Hardtail upgrade, Merida Matts HFS XC 2000-D or cube LTD Race.
Mainly to be used for cross country riding and marathons.
Any advice appreciated

had the same choice recently for the missus

the cube looks brilliant but comes in fairly heavy imho – wheels are where it is

the merida is 25lbs for an 18 inch , has fox forks and sram kit

she is using it for marathons and xc racing.

We bought the merida

thanks for the help, I agree the cubes look great but will also go for the Merida as I have been told the Fork is better.

Whyte? Love them and my friend has had a Cube Ltd Race so I have knowledge of both.

I got a BMC elite, £250 for frame off ebay, built with xt/slx, juicys, my old crossmax's and carbon bars and post from classifieds and CRC/wiggle. Under 25lb and pretty cheap all in. Feels great, not too harsh, and looks pretty too.