Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Any Mountain Bikers here?

Working from home. All the gyms are closed. I sold my property and in a rental now so no yard work to burn calories. So looking at getting a bike for some exercise. Any suggestions on brands? Front suspension versus full suspension etc? Thanks in advance, Rob.

Single track? More technical stuff? Basic putt-putt around town with light trail riding?

I'm a Giant fan, but there are plenty of good brands out there. I only like a front suspension for what I do, not full body suspension, but that is also personal preference.

The best advice I can give you: Ride a lot of different bikes before you buy!

I ride Giant. Road, hybrid, and mountain. I don’t have a full squish mountain bike and I get along just fine without it. I’ve got two Giant 29’er hardtail’s that I ride trails with.

I have both a hard tail 29 er. And a full suspension specialized

Depends on type of riding . Single track, down hill or forest roads and street riding. How much willing to spend?

I’d go to REI or a good local bike shop talk to the bike pros and try some out.

You’ll probably get by with a hard tail.

I'm going mountain biking this weekend with my son and a friend from Florida- - - -on a Harley Soft Tail! East out of Cleveland Tennessee along the Ocoee river, over to Copper Hill, then down to Ellijay Georgia, and back home south of Nashville. Lots of mountain roads on that route, and about 300 miles in the saddle round trip.
Jerry

For now.. About 50% around town, over curbs and bumps etc. Around 50% on basic trails through parks in the woods. But would like to keep my options open to do actual down hill mountain trails later. I understand there probably isn't a one size fits all solution. What do you think gets closest to a "jack of all trades"? A hardtail but watch my speed on more difficult trails? Or a full suspension and just lock out the rear when doing more basic riding for now? Admittedly, I know enough to be dangerous, but not an expert.

A hardtail, and just flippin’ ride it the way you want to.

I STILL don't know if full suspension has been finalized yet, especially with regards to long-term availability of components.

Front suspension seems to be a lot more of a settled science. I would guess with front suspension with lockouts for road riding you'd be doing good.

Be aware that if you but an older-style one with triple chainrings up front, that these chainrings are ALREADY getting hard to find.

What you described could be easily handled on a hardtail.

You can ride a hardtail on a downhill track, I've done it on greens and blues....It's a lot more fun on a long-travel full suspension bike though.

My opinion on hard tail versus full suspension is that it really comes down to budget. If you're willing to spend $2-3k go full suspension. If you're looking at sub $1K bikes stick with a hardtail as you'll get a lot more for your money. Most decent hardtails are going to come with 27.5" or 29" wheels, a 1x drivetrain and hydraulic disk brakes. Many will come with tubeless-ready wheels as well. I wouldn't even entertain a bike that didn't have any of those features.

For a first time bike buyer, I think you're better off not spending big bucks until you get a good feel for the type of riding you enjoy the most, can develop some skills and understand the limitations of your current bike, and can appreciate the varying levels of forks, shocks, groupsets, brakes etc.

Don't ride a Harley -you'll catch the gay big time and wear arseless leather chaps and go to biker bars like in the al Pacino film Cruising

a hard tail 27.5 or a 29. Get a good used one and can save bucks

Most of the ones I have been eyeing have the 12 gears in back and no front derailleur. Seems like less to go wrong to me.

I'm riding a hardtail aluminum bike and never felt the need for full suspension.
The disc brakes are nice but weren't crucial for bombing around on fire roads and trails through the game lands here.
Be aware, the different tires/tube styles have advantages and tradeoffs and you can buy into more expense than you might realize!
Get a helmet that you'll wear every time you're out...don't ask me why I suggest that.

For what you describe , I vote hardtail 29, components to match your budget.

I've been mt biking since the 1980s and one thing is a constant...good gear is worth the price. I have an older Jamis full suspension bike in California and a relatively new Santa Cruz full suspension in Montana. Riding the Jamis is like listening to a Spike Jones song, and with a bike, when you're making all sorts of weird noises, you are wasting your efforts. The Santa Cruz feels like it's built out of a billet and I can climb trails way better than with the Jamis.

If I were in the market, I'd look for about a 10 year old top of the line bike in good condition and then take it to the local dealer for a full overhaul. The bike will probably run $500-ish, the overhaul a few hundred more and unless you're racing, you will have more bike than you'll ever need.

I assume this is the case but I'll ask anyway. Is there any bike that is truly made in the USA? Seems even if they are assembled here, most of the parts like Shimano or SRAM I assume are from Asia correct?

Assembled maybe, manufactured unlikely

My Civilian single speed 29er does fine on the mountains in Cameron Parish

Budget is probably the best filter, if willing to spend 2k get full suspension, if not get a hard tail.

You can always lock out the rear for efficiency, but all the newer bikes climb pretty well open as well.

I would recommend a 2017 or newer, geometry changed quite a bit from the older designs. Slacker head tube angles for stability at speed, steeper seat post for better climbing.

Find a local shop that rents bikes and try a couple out, our shop will put the money spent on rentals toward the price of a new bike. For the riding you describe I would look at either a 120mm full suspension XC bike, or a hard tail. 29” rims are nice for smoothing out the wrinkles in the trail.

Find a local club or some friends to ride with, you will probably notice what works for the trails you like best.

Brand just does not matter. The brand is the frame. Many frames that bear various names all come from the same factory. The parts that hang on the frames are all very similar at the same price point.

Not much is made in the USA. Even my made in the USA titanium bikes are just welded here. The tubing is source in Asia. Few parts are made in the USA.