what do you guys think about these bikes?
 

ok, i went to one of my lbs today after work. i've found a couple bikes that are pretty decent and within my budget.

- GIANT 04 YUKON (sr santor magnesium xcp-75 front fork, alivio rear dR, acera front dR.) $380 very light
- GIANT 04.5 BOULDER SE (sr santor front fork, shimano acera rear dR) $230-$280 kinda heavy
- GIANT 04 SEDONA DX (sr santor front fork, acera front and rear dR) $290 kinda heavy
- JAMIS RANGER SX (sr santor M3000, shimano 7 speed) $220 light weight

this is just from Performance Bike in Campbell. There are many other's there but way out of my budget. my price range is around 200-400. I haven't had the time to see The Off Ramp yet, but will do so this weekend. I've read thus far that the Giant Yukon has an awesome frame from MTBR. however, the gears and what not is not too great.

so for around my price range, i'm gonna have to check out other brands such as Jamis, Specialized, etc. but I would like to know what you guys think about the Giant Yukon frame though. i'm gonna be mainly using it for commute (which the bike will be stored in my cubical) and weekend trial riding with some drops and what not. but i don't want to get a bike that will require me spending tons of time on it cleaning it and keeping it in good shape. the yukon one seem to have so many parts.. disc brakes for one. i'm still trying to get use to the fact that bikes now have calipers with disc brake... (yes it's been a long while... hehe :D) so i'm gonna have to check out the other bike shop and see what i should get. please give me your feedback.. cuz this site is awesome!!! :D

the offramp will have some hardrocks and rockhoppers that might be in your price range. if i were you i'd get a rockhopper, but it might be a little more than $400. rei by amc14, stan's by vallco, or calabazas cyclery on wolfe/bollinger will have some other brands to check out.

thanks TFunk! I'll check out those bike shop this weekend.. and perhaps some after work.. depending on how late they open till. as for Stan's by vallco... do you happen to have the whole shop name?

At that price point, avoid disc brakes. They're unlikely to give you much stopping advantage over V-brakes, and will add unwanted rotational weight.

Giant frames are good. Bikes in this price range won't be designed for too much abuse off road - I think the biggest weak spots will be the rims and fork. The Specialized Rockhopper will be worth a look - it comes well equiped for the money (my LBS sells it for $390, but tax would push it over your spending limit).

Just as an aside, have you budgeted for the accessories you'll need? Or do you already have them? Pump, spare tubes, helmet, basic tools, patch kit. If you're primarily using the bike for commuting, you may want to ask the bike shop about swapping the standard tires for some semi-slicks to make riding on the smooth stuff an easier proposition.

booyah... i don't mind spending a bit more than $400 for a bike... since i know tax in cali is steep! :mad: but, as for the assessories, i already have the lights for front and rear, helmet, basic tools, water bottle, etc. as for using it for commuting, it will mainly be used for that, however, i was thinking about buying two sets of tires.. one for commute (slicks) and the other for trail. thus far, i'm leaning toward the rockhopper, since I already have one (just to big for me that's all.. need a size 17 or 18 frame, but bought it used with 20.5" ) as for the giant.. i like the yukon frame.. but read too many bad things about the fork, derailers, gears, etc. so pretty much to me it seems like 380 for the frame. i just can't wait for the weekend to come.. then i can go check out the bikes.. grrr :mad: now stuck in front of my 17" LCD at work in my cube... only to have this bike forum to keep me company.. :p

[QUOTE=ruirui]ok, i went to one of my lbs today after work. i've found a couple bikes that are pretty decent and within my budget.

- GIANT 04 YUKON (sr santor magnesium xcp-75 front fork, alivio rear dR, acera front dR.) $380 very light
- GIANT 04.5 BOULDER SE (sr santor front fork, shimano acera rear dR) $230-$280 kinda heavy-

Point I would like to make is that all the bikes you have mentioned are budget bikes. I talked a friend of mine into a Giant Boulder a few years ago, Still a budget bike but one he could afford. It was bought for the frame and nothing else. Forks, Crankset, bottom bracket and wheels had to be changed within 6 months. Front and rear mechs within 9 months, Brakes just over a year, and then there was not much more to change. The frame is fantastic. Problem was the rest of the bits that bolt onto it were rubbish, but we knew this before we started. It did at least get him into riding for very little initial outlay, but after that it was all Pay, Pay and pay. He now has a decent bike, that has cost him 3 times the original amount, but thanks to the quality of the frame, he now has a decent bike

[QUOTE=stapfam]humm.. yeah that's the thing i keep hearing about the Giant bikes. it seem like they are only good for their frame and nothing else. i'm gonna have to ask my friend's father about this one.. why Giant suck on other parts but good for the frame.. :mad:

That's a bit of an over-generalization. It's not so much Giant bikes in general, more just something about the bikes you've posted here. Most of the recreational mountain bikes in the sub-$400 range suffer from the same problem - they're simply not designed for real mountain biking, but more for cruising around local paths and light trails. If anything, Giant bikes are usually better specified parts-wise than equivalent-dollar bikes from Trek or Specialized. The Rockhopper does not really have a much better parts group than the Yukon, but by leaving off some of the 'bling' (e.g. disc brakes), they have been able to increase quality in other areas.

To my mind, the Specialized Hardrock or Rockhopper are the bargain buys in the sub-$500 category.

so does that mean the giant yukon is pretty good then? it does come with disc brake and what not.. but to me that's too high tech. i'm not looking to do those 2 ft drops or anything like that everyday.. but more like trail and commute. now i'm torn between trek 4500/4300/4100 and specialized rockhopper/ hardrock. i don't think i'm gonna consider yukon... cuz then i'll have to get it shipped from taiwan to here, since my friend's dad works there.

I'd say go v-brakes...disc brakes are heavier and for what you're doing, v-brakes would probably be better suited anyway. Giant's frames are really nice (they make frames for Trek, Novara, and a lot of other companies, too), but if you go for the flashy components you'd be stuck with crap. This makes me kinda angry...it seems like these big companies (even/especially Trek and Giant) are adding redundant features like crappy disc brakes and front-suspension forks to bikes that would be much better off without them, just to sell more bikes.

Your choices seem good...the Trek 4000's are very similar to the Rockhopper/Hardrock's are very similar to the BoulderSE's. If you can go $500 try looking at the Giant Iguana, too, but not the disc-brake version.

I looked at bike specs again...I change my answer. Don't get the BoulderSE. For your price range I'd go for the Rockhopper for the componentry. If you want a good frame you can get the Yukon or move up to the Iguana, but the component set on the Yukon is not very good and the Iguana is about $550, new. Plus it has disc brakes, I don't like.

If you are going for bargain, the Yukon and the Iguana have the same frame. The only difference there is componentry.

yeah i think what i'm gonna do is look into the trek 4000s or specialized rockhopper/hardrock. as for the giant... i'll reserve that for later, because by then i'll probably just get the frame only and the build up from there. but for the time being.. i'll just keep my choices to these two brand.. trek & specialized.

as for disc brakes.. i don't need them.. i want my commute bike to be light. i too think V brakes will be better than the disc to suit my needs.