DonovanMTB Posted July 7, 2014 Posted July 7, 2014 Hi all. Just recently joined your forum. My cousin and I want to get into some trail riding for a bit of fun and fitness. We are both 1.83m tall. Both looking at spending between R3-R5k on our bikes. Preferably 2nd hand so as to get something better than our budget would allow new. Any advice on what to buy or not buy will be greatly appreciated! Regards,Donovan.
worriesnot Posted July 7, 2014 Posted July 7, 2014 welcome! at that budget you are best off looking in the Classifieds - I see there are a lot of options in your price range at the moment for 26 and 29ers, DS and hardtail. I'm not going to deliberate which wheel is bets as I have fun on both... For your height you are probably looking at a Large but some frames could come in at a medium (depends on manufacturer). Go look/play around in a bike shop to see what feels right, as well as looks right (don't underestimate looks) and then look for something similar in the classifieds. Some LBS owners probably going to rip me apart now for making that comment...
marko35s Posted July 7, 2014 Posted July 7, 2014 As above - have a scratch through the classifieds here, normally a few bargains to be had.
Raydek Posted July 7, 2014 Posted July 7, 2014 welcome! at that budget you are best off looking in the Classifieds - I see there are a lot of options in your price range at the moment for 26 and 29ers, DS and hardtail. I'm not going to deliberate which wheel is bets as I have fun on both... For your height you are probably looking at a Large but some frames could come in at a medium (depends on manufacturer). Go look/play around in a bike shop to see what feels right, as well as looks right (don't underestimate looks) and then look for something similar in the classifieds. Some LBS owners probably going to rip me apart now for making that comment... :whistling: Welcome. Very much agree with worriesnot, being able to jump between lots of different bikes to get a feel for what you like is a great help. The biggest factor for me when buying for the first time last year was hardtail for FS, but this does really come down to personal preference. Be careful of Gumtree, recently went shopping for a road bike, many wasted trips because of in accurate descriptions, or even blatantly after seeing a dodgy carbon fiber fork, "don't think that crack is too bad, will drop the price by R100"..... If you can, take a knowledgeable buddy along when looking.
Patchelicious Posted July 7, 2014 Posted July 7, 2014 Some LBS owners probably going to rip me apart now for making that comment...They shouldn't, as he is a potential new client. Go chat to a few local bike shops, most of the guys are friendly. Then find something second hand that they recommended for you. Just return to the LBS for all parts and servicing, support them if they help you. Super Sywurm and Raydek 2
scubes Posted July 8, 2014 Posted July 8, 2014 I bought a used steel MTB last year for R1000 and sold it for R800 after I realized I do wanna MTB. Then bought a used Specialized 26in hardtail and rode a lot with it. Paid 2k and sold it for 1.8k after I realized I needed a better newer bike. Bought a new Trek x-caliber 4 for 4.5k and sold it for 4k after I realized I needed better components. Just bought a Silverback Sola 3 from a bike shop with air shock and SLX and am happy. Got what I need for my ability (intermediate) and wishes, and got a bike carrier to use with it (Bones for a hatchback, works amazingly well). I think MTBing is about constant tweaking and upgrading of clothes, components and bikes. I only knew what I wanted and needed after riding different trails on different bikes. A good used MTB is fine and a good bike shop will sell them. After buying online, I also realise one needs to be careful with that. A good bike shop will let you test ride the bike and will let you ride their top end demo bikes on an outside mini test track.
DonovanMTB Posted July 8, 2014 Author Posted July 8, 2014 Hi guys. Thanks very much for all your responses. The abbreviations lost me like: LBS and FS and what is hard tail? LOL! Usually I love Gumtree but only for things I know well. Will rather buy a bike from a place like classifieds here or a shop.
Patchelicious Posted July 8, 2014 Posted July 8, 2014 Careful of Gumtree and bikes, lots of scams. Generally the Hub classifieds is pretty good.
