I recently bought a cannondale f300 so i could start racing, it has worked very well for me so far, everyone tells me that the frame that comes with this bike is very good, i will be upgrading it over the next few years

it seems nice, what about shipping and asssembly? the warrior I rode seemed a bit heavy and almost sluggish, what do you think about the difference between the hardrock pro and the disc, and you, raiyn?

The 650 was the whole tally minus the MTB shoes. The Rogue (I haven't had a chance to ride it much since I'm a bit hurt at the moment) from what I've ridden feels anything but slugish.

so i decided to go for the 05 hardrock pro disc, i rode it and it felt very natural, i could have gone with either a medium or large, but they had an ugly color for the medium, and i think i can handle a large, the only concern was with how much clearance i have over the middle bar. what kinda stuff should i ask the guy to throw in for me, im droppin close to 600 on a bike and 50 for a helmet, just wanted to see what some of you guys got thrown in, he is already swapping the pedals with nicer ones with toe clips from a road bike. should i expect free bottle cages and bottles or what, im just not sure what these bike guys are usually willing to throw in to make a customer happy, thanks

I have an '04 hardrock comp but I didn't like alot of its componentry so I upgraded lots of stuff. I got Avid BB7s...I learned that they have a pretty long break-in period but after that's over and you've adjusted it properly, they're a dream. I got some new downhill wheels and tires just for the fun of it. Added a longer stem and deore shifters. I also added a e13 bashguard. People say the Hardrock frame isn't worth upgrading on but screw them eh? My bike's worth about 1000 now. E-bay is your friend!

Specialized Hardrock Sport without discs is about 300. With discs is mid-400s. I have had my non-disc since she was new in 2001. Its time for me to trade up for somthing newer, but she is one heck of a bike.

Ok So I know that most have said ALOT about the Trek 4300 but my question is really a oppinon based question, I am going to purchase either a 4300 new, Haro V1 new or a little older Cannondale f400 but am not sure which would seem best. The LBS said that the cannondale frame alone would go for 900 but he would sell it to me for 500. Is that an acurate cost on the frame? Would the cannondale be a better frame to upgrade? Please advise cause Im tired of walking everywhere.

NORCO WOLVERINE ALL THE WAY!! It's cheap about $600 and its really strong and durable and has some pretty good components

Well, maybe Mike Sinyard was the a-hole who stole it? :p

Yeah, I'm getting ready to make a similar purchase and have been wondering about what to ask them to throw in... I will be getting the bike, my LBS gives 15% off helmets w/purchase of a bike (i might as well start wearing one!) and a 15% off clothing coupon. But what should a guy (or gal) ask for to sweeten the pot w/o spoiling a possibly fruitful future relationship w/the LBS??? I also want a computer, my pedals aren't being switched out (not as of yet, anyhow), some grip bars would be nice, might as well get a new bottle and cage...

At minimum you should get the following with a statement of, "Okay, how about throwing in..."
- spare tubes (2)
- patch kit
- tire levers
- water bottle
- water cage

Other nice things to get at a discount (~15% sounds about right):
- multi-tool
- pump
- good lock
- fenders, at minimum the front fenders. The Topeak Defender one is pretty good and not that expensive.

OK i picked my bike up today. They gave me the bike for 585, which was originally tagged as 700 (which is the msrp). They did match another shop on that, and they threw in nice alloy pedals with clips for free. I got a nice wireless computer for $40 bucks from them, a specialized elite or something, its nice for forty bucks, they gave me the helmet, tool, oil, cage, and bottle all for 20% off. I guess thats fine for me, I would have liked to get the cage and bottle for free seeing how they probably cost them a whole dollar or two, but the guy that was there when I picked up the bike wasn't the guy I was originally buying the bike from so what can you do. I get lifetime adjustments on my bike from them which is nice. I think i did ok with getting hooked up, im content. I did realize however that my older bike, which is 7 years old now, got it when i was 13 is significantly lighter than this new bike, but it also has crap for derailers, reg v brakes (tektro i believe) and a rockshox front fork, now obviously it is a much smalled bike but still it bugs me even thought i have a lot more bike for not too much more weight, i will be riding it tomorrow let u know how it is

Ok, I have a question about $500ish bikes. I am looking at the Trek 4500 and 4500 disc. I have been reading, mostly posted by Raiyn, that when bikes like this have disc brakes it takes away from other components. This seems completely logical, but when looking at the specs b/t the 4500 and the disc version, you'll see that there is no other difference in components, don't believe me? check it out:

http://www2.trekbikes.com/Bikes/Moun...inum/Index.php

So, is that line of thought just a relic of mountain biking history? Or am I missing something?

Also, can anyone tell me what is wrong with the Judy TT RockShox? Considering I have always just had crappy bikes, beat them up and then bought another one. I just graduated college and I want to get back into biking, so, for a newbie, why should the Judy TT fork be avoided? My Trek 830 Mountain XC from 1999 or 98 has some crap a$$ RST shocks, so surely the Judy TTs are a drastic improvement... :o

Anyone know when Trek starts rolling out 2006's? I saw that specialized started to...

I have a 2006 Trek that I got the first week in August. It's a 4500 (non-disk).

So, is that line of thought just a relic of mountain biking history? Or am I missing something?

