Max 1750 to spend - Full Sus or Hardtail

Mark_G

Hey folks. With the good news of the Bike to Work going up to 1250 quid I think I'm going to try and pick up a new bike. I'm tied though between picking up a higher specced Hardtail or an entry level full sus.

I'm riding a 2015 Vitus Sentier at the moment and really enjoying it but I'm starting to get into the sport a little bit more so keen to upgrade. I used to ride maybe once every couple of months but trying to get out once or twice a week at the moment.

The full sus bikes I was looking at were something along the lines of the Marin Hawk Hill 1 or the Giant Stance 2. Open to other suggestions here.

For hardtails there is a lot of options around this price point but I'd be looking for something with geometry a bit more trail oriented and with around 130/140mm travel. I've had an eye on a few but definitely open to some suggestions here.

Any advice on which to go for? I know it's hard question to answer but thought I'd try and get a bit of advice here before biting the bullet.. Cheers

Tony04

Theres no need for a full sus in ireland imo. All you need are a sturdy set of wheels and forks for jumps drops etc.

Also if you getting into mtbing hardtails are much better to learn bike handling on.
Hardtails are also easier to maintain.

That budget should get you a solid bike anyway.

If your going full sus a bit over budget 1850€ but definitely worth it go for the vitus mythique vrx.

In terms of hardtails off the top of my head to look at radon cragger vitus sentier, polygon (dont know their hardtails). You could go a bit under budget with a hardtail and spend the extra on clothing, tools for the bike etc.

Is selling the sentier part of your budget?

Mark_G

Cheers for getting back Tony.

Yeah the budget will be helped by selling the current bike. This year I've actually put a couple hundred quid into the bike and done it up (new rear brake, tubeless, new tyre, 1x conversion).

Would an option be to spend another couple hundred quid on the current bike for maybe a new fork and a dropper seat post?

This is a link to the bike I have at the moment - https://www.bikeradar.com/reviews/bikes/mountain-bikes/vitus-sentier-vrs-review-2/

I think you're probably right on the hardtail front in my budget. Not sure I'd be able to stretch much further to get into the market for a proper full sus.

Tony04

I had a quick look at the bike and the most economical thing to do is a get a new bike.
I mean it would be cheaper to upgrade it maybe 600€ but the components on a new bike is never more expensive, you're getting a huge discount with the b2w scheme and your getting a much better frame with internal cable routing boost thru axles and more up to date geometry probably a weight saving aswell.
You haven't put to much in to the bike so it's not like its uneconomical to sell it. But it might be nice keeping it upgrading it overtime and using it as a runaround bad weather bike. I've done that with my first hardtail.
In terms of bike then do you want to get a bike with a good frame slightly worse specs: specialized fuse or slightly worse frame better specs: radon/vitus

Mark_G

Cheers Tony. Yeah that makes sense. Holding onto it as a project bike could be a great idea actually.

Specialized could be a good shout. It seems Vitus and Radon are tough to get in the republic I couldn't find a dealer.

Have a couple of bikes I spotted. Orbea Laufey H30/H10, Marin San Quentin 2, Ragley Mmmbop. A lot of them are very similar spec outside of some differences with the fork. All are through bike shops that do bike to work. I suppose a bit of research is needed now!

Tony04

Yeh they're all decent bikes but they're not going to have as good of spec than the direct to consumer bikes.

Radon and vitus are sold only online through mail order hence why the price is so good. Receiving the bike and assembling it shouldn't be an issue.

Vitus has a price to performance ratio that makes them the most popular bike youd see around. You might be able to get them on the b2w scheme as they're based out of belfast (chain reaction) and I've seen them listed with some middle men.

I just mentioned the radon because it's the best bike I've seen for the price.

If your company buys the bike directly you can get a bike from anywhere in the world. If your company uses a middle man your limited to their offerings. If your company doesnt use a middle man and you still go to your lbs, you can negotiate a 10% discount as that's the cut the middle man would take, that's another advantage of going to your lbs.

Mark_G

Interesting that's good to know about the bikes. Unfortunately I'm stuck to the shops available through travelhub.ie, which in fairness is a lot, so I'll definitely be able to pick up something off one of them. Hopefully be able to order in either the Vitus or the Radon.

Cheers though it definitely seems a higher specced hardtail is the way to go

bogmanfan

Just to offer an alternative view. Every time anyone posts a thread like this the answer is always buy a hard tail. But in my experience, outside of XC races, hard tails are rare enough on the trails. Out of 20/30 club mates I would ride with fairly regularly, only 2 have a hard tail as their primary bike. While a full sus might not be strictly necessary for Irish trails, neither is a dropper post. But I know I would prefer a full sus for sure.

Mark_G

At that budget would you think it's still worth considering the full sus? Really it only looks like the hawk Hill or the stance 2 (stance preferably as I can get it locally). I suppose it could be worth mentioning I'm happy to add upgrades as time goes on if needs be.

Joining a club is the next thing! I've moved home from Dublin due to Covid so it'll be a good idea.

bogmanfan

If it were me I would definitely be buying a full sus. Entry level components are all pretty good these days. My wife bought a full sus a year ago for around that budget with an entry level rockshox fork and Shimano SLX and it’s been excellent so far.

