i'm 54 and road cycle, i was thinking of trail riding. pretty flat around here and i'm not hard core. just want to try some off road. your thoughts on this https://www.giant-bicycles.com/us/talon-3.
it's in my price range, it's hard to find bikes around here that are not torn up used or way out of my budget.
any thoughts
thanks
rob

I think that would be a great entry level bike to start with. I did the opposite, I have been riding dirt since 1990. I bought a road bike in 2010. I love it all. I do enjoy the finding new stuff adventure of trails. vs pavement. But I ride @60% pavement just because its right in front of the house.


Enjoy and be sure to post some action shots.

There are some folks who are going to say you can't get a decent mtb for less than $1000, but I'm not one of them.

That should be a decent bike to learn your mtb skills with. Nice that it has disc brakes at that price.

Go for it, and after you've been riding singletrack for a year re-evaluate your needs. If you've progressed enough that you're craving more of a bike, sell off the Giant and start shopping again.

Steve Z

thanks guys
i have 40 years of off road, motocross , mototrials racing experience but none on a pedal bike.
i have friends who mtn bike but all are like me noobs coming from road cycling. not sure if i'll be hard core about mtn bikes but looking to hang out with friends and ride. it should also help with my road biking.

The Talon will be fine for what you say you will be using it for, but I doubt with your experience you will be satisfied with it for very long. I just got back into mountain biking a year ago, after 20 years off, and when I did ride I wasn't really serious. I spent 40 years mostly riding sport motorcycles, dirt bikes, and motocross and hare scrambles ATVs. I started out with a Giant Stance and while it is a decent bike for my skill level, I am already wanting more and better suspension. It is a sickness. Just don't cure me.

thanks hig4s
not really sure what i need i guess but the trails here are all flat with roots, no jumps really to speak of plus i'm getting older and a wiser so i have no clue what to expect.

Like you, I'm a roadie first, and 3 yrs ago at 54, I bought a very similar bike from Bikes Direct. I've ridden it at least once a week over the three yrs, and I'm just now spending some money on upgrades on it. I think it'll be just fine for what you're doing, and it'll at least get you by until you decide this is something you'll keep doing.

Have Fun

mountain bikes are stressed by the conditions of trail riding, so of course used ones are in rough shape.

at some point a decision is made to sell the bike when next round of repair Bills add up too high..

The Giant Corporation is Huge, they were making bikes for other brands for a long time before setting up their own Distribution network,Warehouses,
signing up dealers , sending out sales reps .. etc..

How do you like the dealer, nearby, that sells Giant brand bikes?


...

is that a 29er?

Or someone upgraded and doesn't need the old bike anymore.
Or they decide they don't like mountain biking.
Or they need money to pay rent.
Or they get hurt and can't ride any more.
Or their kid outgrew the frame.

The idea that mountain bikes get sold only because they are too beat up to be of use is absurd. Many used mountain bikes are in decent if not great shape. And it doesn't take a professional inspection to figure out which ones are worth buying.

So You saw all those bikes the OP was considering?


In Essence a Mountain bike is not service free.. If you use it in the mountains . you will break stuff.

No, you want. If you abuse it, yes you may break stuff. If you use it? No. There is nothing wrong with used mountainbikes. Regardless of what some people around here may claim mountainbikes do not have a service life of a year.

You can try to hide your bad advice behind the old coot act, but at the end of the day it is still bad advice.

In two years of riding my old mtb, including black diamond trails at Whistler and several hundreds of hours of true trail riding, the only things that wore out were the wheel bearings. I constantly ride in rain and mud, and I am not the best about preventative or other types of maintainance (I would rather let something wear out than spend countless hours cleaning). My new bike is at 100-200 hours of riding, and nothing has worn out or broken.

So, I am with you. Mountain bikes don't wear out so easily. And, it takes real abuse to get them into bad shape, if they started out as high quality bikes.

And, the guy who bought my old bike sent me pictures from Moab, saying how great of bike it is.

agreed. i'm primarily a mtn biker and have purchased three used mtn bikes over the years spanning 2006-2015. two bikes were from craigslist, another from a swap meet. i have changed parts on each of these bikes for fit or for taste, i have had to change nothing due to failure. i still have all of these bikes.

the Giant will probably get the job done, but i wouldn't turn my nose up at used bikes due to dull paint and cable rub. have a closer look, you may find a few gems.

thanks for all the input guys, the reason i was considering the giant is because i love my LBS the guys are great and support is exceptional, i do most of my own work but when you have a warranty and service help it means a lot. so far the only down side to the in question is perhaps the weight. but at my budget for entry level i guess that's what i'm looking at no matter the brand.
mtn bike are not real big here so the used market is limited. perhaps if i wait a while maybe someone is getting a new bike for christmas and i can find a deal.

yeah, I too try to shop @ LBS, but there are more selections online