Australian Cycling Forums - Bicycles Network Australia

This will be my first dual suspension bike and I want to keep it under 2k as I'm not sure how serious I can get with limited tracks anywhere near me. The reason there are no 27.5" is the cost and I don't want a 29" so it looks as if I'm stuck with the old 26" for now. I can't even say what sort of riding I do because I'm not sure what you would call it but it's not downhill or anything extreme it's just through scrub and trails pretty tight and some light open tracks. I can't test ride due to the shops in town are only trek an giant and a new DS is way over budget so I'm buying blind.
I'd prefer the bike to have what I'd call a less aggressive riding position but I'm not sure what measurements make it 1 way or the other, I like to sit more upright. Because I don't know about componetry or what will make 1 better than the other I need plenty of help. Any comments appreciated.


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Out of that list I would go the Trek. It's the best suspension system out of them all as far as I am concerned. Components can be upgraded as they wear out.

+ 1 for the trek.

Ok thanks. Is there anything else that sets it apart from the others? What's the riding position like compared to the others? What makes for a more relaxed riding position so I know what to look for? I like the Avanti Torrent 1 for some reason but don't know how it rates in comparison to the rest.

The Trek is a single pivot. No better or worse than any of the other single pivots in the list. Performance is driven by the placement of the main pivot relative to the chainrings and shock tune. The "active braking pivot" is just marketing drivel. Putting the link pivot through the axle axis makes very little difference to performance. Yes I have ridden one. My own bikes are single pivots as well.

If suspension performance is a particular focus I'd look closely at the GT Sensor. The downside for me is the inability to fit a bottle cage inside the front triangle (a show stopper in fact) but that's not a problem for everyone.

The reason they're cheap is that people have stopped buying them and 26ers as a class of bike are on runout except perhaps for full on DH.

Why not 29ers?

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Another thought... maybe look at how much room there is in the rear triangle. Many 26ers are convertible to 650b with a change in fork and wheel, many with just the wheels. Could be a good way to preserve some resale value and improve performance. Big wheels do work better.

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If you are buying entirely on suspension specification then the Trek has the best spec for the money though the Avanti Torrent is well up there given the extra travel compared to the other bikes...all have very similar mid-range componentry elsewhere.

The thing is though...I think you are doing it wrong. None of these bikes will properly cater for an upright position without compromising handling which means you may not enjoy the ride out of any of them. It might also help to tell us where you are so we can try and understand the terrain you might be riding in.

At this point...I wouldn't buy any of them.

More confused...

I was hoping people may suggest which bike would be better at certain things and why one would be better than another at other things.
Supension isn't all im worried about, i would rather the best overall bike as i would never use the suspension to its fullest capabilities anyway.
27.5" are just to expensive and i doubt 29" would suit where i want to ride and i'm not really sold on a wheel so big.

I live in Dubbo and theres hardly anywhere to ride and the only place i iknow is very tight and twisty with not much flowing downhill at all.

With riding position, i sat on a few treks and giants and just didnt like how they stretched me out and had me leaning so far forward thats why i wanted to know what things will makw one bike more upright over another.

i understand 26" are on there way out but they have done the job for a long time now and they will not stop doing it overnight just because theres a "new fad" at the moment. Dont get me wrong i would prefer a 27.5" but it would have to he a hardtail to fit my budget...

If you are looking for a more upright riding position you need to look more at an all mountain type bike with longer travel.

I have a 6in travel Giant Reign with a 70mm stem that is fairly upright and very comfy to ride.

I have used it for everything from short rides around town to 130km epics. It's not as fast as the bikes you listed but it gets there in the end.

If you look second hand you should find one well with in budget.

BEARWOOD wrote:More confused...

I was hoping people may suggest which bike would be better at certain things and why one would be better than another at other things.
,,snip..

I can rank those bikes on paper. Then I would test ride them. It doesn't really matter what I would buy. You are the person who will ride the bike.

BEARWOOD wrote:,,snip,,

With riding position, i sat on a few treks and giants and just didnt like how they stretched me out and had me leaning so far forward thats why i wanted to know what things will makw one bike more upright over another.

..snip..

Generally more beginner/recreational/entry level bike have an upright riding position.

There are some incredible deals on high end second hand 26 inch bikes at the moment.

I would look at the Trek. Those bikes are designed for slightly different terrains and riding styles Some tend to XC others to Trail/Mild AM

The bigger wheel sizes are not a new fad.

