My missus has finally relented and agreed to give cycling a go. I want to build her up something half decent but she's insisted that I spend as little as possible in case she doesn't enjoy it. So, we agreed that the best balance was probably 2nd hand decent-ish stuff. To start with, I want to get a frame so…

What sort of frame have people picked up recently between £50 and £100? (Obviously, I'm thinking hardtail) – I need to get some kind of idea so I can show her pics and get an idea of what kind of thing she likes visually and then, if necessary, find a balance between that and what would be best to learn to ride on.

(Btw, I'm not looking for any offers of frames as I won't be buying one for a couple of months. Basically, I'm just trying to gauge what kind of thing we can expect).

Oh, and sizing advice would help too. I don't want to be the centre of a another fanny beaters thread! She's 5'3" and fairly normally proportioned. I'm thinking 13"-14" would suit her best.
Ta for any help.

inbreds for 125 quid on on ones site brand new.

My wife's 5'7" and can swing a leg over any of my bikes with the exception of the Mojo and I'm 6'.

That's an 18" 29er and 2 18" 26ers without her bits meeting the TT.

You should manage to get away with a 16" frame, but the TT may be a little long unless she has a standard size upper body.

My wife is 5'1" and I've just put together a 14" Inbred for her. Frames are £125 new. Get a headset (fitted) for another £40 or so and you're almost there.

mrs beanZ is 5'2 and rides a 14" 456 summer season n she luvs it 😆

Any pics of her 😯

Helped a friend build up one of these:

Hansomedog XC03

Nice & light, tripple-butted, seems reasonably tough. Built up into a nice light bike even without the lightest parts. For £70 it has to be an option. All Terrain used to sell it un-stickered with the same model name but as an All Terrain frame instead. I think it also used to be sold as a Brand X. All other bits were off the wondrous ebay.
14" should be good.

Any pics of her

Lol! Not quite in the same level of anatomical detail 🙂

14" sounds right then (16" might be edging towards fanny bashing territory). Handsome Dog a possibility… Inbred tho', I've had a number of On One bikes and loved them all. That's looking like a favourite at the moment.

Cheers all 🙂

Yeah Cheesey show us some pics of Mrsbeans. 😉

Please bear in mind that girlies are often lighter in weight and do not want a heavy frame. Same goes for forks and wheelset.

And as for daffy suggesting a 16" – that is ridiculous! I am 5'5" and used to have a 16" 456 but that top tube was far too long (I have very long arms and long legs).

For what it's worth I also have a 14" Inbred singlespeed but with masses of seatpost showing.

Don't rule out a secondhand Rock Lobster as a 15" could fit cos they have compact geometry. Lovely frames.

I love spending other peoples money 😉

Have you htought about borrowing or hiring a bike for her to try before taking the plunge. We got a TREK 4500 for my other half and the only problem with it is the coil fork which is to heavy for her. An air one would have been better.

I didn't know that about Rock Lobster's, thanks CG.

stevenmenmuir: again, hiring sounds like a really good idea. We've just had a chat and, to begin with, she'll probably start with a rigid fork as (a) it'll be lighter and (b) it'll be a good way of introducing her to the concept of 'necessary upgrade' when the time comes (I've tried explaining in relation to my own bike but she's not quite got it yet) 😉

Explosion- STW issue 42 page 105 , pic by sheldona 😀

A little observation and I am definitely not trying to cause an argument.

From what I've read on here, a lot of blokes try and get their partners interested in mtb'ing, which is obviously great. But they don't realise that a lot of us don't have the strength and weight that you guys do and hence we can really struggle.

I've come into mtb'ing cos I wanted to, my ex didn't ride so I've had to learn as I went along, with some bad decisions made but some good ones too.

You've just missed out on some Reba forks I was selling for £110 so would definitely suggest keep checking the Classifieds. They seemed a reasonable weight too.

I suggested the Rock Lobster as I believe steel frames are comfy. But it would also be worth looking at the Maxlight Kenesis (sp?), I have a friend who has been really pleased with hers.

Wheels are important, lighter ones do make a difference, as do tyres.

Apologies – I didn't mean to write an essay but good luck 🙂

c_g – you do have a point and it's a shame to see so many noobie girls struggling with heavy gear. However, It's also a bit of a risk to invest in lots of expensive, lightweight bling for someone that might not enjoy it at all.

Of course, my wife has full XT on her new On One, with a lightweight FSA bar and stem combo and reasonable wheels. I must stop offering to swap carrying duties though. She's realised that my Ti hardtail is more than a smidgen lighter than the Inbred.

druid – yes, I agree with the risk but it's also a risk that with a heavy bike a girlie won't want to ride it again!

