Mountain Biking - Some specific questions for the bike buying veterans...

Hello,

I am new to these forums, and rather new to MTBing. I used to ride quite a bit, and I am now back in the game. Being that I have a night job with only few hours of work (I am a wedding DJ) I can have a lot of free time, some extra money if spread out over time.

I bought a Raliegh M80 to get back into the sport. I wanted something good for cross country, and something that had a good parts package, so I could upgrade one thing at a time and still continue to ride the whole way through.

I have a few things that I am losing sleep over though, and that is when I decide to upgrade, what should I get *rubs chin* here are my few main issues and I hope that someone has the patience to read them and help me out a bit.

Frame: I like hardtails, because it is a pride thing... less sofisticated, less money, and more pedaling power. I ride a lot of cross country where I live, but I do have a cabin in the mountains (big bear) and I will be purchasing an annual pass this year because I a extremely experienced and passionate snow boarder. So the question remains, should I get a freeride bike, or start building one rather, so that I can push it up hills around here and have a lot of fun on the way down, or should I build a cross country bike, and just go a little slower on the downhills when I go up to the lifts near my cabin?

Fork: I have been told by my local MTB shop employees, that I should upgrade the fork and frame at the same time as not to mess anything up.... I would agree that this is a good idea. Of course as a newcomer into the sport, Fox shocks are appealing cosmetically, as well as "functionally" from what I can read off of bloated text advertisments. The forks are also more expensive than the frames I am considering, which is of course lame for someone that has to save. I like the fox forks because they usually have a lockout feature, and they are lightweight air shocks. Although dirt jumping looks fun, and I do a lot of jumping on my Snowboard, I am not so sure if that is the style for me. If I break bones, I am going to be more screwed than the average person...

My last and overall question: Right now I am thinking about pricing out and buying a Chameleon frame, with some sort of air shock, right now Fox is winning that race. Is there a shock that functions the same but is more affordable? I do want quality as I allready scimped with my Raliegh M80 and I don't want to start a trend.... So Santa Cruz Chameleon frame, with a great front air fork, and upgrade my brakes to Hydraulic for the longer downhill runs, get a larger front rotor for better stopping power going downhill.... Then one by one upgrade everything on the bike.

From what I have learned about reading, this sounds pretty sweet for both of my needs. Downhill won't be as fast as the Freeride and Downhill bikes, but that is ok with me, and when we get to the uphill, well I will be smiling the whole way up....

What do you think? Can you help me make up my indecisive mind?



Matt

Marzocchi Z1 Freeride SL.

My experience: upgrading is expensive and doesn't always net the best results. Good bikes are designed and tested by engineers to work with all components in harmony. Play the upgrade game, and you'll end up spending more than just getting a better new bike.

oh...the more you pay, the better you get. There are few bargains.

Fox makes some good forks, no bout a doubt it. However, I still like Marzocchi products better. Secondly, how much do you weigh? If over 200 lbs, I would NOT recommend an air fork, stick with coil-sprung.

The Chameleon is a sweet frame. I almost bought one myself. Good choice. Question is are you going to swap all the parts off of your Raleigh or keep it as it is and buy all new parts? If swapping, figure on a new seat post and front derailleur. Chances are they will different sizes between frames, and/or the cable routing is different necessitating a new front derailleur.

With discs, if you plan to do a lot of DH runs, go with an 8" rotor up front. You can stick with a 6" in the back, but you might as well run 8" front AND rear.

I'm a big fan of Hayes discs.

L8R

Sorry Dude, I lost interest in your post after only a couple of lines....

Thanks for the replies, although there are few. I am suprised that these forums don't consist of only buying and trading for bikes, I don't see many MTBr's as computer nerds like myself...

As far as buying a whole bike, I don't like that suggestion... no bike is ever going to be what you want it to be. And personalizing is the a great thing, and I am going to take advantage of it. Or at least my good friend that works at Bicycle Warehouse suggests that I do that. I think that companies test bikes and there "harmony" working parts a little less than one would suspect. They just slap on the name brand parts and fads to sell bikes, and they buy them at bulk so they can give you a "deal". This is why I bought the m80, it has the best parts package for the money...

I will look into marzochi (sp?) forks. I only weigh about 160 pounds, and my natural weight is probably closer to 155 pounds, I drink a lot of high carb beer :) And I don't see myself ever exceeding 200 pounds. I was looking at the fox Vanilla RLC 125.... anyone have any experience with this fork? I don't even think it is an air fork, it just has a bunch of options: Rebound, Lockout, and compression.... good stuff.

I am also a big fan of Hayes Disk Brakes thus far, right now I have hayes mechanical breaks, and I think I am going to upgrade to Hydraulic, the same time I get the larger rotors. Although, to save some money and weight I am going to just have an 8 inch in the front and make the rear what I allready have.

Thanks, I think that I am getting along just nicely, I just need to figure out what freaking front fork to buy. I am steering away from air shocks though, not because of weight but because of jumps :)


Matt

I am suprised that these forums don't consist of only buying and trading for bikes, I don't see many MTBr's as computer nerds like myself...

Well, I personally don't even know how to ride a bike, but I'll try to help. ;)

I agree with your philosophy regarding upgrades. The parts spec on any given frame is primarily governed by economics, not harmonious synchronicity. Don't assume that the manufacturer knows more about your riding than you do.

You should buy the bike with the best frameset you can possibly afford that complements your style and local terrain. Then, as time goes on, you can upgrade parts depending on what you break and/or find unsuitable. I got seven seasons out of my last frameset, and when it finally broke, there were no OE parts attached to it. Improving and personalizing your bike is part of the fun. Having a friend at Bicycle Warehouse never hurts either. Does he or she need any more friends? :D

I'm sorry I can't give you specific advice on lightweight parts, because I've broken most of them I've tried. Of course, I haven't weighed 160 since junior high, either. It sounds like you're headed in the right direction, though. Best of luck.