Mountain Biking - best hardtail for $500-600 Cdn?

A friend at work wants to buy her teen son a moutain bike. I suggested a hardtail as I see that most full suspension bikes are around $1000 and much higher. And for the trail riding he mostly does I believe a hardtail will be enough.

I checked out a Giant Yukon ($599) and thought it would be perfect for him. It's very light compared to his current Dept. store bike with lots of fork travel and, light overall weight and very good disc brakes.

Are there other bikes we can look at comparable to the Yukon in price (Canadian), frame quality (if it's good) and components? Thx.

I can't name any in that price range, but I second the Yukon. Great bike for the money.

I have a kona cinder cone and love it. that was 699 us, id check that one out also

$699 US would be way out of the range he stated

I have a kona cinder cone and love it. that was 699 us, id check that one out also

The Kona Blast is the bike just below the Cinder Cone and fits in his budget.

ah, i dont really know the US- CND money exhange

ah, i dont really know the US- CND money exhange

It's about 1.10 CAD for each 1.00 USD right now. The MSRP may not necessarily reflect that, though.

I wish I could help, but the last bike I purchased with gold coins.

The one before I won arm wrestling a circus clown.

I'd suggenst a Specialized Hardrock Comp. They are set us very nicely for the price range and are capable of handling all kinds of abuse. Plus disc brakes are nice.

sorry thats suggest

I'd suggenst a Specialized Hardrock Comp. They are set us very nicely for the price range and are capable of handling all kinds of abuse. Plus disc brakes are nice.
I second this.
I've always liked the lesser expensive Specialized bikes and this one should fit your budget with a few bucks left over for some other items you might not think about right now.
However I love my Giant Rainier, which is slightly more expensive and probably not the best bang for the buck that I could have gotten, but it has been good to me as a commuter in an early life and a trail bike as it is now.

I have a Trek 4500 and paid $500 US. The bike has good components and light weight.

These are the bikes we've seen so far (but I have only tested the Giant Yukon). All bikes are with mechanical disc brakes:

Giant Yukon
Devinci Chameleon
Specialized Hardrock
Trek 4300

I also saw at another store (online) that they have a Norco Rival (previous year's model with a list price of $899Cdn) with a price reduction and plan to check it out when I get time this week.

One question I have; since most seem to have similar frame designs and components, which bike(s) listed here come in at a lighter weight? It's a bit hard to tell since they are all at different stores. So far the Yukon and Devinci feel the lightest, the Specialized a bit heavier (and I believe the Norco is too).

I have yet to check out a Kona and would like to take each of these bikes out for test rides.

can't beat the Marin Bobcat Trail at this price

http://www.marinbikes.com/bicycles_2007/html/bikes/bike_specs/specs_bobcat_trail.html

Just had a chance to look at a Marin today, very nice bike. Must find time to ride them though.

Yesterday I was able to take out a few bikes. I took out a Gary Fisher Piranha, Trek 4300, Norco Bushpilot and Specialized Rockhopper (all bikes with disc brakes).

Ok, I don't know if all these bikes needed to be tuned, but all of them had very crappy gear changes. The shifts were all clunky and loud and some bikes wouldn't shift properly at all.

Of all the bikes, I found the Fisher to fit me the best. The one I disliked the most was the Trek, I felt like I was 6' off the ground and could easily topple if the terrain changed too quickly.

I still need to take out a Kona and Devinci and may take out those bikes again if other stores have them, just to see if I feel any different on them.

Ok, I don't know if all these bikes needed to be tuned, but all of them had very crappy gear changes. The shifts were all clunky and loud and some bikes wouldn't shift properly at all.

sounds like they needed to be tuned

sounds like they needed to be tuned

Thanks. They sounded as bad as my Dept. store bike's gear changes, not much of a step up with that.

Thanks. They sounded as bad as my Dept. store bike's gear changes, not much of a step up with that.

Sounds like the shop you went to has bad mechanics on duty...

Actually, if she can wait for a bit, my daughter's BF may be getting a new bike next week and will be selling his 1.5 year old Trek Liquid 25 (I think that it's a medium). He paid about $3000.00 for it new.

Its essentially a free ride full susser with 5" travel...might work for the son

http://www2.trekbikes.com/Assets/Bikes/Mountain/Full_Suspension/Liquid/Liquid_25/asset_upload_file497_3259.jpg

Actually, if she can wait for a bit, my daughter's BF may be getting a new bike next week and will be selling his 1.5 year old Trek Liquid 25 (I think that it's a medium). He paid about $3000.00 for it new.

Its essentially a free ride full susser with 5" travel...might work for the son

http://www2.trekbikes.com/Assets/Bikes/Mountain/Full_Suspension/Liquid/Liquid_25/asset_upload_file497_3259.jpg

Sure, just let me know what he's asking for it and the size. It's a nice bike.

