How come???

[Beatsta]

I rode a Mongoose Zero G sx MTB frame for like 8 years....odd size tubeing but great chro mo frame...dunno what I am goona do with it yet except strip it..

 

[Matt C]

I think Mongoose are coming back up through the market. When I bought my new bike (Giant Reign) at the start of the year, I checked out Mongoose, but I still had this thing in the back of my mind saying "Mongoose is a BMX brand, and they're only K-Mart or Rebel Sport material." I think if I had have been a bit more open minded in my approach I would've really considered a Mongoose, however because of this belief or attitude I had (whether it was right or wrong) I chose to disregard them based on the fact I "didn't like the looks"....

This is completely understandable because we do it with everything we buy. I know TEAC have Sony parts inside but i bought a Sony product because of the above reasoning. We just don't want to chance something going wrong and then thinking ' i knew i should have just bought the...(insert reputable brand)'. Same reason ipods sell so well. Enough people do this and it just snow balls from there.

 

[lucky13]

mongoose is great value for money as well.

when i bought my glory a few months back, i wanted another mongoose but i couldn't get one.
apparently the disributor stuffed up and not enough ECD's were sent to OZ.
otherwise i'd be on one now.

oh well..............next year.

 

[wombat]

apparently the disributor stuffed up and not enough ECD's were sent to OZ.
otherwise i'd be on one now.

oh well..............next year.

Yeah? That's funny, I thought they'd had pretty consistent stock, and I know they have some right now.

 

[cobba]

Some bike companies have a few secrets. And one of those secrets is where your bike is made or who actually made it. The bike companies like it that way because many of them rely upon the same factories to build their bikes!
You may have ridden a bicycle made by Giant without knowing it! Giant is one of the world's largest bicycle manufacturers with factories in Taiwan, China, and Europe. In addition to making their own bikes, Giant also makes, or has made, bikes for many other prominent brands, including Merida, Trek, Specialized, Schwinn, and Bianchi.

One reason you mightn't see many Merida bikes is that Merida owns 20% of Specialized, as Specialized has been selling bikes in Australia for many years it probably wouldn't be good for Merida to compete too much with a company that it part owns, it might also have been part of the deal when they bought part of Specialized not to compete too much with them. As Merida is either the number 1 or 2 bike manufacturer in the world and they're well established in other countries, I don't think they'll worry too much about not selling many bikes in Australia.

Mongoose is a part of the company Pacific Cycle Inc. which also owns Schwinn, GT Bicycles, Dyno, Kustom Kruiser, Roadmaster, Eddie Bauer and Pacific Cycles.

 

[lucky13]

Yeah? That's funny, I thought they'd had pretty consistent stock, and I know they have some right now.

easy tiger....i'm only going off what i was told by my LBS (who i've always bought my stuff from and are mongoose's #1 aussie dealer). it was when the 08 ECD's were first released, i could've had one if i wanted to wait a few months but i'd already sold my old mongoose and had no bike.

 

[Beno1571]

Plain and simple, The giant dh is the new stp, the trend will be something else next payday/year.

 

[Revell Rider24]

I think that more people by giant and norco and such cause it's just a bigger industry really and there abit more popular than brodies and that but my opinion is that if i baught a brodie i would have no problem with having it i would like just as i would if i had a norco shore 3 of something like that. But thats just me other people might think totally diffrent but you know.

 

[No Skid Marks]

Mongoose should be the next big thing here. Excellent design and performance and nearly as cheap as Giant, but better design. Especially when Sam gets off his Sunday and wins on any other bike. Or possibly looses on his Sunday

 

[xero]

Brodie's are nice, but not real good value for money. You'd be best buying them as a frame only, which is still quite an expensive option.

Thats just not correct....... Brodie goes pretty much head to head on pricing with Kona, and Specialized here in Australia........ We are a little more expensive than Norco however..... but that in part is due to the use of 7005 Alloy ( which is harder to work with basically) rather than 6061.

 

[emcgough]

Brodie goes pretty much head to head on pricing with Kona, and Specialized here in Australia........ We are a little more expensive than Norco however.....

That doesn't make sense though, as Kona and Specialized aren't head to head with each other. Specialized is more expensive.

 

[Sethius]

That doesn't make sense though, as Kona and Specialized aren't head to head with each other. Specialized is more expensive.

theres not a huge difference though eg your kowan/p3 or big hit vs stinky range, spesh have slightly lower specs but theyve got the use of the FSR over the horst linkage. i know which id choose.

 

[Beatsta]

umm ok

so someone brought up that there a few manufacturers that make the frames for lots of brands which is true as Giant make frames and Merida do too and both manufacture these frames for lots of other brands.They are both separate manufacturers of frames for different brands..Its not public information obviously.....so what...

So I guess what it is with Giant and it being the umm majority of bikes purchased and ridden by peeps here is the price (even though ya could spend a few hundred more for something maybe better/different).....

They are in all the shops...dunno rarely go there...

