Sigtinius

This is my first year out mountain biking and I love it! I bought a Trek X-Caliber 9 because I ride on flat trails for cardio as well as mountain biking. This is my first ever bike with any type of suspension and I I spent the little extra money for an air fork in the front. So far I love it! It's quick on the trails, and suits me well enough for the flat trails to trails I do too. However, I feel I am always taking my bike in for a tune up as I beat it up on the trails. Nothing has ever broken on me (and it's been through a lot so far), but everything seems to need readjusting after every aggressive trail ride I do to make it feel perfect again. I also feel I am not confident yet in riding some more difficult trails and would like to move up to a full suspension bike. I would like to know if I should keep riding my 29er hard-tail and just keep practicing with it, or buy a used full suspension next year. Also to note, the tires on my bike are starting to get worn from riding all the time and I have flat pedals that I sometimes slip off of on jumps. I don't have a huge budget and would also eventually like to go clip-less and have the full suspension bike on plus sized tires. Can anyone recommend their thoughts to a newbie and/ or have a full suspension bike they are looking to sell in the near future? Thanks!

Retro Grouch 

If you're going to do real mountain biking, you are going to break stuff. You should really consider learning to do basic tuning and repairs yourself.

pickettt

Can I ask how old you are?

Canker

What are you constantly needing to have fixed/adjusted?

ddeand 

A few thoughts:

1. Learn to do your adjustments yourself. It will save you a lot of time and money, plus you'll be more aware about how your bike works.
2. Many say that a hardtail will make you learn how to become a better technical rider - a full suspension bike can mask flaws that you might have. That said, when I had a FS bike, I was able to ride areas that were too tough for me on a HT.
3. I found the FS bike to need more attention than the HT, and that makes sense since it had a lot more moving parts to adjust and tweak. There are trade-offs - you have a smoother ride with the FS, but it likely will need a fair bit more attention and tuning.

Presently, I have a HT 29er that I'm pretty happy with. I guess I'd recommend sticking with the HT and really learn how to handle that baby. Save your $$ for the FS bike and get a good one when you can. By then, you'll likely have the skills to really enjoy the FS bike.

tajar66

Really depends on your riding. I have a Giant Trance 27.5. I am sure the bike is capable of way more than I throw at it. I like the suspension except when climbing but that more of a technique thing. The suspension has saved me more than once.