I recently bought a 2005 giant Iguana in your price range. It has a 100 mm travel marzochi exr front shock
that used to come on more expensive bikes. It's got an alivio front deraillure which is a a couple of steps
better than the acera that comes on the trek and I'm not to happy with that. but overall it is a better speced bike and there are others out there. I'd suggest visiting more shops and comparing drive train
components on each bike. You should be able to get a 27 speed with upgraded deraillures for under 6 bills.
then after you ride it for a while you'll find out what you missed,like most of us.

What is a guy to do? I think I saw you refer to the Manitou shocks on the rockhopper as "manipoo" in another post and if The Judy TT's are pooish as well, is it basically pick the bike with better components and buy a used/close-out fork that is better? If so, any suggestions on where to start looking and what kind to buy? Or should we save a couple extra hundy and buy a model or two higher with better Manitou/Rockshox or another brand altogether...such a Marzocchi fork or something.

Thanks for your expertise :beer: cheers-

-Edit-

Thanks for the advice, on the search for a giant dealer I found another LBS, not as easily accessed via bike (my other LBS is 2 miles down the trail), but close enough to drive and they have the Trek 6500 for $529 (according to Trek there is only a disc version but they are advertising V brakes, so some looking into is necessary) but they also have the Giant Iguana for $499. More to think about now! I will search through the thread and see what folks have said about the bike :D

Try using this next time rather than cutting and pasting
http://img203.exs.cx/img203/91/arrow...ywquote6it.jpg
Let me revise my statement a touch as there are various levels of poo at work here. <Opinion> RST's and SR Suntours are explosive diarrhea with bits of corn floating in it. Judy TT's and the Manitou Six series are that kind of soft fudgey poo . The lower end Marzocchi's, Manitou Axel series and the Rock Shox Pilots are the turds of someone who eats a healthy dose of fiber. In short you won't be getting a super great fork at this pricepoint so don't expect a miracle. I'm no fan of "Manipoo" across the board largely due to the fact that I haven't found one yet that actually felt like a proper suspension fork to me. In my opinion they're flexy (especially the lower end ones) and have been prone to failure.</opinion> Having said that several people have had decent luck with most of the forks I've mentioned including the RST's and SR SuntoursActually it's better to get the one that feels best and correct any perceived discrepancies in it's equipment from there. Better components will make a bike perform better but will have less impact on feelWhere? Yes What? depends on you. http://tinyurl.com/9hjxd Really good dealYou could do that as well. If it were a case where it wasn't a first time MTB buyer I'd suggest moving on to a higher model if possible.
The bikes in this pricepoint are solid entry level bikes that are intended to get people interested in the sport so that they can decide to

1. Continue in the sport upgrading to a more expensive bike later
   or
2. Decide that they don't like the sport but find that they still aren't out that much money

The #1 thing is "Does the bike FEEL right?" Components are a secondary concern (You really don't want ***** components but it's still not as important as feel.) It's my opinion that buying a bike is 80% FEEL and 20% everything else.
In the words of Snoop Dogg "If the ride is mo' fly then you must buy"

Ok, yeah. I am not a first time buyer, I do have a Trek 830 Mountain X/C. Basically crappy components all around except the rear derailleur. I just got the bike tuned up and it does "feel" pretty good and it gets me around, but all the crappiness from the lousy components is too much for some of the riding I want to do (to the extent that I avoid using the front derailleur at all costs, but not all of the bikes problems are inherently its fault, I have fried some sprockets on the cassette, etc...).
So, I guess I am convinced that I should just save a little longer and look around the $800-$1000 level. The 830 was like $450 in '99 when I got it. If by the time I save up the 1G, I am still as intense about riding as I am now I will purchase in that level. So, it is probably about time for me to leave this thread and find another. After doing all the fun hours of reading websites, finding dealers, looking into warranties, comparing a seemingly endless amount of components, it is time to do it again on totally different bikes ($hit, @#&*%$!*&%^, followed by more explicatives...)
I think I will keep that search narrowed to Trek, Giant, and Specialized. As far as I can tell they seem to have the best frames, life-time warranties, and good components at a reasonable price.
Thanks- :D

Premium fork manufacturers also make low-priced forks.. such as the Marzocchi MZs, Manitou Six, Manitou Axel, RockShox Judy.. what do you think of those? are they any better than the RSTs? if so, which fork out of those 4 would be the best?

[


Thanks for the advice, on the search for a giant dealer I found another LBS, not as easily accessed via bike (my other LBS is 2 miles down the trail), but close enough to drive and they have the Trek 6500 for $529 (according to Trek there is only a disc version but they are advertising V brakes, so some looking into is necessary) but they also have the Giant Iguana for $499. More to think about now! I will search through the thread and see what folks have said about the bike :D[/QUOTE]

the 2005 spring model has some nice upgrades to previous models. Ialso saw a specialized hardrock pro
disk marked down 100 dollars that looked interesting.maybe you can find a deal on a higher end bike also.

You can get an 05 rockhopper for 500 bucks retail...better bike than the hardrock and more upgradeable. You dont want to pay 500 bucks for a bike with disc brakes. Usually on a 500 dollar bike with disc brakes theyve taken away from something else...considering that good disc brakes are from around 300 to 500 bucks ;) get v brakes then upgrade later. Get a better bike and then make it better. Since I started this whole thing I've realized that if you want a really nice bike you have to empty all your pockets. Just empty them lol (kidding)
anyway research is your best weapon
goodluck

yep, your best bet is to buy a bike that's upgradable. and yes, when you buy a $500 bike with disc brakes, it does take away from the other components. you can try buying a bike with v-brakes but good componentry and use the disc-compatible fork to upgrade to... avid mechanicals or something.