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Ladies and gentlemen, i am in a pickle and would greatly appreciate any advice and opinions.
I am now on the brink of buying my first mountain bike and am torn between two.
I have haggled with the nice gents in the shops and have ended up with the following deal:
GIANT TALON 2 2010 and MERIDA MATTS 20-D
Both have hydraulic discs and lockout front forks which I wanted however the Giant comes with RockShox Dart 2 and the Merida comes with RST Gila (which I am lead to believe are the better fork of the two?!?) The Giant is also 85 pounds more expensive but I think I am leaning towards it because its a name ive heard of.
I would appreciate any info on the fork situation and also on the Merida brand.
Cheers guys.
Bowlesy.
merida are massive. they make bikes for loadsa people.
Flip a coin 
Ha! yeah it might come to that!
To be honest I wouldn't worry too much about the fork. It'll be one if the first things you'll upgrade! Concentrate more on the frame, the ride, and the fit. A good frame that you like and that fits well is worth keeping and upgrading.
Also, with your first bike, a good LBS (local bike shop) is worth it's weight in gold. 🙂
Cheeers peter, one of the shops was alot more helpful than the other, (and were also willing to throw in helmet, lights and lock which obviously went a long way in their favour!)