[mark s]

ive been looking at freeride bikes on t'web.ive realise im going have to dig deep if i get even an entry level one.
any of you recomend anything?
ive seen the norco shore 3 for 1200,anyone have one?done a bit of looking at review sites and it gets a good right up.

[Adam Lincoln]

Look out for a Specialized Enduro on Ebay. I have a Stumpjumper but am looking for an Enduro at the moment.

Though a big hit seems in budget.
http://www.tredz.co.uk/.Specialized-Big-Hit-FSR-I-Mountain-Bike-2010-Full-Suspension-MTB_20979.htm?utm_source=froogle&utm_medium=froogle&utm_campaign=froogle

[al123]

i think the norcos and the big hit are quite heavy bikes so the enduros are becoming more popular, less weight is a good thing isnt it??

[neil h]

I just spent the last 3 weeks trying to find the same for a grand,

think good option is a demo 7, there are a few on eBay for around 900 to 1200 for a good un

also ironhorse sunday will set you back 1200 second hand, but amazing, little bit more dh mind

I went for a giant in the end, really good reviews and good price.

hope this helps and good luck, and watch out for scams, I got hit with a few scams but fortunately my man Keith knows how to spot them

[sharkey]

Adam are you wanting rid of the Stumpjumper, if so year, i have a 2010 Enduro Large  i might trade.
Long story short mostly ride XC and a few big mountains, now convinced my local riding is where it's at, mellow XC, nearly bought the Stumpjumper originaly, could maybe twist my arm if in good condition.

[Adam Lincoln]

Adam are you wanting rid of the Stumpjumper, if so year, i have a 2010 Enduro Large  i might trade.
Long story short mostly ride XC and a few big mountains, now convinced my local riding is where it's at, mellow XC, nearly bought the Stumpjumper originaly, could maybe twist my arm if in good condition.

Sent you a pm.

[SA Chris]

also ironhorse sunday will set you back 1200 second hand, but amazing, little bit more dh mind

Worth noting if you didn't know that Iron Horse went under last year, so might stuggle with warranties, backup and spares, if any of those are a concern.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_Horse_Bicycles.

Just after I bought my MKIII Comp

[gingerninja]

ive got a kona stinky air frame for sale. 7in travel from a dhx air shock. its got the dope breaking system and ill include race face seatpost, clamp and fsa headset. looking for £500 ono.

[fatdoc]

size short commencal furious frame with E-13, with seat post, clamp, post  & rail saddle... and a LUSH pair of 180mm 66s ( 1.5 headset incl of course)

for a quick sale.. £700 collected

[neil h]

also ironhorse sunday will set you back 1200 second hand, but amazing, little bit more dh mind

Worth noting if you didn't know that Iron Horse went under last year, so might stuggle with warranties, backup and spares, if any of those are a concern.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_Horse_Bicycles.

Just after I bought my MKIII Comp

I knew they went under, but would not stop me buying one, when parts break replace them with better ones simple 

[fatdoc]

IH are high maintenance.

make sure it's a DW, not single pivot.. for reason explained ad nauseum elsewhere..

if you can get a Demo 7 or SX trail for £1200... go there.

forget ebay.

search pinkbike

happy to critique if necessary

[fatdoc]

www.pinkbike.com/buysell/692576/
www.pinkbike.com/buysell/659445/
www.pinkbike.com/buysell/711231/


for starters   

[Yossarian]

My 07 Kona Stinky Primo is shortly going up for sale...

Used 4 times? Lots of tasty gear, virtually spotless, size L (17"?)

£995, but in the south east so I'll have to find some way of getting it up north.

Pics can be arranged if anyone is interested...

[James Yeah]

Why do you want a freeride bike? What exactly are you going to use it for?

Why not get an AM or proper downhill bike?   Freeride bikes are a bit ott and odd for the uk in general.   


I'd steer away from Norco and Kona as well. 

If you're set on a freeride bike, why not get something playful like a secondhand Transition bottle rocket or Similar?  They'll be way more fun than a huge full on freeride bike and around the same price or get a proper downhill bike rather than something in between that isn't much good for anything? 


Oh and Iron Horse prices secondhand have dropped dramatically since CRC put a load of sundays and similar up for £1200 brand new a few months or so ago.  Also pretty sure they've been bought out and will be continuing to make frames in the future.

Be super careful if you choose to buy something off pinkbike, it's renowned for scammers and dodgyness.   Check southerndownhill for lots of used freeride/downhill/am bike as well as singletrack world and other smaller bike forums.  Ebay also has some bargains from time to time so don't count it out.

[fatdoc]

pinkbike's fine... as fine as any other www. forum. play safe, you'll be fine. SDH is no better / safer / worse IME... you know the sort of thing.. *posted from Slovenia*, no high res pics etc....