Sure, just let me know what he's asking for it and the size. It's a nice bike.

he's looking at some bikes this weekend, so we'll know if he wants to sell shortly. He has a slightly different build as he rides in Collingwood...XT derailleurs, double chain ring with bash guard, Manitou Black 120mm fork, Hayes hydros

it's a medium...won't be cheap, he's thinking around $1000.00, but he paid $3000.00

He used to be into FR, but now wants something a little lighter with more travel

he's looking at some bikes this weekend, so we'll know if he wants to sell shortly. He has a slightly different build as he rides in Collingwood...XT derailleurs, double chain ring with bash guard, Manitou Black 120mm fork, Hayes hydros

it's a medium...won't be cheap, he's thinking around $1000.00, but he paid $3000.00

He used to be into FR, but now wants something a little lighter with more travel

Sounds like a pretty serious bike. Is a medium around the 15-17" model? We've been trying 18.5-19.5" models.

I took out a Rocky Mountain Soul and Norco Kokanee yesterday. They were both pretty similar, but I liked the Norco a bit better (sweet green colour too).

Sounds like a pretty serious bike. Is a medium around the 15-17" model? We've been trying 18.5-19.5" models.

I took out a Rocky Mountain Soul and Norco Kokanee yesterday. They were both pretty similar, but I liked the Norco a bit better (sweet green colour too).

Sizing varies with FS bikes...a medium, is a medium...I ride 19"-21" bikes, but my medium FS has a 17" seat tube, but the bike is HUGE...15" bottom bracket, 31" standover...my saddle comes up to my wife's shoulder

you have to sit on them to know what works

Yep, the Liquid is a serious bike...one of the few Treks still made in the U.S....they discontinued it last year because of the popularity of the Fuel, which is a pretty crappy bike...like most single pivots, its like riding a pogo stick (thats why OEM shock has a lock-out)

Easy. An Iron Horse Maverick 5.5. I just traded up to a Kona fs but that 5.5 was a sweet, solid bike. It was $360 US $. I wish I could have kept it. It felt like I was taking my dog to the pound the day I returned it.

just make sure you try out the kona!!

I'm pretty new to mountain biking... I actually own the Giant Yukon 18inch mtb. It weighed it at 32 pounds at the bike shop. The shifting is dead on and flawless.. Besides the obvious cable stretching after a week of abuse.. The shifting isn't as predictable as some bikes due to the fact the shifter isn't numbered besides the first and last gears but it doesn't really matter.. I got used to it pretty quickly... it was actually good at teaching me to shift accuratly without looking down.

No complaints about the shifter and the bike is very tough... I actually got in my first spill last week because I didn't drop my seat down like I should have and I flipped and rolled down a hill with my bike after a small 'jump' in the trail.. You can't even tell i've biffed badly.. Tough bike, very responsive shifter, and very powerful breaks.

I got a little discount and only paid $425 for mine.

Sounds like a pretty serious bike. Is a medium around the 15-17" model? We've been trying 18.5-19.5" models.

I took out a Rocky Mountain Soul and Norco Kokanee yesterday. They were both pretty similar, but I liked the Norco a bit better (sweet green colour too).

well...he still can't make up his mind on what new bike to buy...its all over the map. His "short list" includes a VP Free, Intense 5.5, Heckler, Foes Inferno...all very different bikes

I just thought I'd update this thread. My friend's son became disinterested in buying a MTB so we dropped the bike testing. I spent most of my time road cycling and didn't get out MTB much at all.

Recently I had a chance to do some trail rides again and finally accepted that my very cheap Cdn Tire MTB is of such bad quality it takes 200% effort to get it to behave like a regular bike. The shocks and rear spring are so 'soggy' the bike is like an accordion, and this is on flat pavement. Coupled with it's wobbly tires and crank and it's immensely heavy weight, I just couldn't ride the thing anymore.

I happened to drop into Silent Sports and learned they're selling off their Norco Charger bikes, normally for $1059 down to $699. It has Hayes hydraulic brakes and Shimano Deore.

From the second I took one out for a demo everything just fit 'right'. The brakes are smooth, the shifting was whisper quiet and precise and the whole bike is quite light and the bike size fit perfectly. The front shocks ate up anything in their path and I whipped around the little forest trail behind the store like nothing.

I spent some time thinking about it for the next few days and on Saturday I picked one up. I took it to the same trails I used to struggle with on my Cdn Tire bike and the Norco so ate up the whole trail I finished it in no time. I could easily have done it a few times over. It makes everything so effortless that it literally glides over the terrain. The store is great too with a down to earth, easygoing staff. I think I did ok...:D