quality parts 3) Less adjustment i'd say. I dont know why you wont consider them.

I dont know why I dont like them... I ride my friend's hardrock all the time...and i actually prefer the feel of my pos FS bike... my main problem as far as duribility goes is the gears and derailer..it bounces around too much and gets hooked in the spokes occasionaly.

I guess i am going to try it out and get a hard rock. the local bike shop has a sale on em for 350...so thats cool... my only question is..on a trail with descent sized rocks/rots etc. sticking up isnt a hardtail going to throw you around and beat you up?

Not if you use body english to soak up the bumps.

roots**

i guess il have to get used to it..thats the thing i hate about my bmx bike though..off jumps with no landings my wrists jam (wont happen on a mountainbike, but) and my legs take a real shock....and it really makes you tired quicker

once you take the hardrock out there you will find it isnt that hard to manuver around the big rocks, and go over the roots.

i ride bmx and i have no prob with this stuff, i hear alot if it on the mtb forum.

You can't find a dual suspension for under 1200 that is good. 300 for a bike is like the bottom of the line cheapest bike any brand makes. Try more like 6-900 dollars, then we can advise you.

Well then there is no way your gonna get a durable, lightweight Full Suspension bike for $300. Sorry :).

An under $300 FS bike can do a 3-4 ft drop but only once.

Sorry, if you want a good bike that's $300, you are in a dreamers world.

A good idea would be to save up your money and buy something that is worth it. If your not willing to buy a hardtail which would be smart in your money situation then, get some more money and buy a nice full suspension usually no less than a grand.

These are getting good reviews, they say they're still not good for big drops, but great quality for the money. I've never tried one though.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7183268254

i thjink my problem with the hardtail is that..im not the type of person that will pick the best smoothest line down the trail....im the opposite..ill take the roughest hardest line i think i can handle just to challenge myself...I'm just thinking that doing like 20mph down a steep incline that has a bunch of football sized rocks wont be tolerable if i had a hartail....correct me if im wrong

wow that motobecane looks liek a good deal...any one have experience with one??

They also have a lot more at:

http://motobecane.com/MBUSAoffroad.html

I have a hardtail and I go down steep rocky inclines with big football sized rocks. Im just fine.

wow that motobecane looks like a good deal...any one have experience with one??

They fall apart easily, motobecane's mtb's are easily the Ford Edsels of the mountain bike world. If you're not familiar with the Ford Edsel here is a short background.

In the 1950's Ford Motor Company set out to create the most cutting edge car of all time to that point. The result was the 1958 Ford Edsel, named after Henry Ford's son Edsel. Problem was is that the car was impractical for the time, and it showed badly. Most of the time those new cutting edge features didn't work. The car broke down really easily, and due to that sales were extremely low, causing Ford to cut back on them, still no result, the edsel was cut from production a few years later.

That would explain the price.

what about http://www.supergo.com/profile.cfm?LPROD_ID=26477&lsubcat_id=7&lcat_id=7604&referpage=#

or maybe this: http://www.supergo.com/profile.cfm?LPROD_ID=26078&lsubcat_id=7&lcat_id=7604&referpage=

I guess i am going to try it out and get a hard rock. the local bike shop has a sale on em for 350...so thats cool... my only question is..on a trail with descent sized rocks/rots etc. sticking up isnt a hardtail going to throw you around and beat you up?
I use my Hardrock for DH/FR/DJ and XC and I've even done a 6 foot to tranny drop and it works great, you just need to loosen up your legs, they'll soak up the impacts.

i'm going to try riding my friend's hardrock today...imma take it through stuff i normally ride and see how i like it...If i do..i can get a brand new 05 hardrock (yellow) for 315 bucks (ty to the sale and 10% discount due to being in the mountain bike club here) Ill also get a helmet 25% off....which is cool..i should have one already..but i dont

I would really reccomend you check your local craigslist as used sounds like a decent option for you at this point.

yeah.. ive been searching ebay....doe anyone have any other good site to buy used bikes?

Many local bikeshops also carry used bikes, I would scout out their sites and maybe call around.

300 for a good dual suspension bike used is still a far fetched deal but there is bound to be somehting.

I'm just thinking that doing like 20mph down a steep incline that has a bunch of football sized rocks wont be tolerable if i had a hartail....correct me if im wrong

Wrong. It will be alot more tolerable on a Hardrock than on a $300 POS FS bike.

Save your money if you are so diehard on getting FS.

thats it ive decided...im getting this: http://www.specialized.com/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=9344 imma get it in the silver flame color :)

trek y26

my friend has one and it rides ok, not my my fav bike by far. I like my hard rock so so so much better. The 726 is the only cheap fs bike I would even consider getting. As parts mess up on it buy new better ones so your bike wont be too bad.

i own a '03 hardrock and although i cant comment on the '05 components, something to keep in mind is that you'll probably have to upgrade a few things if you want something that you "dont have to fix up each time" you ride hard. the hardrock frame will hold up to most anything but other parts lacks.

lol im going to pick up the hardrock sport disc on monday hopefully :) our schools mountain bike club has its first ride on tuesday after school...that should be interesting...riding pretty harcore with a new bike ive never riden b4..haha its all good though (ill still show up all the newbies in the club)

Great choice man!

ty

oh yeah...got my hard rock sport disc 06' (brown) today...ooooh baby...thanks a million for suggesting it guys...dang its nice....its a dream to wheelie..i can ride a wheelie on that thing better than i could even ride my other bike lol... and it jumps nicer than my haro backtrail ..and on dirt jumps too...rides really really nice....our mountain bike club's ride for tuesday got canceled :(...but we r riding on thursday :)...man thanks again.... i love it

lol idk about the older components but the shifting mech. on this thing is the best of the best..its nice

Glad you like it man.