Full suspension or hardtail mtb

Pkiernan

Hello all,

I am looking for a mtb for 50/50 roads and trails.

Whilst cycling along the Royal Canal towpath from Dubin heading west, the bike I was riding was quite rough. It had front suspension only.

I think a full suspension bike would be smoother in this situation, but am I losing anything on the road with a full suspension bike?

Thanks in advance.

Morgan

Pkiernan wrote: »

Hello all,

I am looking for a mtb for 50/50 roads and trails.

Whilst cycling along the Royal Canal towpath from Dubin heading west, the bike I was riding was quite rough. It had front suspension only.

I think a full suspension bike would be smoother in this situation, but am I losing anything on the road with a full suspension bike?

Thanks in advance.

A hardtail would be much more suitable for the riding you're describing. A full-sus will be heavier, (probably) less efficient to pedal and more difficult to maintain.

If you're looking for a bit more comfort I'd recommend a steel frame, decent fork and high-volume tyres (best run tubeless).

Pkiernan

Thanks for the response!

Zascar

I'm about to buy a bike to get back into mtb after a long time out. Some of my mates still do it and they all begged me not to get a hardtail. Most of them got hardtails at first and ended up selling them after a few months to get a full suspension. I'm not into the hardcore x-country stuff just fun trails and some downhill really. I talked to loads of people about it including guys in several bike shops I went to and they all agreed full sus is the way to go.

These days the technoloy is so much better than it used to be. 5 years ago climbing on a full sys would kill you, the bounce took so much of the energy. Nowadays the bikes are so much better - you have full lock-out on many suspension setups, and some you don't even need it. I'm going for a Giant Trance X3 and these are regarded as excellent all rounders. For me at least the benefits of full suspension will far outweigh the negatives of it being slightly heavier and maybe a tiny bit more difficult uphill.

Depends on your budget really, prob less point in getting a budget end full sus though. What is your budget?

BostonB

Isn't roads/trails a bit different to trails/downhill?

robbie_998

dunno if this is a good deal or not but B&Q got mt bikes (no suspension) in on saturday night and were put out on display there yesterday.

Both for male and female. €100 each.

seem alright to me but i'll let you guys judge

Golfanatic

bso!!! bike shaped object. no dont go there