Fatdoc, I'm off to South Wales and my mate down there is a bit of a MTB freak. He's got one of these so I'm going to give it a go and he's also got some kind of Pace (think its hard-tail) so I'll then be able to make my mind up. http://www.orangebikes.co.uk/2008bikes/five-se.php
i'd be looking at about £2.3k..... for a hardtail.......
Learning on a hardtail will certainly be good for your skills but I wouldn't say it was an essential rite of passage. It will teach you to take accurate lines, be "light" on the bike and how to use your body to absorb what the terrain throws at you. A full susser can cover up a lot of crap technique and decisions by just absorbing your mistakes but you'll probably still learn the same skills eventually anyway.If you want a cheaper but less "exotic" alternative hardtail, then I cannot sing the praises of the Santa Cruz Chameleon highly enough - it's probably the best bike i've ever had and as it's name hints it can be built up for just about any purpose. Probably not best if you're just after an XC steed but you never know, maybe you'll be addicted to dirt jumping in six months time
Quote from: fatdoc on June 13, 2008, 06:48:31 pmi'd be looking at about £2.3k..... for a hardtail....... Not like you to be extravagant Jon I think if i was going for a money no object hardtail then I'd get a Banshee (Mythic) Morphine in Freeborn's "Pro Build" spec at a hefty £2339.99 - ouch!this isn't the above build but you get the idea - indestructible yummyness:
I'm looking at this Pace build. I'm being recommended not to go over 140mm travel on the fork - 18 bikes have never gone over this. Which groupset - Shimano XT or Sram X-9? The build is pretty reasonable. If I go with the rolling chassis's that Pace do - it'll give me 130mm front travel - and will come in under £2K. What do you guys reckon.