[Closed] New or used, and Hardtail or full sus?

Also, I’m 5’11 so if anyone has a large per above in the right price bracket they’re liking to move on in July, feel free to message me through this thread or direct. Ta.

There are pluses and minuses to each option you mentioned.

If you’re not 100% certain that you will stick with MTB as a sport, then imo it’s much better to buy used. There are tons of beautiful bikes hanging unused in people’s garages. And new bikes depreciate a lot.

Have said that, buying used is probably better suited to people who already know what they’re looking for.

And bike fit is a crucial issue. I’d probably hazard an uneducated guess that a well fitting cheap bike is better Than a poorly sized expensive one which will never feel right. That’s a big advantage in buying new - if you can buy from a shop in person.

I have both an aggressive HT and a good full susser. There is a good argument to earning your spurs on a HT imo. But on the other hand - if you do end up riding with mates, long days out, trips to bike parks etc, then a trail full susser is a much better all rounder in my opinion.

All in all, for a beginner, my vote would be to buy a decent hardtail from a local store who can help you size it properly. Something like a Commencal Meta HT or a Marin, or an Orange, or a Whyte or a Specialised. I wouldn’t worry too much about a beautiful steel bike for your first bike. I think something like that would be a better 2nd or 3rd purchase once you get to know what your personal preference are.

Thanks John. Interesting you say the full sus is a better all rounder as that’s what I’m starting to think too.

Not my first bike (used to ride a lot 10 years ago and worked in a bike shop at the weekends growing up - stepdad owned a shop) but having recently started riding again I can see how bad I am. Slow to pick a line, pulling left/right on little drops, don’t feel one with the bike etc. So hoping to progress quickly but need to be sensible and realistic - probably a year or practice (and to test my commitment) before I go £3k beast. Just want to have some fun for a bit and practice, but don’t want to put grow it (technically speaking as I’m not getting any taller) in 6months

To be honest at your level (relative beginner), I would go to your nearest decent bike shop and tell them what your after.

Get the one you like the look of and is suited to the terrain you ride most of the time. You've already mentioned quite a few good ones in your post too, so at least you have a start.

FS vs HT is quite a personal thing and both sides have die hard fans. I like a bit of both and I think it just depends. I've had hardtails that I didn't get along with that others swear by (same with FS bikes too).

A hardtail will teach you to pick smoother lines and keep your speed in check while you get better I reckon. FS tends to let you get away with more and doesn't beat you up as much.

You say you are looking to hone your skills, are you just beyond beginner level I’m guessing? Don’t really like putting labels on it, but just to have more info,

Maybe I’m old school but I’m of the mindset that everyone should ride a hardtail for a year before progressing to a full sus. Maybe it’s because when I started riding all there was was rigid bikes and v brakes and some lucky people had front forks. Nowadays you see some rich kids on Santa Cruz bronsons, but fundamentally I think hardtails teach you a lot. .. how you pick smooth lines instead of ploughing through everything, that being the main thing.
Get a hardcore one with 130 or 140 mm fork , stay away from any hardtail with 100 mm fork as it will have XC race geometry (120 possibly okay). Only disadvantage over a full sus is riding over very techie terrain, a lot of bike park stuff is smooth.

Be very careful buying second hand as you really need to know what you’re spotting., in terms of hidden problems. A bike could look fine then you might need to spend 500 quid on fork service, bottom bracket replacement etc in a few months time.

Yeah, beginner is fair. I can see what I’m doing wrong when I ride so hope I’ll progress well but in terms of skill right now, beginner.

Re buying used...I know what I’m looking for on a 10 year old 26er so assume it’s still the same - headset play, play in bearings/triangles, shock leaks/rebound, cracks in welds/stress points, brakes holding pressure/calliper and master cylinder free from leaks/evidence of previous leaks (stripped paint/decals), wheel bearings/trueness etc. Anything new to check or has changed since 2005? Maybe today’s hardcore bikes typically have hairline cracks around the head tube if they’re taking more brutal poundings?

I used to build up my bikes from a frame (benefit of dad owning a shop) so handy with a spanner/maintenance

I didn’t realise you were much better informed than a beginner. With that kind of experience, you could normally save yourself a fortune buying used frame and major components and building yourself.

The only problem you might face is that apparently the use market had gone bananas over lockdown, so availability might be low and prices high.

I’m lucky enough to get away at least once a year on a bike weekend with mates. I ride my 160mm hardtail (a Shan) about 95% of the time at home, but I’d hate to be without my Aeris at Fortwilliam, or Bikepark Wales or in the Alps.

But if you’re likely to be hooning around in the woods close to home for 1-2 hours each time, I think a HT is the way to go.

Having had a reasonable, but not huge variety of bikes in the part few years, one thing I would personally not compromise on is a slack head angle. I’m used to the incredible difference having a 65-66 degree head angle makes. I would hate to go back to 68+ degrees. That’s the biggest difference in the part 10 years imo (other than the disappearance of 26” wheels of course). My local trails are very steep and a slack front end makes all the difference. But with good seat tube angles, but my bikes climb better than anything I ever owned before, so there’s no compromise.

I’m selling a Bird Zero 27.5 HT in medium over on the classifieds. You’d be at the upper end on sizing but it is long low geo so you’d not be cramped on it.

Bird looks spot on but at 1500 it’s going to be too expensive as only really looking to spend 1k second hand :/

There’s a long story to go with it but I’m not allowed to build up from a frame as her indoors isn’t keen on it. Dont ask.

I guess it’s going to be subjective and depend on the bike, my local type of riding, number of bike park days etc. Maybe a better question is simply does a 1 year old Hardtail perform better than a 5 year old full sus (assume same quality manufacturer etc and build for the same purpose - trail HT vs trail FS, Enduro HT vs enduro FS Etc). Comparing Geometry and components I guess seems sensible

To the question of would a new gen hardtail be better than a five year old full sus.
to my mind yes.
Last 5 years everything has moved on huge amounts! Geometry,suspension,dropper posts even the use of all metals and carbon has moved on loads.
I have both sus and hardtails am old been doing this since ridged was the norm.
on a good day on local trails I’m no slower on my good hardtail than I am on my sus (prett groomed to be fair lol)

but to start with get a good hardtail as a few have said orange,bird,nukeproof. All hard to find at the moment but worth the wait get a trail based geometry Between 65 & 67 deg head angle Seat angle around 74/75 and at around 5.11 a reach number around 460/475 ish longer is Better because you can drop stem length 35/50mm to fine tune you fit and sharpen your handling  Personally had 2 oranges in the last few years crush and a clockwork 137. Both great bikes and very compliant for alloy very comfy gotta say. Other than that really is the on going wheel debate! I’m 6.4 and totally 29er now there very sorted gotta say

Very quick look.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Orange-Crush-2017-Mountain-Bike/114247261197?hash=item1a99aadc0d:g:JA0AAOSwmh9e18YV

https://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/2802550/

Thanks for the links gents. Messaged both this evening. Not supposed to be looking until July so have a little work to do to be able to move quickly.