Buying first bike and need advice

[mnb1411]

Hi everyone

 

I am from a small town in the Karoo and finally decided to get into mountain biking

 

After spending countless hours on the net it came down to these bikes:

 

Silverback Alpine 1 - R7000

Scott Scale Team 29er - R8000

Scott Aspect 10 - R8000

Merida Matts Lite 3000 - R11000 ( a bit outside my budget, but nothing a loan wont fix)

 

I still havent decided if I should go with 29er or not. my height is 1.72m and i weigh 67kgs. The one guy said he wouldnt recommend a 29er and the other said it would be fine.

 

Any advice would be much appreciated.

 

Cheers

[Clinton1]

First, let me just clarify that I'm not an expert but there are others on here who I'm sure they can add more.

 

I bought myself a Silverback and have been very happy. It was not the Alpine but my decision was based on being able to get far better specs for a cheaper price than other makes. In checking two of those listed, the Silverback and the Scott Aspect 10, they show the same specs for the shock, front and rear derailleur but the Silverback is R1000 cheaper.

 

Wheels, cranks and some others differ so perhaps the others will be able to point out if any of these make the Scott worth R1000 more.

 

Those are just my initial thoughts but bear in mind my amateur status And welcome to cycling, you'll love it, I did/do.

Edited July 11, 2012 by Clint_ZA

[Showtime]

Hi everyone

 

I am from a small town in the Karoo and finally decided to get into mountain biking

 

After spending countless hours on the net it came down to these bikes:

 

Silverback Alpine 1 - R7000

Scott Scale Team 29er - R8000

Scott Aspect 10 - R8000

Merida Matts Lite 3000 - R11000 ( a bit outside my budget, but nothing a loan wont fix)

 

I still havent decided if I should go with 29er or not. my height is 1.72m and i weigh 67kgs. The one guy said he wouldnt recommend a 29er and the other said it would be fine.

 

Any advice would be much appreciated.

 

Cheers

 

If you're spending that kind of money the Karoo was made for a 29er. Remember 2013 bike season started 1 July so shop around for discount on 2012 bikes.

[Longbarn Killer]

The name Scott is the only thing that makes it more costly than the Silverback. I'm not sure of the specs of the bikes mentioned, but I can bet the SIlverback has far better spec for the money.

 

Another brand you could consider is Axis. I don't think you will get better value for money anywhere. www.axis-bikes.com

 

29ers are all the rage for now and that is all people are buying.

 

I suggest, ride a 26inch and ride a 29inch and see how you feel. I have read a few articles which say short people should stay clear of 29ers as the wheels are too big for the geometry of the smaller frames. You will be the best judge of that.

[King_Crispy]

The name Scott is the only thing that makes it more costly than the Silverback. I'm not sure of the specs of the bikes mentioned, but I can bet the SIlverback has far better spec for the money.

 

Another brand you could consider is Axis. I don't think you will get better value for money anywhere. www.axis-bikes.com

 

29ers are all the rage for now and that is all people are buying.

 

I suggest, ride a 26inch and ride a 29inch and see how you feel. I have read a few articles which say short people should stay clear of 29ers as the wheels are too big for the geometry of the smaller frames. You will be the best judge of that.

I am behind your comments all the way.

I bought a 29er and tried it out. Then I bought a carbon 26". Then I bought a carbon 29er. Finally I got my 650B today which I haven't had a chance to ride. Your height would be better on a 26" bike (imo), but I suggest riding a variety of bikes before making the decision.

When are you coming to JHB again? I have a Merida 3000lite (26") you can try a 29er or the 650b.

[Cav']

You can deduct 1500 off all those prices

[Gideondv]

You can deduct 1500 off all those prices

 

That's pretty much what they retail for... I was in a shop today & checked online..

[Charlie600]

I bought a Scott Aspect 10 for my wife (also a MTB newbie) and we're extremely happy with it.

 

It's decently equipped with an nice fork and you can't go wrong with it (it even has the same XT rear derailleur as my Anthem 29er X0). This together with the light weight (compared to the other bikes that we tested for her) gave it the nod.

 

Needless to say any of the mentioned bikes are decent, just remember to never take a loan in order to buy a bicycle seeing that it depreciates quickly and you might want to upgrade to another bike once you're gaining more and more confidence and skills within a year or two.

 

Welcome to the awesome world of MTB and may you experience many years of happy riding!!

[kvdp]

My advice.Try and get a pre owned bike in the right size for you,with decent specs,for the money.For 8k you can get a decent 26er.

 

That way, when you decide after two months mtbiking is not to your liking,you could sell the bike again without losing to much on capital outlay.

 

If you are hooked,you can upgrade,or buy a better bike.

[mnb1411]

Thanks for all the replies

 

I am leaning towards the Silverback. Seems like more value for money.

@King_Crispy - not going to Jhb any time soon

 

Just a quick question - Is the Merida Matts Lite 3000 worth the R4000 extra?

 

right now its snowing outside, but i swear if i already had my bike i'd be out riding. Can't wait to start mbiking.

[eddy]

Just as a matter of interest, where about are you in the Karoo and what kind of riding do you intend doing ?

[mnb1411]

I am in the "Klein Karoo" near Colesberg, so i'll mostly do cross country riding. Trail riding looks like fun so i would like to that when i'm areas like Knysna

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

okay - then for the majority of riding that you're doing I'd suggest a 29er, purely because it is better on the long flat stuff. Saying that, I'd also suggest going 2nd hand, purely because for your R 8k you'll get a LOT more bike than if you were buying new. And yes, the resale value will hold far better if you for any reason decide to upgrade later on down the line.

 

Going with your choices though:

 

In terms of parts, the scotts are pretty much the same, the only real difference being the fork which is the Tora Air on the Aspect (serviceable, but not that much better than the 29er's XC32 which is pretty much the 29er version of the Tora)

 

If you were going for a 26er, I'd go for the Silverback for sure. Parts spec is better, and the fork is a recon as opposed to the tora (a level above and therefore lighter and better for the price)

 

I wouldn't go for the merida.

 

so - i would recommend a 29er, but the improved specs of the Silverback make that the top bike.

 

For you, I'd recommend riding the 2 (SB & Scott 9er) and see which one you like best. If you like the 9er, the scott is the one. If you like the characteristics of the 6er, then go for the SB. For a grand less than the scott, it's a steal, and you'd be bonkers not to go for it instead of the Scale.

Edited July 13, 2012 by cptmayhem

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

bikes:

 

DS Giant Anthem

GT Zaskar - Very good bike - bit overpriced though

Merida 120 DS - another good bike

Scott Scale LTD 26er

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

more:

 

Raleigh Marathon DS

Spez

Merida Matts Lite

Spez Stumpy DS

Raleigh RM 9.0

[Clinton1]

bikes:

Scott Scale LTD 26er

 

Would you choose that second hand over the new Silverback Alpine for R1750 more?

 

EDIT: I was looking at the groupset but I see now it is carbon. I know it is not all about weight but even then it is only 11.4kg vs 12.4kg.

Edited July 13, 2012 by Clint_ZA