In need of some urgent suggestions

[ol' dirty]

Looking for a bike for myself & wife, & as per usual, Xmas has crept up a little too fast & now i'm rushing around trying to sort this out

Wife is looking for a Track & Trail bike, frame size about 18" capable of fitting a baby seat/ baby trailer

I'm after a Mountain Bike, 22" frame capable of taking mucho abuse

So far, I have hit the usual suspect- Halfords (i'm not big into the scene, so appologies if this is a cardinal sin) & one local supplier.


They suggested a Carrera Vulcan '08 for myself at £250.00, which seemed pretty decent- althought the Forks were very soft...


& a Carrera Subway 2 for the wife.



Both seemed pretty decent & well made.

Now, I just popped into the local Cycle shop- they were'nt very complimentary about the Carrera & they want to do a deal on a BH Spyro.
Never heard of them- apparently a Spanish Company



All I want to know, is the BH worth the extra £100 on top of the Carrera.

Thanks in advance,

Ben

Edited by ol' dirty on Wednesday 10th December 13:36

Edited by ol' dirty on Wednesday 10th December 15:32

[sjg]

22" frame? Are you a giant?

MTBs for average-sized people are around the 18" mark these days, maybe 20" if you're on the tall side.

[snotrag]

What he said... who told you you need a 22" frame? Are you 6'5" plus?

[ol' dirty]

More Sasquatch than Giant I'm over 6'4"
I'm just going by what was suggested by the Halfords member of staff.

Looking at the Carerras, 18" looks a little on the small side TBH. I have no idea what size the BH was, but once the seat was lifted up it looked fine.


This is the spec on the Spyro
http://www.bhbikesuk.com/displayItem.asp?productID...

& the Vulcan
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...

What i'm really after is for some moral support going in favour of the Spyro, I think it looks alot better than the Vulcan.

Cheers

[anonymous-user]

mechanical disc brakes are utterly st. look for something with v-brakes.
both those will be fine for trails and tow paths, they wont stand much abuse on serious off road trails though as the quality of components is quite low.

if you are buying from Halfrods, make sure its one of the bikehut branchs rather than the regular stores.

have a look here, this is evans stuff from £200 to £200 most of the 08 stuff is out of stock but there are a few around http://www.evanscycles.com/categories/complete-bik...
the scott aspect 70 looks ok as does the GT outpost

[ol' dirty]

pablo said:

mechanical disc brakes are utterly st.
the scott aspect 70 looks ok as does the GT outpost

I like the look of the Scott- would you say the Scott is a better vaule for money than the BH?

Also, when you say mechanical disc brakes- does that include the Hydraulic type too?

[option click]

ol' dirty said:

pablo said:

when you say mechanical disc brakes- does that include the Hydraulic type too?

Nope, hydraulics are generally fine, although a decent set of V-brakes can give the lower-spec systems a run for their money.

Avoid mechanical discs like the plague.

[omega man]

ol' dirty said:

I like the look of the Scott- would you say the Scott is a better vaule for money than the BH?

Also, when you say mechanical disc brakes- does that include the Hydraulic type too?

Mechanical disc brakes are opperated by normal brake cables and hydraulic discs are opperated by brake fluid, mechanical disc brakes are only really found on cheap bikes and hydraulic ones are much better feel and power wise.

[mchammer89]

Slighty OT, but everytime I go into halfrauds, i just get frustrated, one time I went in and asked for a lockring spanner, the guys says "it's just what's there" so I turn to walk away and he says "oh but we have more spanners downstairs", couldn't believe the level of idiocy, today, went in to ask if the had any dropout spacers, as most bikes shops have a load as they come with new bikes and get replaced by the wheels, he says "oh they will probably be over there, by the tools" dunno where they get these people from.

[Lunja]

I've just bought a Carerra Vulcan V-spec (same frame as disc-spec, but with v-brake bosses as well as disc mounts), which is cheaper at around £200. I'd have gotten the disc spec, but I can't stand mechanical discs as they're usually fiddly to adjust - Vee's are much easier to fettle

I'm used to riding rigid trials bikes (albeit 5 years ago) but I'm impressed with the Vulcan as an XC machine. It's nicely light (probs aroud 30lb's but don't quote me) and it comfortable for 15 mile + rides without any mods.

However, whilst none of it feels brittle or weak, there are some parts which would be better improved - the hubs seem to drag quite a bit, but a decent de/re-grease might help this; the handlebar isn't very forgiving, so your wrists may feel the strain; the fork is a little spongy, but does have adjustment on it (I don't know whether this is for preload, rebound or damping - I've not fiddled with it yet as I'm used to riding rigid forks). All in all, I'm very happy with it - it's fun to ride, rolls along well and feels flicky enough to have fun with on the singletrack.

And I bought mine online, which had a 10% discount, along with a £20 accessories voucher, so I got the bike and a new lid for £197.

