After a budget 29er

M

Mitten

Likes Bikes
Hi everyone I have the mountain bike bug after a 15 year spell of on roading. Had enough of the onroad elitism and riding my drop bar on Adelaide's crappy roads. So I thought I'd buy a 29er, they seem like such a better street weapon and I have a lot of fire trails near me (Blackwood). I'm on a budget and can't spend more than 1 grand (I promised the wife).
I've spent the last 2 months crawling over gumtree/ebay looking for something decent but to no avail so I've decided to buy new. Had a look in a few local bike shops but none seem to be able to compete with the online sellers in terms of features and value.

3 bikes I'm looking at are this
http://www.cyclingdeal.com.au/buy/2...-shimano-30-speed-mountain-bike-29er/CG2950MA
This
http://www.bicyclesonline.com.au/polygon-siskiu-7-0-29er-mountain-bike-shimano-deore-xt/ (top of my price range..)
or this..
http://www.momentumbikes.com.au/mtb/momentum-m330-29er-shimano-deore-m610.html (cheapest)

I'm in Adelaide as well so my choice of bikes is not that flashy and I'm also big, (6'6 110kg) so I need something large.

Any help really welcome:)
 
rearviewmirror

rearviewmirror

Likes Dirt
To be honest, you're going to struggle to find anything 29er remotely decent for $1k. You could pick up a nice Singlespeed in that price range, and that would make you instantly rad.
 
W

weldin_mike_27

Likes Bikes
Google budget 29er reviews. There's a magazine that does heaps of them and doesn't snob out on budget stuff. Trek x-calibre came in as a top choice in one category.
 
Calvin27

Calvin27

Eats Squid
My standard advice is to get a $500 29er and spend $100 on deore brakes, $350 on rock shox gold 30 forks, and the last $50 on a 34t narrow wide chain ring. Total cost is $1k and you get something that will perform better than any of those bikes and probabaly lose 1kg of weight from your initial bike.

If I had to choose between the 3, would not touch the wheeler or momentum. Polygon is ok but not a stupid good deal.
 
marc.r

marc.r

Likes Dirt
^^^^^ i think someone was clearing out reba 29ers at $350 too! but yer at $1000 I would go second hand. new only becomes worthwhile at $1700 +
 
Coopz

Coopz

Likes Dirt
marc.r said:
^^^^^ i think someone was clearing out reba 29ers at $350 too! but yer at $1000 I would go second hand. new only becomes worthwhile at $1700 +
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I'm in a similar boat as the OP but does a $1700+ bike really make a huge difference over a $1000 bike? I mean for just light offroad and road riding are you going to see $700+ worth of better riding? Slightly better brand shocks and brakes and maybe a fraction lighter.
Those bikes the OP selected only the Polygon looks good. Never heard of Wheeler (had a few hit and miss experiences with cyclingdeal as well) and that other m330 bike really looks top heavy and to pretty for dirt.
 
Marx

Marx

Likes Dirt
I'm just about to pick up a Cell Awaba 2.0 (29er hardtail). RRP $1700.
For me the clincher is rack mounts, which I suppose may not be high on anyone's list from this forum.
(I'm chucking semi-slicks on it for commuting, I want a MTB with susp forks for light offroad flexibility. Replacing my CX - CX bikes are all over for commuting nowadays).
 
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M

Mitten

Likes Bikes
Thanks for the replies, I am in a tight budget and as much as I'd like a decent $2000+ bike I can't afford it.
One other bike is the Cell Awaba 1.0, certainly seems like good value.
 
M

Mitten

Likes Bikes
Seabass said:
You can pick up a second hand carbon giant xtc for around a grand
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I've been watching Gumtree, eBay, Bikeexchange since the start of November and I didn't see any bikes like that in my size or price range. Also a little hesitant to spend much on a second hand bike as many do get ridden hard and warranties usually are not transferable.
 
Ackland

Ackland

chats d'élevage
Check out the Adelaide MTB forum and the Adelaide MTB buy swap and sell on Facebook....

Agree that pre-loved is the way to go for $1K.

Yes you do notice a massive difference between a 1K retail and a 2K retail bike.... Everything gets upgraded!

OP. If you end up buying a $1K 2md hand bike and treat it well, you can probably still get $750 for it in 12 months if you upgrade or are no longer using it.
A brand new $1K bike, you'd be lucky to even find a buyer and might get $350 for it
 
JTmofo

JTmofo

XC Enthusiast
Mitten said:
I've been watching Gumtree, eBay, Bikeexchange since the start of November and I didn't see any bikes like that in my size or price range. Also a little hesitant to spend much on a second hand bike as many do get ridden hard and warranties usually are not transferable.
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Not to sound like a elitist or snob, but the sub $1000 new mtb price bracket puts you into the lower range of "actual" mountain bikes. I'm talking about the "run to the shops" kind of bike, with spring forks and sub par components.

It is, by far, better value to find a rippin' pre owned bike that someone is upgrading from, rather than spending $1000 on a new "average" bike.
Many people upgrade to newer models for different reasons. ie different colour schemes, longer travel, less travel etc etc

Keep your eyes on the trading area on here, or as someone else mentioned, the local MTB forum/Facebook page.

As for warranty, you have a point. But if you're careful about who you buy from ie.not Gumtree or eBay, you should have little problems with being sold a lemon.
 
Pastavore

Pastavore

Eats Squid
Yep, just keep looking. I have bought 3 hardtail MTBs for my family, a 26er for $500 second hand, a 29er for $700 second hand, and built a 26er for my son from a new run-out frame and SH parts (under $500). All 3 bikes are waaaaaay nicer than the $1000 bikes you have linked.
 
M

Mitten

Likes Bikes
Ackland

Ackland

chats d'élevage
Mitten said:
Nice bike buts its 2000k from me:p

Not sure why, Adelaide seems to have a massive cycling community but decent second hand 29er bikes don't seem to popup much:(
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You just have to be in the right place at the right time.

I would trust the seller in Towoomba to box and ship to you. Shipping would be around the $100 mark, perhaps less.....
 
JTmofo

JTmofo

XC Enthusiast
Mitten said:
Nice bike buts its 2000k from me:p

Not sure why, Adelaide seems to have a massive cycling community but decent second hand 29er bikes don't seem to popup much:(
Click to expand...
I boxed a complete 29er last week and set it to a buyer in Hobart.
Full insurance for a $2k bike and shipping cost $160...it was there in 3 days and Tassie is one of the more expensive place to ship to.
 
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