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One of my close friends wants to get into mountain biking, but only has a budget of $350. I think her best bet is to find a used bike...something with disc brakes and mid-grade componentry. She's 5'6" or so, fairly long-legged. I told her I'd put feelers out and see if we could help her find a bike.
If she is looking to buy off the internet anyways many bikes in that price range here:
http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/mountain_bikes.htm
I wonder about Bikes Direct. I hear sorta mixed reviews...my DH thinks they are spammy. But if she bought a bike there he could certainly help assemble and maintain it for her. I would LOVE for her to be able to purchase a bike from our LBS, but she'd likely end up paying double...and she just doesn't have the money for a new bike with decent components. Buying used and/or online isn't ideal, either, but at least through a place like Bikes Direct it would be a straightforward purchase and not require driving all over or hoping she's the first one to contact a Craigslist seller.
I recently bought a bike from BD. A Motobecane Fanton CXX 'cross bike. The frame is a clone of the Surly Crosscheck. Nicely spec'd with SRAM Apex for $800. I think they sell nicely spec'd bikes for less than a bike shop price. I think their lower priced bikes are probably a pretty good deal for a newbie rider.
I did have an issue with my bike. The fork they sent was not spaced enough for the front axle (defective). (They ship the boxed bikes direct from the supplier, so they don't see the bikes before the buyer does.) They took a fork off another CXX bike and sent it right to me, no problem.
bikeisland.com sells BD bikes that have some minor damages or are returns, for real cheap.
I think BD has a day 30 return policy too.
I'd buy another bike from them, if I needed more than SEVEN bikes. Yikes!
That's good to hear. I think I will point her towards a few bikes with specs similar to mine. We got such a great deal on my Cannondale. They had a BUNCH of petite/XS '09 F5s languishing in the warehouse that they liquidated for half of retail ($350, instead of $700). It's really a size too small for me, but is a good start (I have about a half-dozen friends who all ended up with the same bike from the same shop...it's funny when we ride together). I will ride it for probably another year, then give it to my DS and get something maybe a grade better and in a S. My friend is such a common size that it would be highly unlikely that she would find a deal like the one I got with any of the big bike mfgs.
A small frame might be fine for her. I'm 5'6.5" and ride a 15" frame. I had to get a taller seat post . . . but it fits better than a medium frame fo'sho.
Have you checked the mmba forum?
Here's a listing for a 15" Specialized Hardrock, only $180. It would probably need a bit of work, but not a bad bike.
Here's a Kona . . . it's a bit more, but she may be able to talk them down. It has nice components on it.
[http://grandrapids.craigslist.org/bik/2916370721.html"]And a Jamis Komodo[/URL] . . . Okay, bike browsing for someone else is way more fun than working.
Sigh, speaking of which, I should probably start moving some projects from the to-do- to the completed-list.
Is your friend still looking for a bike? There's a Terry Jacaranda on ebay for $300. Seller has 100% positive feedback. He mentioned in the Q & A that he'd come down on the price.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Terry-Jacara...item2c5f43e1ff