Mountain Biking - Hardrock or Trek 4300?

I went to the biike shop today. Basically told the guy I was interested in street and maybe some light trails. Tried to shift me toward a Navigator but from what I have read on this helpful forum, Navigators aren't the best option and MBs can do it all with the right tire. At any rate I asked him about the Specialized and he said that it is much more geared toward trails then the 4300? Seems wierd. Any suggestions?

the hardrock and the 4300 are probably equal starting grounds...perhaps your bike dealer has more hardrocks in stock ;)

I believe both run about the same price. Which one do you like? Which one feels
best to you? Get the one YOU want and put a different set of tires on it for the
street and go for it.

I purchased a Hardrock Sport Disk a couple of months ago and have been riding
the crap out of it on some tough trails and it is performing great. Absolutely no
complaints yet.

ODN

I don't know the component comparison off the top of my head but I would ride both and see what feels best for you. I believe the Hardrock frames tend to be a bit beefier than the 4300, especially around where the headtube, top tube and bottom tube meet up. I rode a 4300 and did primarily XC and it worked out great. I don't know what fork is on it these days, but mine tended to predict the weather. That is, the colder it is, the more rigid it got. I don't expect a bottom line fork to be amazing but for price comparison, a friend's Giant Rincon's fork never misbehaved. :D

4300 gets my vote. My buddy and I bought our bikes around the same time, his a hardrock and me a 4300. His hardrock is a friggon tank I think, heavy and feels weird to me.

I don't know the component comparison off the top of my head but I would ride both and see what feels best for you. I believe the Hardrock frames tend to be a bit beefier than the 4300, especially around where the headtube, top tube and bottom tube meet up. I rode a 4300 and did primarily XC and it worked out great. I don't know what fork is on it these days, but mine tended to predict the weather. That is, the colder it is, the more rigid it got. I don't expect a bottom line fork to be amazing but for price comparison, a friend's Giant Rincon's fork never misbehaved. :D

in that price range components are going to be about equal...

I like my Trek 4300. I tried a Hardrock, but I believe that they updated the frame and it isn't so tank-like anymore. When I was test riding, the Hardrock seemed like the ideal bike for riding down stairs; tough, but heavy, while the 4300 felt like it was more agile but probably not as super tough. But like I said, I think they changed the Hardrock frame, so my observations could be off. And the silver Trek paint job is sick!

Still, as I have said the Hardrock Sport's Forks suck. They only compress about halfway and then they won't go down anymore. Not good for any trail riding that you might be doing.