Thoughts on These and Other Entry Level Mountain Bikes

Berob said:

I have a friend that is looking for an entry level mountain bike. Due to budget restrictions and
the fact that he will probably not do a lot of frequent, hardcore riding, he is looking in the
$450ish range (give or take $50). Over the weekend, we looked at several bikes: Giant Yukon (disc
brakes), Giant Rincon, Specialized Rock Hopper, Trek 4300 (w/disc brakes), and the Trek 4500. He
really wants disc brakes, but I don't know enough to know if at this price range he is giving up
some other desirable features/components if he gets the disc brakes. Bottom line, can anyone offer
1) advice on the bikes listed above; 2) recommendations of other bikes that might be a fit for
him; and 3) thoughts on disc brakes in this price range. Thanks for your help.

Re #3 Given that you said "he will probably not do a lot of frequent, hardcore riding" disk brakes
(and rear suspension FTM) would probably just take away from the quality of other components. The
inexpensive V-brakes on a $450 bike will work well. There are plenty of "hardcore" riders on V-
brakes. IMHO he should save his pennies.

Cheers, Shawn

Berob wrote:
| I have a friend that is looking for an entry level mountain bike. Due to budget restrictions and
| the fact that he will probably not do a lot of frequent, hardcore riding, he is looking in the
| $450ish range (give or take $50). Over the weekend, we looked at several bikes: Giant Yukon (disc
| brakes), Giant Rincon, Specialized Rock Hopper, Trek 4300 (w/disc brakes), and the Trek 4500. He
| really wants disc brakes, but I don't know enough to know if at this price range he is giving up
| some other desirable features/components if he gets the disc brakes. Bottom line, can anyone offer
| 1) advice on the bikes listed above; 2) recommendations of other bikes that might be a fit for
| him; and 3) thoughts on disc brakes in this price range. Thanks for your help.

I would definitely recomend the Giant Yukon over the Rincon. Not for the discs, but because it has
double walled rims and that alone makes a difference for more serious offroad riding.

Another one to check out is the Raleigh M50 DX. It's a slightly lower spec than the Giant, but is
$400 and has shimano disc brakes.

i don't know the giant's, but i've had two specialized rockhopper a1 fs's and they're a great all
around first bike. i definitely improved riding this bike. good weight and components with a really
good warranty. one caveat tho... the 01's and 02's had a better component setup than the 03's and
04's. *shrug*

i agree that for the kind of riding you're describing, v-brakes are perfectly reasonable.

as a general rule, i would suspect any sub $500 bike with discs or full suspension. i'd rather *not*
get hurt on a good hardtail, then get wrecked because of [censored] components. once again tho, just my
personal observations. 😉

Berob said:

I have a friend that is looking for an entry level mountain bike. Due to budget restrictions and
the fact that he will probably not do a lot of frequent, hardcore riding, he is looking in the
$450ish range (give or take $50). Over the weekend, we looked at several bikes: Giant Yukon (disc
brakes), Giant Rincon, Specialized Rock Hopper, Trek 4300 (w/disc brakes), and the Trek 4500. He
really wants disc brakes, but I don't know enough to know if at this price range he is giving up
some other desirable features/components if he gets the disc brakes. Bottom line, can anyone offer
1) advice on the bikes listed above; 2) recommendations of other bikes that might be a fit for
him; and 3) thoughts on disc brakes in this price range. Thanks for your help.