My girlfriend also got a new bike, after hearing me bang on about my new steed, and bought the Apollo XC 26s for £144. It's also got vee's rather than discs, however it does feel heavier and the fork feels cheaper with bouncier springs, but overall it's decent value for a ladies-specific bike.

Have a look at the bikes instore, then head home and order them online. The 10% discount still applies, and you can then have them built by the Halfords mechanics and collect them later in the week. If you'd rather they were delivered to your door, go to quidco.com (an online co-operative)and buy it through their link, which will give you an extra 7% discount, and that should cover the delivery cost

Hope that helps!! If you've got any more questions on the Vulcan, I'd be happy to answer them.

[nervous]

mchammer89 said:

Slighty OT, but everytime I go into halfrauds, i just get frustrated, one time I went in and asked for a lockring spanner, the guys says "it's just what's there" so I turn to walk away and he says "oh but we have more spanners downstairs", couldn't believe the level of idiocy, today, went in to ask if the had any dropout spacers, as most bikes shops have a load as they come with new bikes and get replaced by the wheels, he says "oh they will probably be over there, by the tools" dunno where they get these people from.

I know! Im always amazed that they dont have mensa-members working in Halfords for minimum wage too! It's truly shocking!

[smifffymoto]

Forget Halfords.Go to your local Giant dealer or look on the net.They are very well specced for the money and are not made from cheese like a lot of cheaper bikes

[ol' dirty]

Arrrgh- so many choices! I've given up all hope!

From what I am finding- that price bracket, they all seem to be flawed in some way.
1 may have a decent gear set, & the other good brakes, then the next one I look at is the other way around.
If they're all st, I may as well get one with a paint scheme I like

I am going to another local dealer who is doing a good deal on ex-demos, failing that, I think i'm going to plump for the Specialized Hardrock Sport '09 & the missus will get whatever- Merry Christmas

Also, looking at the sizing chart on Evans' website
http://www.evanscycles.com/help/bike-sizing#mounta...

It's saying I need to go bigger than a 22" frame, think I'll see whats best suited tommorow.



Thanks for all the help & advice.

[sjg]

Those are all about 2" in frame size too big on current MTB sizing. I'm just under 6' and ride a 17.5" frame - everything's got (vertically) more compact, but the important bit is how long they are. As long as the dimensions between bottom bracket, seat and bars are right, the rest doesn't matter. Try some and see.

[nervous]

ol' dirty said:

It's saying I need to go bigger than a 22" frame, think I'll see whats best suited tommorow.

Im 6' 4 and built like a brick latrine, and a 22" bike was way too long for me. To be comfortable on more than a three minute ride on a 22" you'd have to be well over 6'5.

Unless of course you're elastic man, in which case I apologise and ask you to reach that remote for me, please.

[Nick_F]

I'm 6'0" and my MTB was a toss-up between 18" and 19" depending on the frame design.

Frame 'size' is typically measured from the bottom bracket - where the pedals attach - to the join between the seat tube and the top tube. In the last ten years or so frame designs have tended to incorporate 'compact' geometry, which means sloping top tubes and thus a smaller measured 'size' for the same overall dimensions.

The bikes I ride now are, in terms of measured 'size', 3" or 4" smaller than the ones I was riding 20 years ago.

[anonymous-user]

i would have thought 20" frame for the OP would be fine, better to have adjustment via seat post height rather than a whacking great big seat tube length. to be honest, theer will be a trde off on any bike between gears, forks etc. as i said, go for v-brakes and dont worry about the rest, at that price a bike with v-brakes will probably be quite well specced as most people will see disc brakes and go "oh shiny disc brakes, must be good...."

[ol' dirty]

Righto then, thats sorted.
Went into a Specialized dealer in Cornwall & had a look around. Jezus! You really can spend alot of money on some bikes.

Specialized Hardrock Sport '09 for myself & Myka for the wife.
Bit of bartering later, I got them both for 299.00 each & got the helmets & mud guards thrown in for free. Which effectively made the bikes 269.00

Hardrock
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/ha...
Myka
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/my...

23" frame was a monster, looked like my bks would be a little too close to the cross bar for comfort
I have to to back in for a final test- when it's not raining to try out the 21" frame, then complete the order.

Thanks for all the help.

Edited by ol' dirty on Saturday 13th December 14:12

[nervous]

ol' dirty said:

Righto then, thats sorted.
Went into a Specialized dealer in Cornwall & had a look around. Jezus! You really can spend alot of money on some bikes.

Specialized Hardrock Sport '09 for myself & Myka for the wife.

fk? really? they're st!










































not really.

[ol' dirty]

Went back in for fitting with the missus & I just could'nt help myself...

I upgraded to the Disc spec on both, with the intention of changing them to Hydraulic type next year.
And so it begins, I just can't leave anything alone