Beginner MTB: heavy rider

[WDC1997]

Good day

I'm new to cycling. I have a limited budget and is looking to buy the Galaxy MTB 29".

Need some advice to the bicycle brand galaxy and other alternative options.

Any advice will be appreciated 

[Prince Albert Cycles]

Never heard of the brand Galaxy so did a Google search .

Stay away . Weight limit of 90 kg .

Rather buy a better brand used bike

[WDC1997]

Thanks. 

 

[Gavin Minnaar]

I have heard and owned one and the brother brand of Galaxy the Cubix short story it ain't gonna last its poor quality the bearings just moer out after a while from the rear hub the front fork is I don't know what but not even a coil spring like on cheap well known brands like trek specialized silverback etc...it's purely for cosmetic purposes so no I wouldn't recommend it I like trek bikes and they have been very very very very reliable to me and they have a weight limit of 136kg 

[ChrisF]

52 minutes ago, Gavin Minnaar said:

I have heard and owned one and the brother brand of Galaxy the Cubix short story it ain't gonna last its poor quality the bearings just moer out after a while from the rear hub the front fork is I don't know what but not even a coil spring like on cheap well known brands like trek specialized silverback etc...it's purely for cosmetic purposes so no I wouldn't recommend it I like trek bikes and they have been very very very very reliable to me and they have a weight limit of 136kg 

 

30% discount on a range of Trek bikes at the moment 👍

[Gavin Minnaar]

Yep deciding between the Fuel Ex 5 now and or pro caliber 9.5 just my concern is what is the running cost gonna be on the fuel ex 5 front and rear suspension for a service?if you perhaps may know the fuel ex 5 comes with Xfusion pro rear shock and the front fork is a rockshox recon silver because can't seem to find that information and if it's really high id rather stick to Hardtail. 

[ChrisF]

1 minute ago, Gavin Minnaar said:

Yep deciding between the Fuel Ex 5 now and or pro caliber 9.5 just my concern is what is the running cost gonna be on the fuel ex 5 front and rear suspension for a service?if you perhaps may know the fuel ex 5 comes with Xfusion pro rear shock and the front fork is a rockshox recon silver because can't seem to find that information and if it's really high id rather stick to Hardtail. 

 

Sadly my EX5 ownership was expensive .... 2017 model.  Rear bearings disintegrate, then Trek sells you a new Hub.

 

LBS made a tool to extract the bits.

 

 

Really hope they resolved that since then.

 

 

 

PS . On this specoal the EX5 now costs just a few rand more than it did in 2017.

[Gavin Minnaar]

So is it worth it at 30k now?or should I just stay with my Hardtail bikes?was also looking at the X-Caliber 8

[OVERDRIVE]

Let @Titan Racing Bikes join the chat...

[ChrisF]

Try to get details on what hubs they use now.

 

Then ask @nick_the_wheelbuilder

Edited December 7, 2023 by ChrisF

[Gavin Minnaar]

Bontrager alloy, 6-bolt, Boost110, 15 mm thru-axle front and the rear is

Bontrager alloy, sealed bearing, 6-bolt, Shimano MicroSpline freehub, Boost148, 12 mm thru axle

[Chadvdw67]

My opinion, stick with the hardtail, thoe xfusion shocks are not great, they dont seem to last very long from I have seen on other peoples bikes, rather wait a while and save up and go for the EX7

[Koos Likkewaan 2]

11 hours ago, WDC1997 said:

Good day

I'm new to cycling. I have a limited budget and is looking to buy the Galaxy MTB 29".

Need some advice to the bicycle brand galaxy and other alternative options.

Any advice will be appreciated 

I am sure you now fully up to speed on the pros and cons of the Trek Feul Ex 5. Not sure if that helps you with your question or not.

You will get a lot of questions on the forum to help you in your quest.

Where do you ride ?

What sort of riding are you going to do ?

What do you consider heavy ?

What would you consider a limited budget ?

I agree with Prince Albert. Look for good quality second hand. Lots of good deals right here on the Hub. 

[RobynE]

11 hours ago, WDC1997 said:

Good day

I'm new to cycling. I have a limited budget and is looking to buy the Galaxy MTB 29".

Need some advice to the bicycle brand galaxy and other alternative options.

Any advice will be appreciated 

One of my staff has a Galaxy and it’s not great.
 

If R2500ish is your budget for a 29 (and hey we all start somewhere, you’re not unique!) speak to @RobertWhitehead and see if he can put something reliable together for you within your budget or perhaps for an extra R1000 or so more.
 

Reliability is really the key to riding. If you buy one of these cheap bikes it’s a false economy as you end up needing to buy good quality parts to replace the broken ones, really quickly. You want a bike with quality parts and or serviceable parts. The cheap bikes mostly have “sealed” parts so they can’t be serviced and need to be replaced and things like hubs, bottom brackets, etc are the first to go as they take the most strain. You don’t necessarily need an air fork but a good quality coil fork will serve you very well. A cheap fork will bottom out pronto and you can’t fix them.  Plus cheap drivetrain components means gears that don’t work, or chains that slip or drop or cranks that slip - these things will stop you riding very quickly. 
 

I have 3 cheap bikes sitting in a skip now. Bought for my family, we upgraded, gave the cheap bikes to my staff and they’re all absolutely poked. 1 x Raleigh, 1 x Totem and 1 x Gotcha. All with bottom bracket failure, brake failure, rear hub failure and gears that long ago stopped working. Granted they’re not well-maintained, but the ask on them really doesn’t warrant this level of devastation in such a short time, and it wouldn’t happen so quickly and easily with better quality bikes. I am now buying my guys second hand good quality bikes from Robert (so far we have 2 x GT Avalanches). 

 

[Titan Racing Bikes]

10 hours ago, OVERDRIVE said:

Let @Titan Racing Bikes join the chat...

Thanks 👊

12 hours ago, WDC1997 said:

Any advice will be appreciated 

Based on the Galaxy's price, I would suggest you look at the Titan Racing Player range.
https://titanracingbikes.com/bikes?jsf=jet-engine&tax=range:85

Alternatively, look at a secondhand Titan that's been registered for our 5-year Multi-User warranty. That way you'll be covered should something go wrong with the frame. We don't see many claims, but you never know.

[Danger Dassie]

14 hours ago, WDC1997 said:

Good day

I'm new to cycling. I have a limited budget and is looking to buy the Galaxy MTB 29".

Need some advice to the bicycle brand galaxy and other alternative options.

Any advice will be appreciated 

There are a few alternative options within your budget, predominately second hand. Brand wise, your safest bets;
Titan Racing
Signal or Apex
Zini
Avalanche
Silverback
Marvel

Possible deals that may pop up on special or in the second hand market - Specialized Hardrock, Trek Marlin, Scott Scale.