Buying advice for novice

I want to buy a MTB for my son (a well built adult) but I have little expertise. He seems to be a
bit heavy on his bikes. I know that it has to have full suspension and that I will pay something
between 200GBP (hopefully) to 500GBP(reluctantly)

I have come across two possibiliies which seem to my untutored eye to be attractive.

1 Carrera Banshee from Halfords offered at 350GBP (reduced from 450)

2 Specialised Epic 03 offered at 550GBP (reduced from 1500 GBP ???)

I would be grateful to hear any comments on either of these bikes.

<rharrisonn@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message
news:lr6uvvgofv9rhvg7cfgd9kacukask7eeme@4ax.com...
> I want to buy a MTB for my son (a well built adult) but I have little expertise. He seems to be a
> bit heavy on his bikes. I know that it has to have full suspension and that I will pay something
> between 200GBP (hopefully) to 500GBP(reluctantly)
>
> I have come across two possibiliies which seem to my untutored eye to be attractive.
>
> 1 Carrera Banshee from Halfords offered at 350GBP (reduced from 450)
>
> 2 Specialised Epic 03 offered at 550GBP (reduced from 1500 GBP ???)

I'd stay well clear of a full suss bike for 450 squid whereas it'll buy a decent front suss only
bike (hardtail). At that price point a full suss bike is all ablout form and little to do with
function and will have dodgy parts and be heavy whilst not being particularly durable.

You can get a Specialized Epic for 550 quid? Really, please tell where from, the list price of these
is indeed £1500, snap it up unless of course it's nicked then please inform the law.

http://www.bikemagic.co.uk/review/re...RCN=57&v=2&sp= Provides reviews of both
these bikes, bear in mind negative comments of a £1500 bike are not the same as those levelled at a
£450 one, they're in different leagues.

Pete

On Fri, 9 Jan 2004 21:41:13 +0000 (UTC), rharrisonn@yahoo.co.uk wrote:

>I want to buy a MTB for my son (a well built adult) but I have little expertise. He seems to be a
>bit heavy on his bikes. I know that it has to have full suspension and that I will pay something
>between 200GBP (hopefully) to 500GBP(reluctantly)
>
>I have come across two possibiliies which seem to my untutored eye to be attractive.
>
>1 Carrera Banshee from Halfords offered at 350GBP (reduced from 450)
>
>2 Specialised Epic 03 offered at 550GBP (reduced from 1500 GBP ???)
>
>I would be grateful to hear any comments on either of these bikes.

Q1. What does he want to use it for? I know you say MTB does he really want to use it for downhill
jollies? Or a bit of sustrans crap surface fun? Or shoddy city road commute?

rharrisonn@yahoo.co.uk writes:

> I want to buy a MTB for my son (a well built adult) but I have little expertise. He seems to be a
> bit heavy on his bikes. I know that it has to have full suspension and that I will pay something
> between 200GBP (hopefully) to 500GBP(reluctantly)
>
> I have come across two possibiliies which seem to my untutored eye to be attractive.
>
> 1 Carrera Banshee from Halfords offered at 350GBP (reduced from 450)
>
> 2 Specialised Epic 03 offered at 550GBP (reduced from 1500 GBP ???)

I was going to say you can't get a worthwhile full suspension bike for that money and that you
should go for a hardtail, but if you can get an Epic for that price it is actually a good bike (it's
a reasonably good bike even at it's full RRP). It has some minor problems - it has not one but two
separate clever mechanisms for eliminating pedal bob and neither of them actually work very well -
but unless he's an experienced and keen off-road cyclist he's unlikely to be too troubled by this.
In any case it has lockout so you can just lock the back end when climbing.

Good full suspension bikes do cost over £1,000 and although you can get full suspension bikes for
much less than this they are not worth buying. Suspension units which will work well under off road
cycling conditions and are not heavy are inherently expensive to make. Even light ones add weight to
the bike, so it's important that the frame itself be very light, and that too means expensive.

--
simon@jasmine.org.uk (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

The Conservative Party now has the support of a smaller proportion of the electorate in Scotland
than Sinn Fein have in Northern Ireland.

On Fri, 9 Jan 2004 22:07:59 +0000 (UTC), "Peter B"
<peter28@btinternet.com> wrote:

Snip
> I'd stay well clear of a full suss bike for 450 squid whereas it'll buy a decent front suss only
> bike (hardtail). At that price point a full suss bike is all ablout form and little to do with
> function and will have dodgy parts and be heavy whilst not being particularly durable.
>
>You can get a Specialized Epic for 550 quid? Really, please tell where from, the list price of
>these is indeed £1500, snap it up unless of course it's nicked then please inform the law.
>
>http://www.bikemagic.co.uk/review/re...RCN=57&v=2&sp= Provides reviews of both
>these bikes, bear in mind negative comments of a £1500 bike are not the same as those levelled at a
>£450 one, they're in different leagues.
>
>Pete
>
Your advice - and the reviews look to be very useful.

Many thanks

Ray

On Fri, 09 Jan 2004 22:34:24 +0000, "[Not Responding]"
<not_responding@dev.null.invalid> wrote:

SNIP
>Q1. What does he want to use it for? I know you say MTB does he really want to use it for downhill
> jollies? Or a bit of sustrans crap surface fun? Or shoddy city road commute?

Mainly country track riding but nothing which involves throwing himself and bike off of a cliff :-)

On Fri, 9 Jan 2004 22:07:59 +0000 (UTC), "Peter B"
<peter28@btinternet.com> wrote:

>
SNIP

>You can get a Specialized Epic for 550 quid? Really, please tell where from, the list price of
>these is indeed £1500, snap it up unless of course it's nicked then please inform the law.

Advertised in "Mountain Bike" February 2004 by Western Cycles .

rharrisonn@yahoo.co.uk writes:

> On Fri, 9 Jan 2004 22:07:59 +0000 (UTC), "Peter B" <peter28@btinternet.com> wrote:
>
> >
> SNIP
>
> >You can get a Specialized Epic for 550 quid? Really, please tell where from, the list price of
> >these is indeed £1500, snap it up unless of course it's nicked then please inform the law.
>
> Advertised in "Mountain Bike" February 2004 by Western Cycles .

Snap it up quick. They won't have many at that price and there will be a queue.

--
simon@jasmine.org.uk (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

;; MS Windows: A thirty-two bit extension ... to a sixteen bit ;; patch to an eight bit
operating system originally coded for a ;; four bit microprocessor and sold by a two-bit company
that ;; can't stand one bit of competition -- anonymous