Mountain Biking - beginner mtb

im looking to find a hartrail mtb, fist time mtb buyer, i ride bmx, so im looking for a nice steel hartail bike in the 400-600 area, not sure on the brands, i know the local shop owner by name so i can get a hook up from there. im looking for one i dont have tp maintain every day, because of my bmx habbits i would liek steel and would liek it to be strong enought to beat the **** outta, anyone got any bikes to recomend?

Check out the specialized p1 or p2. They are hard to find but will meet your pricerange and the frame geometry will compliment your bmx abilities. The p1 can be had for around 450 and the p2 for around 630 USD.

Kona Lava Dome or Jamis Exile.

i dont trust nore like Aluminum frames

oh ya i would liek to be doing some trail rideing, and some mudd running

Originally posted by adan
i dont trust nore like Aluminum frames

Why?...Aluminum frames constructed right are fine for strength...

i just dont, i like chromoly or steel, i like strenth over weight, you can build a storng ass chrmoly frame that is like the ox tube that waterford uses is a good example, they use it on the standard ox models. there liek 2 pounds lighter cause they can use thinner tubeing but there still 50% stronger

In your price range finding a high quality steel bike won't be easy. All the chromoly frames that are actually good are 500$ american for the frame.

I don't understand a blanket statement like, I don't trust aluminum. It does ride different but aluminum frames can be as strong as steel.

cheers

ive ridden chromoly bmx bieks for years, ive beat the **** outta em, ive dented the **** out of em, i use a hammer and a 2x4 to put my headset in and my bottom bracket in, no harm, i just like steel, plus if u dent an aluminum ur ****ed

For the really strong bikes try

www.unrealcycles.com he has the best steel bikes on the market for abuse. The guy who runs it is Ben and sometimes has wicked deals. 600bucks might get you a full bike but that would take some work.

http://unrealcycles.com/items/khs-rigidone.htm

Thats an example of a well priced steel frame. This thing is tough :) That plus his single speed gimp kit and you have a whole bike for 650ish....

Might check out these
Jamis Hardtails (http://jamisbikes.com/bikes/hardtails.html)
The dragon and the dakota are both steel-framed, although I don't know what their prices are. Plus, the bike Maelstrom linked to is probably a lot buffer than these and with a better geometry for your style.

The Jamis Dragon and Dakota will be more than the price range. The Exile fits the price range and is still nice.