Help Finding New Mountain Bike

RedRebel92

I am interested in getting a new mountain bike for around €300 and spotted the below Carrera Hellcat in Halfords:

http://www.halfords.ie/cycling/bikes/mountain-bikes/carrera-hellcat-mens-mountain-bike-silver-16-18-20-frame

Does anyone have experience with this bike or recommend a good bike in this price range?

iwillhtfu

RedRebel92 wrote: »

I am interested in getting a new mountain bike for around €300 and spotted the below Carrera Hellcat in Halfords:

http://www.halfords.ie/cycling/bikes/mountain-bikes/carrera-hellcat-mens-mountain-bike-silver-16-18-20-frame

Does anyone have experience with this bike or recommend a good bike in this price range?

Whats's your intended use and what size?

The one you linked would be fairly basic for any serious off roading but it would get you down a few trails. The biggest concern besides the fork would be the mechanical brakes.

This is a bit more but significantly better spec from the tyres up.

https://www.merlincycles.com/diamondback-myers-10-mountain-bike-2017-105260.html

RedRebel92

I currently live in Dublin but my family home is beside the Ballyhoura trials so I'll probably use the bike there once a month, then maybe Ticknock twice a month, other than that it'd just be for roads or parks around Dublin a few evenings a week.

I would prefer hydraulic brakes but I'm guessing they'd be a bit out of my price range?

I don't really want to spend that much giving that I won't be using it every day like I mentioned.

iwillhtfu

Second hand would be the way to go so considering your budget.
A quick look on adverts https://www.adverts.ie/mountain-bikes/offers-at-420-considered-can-t-give-bike-away-nearly-80e-drop-cube-analog-29er-2013-hardtail/14583719

The bike you linked would be fine on ticknock and ballyhoura but none of the components will breed confidence. Mechanical breaks are all kinds of terrible when over used as they would be when MTB. They're fine on the road as you're usually not fighting gravity when breaking.

RedRebel92

Ok thanks very much.

What are the main things to look out for in a second hand bike?

Macy0161

fwiw the voodoo bantu seemed to have alright opinions/ reviews on UK mtb forums when I was looking a few months ago, if you could stretch and/or get the axa discount.

Just realised I've done the usual for the forum and suggested a bike above the stated budget!

Lemming

RedRebel92 wrote: »

Ok thanks very much.

What are the main things to look out for in a second hand bike?

• Frame: dents, bends that shouldn't be there, cracks, signs of stress or metal fatigue.
• Forks; assuming suspension; cracks, dents in general, and scratches to the stanchions (not a good sign if they're notable or deep). Responsiveness of forks to being compressed, any oil leakage around seal areas.
• Wheels: smooth rotation (i.e. the hubs/bearings aren't f*cked), signs of buckles or otherwise how non-round the wheels are.
• Drivetrain: can it change gears? Is it doing so smoothly? Is there any chain-slippage when pedalling? Is there any play in the cranks from side to side? How well are the pedals roating on their axles? Is there any play in the pedals?
• Brakes: Do they work? Do they work well? Do they prevent the wheel from spinning freely? If discs, do they howl when applied, even after a couple of minutes usage?
• Headset: is their play between the forks & frame if rocked back and forth? Can you turn the forks easily i.e. there's no play or grinding 'feel'

If the bike looks filthy or otherwise not thoroughly cleaned, or there's bits hanging off it that just don't look right, it may be an indicator of how well cared for the bike has been. It's still possible that it looks immaculate but hasn't been looked after, so closer inspection would always be advised anyway. As always with second hand; "caveat emptor".

Edit: I've listed some main areas to look out for with a view to looking at a hard-tail framed bike. Full-suspension is a whole other beast again, and tbh for the budget I just wouldn't. Just don't go there. At that budget a full-suspension bike will either be a heap, a liability, and/or probably stolen.

seaviewphotos

Macy0161 wrote: »

fwiw the voodoo bantu seemed to have alright opinions/ reviews on UK mtb forums when I was looking a few months ago, if you could stretch and/or get the axa discount.

Just realised I've done the usual for the forum and suggested a bike above the stated budget!

I'm also on the look out, I was thinking second hand but maybe this is an option. I won't be using it very often but when I do it will be on trails which are quite rough. Would this last the test of time?

Macy0161

Definitely not an expert, and didn't go for it in the end. But it's a recognised fork, albeit a lower end one. I think the xcm was the fork on my old hardtail, which was an ex-biking.ie rental so I assume it wouldn't be too bad.

steamsey

IMO - on a low budget second hand is the way to go. A 3/400 quid new bike will be pretty basic and I would imagine that you'd realise its limitations soon enough and be looking for something a bit better. adverts / done deal / pinkbike are the places to look.

