Advice on Motive please
 

Don't laugh, I'm on a really tight budget. I figure if I get a cheap bike now that I can wreck over the next 3-4 years, I will have a good idea what I want and can get it when I finish college.
What I want to know is what experience people have with these bikes. I am looking specifically at the Vortex, which is the FS costco has been offering for the last couple of months.
PLEASE, tell me about experiences, not what you think about "department store bikes."

Department store bikes are basically DISPOSABLE bikes. Buy it, Ride it, Destroy it, Relise you need a real bike, and then buy a shop quality bike!

I don't want to sound like a snob, but Department store bikes look nice, but they weigh a ton, don't last, and fall apart. The great thing about them is they account for about 75% of the repairs at the shop. When the customers freak out when the repairs cost more than half of the original cost of the bike, it's a great time to point out that if they spent a little bit more, but bought a good quality bike (albeit only front suspension not full) they wouldn't have the problems they have. YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR! - End of Rant!

If you're on a budget, you can get a shop quality bike for under $300. If that's still too much $$$, buy a used bike. A used good quality bike is WAY better than a X-Mart bike. If you're hung up on getting full suspension, you're kidding yourself. You don't need it! You can have just as much fun on a fully rigid bike than you can on a full suspension. Plus, riding full rigid, or front suspension, will make you a better rider! It'll be lighter weight and you'll learn how to avoid rough sections, and better control when climbing!

L8R

Ok Now depending on how hard you are gonna ride this bike is basically the question. Now department stroe bike are cheap and heavy , but i suppose would be allright for a trip to the corner store , but If you actually want to ride I would strongly suggest saving up and buying a quality bike.

Spend $3-400 on a good ridgid bike and you will be able to do much mire than on a cheapo wannabe suspension lookalike MTB.
I recently hired a Trek 800 for a weekend and had a real blast on highly technical mountain trails.
A ridgid bike will make you into a better cyclist, and can be be roadified into very functional commuter and touring bikes.
Checkout some of the Specialized models (Rockhopper/Hardrock)

I've had one for about four years now. I don't ride it every day, but then I don't miss many either. I don't do large jumps, but I ride across fields and limbs exersizinf my dog and some 25 to 30 mile road/dirt road/trail rides. I'm a dainty little 230 pounds. No problem so far.

That said and since I stumbled on it for ~$120 I think it was a good enough deal. On the other hand my LBS has a couple of real nice bikes for under $300 so it depends on what.where you are.

Joe
:beer:

man! forgot toy bikes.

I bougth a mongoose mgx in january in walmart for 100 US Dollars, but in two weeks there was a lot of problems. So immediatly i sold it.
then i found a very nice used Giant Boulder SE for less than 180 dlls. And this is great.

You can find Boulder brand new for 250 to 300 bucks.

Feel, ride, talk the difference

The thing about the Motiv Vortex is that is not like an X-mart bike. It is far lighter than anything I have seen at a department store (this one is sold at costco), and it is set up in a fashion similar to the Trek Fuels (instead of those weird y-frames with dual crowns you see at walmart). I know that the fork is crap and would need to be replaced, so would the tires. I think I could live with the SRAM 5.0 on it and the welds look decent.
I was hoping someone with actual experience on this bike would see this post so I could hear from the voice of experience. Also, I welcome comments from people who have worn out their FS bikes so I know where to look for potential probs.

Thanks all