Is this really how it is?

[stephanie1129]

it sounds kind of like buying a used mountain bike might be risky, no? If these things are common after only 6 months of riding, probably you would have to plan on making all these repairs to any used bike you might buy?
vickie

buying a used bike of any kind is always very risky, especially if you don't know a lot about specific components and brands. However, a lot of the people that I see that are selling their mountain bikes, have never really ridden it much off road if much at all and are still in decent shape. Bikes can be expensive to maintain, and just like a car, the more expensive it is, the more expensive it will be when things start to break down or need replacement.