People haven't heard of other brands??

which to me is kinda crazy as

if I was goona go spend a few k on a bike I would jump on the net look at reviews and such then compare prices and specs blah blah blah

so it really to me is looking like Giants are so popular because they are the in thing...which is crazy....

So I guess that allot of people are riding Giants when there are loads of other bikes that could be being rode but...."ya can't go wrong m8 its a Giant.."
Boring.

 

[wombat]

umm ok

so someone brought up that there a few manufacturers that make the frames for lots of brands which is true as Giant make frames and Merida do too and both manufacture these frames for lots of other brands.They are both separate manufacturers of frames for different brands..Its not public information obviously.....so what...

So I guess what it is with Giant and it being the umm majority of bikes purchased and ridden by peeps here is the price (even though ya could spend a few hundred more for something maybe better/different).....

They are in all the shops...dunno rarely go there...

People haven't heard of other brands??

which to me is kinda crazy as

if I was goona go spend a few k on a bike I would jump on the net look at reviews and such then compare prices and specs blah blah blah

so it really to me is looking like Giants are so popular because they are the in thing...which is crazy....

So I guess that allot of people are riding Giants when there are loads of other bikes that could be being rode but...."ya can't go wrong m8 its a Giant.."
Boring.

Isn't paying more for a bike of the same spec (or the same price for a lesser bike), just because it is 'different', more of a fashion wank than buying the best value for money option?

Giant have a huge presence in the market, and their comprehensive range make them an asset to shops, so these are definately factors, but it remains that they build reasonable, reliable bikes at a good price point, and they're not hard to find.

I'd suggest that buying the best value bike, with the best local support and availability is a tonne smarter than spending more money to get a less common brand, just because you're worried about having the same bike as the next guy.

 

[chuckies_here]

umm ok

so someone brought up that there a few manufacturers that make the frames for lots of brands which is true as Giant make frames and Merida do too and both manufacture these frames for lots of other brands.They are both separate manufacturers of frames for different brands..Its not public information obviously.....so what...

So I guess what it is with Giant and it being the umm majority of bikes purchased and ridden by peeps here is the price (even though ya could spend a few hundred more for something maybe better/different).....

They are in all the shops...dunno rarely go there...

People haven't heard of other brands??

which to me is kinda crazy as

if I was goona go spend a few k on a bike I would jump on the net look at reviews and such then compare prices and specs blah blah blah

so it really to me is looking like Giants are so popular because they are the in thing...which is crazy....

So I guess that allot of people are riding Giants when there are loads of other bikes that could be being rode but...."ya can't go wrong m8 its a Giant.."
Boring.

Not really mate.
Yes they may be the in thing,
But giants ride very very nicely.
Take the glory as an example. I ride one, Yes it is far from stock but still i have the frame.
And i have ridden countless numbers of bikes alot of them very boutique with very nice spec lists and i still rate the glory very very high.

 

[tu plang]

are you shore cozz why would he say that the brands that dont sell much of brake down???

are you for real?

 

[Beatsta]

umm
a fashion wank...lol
I guess its all a wank really and too easy...
If ya don't know a better bike then a Giant then don't be silly and ignore the rest

yeah sure i am not against Giants but To me its crazy that they are so popular when ya could get a better /different bike for around the same price..

Anywayz things will change in time...

Spose there is the thing with " they ride the same as me, they gotta be ok"

cheap enuff and popular....lol

 

[wombat]

yeah sure i am not against Giants but To me its crazy that they are so popular when ya could get a better /different bike for around the same price..

Can you give us some specific examples? It's all well and good to say this, but generalising about this kinda stuff is silly, as it will all vary with each model. For one model Giant might be the best value, but for another model you might find one of the other majors has a better value build.

You can't ignore availability either. Brands like Giant have a substantial presence in most areas, so it's easy for people to get them and get good, local service. No one wants to have to drive 2 hours to take their bike in for a free service / warranty claim, because none of the local shops stock their 'different' brand.

You seem to be assuming that people are choosing Giant simply because they don't know any better. Did you consider that maybe they have done their research, and have decided that the Giant is the best bike for them?

 

[bighitben]

yeah sure i am not against Giants but To me its crazy that they are so popular when ya could get a better / different bike for around the same price..

Anywayz things will change in time...

Like wombat said, give some examples.. The Giant range is overall very popular and well-known, and for the price i'm not sure you could go much better in the same riding style. For example the STP series are very popular because they are a great all-round entry level bike, plus with modifications they could be a very advanced dirt jump bike or even maybe light freeride ?

It really is about popularity, i mean Giants are everywhere, people see them alot and hear about them and think "Many people can't be wrong". And also bike shops most likely want to get in on the popularity so they may stock a large variety of Giants because they know they are popular..

 

[Refreshinglygood]

got a lot to do with the market.

Go to europe and other brands are more popular. Differnt brands have positioned themselves well in AUS.

More to do with the market than if it is a good bike or not.

The bigger companies have more buying and selling power.