Raleigh Bandicoot
- Thread starter tinkz
- Start date
It's not a great bike, but £50 is a tough price to beat ...tinkz said:hi everyone, ive been offered a raleigh bandicoot full suspension 24 speed mountain bike for £50 , is this a good deal , its in great condition, any advice appreciated as its my first bike,
There are only a few reasons you wouldn't/shouldn't buy it ...
If the size is too small (i.e., you are over 6'0" tall and the frame's virtual top tube is only 52cm).
If the size is too large (i.e., you are 5'2" and the frame has a 60cm virtual top tube).
OR, if it was stolen by your Mate & he is pawning it off on you.
If the size is too large (i.e., you are 5'2" and the frame has a 60cm virtual top tube).
OR, if it was stolen by your Mate & he is pawning it off on you.
Well, I'm not sure what you want to know ... the retail was apparently in the £350 range ... that puts it near the low end of the price spectrum ... and, its components reflect as much -- nothing wrong with that (most of Shimano's lower end components are fuctional equivalents to their high end "stuff" & will probably outlast the expensive "stuff" if properly maintained because there is a lot of steel used instead of alloy).tinkz said:hi alfeng, im only 5'9" and i wouldnt touch it with a bargepole if i thought it was the least bit dodgy
The thing you need to know about mountain bikes is that if you took one of the top-ten riders and gave them the Raleigh Bandicoot (presuming it was the "right" size and/or stem/etc. adjustements could be made so that it "fit" + allow a team mechanic to adjust the hubs/etc.) to acclimate to for an hour-or-so so s/he could learn the bike's limitations, and then gave the BEST full suspension bike to a 'regular' rider, I reckon that if you put comparable tires-and-tubes on the particular Raleigh model that a top-ten rider would be able to negotiate a XC course more quickly than the 'regular' weekend warrior on the hypothetical, high-zoot bike.
So, while the Raleigh Bandicoot may have limitations when compared to a high-zoot MTB, it will certainly suffice for your first bike ...
SOME things on the Raleigh can probably be changed to make it better & suitable for more arduous riding conditions that whatever the engineers spec'd the bike to handle ...
Looking ahead in time, certainly, the fork can be changed.
The rear shock can probably be changed, but perhaps not.
Tires and/or wheels can always be changed.
Cranks, derailleurs/shifters can always be changed.
Unless components are changed on an as needed basis, when most people assess changing/upgrading components, they usually buy a new bike.
MY Hardtail has been around long enough that the ONLY part that is original is the seatpost clamp -- it has had three forks ... the original solid fork, a fork with neoprene shocks (!?!), and the current fork (Marzocchi Bomber) which is several years old. The cost of the "changes" certainly exceeded the original cost of the bike. The only reason it has been a "wise investment" on my part to update-or-upgrade the components is because it has saved me from spending more (thousands?!?) on a 'new' full suspension MTB which would now be considered to be out-of-date (if one is trying to keep up with evolving suspension technology).
FYI. There are apparently four different types of rear suspension linkage ... there are apparently royalty-generating patents on at least three of them ... the amount of travel on the Raleigh is probably less than on a bike you would pay £2000+ for if you were to walk into a bike shop this afternoon ... but, some of that is because of the age of your friend's Raliegh (i.e., evolving suspension technology allows more travel without loss of efficiency).
The more expensive MTBs have lighter components ... including/(especially!) parts related to the suspension.
The technology of an RST fork is limited (nothing necessarily wrong with that IF you understand that there are indeed some limitations) ... the travel is limited ... the rate of rebound is different ... the worst part is that the fork, alone, probably weighs in at 5 lbs. (~2.25 kg), possibly more!
The crank on the particular Raleigh may have steel chainrings ... nothing wrong with that except that they weigh more ... much more.
So, the Raleigh Bandicoot may weigh in around 32+ lbs (~14.5 kg.), maybe more!?!
Again, at £50, it's a tough price to beat EVEN IF you only ride it around town & never take it off road ...
If you never (plan to) take the bike off road, then at some point in time you will want to buy some 'city slicks' & tubes for the bike.
Hi Alfeng,
took the plunge and purchased the bandicoot, needs a good clean( years of dust and general muck from sitting in a shed) general condition of the bike is very good. this is my first full suspension bike and what i did notice was that there is a lot of travel in the front shocks....is this normal?
are the needing serviced?
is this expesive?
or could i pick up a set on ebay for the same sort of price?
took the plunge and purchased the bandicoot, needs a good clean( years of dust and general muck from sitting in a shed) general condition of the bike is very good. this is my first full suspension bike and what i did notice was that there is a lot of travel in the front shocks....is this normal?
are the needing serviced?
is this expesive?
or could i pick up a set on ebay for the same sort of price?
Okay, so now you know ONE of the problems with the less expensive suspension forks ... there is little you can adjust on them ... and, the springs are probably marginally softer because the presumption is a younger-and-lighter rider ...tinkz said:
FIRMER is better because you don't ever want the fork to actually bottom out ... of course, one reason that some front forks have more travel is because of the demands of the terrain & rider's speed (and, potential impact).
The amount of travel on the fork in the lower price range is usually only 63mm ... it is actually NOT a lot; but, it is certainly sufficient for light trail riding OR riding on city streets.
I think my fork has 100mm of travel ... heaven forbid I ever bottom it out because it means 'I' am going way to fast for the conditions AND am probably headed for an abrupt landing without the bike.
DON'T buy a new fork until you know the kind of terrain you are riding on dictates a better fork.
At some point in time (sooner rather than later, I suspect), you will notice the fork experiences what is referred to as stiction -- that is, when the fork does not move on its sliders without binding/hesitating ...
The remedy is some EDMUND's SLICK HONEY. But, instead of buying a small quantity for a great deal of money, you can make some using a dab of Vaseline (petroleum jelly) + a few drops of 30w motor oil (or, whatever weight motor oil is handy) mixed in until the viscosity of the Vaseline has been reduced to that of Bee's Honey.
Smear some on the fork's sliders ... plus, a little on the rear shock, too.
This is the only servicing that can be done on the particular fork & shock which are probably on the bike, AFAIK.
The future option, when you determine the NEED, will be to replace the front fork and/or rear shock.
BTW. Congratulations on your new bike! I hope you get a lot of miles/years of riding enjoyment with it.
