# Mountain bike advice



## phope (Mar 26, 2006)

I know there are a few bikers on here, so here goes...what would you choose?

I've got a £500 voucher from work benefits that can only be used at Halfords to buy a bike and accessories...plenty of tax and NI benefits, so it costs me a lot less than £500 [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

I have to use the £500 all in one transaction, so I could spend less than that on the bike, and include accessories, or just get as much bike as possible within £500 limit, and pay for the accessories separately...

Have looked online, and seen a few in-store...I like these hard-tailed bikes, but the last bike I bought was over 20 years ago :lol: , so I'm a bit behind the times...don't think I'll need full suspension, but open to suggestions.

Which of these do you prefer? or if none of these, what others on the Halfords site at £500 or less?

GT Aggressor XC2 '09 - £450

* GT Triple Triangle aluminium frame with hydroformed down tube.
* Suntour XCR 120mm travel fork with hydraulic rebound damping and lockout.
* Shimano Deore 27 speed gearing.
* Tektro Auriga Comp hydraulic disc brakes 180/160mm rotors.

Kona Fire Mountain '09 - £400

# Rock Shox Dart 1Forks with 100mm of Travel
# Suntour XCC-T102 Crankset
# Hayes MX4 Disc Brakes
# Rigida ZAC-19SL Disc Rims
# WTB Speed V Sport SE Saddle

GT Aggressor XC3 '09 - £350

* GT Triple Triangle aluminium frame with hydroformed down tube.
* Suntour XCM 100mm travel suspension fork with lockout.
* Shimano Acera 24 Speed gearing.
* Tektro Auriga Comp hydraulic disc brakes.
* 2.1" aggressive tread XC tyres.
* Alex ASD-1 disc specific rims.
* GT oversize bar and stem.


----------



## kmpowell (May 6, 2002)

A Kona 'hardtail' - without question. How Halfrauds manage to stock such a quality brand is beyond me. It's like your local car trade centre becoming an official Ferrari dealer!

If it were me though I would see if I could spend a bit extra (is that possible by putting in some money yourself?) and get a 'Cinder Cone' rather than the 'Fire Mountain'. Spending the bit extra money will get you Hydraulic Disc brakes, instead of mechanical Disc brakes which are appalling! And most importantly you will get front forks that have 'lockout', meaning you can turn off the suspension at the twist of a knob, essential for normal riding around!

A word of advice though, Kona measure their frame slightly sizes differently to other manufacturers, so go and try one out before buying. You may be able to get away with a slightly smaller frame than another brand.

HTH


----------



## phope (Mar 26, 2006)

the scheme means that I can only spend the amount I nominated in my benefits election, which was £500...I can't put any more money to it, under the terms of the scheme/tax legislation, so £500 it is

Someone else suggested the Kona Cindercone if I could spend more than £500 or this GT Aggressor XC1 within budget

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165499


----------



## YELLOW_TT (Feb 25, 2004)

Kona gets my vote as well


----------



## kmpowell (May 6, 2002)

phope said:


> the scheme means that I can only spend the amount I nominated in my benefits election, which was £500...I can't put any more money to it, under the terms of the scheme/tax legislation, so £500 it is


Ok, the big question then is what will you use it for? Commuting? Social riding? Cross Country? All off-road?

If you are going to be using it for commuting/social/regular riding you might want to think about a hybrid bike instead of a MB, because at that budget you won't be able to get 'Lockout' which IMO is essential on a MB which is going to be used for that purpose.

Can you get the Fire Mountain, flog it, and then buy a Cinder Cone?

Sorry if I sound like a champion for Kona, but in all honesty I wouldn't give houseroom to any other Mountain Bike they sell. The Kona are worlds apart from the others in terms of quality.


----------



## Wallsendmag (Feb 12, 2004)

Make sure its lightweight ,thats a big mountain out the back :wink:


----------



## phope (Mar 26, 2006)

wallsendmag said:


> Make sure its lightweight ,thats a big mountain out the back :wink:


very big and steep mountain :lol:


----------



## Wallsendmag (Feb 12, 2004)

phope said:


> wallsendmag said:
> 
> 
> > Make sure its lightweight ,thats a big mountain out the back :wink:
> ...


Nice on the way down though


----------



## GRE608Y (Oct 2, 2008)

I did the same thing back in September, I opted for £1000 to buy a bike, my voucher was from cyclescheme so i wasn't limited to Halfords so I bought my bike from a small independant who let me try lots of bikes before i bought one. I settled for:
http://www.moredirt.co.uk/ratebike.php?id=4733

The 2008 GTAggressor XC1 gets my vote, a good all rounder, the frame isn't bad (maybe not as rated as the Konas) but you're getting some decent compnents with it. The trouble with any 'budget' big branded bike is that you'll either get semi decent frame and components or decent frame and poor components. I think the Kona is likely to be a better frame but it's front shox aren't as good as the GT's.

