Hoping to become a member of this community

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Hoping to become a member of this community
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flag S-Douglas1980
Posted: Jun 1, 2023 at 22:31 Quote
Hi there, I'm hoping to pick up this great sport sometime very soon. I think I am looking for a trail bike, my budget is roughly $1700 and below, with a little wiggle room there. I'm in what is probably known as the worst state for MTB....FL. So I am hoping someone can point me in the right direction. Thanks in advance for anyone that's able to help me out here. So there it is, my ambitions for getting started. Please help me out here, cause I'm pretty overwhelmed with the whole process. Thanks again!

Scott
flag BenLow2019
Posted: Jun 2, 2023 at 8:07 Quote
Florida has some fun trails - check out TrailForks and have a look.
$1700 won't get you a serious, full suspension trail bike brand new. You'll have to look at used full suspension bikes with that budget.
With that in mind:
Bike Type: I'd start looking for a decent hardtail that can be upgraded as you want - not a Walmart bike. Giant Bikes makes fine bikes with a decent value, good components and you may find a good deal on a good hardtail at a local bike shop - new or used.

Gearing: In Florida you won't need the big sprockets found on an expensive SRAM Eagle or 12 speed drivetrain. A 1x 9 or 10 or 11 will be just fine since you don't have hours of climbing to worry about. You have no mountains to ascend so smaller cassette will be adequate.

Suspension: A lot of Florida is very flat and sandy so there's not a lot of rocky chunk to think about. The worst is all the roots in some areas which can be a pain, but you'll get better at riding by dealing with them. A short travel fork (140 mm or less) would be adequate. No real need for a shock in the rear - seems like overkill.

Pedals: get some good flat pedals and good shoes. I don't recommend starting out on clipless pedals and don't ride the cheap, plastic safety pedals that come with every bike unless you're absolutely broke.

Dropper post: get one. Doesn't have to be expensive, but it makes every technical bit better. If you're broke then save up and get one later.

Size wheels: 29 or 27.5 are the popular choices. I ride 27.5 all the time, but looking at 29er bikes recently and may get one in a year or two. Not a huge deal either way - get whatever feels better to you when you're in the saddle.

If you are looking used and thinking about using any online forum site or eBay (etc.) to purchase then watch for scammers taking money and ripping you off. There's a thread dedicated to the scammers here on PB where they out the many scammers found in the BuySell site. I'd avoid online person-to-person purchases and go with a local shop. The local shop will stock bikes in every budget and work well in the local riding area.

Good luck.

 


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