The industry is going through a rapid major structural change to the product offering and 26ers will be either dead or a niche for certain disciplines only. I think its a mistake to think bigger wheel sizes aren't a permanent majority fixture in the market.

Its kind of funny how your perception changes. When I got my first 29er to review for BNA it seemed like I had a horse in the garage. It was HUGE. My son even dubbed it The Horse.

But then after a few weeks of riding it the 26ers looked tiny. What are these BMXs doing in my garage?!

Now that I own one myself I look at 26ers (including the four i still own) and think they look 'wrong' - too small! Thats after 7 years almost exclusively on 26 inch wheeled bikes.

So I think your view about 29ers being too big can change.

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BEARWOOD wrote:More confused...

I was hoping people may suggest which bike would be better at certain things and why one would be better than another at other things.
Supension isn't all im worried about, i would rather the best overall bike as i would never use the suspension to its fullest capabilities anyway.
27.5" are just to expensive and i doubt 29" would suit where i want to ride and i'm not really sold on a wheel so big.

I live in Dubbo and theres hardly anywhere to ride and the only place i iknow is very tight and twisty with not much flowing downhill at all.

With riding position, i sat on a few treks and giants and just didnt like how they stretched me out and had me leaning so far forward thats why i wanted to know what things will makw one bike more upright over another.

i understand 26" are on there way out but they have done the job for a long time now and they will not stop doing it overnight just because theres a "new fad" at the moment. Dont get me wrong i would prefer a 27.5" but it would have to he a hardtail to fit my budget...

[Response by paragraph]

Not surprised....

It's not that simple or easy...

Dubbo has some very many interesting places to ride within an hour of town...you are not being imaginative enough. There is a local off shoot of these guys http://cworbc.org.au/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; (the Dubbo end has a Facebook page apparently) and there's at least three semi-formal ride areas closer to town...and then there's Goobang...and Coonabarabran and...as for the tight and twisty - I ride a long 29er on our own tight, twisty and flat track with some success and so do many of my club mates.

If you are too upright you will corner like a gate...not good on a tight, twisty course.

There's still nothing wrong with a 26er given the bang for buck available but don't be put off by a hardtail either...

We'll after a lot more looking around and peoples comments here I think I'm going to look at a hard tail in either 27.5" or 29" but more than likely a 27.5".

Thanks everyone for the help and feel free to suggest some hard tails to check out...

BEARWOOD wrote:Thanks everyone for the help and feel free to suggest some hard tails to check out...

Giant Talon 27.5 1 or 2

We'll after weeks of looking and reading I got a Scott Scale 960 on the weekend. I never really considered Scott for some reason and I went against what I always thought and got a 29"!! Had a quick ride around the block this arvo and it's so different to what I'm used to its makes me worry. I did look at the giant Talon a few weeks back and liked it but it seemed to be more aimed at recreation and it worried me how it would go as I get more fair dinkum. Anyway it's in the shed and I'll see how I go with it...

Nice choice though don't go getting too fair dinkum on that fork. However, the frame has the potential to cope with much better down the track.

Agree, nice choice.

I think the fork will be fine for your intended use, even if it is a little heavy it will at least be reliable. It will be something you can upgrade later if you wish, without overcapitalising.

I doubt i will out outride the shock anytime soon and the bike feels so light to me coming from my previous bike thats its not really a problem.

I am jumping on this thread rather than start my own "help me with a bike" - but.... help me with a bike!

I am looking for an entry level dual suspension - I'm not fussed (I think) about 26 or 29, especially given:

mitzikatzi wrote: There are some incredible deals on high end second hand 26 inch bikes at the moment.

Is the list above still relevant a few months later to now?

I have been looking at discounted new 26" dual suspension bike exchange , and second hand - but there isn't a great wealth of examples in a "beginner" price range that are XL (sub $1,000) and I'm struggling to find anything second hand (been offered one which has had a crack fixed and braced, but I'm too scared!)

Bike Exchange will be so much your friend...

But if it is new, XL in size and less than a grand then I'd shout "BSO" and run away...

The simple truth is that due to the engineering work that goes into decent rear suspension systems, there is virtually nothing on the market below $2000 RRP. Even heavily discounted, they'll be substantially above your $1000 mark, so you're going to be limited to second-hand.

Duck! wrote: so you're going to be limited to second-hand.

even second hand is a struggle (which I am happy to get) - not many dual l/xl or xl out there under a grand!
(and I thought buying my road bike was hard work - MTB has a language of parts all of its own)