If I was starting all over again I would get a hardtail, 29er perhaps but I'd still give a 26 a go. I'd want a decent front fork (Fox / Rockshox) that was serviced within last 18 months depending on usage, hydraulic brakes (older Shimano's were pretty easy to service / bleed), true wheels with bearings that have life left, and in terms of components, Shimano Deore / Sram GX will serve well, anything above this standard of components is a bonus.

I would especially be looking for a good deal on a well maintained 26, 9 speed. These are practically redundant as everyone has moved to 27.5 / 29 and 10 / 11 / 12 speed so you might be able to find a gem, assuming you can still buy decent 26 tyres.

Honestly - hydraulic brakes are a must. The better the brakes the faster you can go!

Lemming

steamsey wrote: »

If I was starting all over again I would get a hardtail, 29er perhaps but I'd still give a 26 a go. I'd want a decent front fork (Fox / Rockshox) that was serviced within last 18 months depending on usage, hydraulic brakes (older Shimano's were pretty easy to service / bleed), true wheels with bearings that have life left, and in terms of components, Shimano Deore / Sram GX will serve well, anything above this standard of components is a bonus.

I would especially be looking for a good deal on a well maintained 26, 9 speed. These are practically redundant as everyone has moved to 27.5 / 29 and 10 / 11 / 12 speed so you might be able to find a gem, assuming you can still buy decent 26 tyres.
!

The only thing I would say regards 26ers is this: consider a frame which takes a tapered fork. I have two old-school 26ers with a 1"1/8 steerer with 80/100mm travel due to frame geometry and trying to find decent candidates for fork replacement is an absolute pain in the @rse these days.

You can buy decent 26" tyres. Noooooot a problem. I've got a Maxxis high roller & a schawble nobby nic on my go-to MTB, with a Maxxis DHF spare ready for the front wheel as I remain unconvinced as to how well the Nobby Nic suits my front wheel.

Edit: I should probably add by way of explanation that I've had no problem either sourcing 26" tyres or having a wide selection of 26" tyres to choose from particularly from online retailers as manufacturers are still offering a wide variety of tyres for 26" wheels. Maxxis tyres have a very good reputation, having strong carcasses (meaning less likelihood of side-wall tearing, or collapsing if running tubeless) and decent tread pattern; with both the high-roller (& high-roller II) and DHF/DHR tyres proving themselves very popular as choices.

seaviewphotos

Thanks for the info, I was thinking used is the way to go. I was hoping to get something decent with 27.5" wheels, used ones seem to be rare at the moment but I'm sure I'll pick one up, I'm not in a rush.

Lemming

In addition to the likes of adverts.ie linked about by iwillhtfu, keep an eye on pinkbike, although bear in mind you might need to filter your country location between Ireland & the UK to get N.Ireland listings. There's nothing showing for 27.5" wheels in Ireland at the moment at €400 (seems to start around €650 at the moment), but I haven't checked N.Ireland specifically but the UK as a whole is showing more than a few offerings but bear in mind a) pounds not yoyos for the listings and b) you'll have to sort a courier company (not as expensive as you'd think, but still extra cost to stump up).

Edit: currently only seeing three bikes below £800 (I picked this as an arbitrary point to see what was out there without breaking into four figure territory) for all of N.Ireland right now; here's the search criteria. If I add the XC bike category it's still the same results.

• 2016 Voodoo Canzo @ £460
• 2015 Whyte 901 @£;600
• 2016 Orange Crush @ £760

Macy0161

This popped up in my facebook feed yesterday, maybe some use to those that are looking at halfords (UK magazine, so prices quoted are brexit pounds)...

http://www.mbr.co.uk/buyers_guide/halfords-mountain-bikes-371009

The Noble Nudge

If you can wait try up the budget as much as you can for a higher spec bike...2nd hand or new
Canyon are a good option and have sales from time to time...
They do a nice hardtail range to suit all pockets (a bit more than your original budget)
https://www.canyon.com/en-ie/mtb/grand-canyon/

mr spuckler

I'd suggest getting on to the lads at biking.ie, I bought second hand off them last year and am well happy with the bike I got. think it was about the €450-€500 mark for a 1 year old hardtail that comes fully serviced. I bought in April time and got the last one so I'd say it's around now that they're beginning to move them on.