Mountain Biking - Saracen Mantra X27

Hey guys,

I'm looking at getting a better mountain bike, upgrading from my TERRIBLE Raleigh AT30.

I've been looking at the Saracen Mantra X27, I can get one used for £300.

Judging by the spec, it looks like a fairly competent bike:

Bottom Bracket: Truvativ Powerspline
Brakes: Quad Dime XC hydraulic disc 160/160 mm pulse rotors / custom white
Cassette: SRAM PG950 9-speed cassette 11-32T
Chain: KMC Z9000
Cranks: Truvativ FIVE D 3.0 PS 22/32/44T
Fork: SunTour XCR LO 120 mm travel with lock-out
Frame: Mantra lightweight custom butted 6061 alloy tubeset / UK-specific design / integrated headtube
Front Mech: SRAM X.5
Grips: Saracen dual-density grip - white
Handlebar: Saracen 318 Alloy OS 620 mm wide / 15 mm rise / 6 degree bend
Headset: TH No.11N A-Headset
Hubs: Formula Alloy Black 32 hole Q/R front / rear
Rear Mech: SRAM X.5
Rims: Rigida Taurus 2000 White 32 hole
Saddle: WTB-speed V Comp
Seatpost: Alloy Micro-adjust / 27.2 mm
Shifters: SRAM X.5 9-speed
Spokes: Steel 14g
Stem: Saracen 318 6061 A-Head / 7 degree rise / 31.8 mm clamp / white
Tires: Continental Mountain King 26 x 2.2 inch

I really can't spend more than £300, so this bike looks pretty good to me for that amount of money.

Any advice greatly appreciated!

Thanks

Waiting for someone from the UK to chime in...

Alternatively, someone is offering me a Specialized Hardrock Disc Comp for £350...

Might be more worth it.

Or perhaps a brand new GT Avalanche 3.0 Disc Hydro 2011 for £250 delivered?

Doesn't seem to have great reviews though...

The Mantra has better spec though, its got more gears, a better fork and much better brakes, the GT just has standard components.

Just to throw another one in the mix,

GIANT XTC 4 2009 for £330?

To throw yet ANOTHER bike into the mix, this is the most expensive one,

Someone's offering me a good condition Mongoose Teocali Comp 2007 for £350

The sales are on now, so should be a good time to puck up a bargain.

However, £300 won't get you a good MTB; it will get a decent entery leve bike, but can't se that it's going to be a huge improvment over your AT30, what's the matter with that?

If you are looking at riding off road, you need to look at doubling your budget. (would count the Giant XTC 4 as this as it orginally retailed for £600)

The XTC 4 you have found, if it fits would be a good one to look at, it had a decent spec.

The only bad thing on it, are the forks, being Rock Shox Darts, not bad, but not great either, but would perfer to have these over any Suntour forks which are common on lower priced bikes, as Rock Shox's can be serviced, where as with a Suntour you will have issues getting spares.

For the Specialized Hardrock Comp, nice bike, but unless a 2012 model, £350 is way over priced, as no warranty, same goes for the Saracen, if you know what to look for this isn't too much of an option, but could cost you in the longer term. You should be able to pick up either new for around £350 which is a better deal.

The GT Avalanche, can only see it at Wiggle for £250, and only in small, it's not a bad bike, but wouldn't expect parts to hold up too well off road, and the fork is disposable Suntour.

To throw yet ANOTHER bike into the mix, this is the most expensive one,

Someone's offering me a good condition Mongoose Teocali Comp 2007 for £350

Walk away from that, apart from being an old design, would expect it to be hard and expensive to get spares, full suspension has more to go wrong, bearing and shock servicing arn't cheap.

Thanks for the advice. What's wrong with my current Raleigh is that the bike weighs a ton and has no brakes, the mechanical discs it comes with are next to useless.

Mechanical discs aren't the greatest stoppers, most hydraulic ones will outperform them.. For the weight issues, having had a quick look at reviews of the AT30, it's not the lightest bike, but isn't too heavy for it's retail price.

To get a light weight bike will cost, the XTC 4 looks to be the best you have found so far; here's what some one has done with one http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=137777

Does anyone know what model bike this is?

http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/top-of-the-range-mongoose-for-sale-lk/93628558

A money pit, you can see the forks are wrecked in the photo, the left stanchion is in poor condition

Lol I would never have even been able to spot that

Right, I think I've narrowed it down now to a choice of 6 bikes:

#1 RIDGEBACK MX5 - £300 new

#2 Saracen Mantra X27 - £300 used

#3 Claud Butler Cape Wrath 2 - £340 new

#4 Specialized Hardrock Disc Comp - £350 used w/Avid BB7

#5 Diamondback Response Sport - £330 new

#6 Specialized Hardrock Sport Disc - £320 new w/Avid BB5

Out of all the options you have suggested, the DiamondBack looks to be the best, but you will struggle to get it for less than £400

Ah I think I'm gonna stick with my gut feeling and go with my original choice, the Saracen X27

Thanks for all the help given

Well, received the bike this morning and I think I've been a bit ripped off. In hindsight I probably should have gone with the Specialized.

- It was supposed to come with new tires, however it came with used ones.
- It was supposed to have had a service before being delivered, however the brake pads rub on the discs, and the adapter where the handlebars attach to was backwards, giving the impression that the bike was not tested before it was posted.
- It was supposed to have a trouser guard on the largest cog, however mine does not.
- The saddle saddle as it does not fit in the frame properly, it only goes down 1/3 of the way.
- There are no instructions on how to setup the Quad Dime brakes.

:/

I just got back from a test-run in the park. I put the saddle from my old bike on it, which fits fine.
The bike rides ok but is not without its problems;

- The centre gears have trouble shifting, it wouldn't shift onto the largest cog.
- The rear brake makes a loud 'clanking' noise whenever I engage it, not sure what that could be.
- The rear brake also has no modulation, it's either on or off.
- The preload adjuster on the shock is locked in place, it won't move.
- I tried taking the trouser guard off my old bike but unfortunately it doesn't fit on the Saracen, and I ripped a bit of my jogging bottoms on the cog.
- But by far the worst problem is the tires, they have absolutely no grip! I was cycling on dry pavement everytime I accelerated hard, or braked at a reasonable rate, the back wheel would skid out. Even the front wheel skidded sometimes! It made my riding very dangerous.

Hey guys,

I think I've decided I'll keep the bike. They have offered me a refund if I send it back to them, but I'm going back to uni tomorrow and have important exams starting monday, so I don't really have the time to start messing around packing up the bike and sending it back off.

I put the tires from my Raleigh bike on the Saracen and am pleased to report it's improved it a lot, it now has much more traction and is more controllable. The rear brake has more modulation and doesn't skid with the slightest touch, and the front wheel no longer skids at all.

I still need to take it to a bike shop to sort out the gears, the seller offers a free service but it means taking the bike up to them which is not an option. They won't give me any money back but they are willing to send me a trouser guard and bottle cage, since they were pictured in the listing.

MTB's as stardard don't come with trouser guards, if you need one, you are riding the wrong type of bike.

for brake instructions, or any instructions, bikes don't come with them, you have to look on the component manufactures website, the best you will get is a general user guide, which will mainly be disclaimers.

From the sound of what you have, sending back would probably have been the best option, as getting all the issue you have fixed at a bike shop will cost, would expect from what you have said you will need - fork service (if not un-servicable), rear brake beed, gear set up. say £50-60 straight off, could be worse if they fine other issues.