I agree, the term FR is a bit odd... as for not much use the UK. I disagree. Most DH courses / tracks in the UK are fine on a single crown bike. As are some epic *cough, not waymarked descents around the place * YOu do have to sure of intended purchase before buying, as a lot of AM bikes can do a lot!

As for transition bikes... personal choice.. not one for me.

[gingerninja]

whats wrong with kona and norco james? they are both good brands and produce quality bikes.

[AndyR]

whats wrong with kona and norco james? they are both good brands and produce quality bikes.

Quite - probably half the bikes I see actually doing freeride here on the Shore are either Kona or Norco.

[James Yeah]

Fatdoc - What i meant was i just don't see the point of a freeride bike when you can get either a proper downhill bike or an AM bike.  Both will do a better job of whatever you want and still be useable for other things.   

As for pinkbike, i thought you could sign up and post in the sell and swap section straight away?  You can't do that on southerndownhill so stops a few scammers.


Gingerninja - I'm not going to get into an argument about brands but Kona's are not good quality bikes, they are dated, heavy and with general bad geo and aren't even made particularly well.  They haven't changed anything in about 10 years and even 10 years ago they were terrible.  Go ride a top end Kona downhill bike then go ride an equivalent Trek/giant or specialized and you'll see the huge differences in quality and ride.   

As for Norco's they have improved a bit recently but before that they were horribly heavy and with such tight and steep geo they were awful when pointed down a hill.  They have slackened them off now but i still wouldn't bother when you can get better bikes for the same price.


AndyR - The reason you see so many Norco's in the shore is that they're a Canadian company and are cheaper to buy there than most other brands.  As for seeing lots of Kona's well they're a bit cheaper and suck the beginner market and hire market in.

[gingerninja]

yeah cos no one that rides a kona wins anything do they? bass, barel and others.  i have owned a few kona bikes in my time and have found them to ride really well.
they are changing and tweaking the bikes all the time, and have just brought a new dh bike out. may not be the best bikes but are still good bikes for what you pay.

[Norton Sharley]

Maybe it's not all about the bike but has something to do with the rider.  I've heard that some people even ride single pivots, pfaff

[James Yeah]

Gingerninja - You cant really mention pro riders winning on certain bikes as theirs are different to production models by a long shot. Infact if i recall correctly fabian barrel at one point used another companies frame rebranded as a kona.

Its not all about the bike but why not get something good in the first place? Sorry but there are much better bikes for the price of the equivalent konas imo


Norton - nowt wrong with a good single pivot.

[Norton Sharley]

Norton - nowt wrong with a good single pivot.

Tell that to Fatdoc (duck and covers).

[James Yeah]

Ha i'll leave that for another thread as i feel i've already dragged this one off topic enough.

[fatdoc]

back in the room:

if yr fancy a 36lb or whatever single crown full bouncer  ( aka FR bike) and see one on a site / forum / classified... post it up here and the assembled masses will throw in their 2 penneth
 
 

[AndyR]

AndyR - The reason you see so many Norco's in the shore is that they're a Canadian company and are cheaper to buy there than most other brands.  As for seeing lots of Kona's well they're a bit cheaper and suck the beginner market and hire market in.

Not really that much cheaper - certainly not enough to warrant the disproportionate number of them - and yes, the dealers here on the shore sell pretty much every brand going - I suspect it has a lot to do with them being built with very steep, rooty and rocky terrain in mind, and hence are able to take a lot of abuse.  They may not be good for the UK market though - been a long time since I've ridden there.

[fatboySlimfast]

http://ukbouldering.com/board/index.php/topic,16057.msg279950/topicseen.html#new
 

[neil h]

here you go what you think, specialized enduro comp fsr 07

http://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/708251/

[peewee]

Get one of these, great bikes.

http://www.pfmrs.plus.com/pete/bike/bullit/new%20sc.jpg

[fatdoc]

here you go what you think, specialized enduro comp fsr 07

http://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/708251/

superb example.

havnt looked at the running gear in detail but the price is about right.

I'd consider one, take the big ring off, put a bash guard on, some sort of seat dropper and off you go. Good for all up to stuff that will relly hurt if you fall off... probably more if you have more ability than me.

there was some concerns over the spesh own shocks... though I've not heard of any real issues.

[neil h]

yes all the reviews seem to say get shot of the shocks as there crap and replace them

do you know anything about the sizing on this it says medium, but there sizing chart seems to suggest that the medium is only a bit bigger than the small

I was really tempted to buy this until I saw that.

[fatdoc]

you are a large Neil.


not meaning to be offensive.

[neil h]

yes thought so, no offence taken, just thought I might be able to squeze my fat arse onto it 

[SA Chris]

Think not, you definitely need to go Large.