The XC1 has Rock Shox Tora's and they are very good for the money, air shocks are the way to go and these have lock out too enabling you to do just that, lock the shock in a semi fixed state, great for road riding if you're commuting.

One problem with Halfords is that they won't let you take their bikes out for a test ride 
It might be worth you finding another stockist who will let you try before you 'buy'. You'll have difficulty sourcing an '08 bike now though, I was faced with that problem back in September! I had to get an '09 model in the end (more money!) 

Good luck in your search!


----------



## rustyintegrale (Oct 1, 2006)

I can't believe Kona are selling through Halfords. I can't imagine that will do their image any favours in the serious mountain biking fraternity... :roll:

It's been a few years since I went biking seriously but I still have my San Andreas lurking in the garage all serviced and ready to go...

I remember when I took the sport up I was recommended to go to a local specialist bike shop and hire out bikes to try them. You can't get a proper idea just from a quick cycle around the block and it took me a month of weekend hires to finally settle on a Cannondale F600 that had front suspension of sorts but a hard tail. Suspension is great off-road but can be a right pain going uphill on tarmac. That's why so many bikes have lock-out suspension nowadays so you get the best of both worlds.

My advice to you would be to buy the lightest frame you can with the best running gear. A decent chainset will last longer and make the bike more reliable. GT certainly used to be a reputable make and obviously Kona are well respected, but if you can I'd buy from a proper specialist shop. You'll get better advice, the bike will be properly sized and they'll set it up for you and may even throw in a free service six weeks after purchase to tighten everything up.

Good luck with it. It's great fun when you've got through the initial pain barrier!

cheers

Rich


----------



## TT_Broonster (Jan 28, 2007)

It's a pity you're restricted to Halford, otherwise you could have had a much better choice of bikes (Specialized or Giant are the best mainstream brands IMO). It comes down to persoinal preference but personally, I'm not a fan of Kona bikes. Saying that, they are a good brand - many of the trail & MTB centres use them in their hire fleets, as they're very sturdy & reliable bikes.

But I defo choose the Kona over a GT. As KMP has suggested, it would be good to stick a wee bit more money against one if you can and get the Cinder Cone. Also, unless you are intending to hurl yourself down mountain side on the bike, you really won't have a need for hyrdo brakes over the mechanical discs, but certainly good to have if you can get them.


----------



## jbell (May 15, 2006)

Does the voucher have a time limit on it, there are bound to be some better deals on at Hellfrauds soon, might be worht the wait to get a better bike for less than £500


----------



## Hilly10 (Feb 4, 2004)

I just purchased the Carrea Kracken yesterday from Halfords after my GT aggressor frame split. I do not do serious off roading so suits my needs, its quite a decent bit of kit for the dosh. £349 because its the 08 model lock down front forks hydraulic brakes


----------



## TT_Broonster (Jan 28, 2007)

Hilly10 said:


> I just purchased the Carrea Kracken yesterday from Halfords after my GT aggressor frame split. I do not do serious off roading so suits my needs, its quite a decent bit of kit for the dosh. £349 because its the 08 model lock down front forks hydraulic brakes


Very decent bike it is too - had some good write ups in the MTB mags for the budget bike section. I would always recommend getting an outgoing year bike too, as there are some cracking deals to be had on them around this time.


----------



## GRE608Y (Oct 2, 2008)

If you want a deal on a bike, your only chance is an '08 frame (if you can find one - doubt you will now) all manufacturers put prices up by at least 10% for their '09 range  Even with £1000 to spend the only discount i got was a free specialized pump for my forks! :roll:


----------



## Kell (May 28, 2002)

I prefer Konas in general, but the GTs certainly aren't sh*t. The triple triangle design effectively gives them longer Seatstays making them a little more stable in most conditions - ideal if you're going to be going off road.

Konas always used to have quite a sloping top tube too - which as Kev says makes the usual measured height deceptive. This design, also affects the seat stays (making them shorter) which in turn makes hte bike more responsive and 'twitchy' but that's a very relative description. That, in my opinion, makes them more manouevrable off road and better for climbing - but liable to being twitchy coming back down again.

It all depends on usage - if you're going to be on road most of the time, you want something with rigidity (aluminium), if you're going to be using it off road most of the time, you'll want something with a little more flexibility (suspension and/or steel frame) as it's more comfortable over a long period of time.

The best thing to do is buy the best framed bike you can and then upgrade the parts as and when they wear out. In particular, buying a good wheelset can make a massive difference to acceleration and braking - in the same way that a lighter set of wheels can on a car. If you can wait a little, I'd certainly recommend doing what others have suggested and see if you can get an older, better bike for the same price.

HTH.


----------



## jam225 (Jun 24, 2003)

Another Kona fan here as well 

My first MTB back in 1989 was a yellow Lava Dome which sadly got nicked but then replaced with a Cinder Cone and so on. The Cindercone is still going strong 12 years on and in weekly use by Mrs Jams dad for biking around the town.

