Another which MTB

[Sargeant Orange]

Looking to tap into your wisdom please guys.

Looking for a starter mountain bike at around £500. Currently looking at this cube (the 29's appeal) or the rockrider 8.1. Been keeping an eye on the second hand market but nothing has come up near me recently. Anything else I should be considering?

Mainly for use on the local coal tips, forest but also light trails (forest of Dean) and local tarmac.

www.hargrovescycles.co.uk/sale/mountain-bikes/cube...

Edited by Sargeant Orange on Sunday 21st September 23:04

[duff]

Voodoo bizango seems the go-to bike at that price. Not seen a bad review on it.

[-crookedtail-]

duff said:

Voodoo bizango seems the go-to bike at that price. Not seen a bad review on it.

Do Voodoo's still only come in two sizes, as this stopped me getting one a couple of years ago as I was a bit too short?

[Sargeant Orange]

-crookedtail- said:

Do Voodoo's still only come in two sizes, as this stopped me getting one a couple of years ago as I was a bit too short?

They still only do an 18" & 20", no good for me either - just that tiny bit small

[yellowjack]

The Voodoo Bizango won the 'What MTB' "Bargain Bike Test" in the August edition.

They gave it 5 stars, and winner of the "£500 - £600 Flyers" category, with their only criticism being the 'near 14kg weight' and their preference for wider handlebars.

They gave it overall honours too, in a test that took in 24 bikes from £500 hard tails to £1500 full sussers in a variety of wheel sizes. I've no personal experience of the brand/model, but it sounds like it's well worth a look at the OP's stated budget.

[C0ffin D0dger]

Cube stuff does seem to represent excellent value for money. I bought a Cube hybrid (Nature Pro) and I've been pleased with it so far.

[Sargeant Orange]

Reading up on the forks, i'm leaning towards the rockrider 8.1 with Rockshox recon silver, over the cube with XC28 on it. The other components seem broadly similar to my untrained eye.

Are 26" wheels considered to be that out of date now, or are the 27.5's & 29's a passing fad?

[Silver940]

Was at an XC race yesterday, I felt very under wheeled on a 26. All the front runners are on 29ers with the odd 650b.

[Woody]

Rockrider 8.1 is currently £499.99 too.

Cracking bike - one of the girls I ride with has one - if I hadn't got my Carrera Fury for under £400.00 I'd have had the RR8.1.

[Craikeybaby]

I'm in the market for a mountain bike in the same price range, so rather than starting another thread, does anyone have an option about the Vitus Nucleus 275?

It has been reduced down to £379 and I really want a 650b bike as 29" is too big for my short legs.

[Silver940]

Craikeybaby said:

I'm in the market for a mountain bike in the same price range, so rather than starting another thread, does anyone have an option about the Vitus Nucleus 275?

It has been reduced down to £379 and I really want a 650b bike as 29" is too big for my short legs.

Looks alright for the money, it's quite heavy but anything that sort of price is going to be. Hydraulic disk brakes too. Wouldn't be a bad shout.

[BeerMonster1]

Craikeybaby said:

I'm in the market for a mountain bike in the same price range, so rather than starting another thread, does anyone have an option about the Vitus Nucleus 275?

It has been reduced down to £379 and I really want a 650B bike as 29" is too big for my short legs.

I cant comment on the Nucleus 275, but my father has the 29er version. Cracking bike!! For the price i don't think you can beat it. He is 51 and finds it so easy to use, it climbs real well and he seems to gell with it. I've got the Sentier VR 275 (650B) and the bike is amazing!!! It won the MTB of the year award for under £1000. My bike is great all round but the fork quality is what you pay for on the more expensive bikes. This is the only thing I could pick up on. The 29er does weigh a little more too but not that noticeable.

[littleandy0410]

The Calibre Two.Two from Go Outdoors was getting good reviews. My father in law bought one on my recommendation in February this year, when they were down to £340, and it does a great job of leaning up against his garage wall!

http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/calibre-two-two-alloy-...

[Sargeant Orange]

duff said:

Voodoo bizango seems the go-to bike at that price. Not seen a bad review on it.

Many thanks to all who gave advice.

Just to close the thread off, I actually went for the Voodoo for £500 in the end after trying it out for size (the 20" frame on it actually feels much bigger than my current 21"). Just about to give it the first test

It's a monster of bike compared to what i've had previously, well chuffed.