And definitely join a club. Best way to find trails!

Mark_G wrote: »

At that budget would you think it's still worth considering the full sus? Really it only looks like the hawk Hill or the stance 2 (stance preferably as I can get it locally). I suppose it could be worth mentioning I'm happy to add upgrades as time goes on if needs be.

Joining a club is the next thing! I've moved home from Dublin due to Covid so it'll be a good idea.

Wanderer78

bogmanfan wrote:

If it were me I would definitely be buying a full sus. Entry level components are all pretty good these days. My wife bought a full sus a year ago for around that budget with an entry level rockshox fork and Shimano SLX and it’s been excellent so far.

Nothing wrong with the slx stuff at all, component quality is fantastic nowadays

Tony04

Mark_G wrote: »

At that budget would you think it's still worth considering the full sus? Really it only looks like the hawk Hill or the stance 2 (stance preferably as I can get it locally). I suppose it could be worth mentioning I'm happy to add upgrades as time goes on if needs be.

Joining a club is the next thing! I've moved home from Dublin due to Covid so it'll be a good idea.

Yeh theres definitely good full suspension bikes at that price the best being the calibre bossnut. Heres a review which has pretty much all your options https://www.mbr.co.uk/buyers_guide/best-cheap-full-suspension-bikes-398551.

I probably only have bias towards the hardtail as I only ride them, although I ride out from my home alot and dont really drive to trail centers.

Rear shocks can be a tricky upgrade all the same.

Tony04

bogmanfan wrote: »

While a full sus might not be strictly necessary for Irish trails, neither is a dropper post.

Have to disagree there, a dropper post is essential unless you ride the most mellow of coilte trails. Theres without a doubt enough jumps steep sections and long climbs over here to warrant a dropper post, unless you want to get off the bike every 5 minutes to manually adjust it.

bogmanfan

Tony04 wrote: »

Have to disagree there, a dropper post is essential unless you ride the most mellow of coilte trails. Theres without a doubt enough jumps steep sections and long climbs over here to warrant a dropper post, unless you want to get off the bike every 5 minutes to manually adjust it.

What I meant was it is possible to ride without one. I know one lad who rides an old 26" hardtail with no dropper and he rides regularly in Slade, Carrick etc. He just manually drops the seatpost. So it's possible, but not recommended! In the same vein, I wouldn't personally recommend a hardtail, but it's obviously a personal preference.

That Calibre Bossnut gets great reviews alright. And there's often sales on them too - have seen them as low as £900

Tony04

bogmanfan wrote: »

What I meant was it is possible to ride without one. I know one lad who rides an old 26" hardtail with no dropper and he rides regularly in Slade, Carrick etc. He just manually drops the seatpost. So it's possible, but not recommended! In the same vein, I wouldn't personally recommend a hardtail, but it's obviously a personal preference.

It's not really the same thing, put a dropper on that 26er and you could ride anything, apart from maybe long dh runs in the Alps, granted the wheels and fork are strong enough, you could probably even ride Whistler a-line on it.
Rear shocks definitely add to your ride experience, but at the price are a bit of a luxury. Not having a rear shock isnt as detrimental to your ride experience as not having a dropper.
Theres nothing wrong with hardtails, especially given the price and maintenance benefits.

Mark_G

Ah yeah I've no dropper at the moment and it is a pain all right hopping off the bike constantly to bring the saddle up and down. Wouldn't be a deal breaker not to get one but if I can I definitely will.

Had a look through the bikes there on that link there actually are some decent bikes so in this price range. The other thing I suppose is how few bikes there are around at the moment! I've contacted a few shops and stock is low everywhere for a while yet.

Any opinions on this? https://www.scott-sports.com/global/en/product/scott-spark-970-bike I think I might be able to pick this up locally. Shorter travel at only 120mm but should still be enough I would imagine? Also comes with a dropper which is a nice bonus

Tony04

The spec is alright, but youd probably want to upgrade it overtime, noticeably the rear wheel is quick release and not thru axles so difficult to upgrade.

Mark_G

Tony04 wrote: »

The spec is alright, but youd probably want to upgrade it overtime, noticeably the rear wheel is quick release and not thru axles so difficult to upgrade.

Okay cheers for that. Upgrading it I'm good with anyway especially if it's a decent starter

Tony04

Does you lbs have it in stock? I know most 2020 scotts are sold and my local shop are waiting till September for the 2021 range. Its a decent starter definitely only thing is the qr skewer i know its something small, but if you want to upgrade the wheels your very limited.

This vitus might intrest you https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/mobile/ie/en/vitus-mythique-27-vrx-bike-sx-eagle-1x12-2020/rp-prod182797 it seems to be restocking this week, but its online only

Mark_G

Yeah they do luckily enough! Yeah I've contacted a few shops now and very few have bikes this side of October

Tony04

Go for it then. It will probably need a shock upgrade eventually and id replace the sx parts with gx as they wear out. Only con about the bike is the fact that it is quick release on the back so if you want to upgrade wheels youll have to get adapters