I only moved away from the brand last year when our companys' cyclescheme enabled me to justify "saving" money so I could buy a SantaCruz Heckler but my old Kona Dawg is still going strong in the hands of one of my colleagues at work.

My son and Mrs Jam both have Konas as well and all are well used on a weekly basis and cope admirably with Scottish trail conditions all year round 8)

The only downside in your decision is that you've got to buy from Halfrauds.

Get the Kona you wont regret it


----------



## TT_Broonster (Jan 28, 2007)

jam225 said:


> a SantaCruz Heckler


 [smiley=sweetheart.gif]

:mrgreen:


----------



## rustyintegrale (Oct 1, 2006)

TT_Broonster said:


> jam225 said:
> 
> 
> > a SantaCruz Heckler
> ...


Doesn't beat this classic...










Cheers

rich


----------



## Wild Woods (Feb 25, 2008)

jam225 said:


> Another Kona fan here as well
> 
> My first MTB back in 1989 was a yellow Lava Dome which sadly got nicked but then replaced with a Cinder Cone and so on. The Cindercone is still going strong 12 years on and in weekly use by Mrs Jams dad for biking around the town.
> 
> ...


Kona's seem to go on forever. My 1992 Cindercone is still going strong after 16 years of use. Bet you would have trouble buying a skinny tubed steel frame nowdays.


----------



## cyberdude (May 24, 2002)

phope said:


> the scheme means that I can only spend the amount I nominated in my benefits election, which was £500...I can't put any more money to it, under the terms of the scheme/tax legislation, so £500 it is
> 
> Someone else suggested the Kona Cindercone if I could spend more than £500 or this GT Aggressor XC1 within budget
> 
> http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165499


Can't you agree with the manager of the store, that you purchase the bike then wheel it straight back in after paying, for a "refund" and upgrade to a better model where you can add some cash? I can't see him not agreeing as he's going to make a bigger sale.


----------



## Kell (May 28, 2002)

Wild Woods said:


> Kona's seem to go on forever. My 1992 Cindercone is still going strong after 16 years of use. Bet you would have trouble buying a skinny tubed steel frame nowdays.


You can get them, but they seem to be high end now. I've still got my 1992 Orange P7 (and a 2000 P7) both steel tubed.

Steel is real baby.


----------



## jam225 (Jun 24, 2003)

Kell said:


> Wild Woods said:
> 
> 
> > Kona's seem to go on forever. My 1992 Cindercone is still going strong after 16 years of use. Bet you would have trouble buying a skinny tubed steel frame nowdays.
> ...


Unsuspended steel [smiley=sweetheart.gif]

The yoof of today wouldn't understand :lol:


----------



## phope (Mar 26, 2006)

Went for the XC1 in the end...picked it up and is sitting in the garage just now

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165499

Really good bike for the money, with an extra 10% off now at Halfords...money saved goes towards accessories, and for my usage, the bike is going to be perfectly good

Kona Cindercone was still going to be out of budget, even with reductions


----------



## rustyintegrale (Oct 1, 2006)

That's great, enjoy it. 

But you'll be wishing you listened to the advice you asked for in 6 months. :wink: Assuming you use it.

cheers

rich


----------



## jam225 (Jun 24, 2003)

phope said:


> Went for the XC1 in the end...picked it up and is sitting in the garage just now


Great news 8) make sure it gets out of the garage on a regular basis


----------



## Wallsendmag (Feb 12, 2004)

You must have tidied up to fit the bike in :wink:


----------



## phope (Mar 26, 2006)

wallsendmag said:


> You must have tidied up to fit the bike in :wink:


what, tidy the garage that had it's walls and floor painted in anticipation of parking the TT in...but got filled up with crap instead??


----------



## kmpowell (May 6, 2002)

Enjoy! I'm glad you spent a bit more and got 'Hydraulic' Discs and 'Lockout' on the forks. You won't regret it!


----------



## Kell (May 28, 2002)

rustyintegrale said:


> TT_Broonster said:
> 
> 
> > jam225 said:
> ...


Which in turn doesn't beat this classic:










This isn't exactly like mine, but I had an old Pro-flex (before they became K2) dual sus beasty. It had, if you can believe it, hydraulic rim brakes. Great, until you got the slightest buckle in your wheels. It also had polyurethene bushes instead of springs for the rear suspension.


----------



## rustyintegrale (Oct 1, 2006)

Kell said:


> Which in turn doesn't beat this classic:


Yep, the Proflex was a brilliant bike. I borrowed one from Wildside before finally settling on the San Andreas.

Did you ever use Wildside Kell? Did you know Will?

Cheers

Rich


----------



## Kell (May 28, 2002)

Funnily enough, I only ever used them when I didn't live in TW. I went down there to buy an Orange E4 before I got my P7. Upon riding it, however, I didn't like the feel of the aluminium frame. Too harsh. I much prefer the feel of steel and they didn't have a P7 in my size.

Eventually bought from Psycho Cycles in Clapham.


----------

