Ultimate sub R12k bike round up

[DuSeTwa]

Maker	Bike	Warranty	Drivetrain	Suspension	Brakes	Fr. Der.	Rear Der.	Cassette	Shifter	Tires	Price
Titan Racing	Rogue Sport	5 year	1x10	SR SF14 RAIDON AIR 100MM	MT200 Hydraulic Disk	-	Deore	Deore	Deore	VITTORIA BARZO 29″ X 2.25 26TPI	R11 999.99
Titan Racing	Rogue Cruz	5 year	2x9	SR SF14 XCR AIR 100MM	MT200 Hydraulic Disk	Altus	Altus	Altus CS-HG200-9	Altus	VITTORIA BARZO 29″ X 2.25 26TPI	R9 999.99
Trek	Marlin 5	Lifetime	3x7	SR Suntour XCT 30 Coil	Tektro MT276 Hydr	Altus	Altus	Tourney CS-HG200	Altus	Bontrager XR2 Comp, 30 tpi, 29x2.20''	R9 999.99
Giant	Talon 2	Lifetime	2x9	SR Suntour XCT30 HLO 29	TKD 143, hydraulic	Altus	Acera	Altus CS-HG200	Altus	Maxxis Rekon 29x2.4	R10 480.00
Giant	Talon 3	Lifetime	2x8	SR Suntour XCE 29	TKD 143, hydraulic	Altus	Tourney	Tourney tz	Altus	Maxxis Rekon 29x2.2	R9 548.00
Specialised	Rockhopper	Lifetime	2x8	SR Suntour XCE 29	Radius CX7, mechanical disc	Altus	Tourney TX 800	Sunrace 8 Spd	microSHIFT	Ground Control Sport, 29x2.3	R9 500.00
Specialised	Rockhopper sport	Lifetime	2x9	SR Suntour XCM 29	Tektro HDM275 Hydr	Altus	Altus	Sunrace 9 spd	Altus	Ground Control Sport, 29x2.3	R11 200.00
Scott	Aspect 970	5 year	3x7	Suntour XCE28	Tektro SCM-02 Mech	MicroShift FD-M20	Tourney TY 300	Sunrace CSM40 7AV	Tourney TY	Kenda Booster 2.4" / 30TPI	R9 490.00
Scott	Aspect 960	5 year	3x7	Suntour XCE28	Tektro HDM275 Hydr	Altus	Tourney TX 800	Sunrace CSM55 8AV	Altus	Kenda Booster 2.4" / 30TPI	R10 490.00
Scott	Aspect 950	5 year	2x9	Suntour XCT30-HLO Hydr	Tektro HDM275 Hydr	Altus	Altus	Altus CS-HG200-9	Altus	Kenda Booster 2.4" / 30TPI	R11 999.99
Silverback	Stride HD	Lifetime	3x7	VAXA 860 Coil	NUTT Hydr	Tourney FD-TY-300	Tourney TY-300	Tourney CS-HG200-7	Altus	CST C1820 2.35"	R8 999.99
Silverback	Stride Sport	Lifetime	1x8	SR Suntour XCE28	Tektro MD-M275 Hydr	-	MICROshift 8s	MICROshift 8s	MICROshift Xpress 1 x 8spd	CST C1820 2.35"	R9 999.00

Edited September 17, 2021 by DuSeTwa
Updated warranty info

[DuSeTwa]

Alright lads

I had some spare time at work today and am trying to decide what a good starter bike would be for some trail riding and potentially daily commute. I kept the price below R12k to free up some budget for gear.

 

I threw the above table together but can't really piece together what the best value bike would be. It is interesting how different a lot of the bikes may be at the same price.

 

Please mention any additional bikes that I should add to the list and I will try keep it updated it maybe?

 

P.S. I left off some bikes like Fuji because I am 195cm and their bikes don't go above L.

 

Thanks

Edited September 16, 2021 by DuSeTwa
Left a sentence out

[Delta Bikes]

I would look at the Rogue sport, Stride and Aspect
Is a 2nd hand bike off the table?
Can find pretty good bikes for 10-12k with very little use

 

[Rolf Hansen]

It is clear from that table that the two Titan bikes are in a totally different league as the rest.

14 minutes ago, AkwA said:

I would look at the Rogue sport, Stride and Aspect
Is a 2nd hand bike off the table?
Can find pretty good bikes for 10-12k with very little use

 

The Rogue Sport yes. Seems like damn good value.

The Silverback Stride, nope. That VAXA fork is made by Zoom. I have one...on a Silverback Stride...not great is an understatement. The other Stride is Suntour XCE28 - just a hair better than the VAXA. Crappy rear derailleur options as well.

The only Scott on there that is almost worth looking at is the Aspect 950. Coil fork, Altus derailleur, 2x9. The Titan Rogue Sport blows it out of the water in all respects for the same price.

 

Edited September 16, 2021 by Rolf Hansen

[RobertWhitehead]

Lets build you one for your budget

Edited September 16, 2021 by RobertWhitehead
Spelling

[dasilvarsa]

Buy the Rouge Sport 1X10  Best Fork of the Lineup and Brakes that Will Stop U. (This is a R14999 Value Bike)

 

Stock Might be an Issue.

 

Edited September 16, 2021 by dasilvarsa

[DuSeTwa]

2 hours ago, AkwA said:

I would look at the Rogue sport, Stride and Aspect
Is a 2nd hand bike off the table?
Can find pretty good bikes for 10-12k with very little use

 

Second hand isn't at all off the table, I've been patiently waiting for a decent XL bike to crop up  

[DuSeTwa]

1 hour ago, Rolf Hansen said:

It is clear from that table that the two Titan bikes are in a totally different league as the rest.

The Rogue Sport yes. Seems like damn good value.

The Silverback Stride, nope. That VAXA fork is made by Zoom. I have one...on a Silverback Stride...not great is an understatement. The other Stride is Suntour XCE28 - just a hair better than the VAXA. Crappy rear derailleur options as well.

The only Scott on there that is almost worth looking at is the Aspect 950. Coil fork, Altus derailleur, 2x9. The Titan Rogue Sport blows it out of the water in all respects for the same price.

 

I was surprised the most by Scott. Seemed like they were seriously overselling the brand factor at this price range. They would probably make a really respectable bike at the 15k+ region though!

[DuSeTwa]

2 hours ago, RobertWhitehead said:

Lets build you one for your budget

I'm all ears!

I thought about getting an old frame and then getting some sweet new parts.

But how far has the frame tech moved since say 2012?

[RobertWhitehead]

11 hours ago, DuSeTwa said:

I'm all ears!

I thought about getting an old frame and then getting some sweet new parts.

But how far has the frame tech moved since say 2012?

Some folks may argue that the tech has changed a lot since then but IMO if you wanted to go for a Hard Tail I do not see much difference between the geometry of a 2012 - 2015 model versus what we see on the market at this present moment. The frame colors have changed ????. But one thing you also should also note is that building opens a whole new can of worms, you can easily max your budget with only half a bike.

[GHOST FACE]

Giant is lifetime Warrantee

[DuSeTwa]

3 hours ago, GHOST FACE said:

Giant is lifetime Warrantee

You're correct. I updated accordingly