Mountain Biking - 2 bikes

I'm new to mountain bikes. I'm looking at 2 different ones. 1st is the mongoose pro rockadile ald its $329 the 2nd is a diamondback response for $299. The guy at the bike shop said the response is a better buy cause is has better stuff on it. But i thought i would ask on here to see what the experts thinks. Thanks for any help.

i strongly suggest increasing your budget to ~$400. for the price difference you get a lot more bike. personally i'd go with the DB response as i have never been a fan of mongoose. but that's just my opinion.

I would look into what Specialized, and what Giant, and Trek have to offer.

yea look at Giant and Treks, they have the most bang for your buck

Thanks for the help. I have to stick around $300. The wife don't want me to go to crazy.

If that was the case for me... I could have bought 6.6 bikes for that amount I paid. I still can’t justify the price, but I can the bike. I don't think you would be considered crazy if you spent a few extra hundred. Maybe by your wife, but if you stick with MTBing in about a year or so you may want another bike (maybe full suspension) and then you will find yourself test riding higher end bikes wondering "why did I ever buy what I currently own". Give it some time to think over and maybe buy a used “quality” bike. You can get great used bike for that price and I think you would be happier with better components and an overall better bike. Check out www.giant-bicycles.com and some other sites… they usually have archives of their bikes.. like years past or older models.

look around a bit more. You will be able to find a better bike. You should be able to find a specialized hardrock a1 for around the same as the mongoose. I bought the rockadile pro for my daughter a couple years ago and while its a descent bike for her, the parts are really cheap for an adult. The fork is really soft and the frame is pretty heavy.

For 290 USD the Specialized Cro-mo isn't a bad deal.

Thanks for all the help. I understand for more money you get nicer stuff . But i don't have money for that. Plus the bikes i was talking about i'm going to get them here on base. So there is no sale taxes. I know the are not the end all be all bikes but if you had to pick one of them what way would you lean too. Thanks for any help.

I'd go with the DB for sure.
I actually looked at it for a first bike too, its not that bad.

Originally posted by christop
Thanks for the help. I have to stick around $300. The wife don't want me to go to crazy. For that money, look at used bikes. You'll get more bang for your buck and there are plenty of people who ride a bike a few times and don't use it again. Plenty of Specialized and Giant bikes are sold and offer good value.

I love my Response. I have it in Black and Silver. Out of all the upgrades listed, the rear deraileur was replaced due to being worn out, with over 200 miles and countless hours on a bike trainer this past winter. The rims were replace due to a nasty flip I took. Brakes and shifters, were done because I could. The components are good to start with, and the frame, damn this frame has taken a serious beating. I'm far from gentle and tend to try to hurt myself at least once per ride it seems like. The frame has taken me flips with no signs of being worn out. I personally recommend the Response for starting out. It's worth upgrading I believe since it has such a strong frame. Feel free to email me if you want to know more about it.

Thanks for all the help. i bought the response today. Thanks again.