Gert Duvenage Posted July 21, 2014 Posted July 21, 2014 Hi all. I am trying to understand the spokelish spoken here... my point.. I need to get a hardtail and I understand the experts must get annoyed with the rookies asking dumb questions. my question is .. yes I know I will find barains in the classifieds but how do I know what is a bargain or not... i know buying a new bike as a newby is not the best idea. so how do i know if its a bargain or not... please some key phrases. please. thanks Super Sywurm 1
Super Sywurm Posted July 21, 2014 Posted July 21, 2014 (edited) Hi all. I am trying to understand the spokelish spoken here... my point.. I need to get a hardtail and I understand the experts must get annoyed with the rookies asking dumb questions. my question is .. yes I know I will find barains in the classifieds but how do I know what is a bargain or not... i know buying a new bike as a newby is not the best idea. so how do i know if its a bargain or not... please some key phrases. please. thanks That is a good question and I don't know how to answer it. I'll give advise, take a a friend with you when you go bike shopping. The person you take along should know bikes and it helps if he/she actually ride bikes. P.S. I started out with a new 5k bike. Edited July 21, 2014 by Super Sywurm Gert Duvenage 1
Gert Duvenage Posted July 21, 2014 Posted July 21, 2014 Fair .. and all my cycling friends told me to goto the hub. LOL .. but I see the message.. what im trying to avoid is the "aaah man why did you not tell me " buyers remorse when you walk in a shop looing like a chop and buying what the sales guy tells you is the bast bike for money and then seeing the same or better deal here... so i think ill try and understand the spokelish spoken here and see what the diff is between deore and slx. and make a componentised compression and see how it goes.. ;-).. its what consultants do.. fake it till we make it.. LOL
Slowbee Posted July 21, 2014 Posted July 21, 2014 Hi all. Just recently joined your forum. My cousin and I want to get into some trail riding for a bit of fun and fitness. We are both 1.83m tall. Both looking at spending between R3-R5k on our bikes. Preferably 2nd hand so as to get something better than our budget would allow new. Any advice on what to buy or not buy will be greatly appreciated! Regards,Donovan.The best advice I was given was this, buy the bike for the riding you want to be doing. AND before buying - speak to as many people as you can. Get as much advice as you can. Know your components know what you are buying and how much it will cost to maintain. Try sift through gobledegookspeak - like this is bomb ass fast, or these wheels never break, you need more grip in the corners. Then when you have settled on one or two or three of four bikes, there is always likely to be some compromise somewhere - even the pro's do it, have your favourite coin ready, and then call heads, when it lands heads, choose tails, Cause bike buying is nie perd koop nie ou maat
TK-Sp3cialiSt Posted July 21, 2014 Posted July 21, 2014 Hi guys. Thanks very much for all your responses. The abbreviations lost me like: LBS and FS and what is hard tail? LOL! Usually I love Gumtree but only for things I know well. Will rather buy a bike from a place like classifieds here or a shop. LBS = Local bike shopFS = Full suspensionHard tail = bike with no rear suspension (normally with front shock, but not always, if no front suspension, often called a rigid bike) Hope that helps Slowbee 1
Slowbee Posted July 21, 2014 Posted July 21, 2014 FS = full suspension = shocks front and back LBS local bike shop HT hardtail, shock on the front
bullet77 Posted July 21, 2014 Posted July 21, 2014 Read more on this forum there is plenty of info and ask questions. Do not ask questions about wheel size on a Friday.
EdGe Posted July 26, 2014 Posted July 26, 2014 Hi guys. Thanks very much for all your responses. The abbreviations lost me like: LBS and FS and what is hard tail? LOL! Usually I love Gumtree but only for things I know well. Will rather buy a bike from a place like classifieds here or a shop.Hello,Welcome to MTB!Found a bike you are interested in yet?There are some great second hand bikes in the Classifieds here. Good luck!
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