Patriot

Is it just me, or do the new Rockhoppers seem to be downgraded, compared to what they used to be about 6-7 years ago?


For example- The Rockhopper Comp I have now came with some pretty decent parts. It had a full LX group with those nice grey trigger shifters. They still sell used on ebay for up to $40 each. It had an LX crank and even an LX cassette with Avid AD-1.0L Brake levers. These are like $50 levers.

The newer Comp on their website has alot of the standard Deore stuff, a cheaper/heavier cassette, wire bead tires, etc. And the new fork is alot heavier. I think it's like 5.5lbs, and the old Manitou I have on mine is only about 3.5lbs.

Just curious what everyone thinks about this.

Nickds7

Yea I know what you mean. Friend of mine has an old rockhopper with all deore lx and that was one of the lowest models they sold at the time (5+ years ago)

I assume it just has something to do with having to pay people more to do work. I also think alot of mtbike stuff is way over priced for what it is. Things should be getting cheaper as technology gets more advanced. I especially don't see why they should charge crazy ammounts for quality parts, they are all made by some guy making like $2/hour and the metal costs next to nothing.

They just like the make more money and charge us more to summ it up.

AlucardZero

My friend has an old rockhopper, but he cracked the frame and replaced it... Anyway, it had caliper brakes, a quadro shock, IDK what deralleurs it was pretty heavy too.

ChuckO

My '06 has decent components, good mid level stuff. LX rear der, Deore Front der, Deore shifters, bb5 brakes. Rokshox Tora fork. Was the older model's fork better? This one has taken a pretty good beating so far with no complaints.
The overall bike is very light and quick handling.

Minesbroken

there making more money off you now than they were five years ago.

jm01

I'd be curious to know how the selling prices compare. I've noticed that over the years the price of the same model has been coming down...My 6 year old Marin Bobcat Trail now comes with discs, the fork and components have been downgraded...but it cost $50 less than it did in 2001. Same with Kona and Trek models...all now have downgraded components and a smaller price tag

How does the Rockhopper compare?

Minesbroken

wouldnt you rather spend the extra 50 bucks and get the better parts?

jm01

no question, but it's not like we have a choice

I guess when you're competing with several mfg's to maximize market share, each company has a balance between quality and price...a $100 difference between similar bikes can make the difference between success and failure.

Minesbroken

Trek on the other hand went the other way and put cheaper components on the 6500 and replaced the cheap crappy v brakes with cheap crappy hydrolic disc brakes and charged a hundred dollars more for the bike this year.

jm01

My guess is that they would do this only if other companies didn't have a competing model at this price point, or if the other mfg's sold a similar model for $100 more...they wouldn't want to appear to be the "cheap" alternative so they would want to protect the brand.

triggersd

Weren't the old stumpy's marketed as race ready out of the box? The current marketing leans toward comfort. Did the Epic replace the stumpjumper, and therefore the rockhopper trickled down and is just cheap and easy to get someone started?

jm01

that's what I'm beginning to see...with the introduction of the Enduro, somewhere between the Epic and Stumpjumper, all of the less expensive models got pushed down a notch

While At Rome

there are more levels of the rockhopper, the have like 5 or 6 different "trims"

JonathanGennick 

Think about where these bikes are made. The value of the dollar relative to other world currencies has dropped tremendously in the past years, and especially since the war in Iraq began. I think that has something to do with the decline in component levels over the years. To hit the same price point in dollars requires the purchase of less-expensive parts overseas.

Dewaine

And think of the average weight and average fitness level of the average American new to mountain biking. Which way is this trend going...?

triggersd

I'm not sure what your point is Dewaine. Please elaborate.

Dewaine

Just based on what I have read the news lately, it seems like the physical fitness level of Americans has generally been declining. I would extrapolate from this that the first-time purchasers of mt bikes are less appreciative of higher performance bikes, and are basically just in the market for the name. Bsically they are looking for outdoor exercist machines because they know they will never use the indoor machines they have had sitting around for a decade. I have seen people go in the lbs and look for a specific brand then look at the price tag, then grab the bike without even looking at the components.

But I might be assuming too much.

jm01

Most wouldn't know what they're looking at or what to expect at certain price points...just look at all those "what bike should I buy?" threads

The Exercist...wasn't that a bad movie a while back?

AlucardZero

Or they did research on the bike before buying, like me.

ChuckO

I'd be the first to admit when I walked into Gearworks I had no idea what to look for. I would have bought the first bike in the row but for the owner who looked at my build and steered me towards the Rockhopper. It was a couple hundred bucks more than I had originally intended to pay but I'm very happy with the purchase now. Excellent bike from an excellent shop. If I ever have to buy another bike it will be from them.
(and yep, I started out as an excercist but after only seven weeks I'm hooked. And lost two inches around the waist)

jm01

The operative words here are: "It was a couple hundred bucks more than I had originally intended to pay"...good sales guy

Flak

It's all relative. As good as they used to apparently be in thier day and at thier price point, i dont think you can really compare an old rockhopper against a newer one with all the trickle down we've had over the last 15 years.

I'd take my 2006 comp disc with 100mm tora, bb5 brakes, and lx/deore drivetrain over pretty much anything made back in the early 90's.

Patriot

^^^ As I probably would too. However, I am specifically referring to the Rockhopper I haver now, which is a 1999-2001 model.

It has the full LX Mega group with the grey trigger shifters and Avid 1.0L brake levers. Personally, I think those shifters are just as good than the standard Deore stuff now. The old Rockhopper had the M570 group. If the new Rockhopper had the new full M580 LX group like it did before it would be a better bike imo. That's kind of the point I was making.

Instead of upgrading the bike with a newer LX group, they downgraded it with an M511 shifter setup. This makes it essentially the same bike it was 8 years ago, instead of evolving with newer technology over time.

ChuckO

LOL, to be sure he helped himself while he was helping me but looking at it now I'm glad I got the comp disc rather than a lower model. I don't feel to abused by the situation.

Patriot

Yeah. Abused by a Comp disc. You poor soul.