Mountain Biking - decent hardtail bike on a budget

im kinda new to mountain biking and im looking for a hardtail mountain bike (mainly because i cant afford a full suspension). all i have to spend is about 400$ at the most and ive been looking around for a while on the internet and ive gone to a few LBS, but i cant really find much in my price range. I was hoping maybe someone could help me find something that can support my 6'1" 180lbs frame.

thanks in advance for the help.

Derek

It's odd that you can't find much in that price range, Under $500.00 bikes are a bike's shop bread and butter. Does your local shop only carry one brand or are they maybe lean on inventory right now, waiting on the 08 arrivals?

well i went about 2 weeks ago and all they offered me was one bike in that price range, but it wasnt exactly what i was looking for.
i have found a few bikes that are a possible choice;
k2 ZED 2.0
specialized hardrock or
trek 3700
but they are still outside of my price range, because i am hoping to get disc brakes and i would have to uprade to higher models to get the disc brakes included on the hardrock and trek.

I've own all those brands with V brakes, they worked just fine. The Zed that I had still stands out in my mind as one of my favorites. V's at that price point are just as good as the disc's at that price point. But if you really want the Disc's ask them if the are willing to deal on the price. Their answer might surprise you!

what do you mean by "if they are willing to deal on the price"?

What is the intended purpose? If you are just a XCish recreational rider you don't really need disc brakes. Get a bike that feels good and is within your price range. As you learn some technique and gain speed and confidence, start upgrading from there. Eventually you will get a quality full suspension with great components.

Hope this helps,

Ricardo

I'm not sure how others feel, but I was in the same boat as you about 2 months ago and after some searching around I found a nice FUJI with disk in that price range. although I must say I've probably already dropped another $400 just in upgrade parts (shock, cassette, rear der, rims) but thats because I ride harder than what the bike was made for (entry level) but the frame is essentially the same that they use on their higher end models. (very strong welds and gusseting where needed with a Power diamond bottom tube.
check out the link in my sig and go from there..
hope this helps

ya that doesthanks
But ive found a fuji tahoe with everything i need in my price range.
is that a good bike or should i not bother?

what do you mean by "if they are willing to deal on the price"?
I meant that most shops this time of year are clearing out 07 inventory and might very well deal on the price if you ask. Most entry level bikes are similar enough, find one that feels good to you! Test ride, Test ride, test ride.

so are there anythoughts on the Fuji tahoe, for about 300$ ?
is that a good deal?

IMO that would definately be a good bike to start with. Its a few models up from mine and I found mine to be a decent bike for the money. the biggest thing i was looking for when buying a bike was to have a nice strong aluminum frame which FUJI seems to have in all their bikes. I do some pretty aggressive XC riding and I've replaced a bunch of the components on my bike already but thats to fit my riding style. If you're a little less agressive I'm sure the Tahoe will be fine for a while without any upgrades.

I just got an Ironhorse Warrior 3.6 from Gi Joes for $400, and I am Loving I! You should look into one.

what about the woodstock 505 is it? Its a hole heck of a lot of bike for the price...

As said above take a few bikes in that price range for a ride and you may be supprised how well the brakes work. I went from a Huffy to a GT Ricochet and the control of the new bike was so much better.

I paid $349.00 for a Scott Reflex 50 I recently purchased for my granddaughter. It has rim brakes but the frame is equipped/ready for disc brakes. The components (derailers, shifters, brakes, fork, etc) are very good for recreational XC....especially for the price. The frame has ugly welds etc but very strong in design/material/construction. IMO the SCOTT bikes are an excellent and affordable platform worthy of upgrading to a "custom" hardtail.

For that amount you can buy a nice used bike on ebay or craiglist if you know what to buy. If you have normal proportions any large frame (19 or 20) should work well for you. Avoid XL sized frames and small mediums (17).

If you want a new bike your best bet is to see what bikes Performance or Rscycles has on sale (assuming you know how to put it together). There are some nice Iron Horse hardtails on sale now that are good deals for the money.

I have a 2007 Norco Katmandu. $455 CAD, $405 USD. it works great for me, its got a good beefy frame. it has Hayes MX-4 6" mechanicle disc brakes (just what you want, discs). if there are any Norco dealers in your area, you might want to check it out

link http://www.norco.com/2007bikes/Mountain/AdventureX/model.php?id=105&view=1&deets=1