Ooooh, Irulan you have the Kikapu? That is my new lust object. Anyway, I wouldn't be too tore up about losing the Fisher lineup. Well, if they had some 04s that would be cool, but they did a lot of bad things to the 05s like changing the travel of the front susp but not correcting the geometry for that change. At least as far as I can tell. When I was dabbling in the realm of reasonable/affordable bikes I really dug the Specialized Rockhopper which was about $400 or so. Jamis makes some nice upper end entry level bikes too, but I hated the dealership that sold them.

It is true though, familiar brands are nice when you're on a budget. Often times because those household names are big enough companies that production is a bit less, making a more affordable product for most. Yeah, stay away from names you don't know it will only make you commit deadly sins like lust, and envy. No sir, I didn't name my kitten Moots(ie)

love and cookies
-smurf