mountain bike advice

[al746]

I managed to get mountain biking last year in troodos mountains and have got the bug

i'm after picking up a mountain bike for myself and want to get into it seeing as i live in scotland

my budget is £400 but not sure what to look for as in brands, brakes, gears etc basicly i haven't got a clue haha

any shared wisdom would be greatly apprieciated as i dont want to get ripped off or get a bike that will fall to pieces and just give me a tonne of problems

many thanks

Al

[PeteSmith]

Perhaps consider the following

Iron Horse Warrior 3.0 2007 Mountain or Scott Aspect 45 2008 Mountain Bike. Or try looking for a bargin on ebay Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Comp

For £400 your probably looking at Avid Juicy Disc Breaks, Shimano Alivio/Altus Derailler or LX/Deore, Shocs i'm not up to date on - probably Rockshox Tora/Recon or Marocchi MX series.

Personally i got a Specialized Rockhopper Disc about 10 months ago, i have put it through a real beating and its never given me any problems, it's a great bike.

Happy Trails

edit - stay away from argos/cheap halfords brands.

[al746]

muchos grasias, i've been told to stay away from places like argos and halfords, thats why i was seeking advice

i saw that scott bike in what mountain bike and think its one of the best for the price, i also saw one called fat boy by focus but only available through wiggle.co.uk however think they are out of stock and i want to get one asap as i'm going on leave in a week or so and want to get out bashing the forrestry tracks at home

cheers again

[circuitmonkey]

Been a while since I've bought a bike, I ride a GT tempest (getting a bit long in the tooth these days).
If your looking at buying a bike I would recommend going into your local bike shops, trying a few on for size and preference, get advice from the sales assistant and then go online. Try companies like wiggle and evens cycles.
In the effort of supporting your local merchant, take these online prices back in store and see if they can't match the price.

[listy]

go to local bike shop see what he has alot of them are really good for advice you also get advantage of maybe being able to have quick test ride on them, mate on another forum is after one he link to his local shop who offer 3 free service in 1year of bike life

[smelly]

As you live in Scotland maybe you can pop into an Edinburgh Bike Coop shop

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/ebwP...c003155c002909

The http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/ebwP...c003155c002909 is a fine bike along with the:

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/ebwP...c003155c002909

and this is just under £400:

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/ebwP...c003155c002909

I think you may want to spend under the £400 and get some gear too a helmet, gloves and some clothing will set you back £100 easy. Else you can try second hand from well know MTB forums and pickup a bargin that way. There's also the cycle to work scheme. This only applies if you firstly work and secondly your employer is on the scheme http://www.cyclescheme.co.uk/

[al746]

thank you very much for your help, i've decided to go for the scott aspect 45 2008, i have money set aside for helmet clothing etc and will be getting them from wiggle as they have a sale on

still having a problem finding somewhere i can get this bike though as i can only find a shop in glasgow that sells them and im living in edinburgh

[iranu]

Is that Evans Cycles in Glasgow? They normally deliver bikes for £10.