To the MTB goddesses! Bike advice please!

[bluerider]

Thanks han-grrl. My budget is under $1500. I have pedals/shoes, clothing, so really am spending all of this on the bike.

The terrain I ride won't likely require disc brakes but I think it's one of those things that if I don't buy with the bike, it will be really tough to add afterwards. I'm a roadie so spending $$$ on disc brakes and FS is not something I'm interested. Ack, what to do!!!

But thanks for making me think about balancing weight vs budget.

[rocknrollgirl]

Hi Ya,
Well, the DH just built a XC racer for me last fall. His feeling is that you should spend your money on Frame, brakes and fork, in that order.

Now being the rider of that bike, I have to tell you that my hydrolic disc brakes are the BEST feature of my new bike. In my opinion, they are the one mechanical advantage that has improved my perfomance leaps and bounds, because they allow for so much more control.

I have a full ridgid bike with rim brakes, and all mountain bike with mechanical disc brakes( avid BB7) and a racer with hydrolics,(magura marta's) so I can speak from experience.

They may be slightly heavier, and more expensive, but they are worth it.

I agree with the above post about weight. I dropped from 32 pounds to 25 pounds on my new bike.

Just my 2 cents....

BTW my DH is a walking bike build catalog...if you need any more input shoot me a pm

Ruth

[LBTC]

I vote for the disc brakes, too. Not only for the terrain mentioned, but also for wet conditions. Over the years we've spent a lot on various upgrades to our MTBs, all a way of acquiring more skill. The discs (I have old hydraulic hayes and still love them) made the biggest single difference!

It's true that rotational weight is the biggest weight factor, also, but there are sometimes some small weight savers that don't always cost a lot: stem, bar, seatpost are good ones. And, yes, definitely pay attention to the tires. You may even consider going to Stans in your tires instead of tubes. You don't need the heavier tubeless tires to do this, but it does work better with certain rim / tire combinations than with others.

Have fun building and riding your new bike!!

Hugs and butterflies,
~T~