Out of interest, what weight is your wife's On-One? And has she lifted your lovely new carbon one 😉

CG sort of agree but on a power to weight ratio it must be close ? i`ve not seen any ladies smuggling woks in there bike gear like us guys 😳
Mrs beanZ reckons it also depends if you did other sports before biking

Cheesy – no, I don't think so! My backpack is quite heavy with bladder, food, huge (girlie) pump, inner tubes, first aid kit, waterproof, mobile, money, credit cards, spare gloves, chainsplitter, spare links, allen keys, map(s). That weighs a fair bit!

I used to run before I took up mountain biking but … hey … wait a minute … I'm an old girl so that's my excuse for struggling 😉

I finally finished building this today! It was done on the cheap – less than £400 total build cost (some bits were gifted/my own spares) – frame was £80 off the classifieds. Prolly not a good starter bike (it's built up for a specific purpose), but it shows that a half decent build can be done on the cheap. Putting up WTD threads in the classifieds definitely gets results! 🙂

BTW I'm 5'3" and pretty small (8st 4lb), but never have too much problem with weight of any of my bikes – my other HT is 28lb, the fs is 34lb and I easily pedal it all day, and the bigboing is 41lb.

This is the medium 243 sl frame and seems ok for sizing btw (need to test ride to confirm). My chameleon is a small and that is certainly spot on – you may be able to pick up a slightly battered one for around £100.

That on-one does look rather lovely for £125 new though – especially for a starter bike. I'd definitely consider that.

MY 14" On One has loads of standover height, I'm 5'4" so she should be fine.

Also agree with c_g. I actually got my male partner into mtbing, not the other way around. T'was easy for me though, 'cos he was sporty and had ridden bmx as a child.

I hope she enjoys it, we need more women. 🙂

Thanks everyone; we're both enjoying this thread. MrsHeathen is definitely showing interest for herself rather than just to keep me quiet 🙂

Apologies – I didn't mean to write an essay but good luck

hell, no! Don't apologise. We're grateful for you taking the time out to write it all down – excellent insights, thank you.
(I saw the Rebas but I have to get us a new mattress and assorted other things *and* take her to London for a few nights before I start putting it together for her)

And thanks lgb – that's really encouraging.

Nah Paul.

I was looking 😉 for one of your "special" pictures.

oh those! there on what i did in scotland dot com 😯

What the ones next to the pampass grass?

Another tip for a newbie female rider is carrying some stuff for them.
For example even now, hubby will carry the pump and waterproof jacket so I can have the lighter backpack.
Obviously if I'm out withe girls or on my own I have to have the heavy camelback with everything, including the kitchen sink.

Oh and carry soem mini chocolate bars. Whenever I had a hissy fit as a beginner it was a treat that calmed me down ( yes I act like a 10 year old).

on of these

littlegirlbunny – blimey, that looks a fun bike 🙂 Well done for building it yourself – have you done that before?

Your bikes are not lightweights – 41 lbs !! I wouldn't be able to lift that, let alone … point it downhill 😯

The wifes On One is 26lbs (incl. bottle cage, mudguard and bell). The Ti hardtail is 22…..

'Tis a conundrum to be sure, and one which has parallels in many other activities. Take camping… do you buy an expensive, lightweight tent, sleeping bag and rucksack? What if you find you hate the whole camping thing – that's been a huge waste of money.

If you buy cheap, heavier stuff, that might put you off altogether. OTOH, if you like it, you'll have wasted that money because you'll still want to replace it with better stuff.

CG the wok i was refering to is on the front , ie beer n curry not the back pack type ….

Cheesy – oh, I assumed that you cooked lunch on the trail 😉

druid – 26 lbs is pretty good indeed. And, as for Ti, what can I say 😉 There's a gorgeous Ti road bike on Classifieds, thank goodness it's too big for me!

I do think however that there is always a market for second-hand stuff, particularly at the moment. Yes, it's a conundrum.

CheesybeanZ – Member

CG the wok i was refering to is on the front , ie beer n curry not the back pack type ….
Don't forget some ladies have large weights on the front to carry too mate. 😉

I may have had a brainwave. Upgrade stuff on my bike; build hers from…. no. That's pretty transparent isn't it? lol!

Take camping… do you buy an expensive, lightweight tent, sleeping bag and rucksack?

Heh, funnily enough we're going camping together for the first time tomorrow: MrsH is borrowing a sleeping bag and mat and I have a spare small rucksack. I predict an overall success for the venture as the campsite's in a village with two smashing pubs who do superb food (and I've promised to pay, hemhem) and the site's also on the path to the stone circle we're walking to 🙂

I think good tyres with plenty of grip are more important than low weight. She'll be less aware of extra weight if you take your time and don't FOOB (last three words are off on bike, I'll let you guess the first). My other half doesn't like feeling the tyres moving around in directions they don't go when road riding. I forget this as I'm so used to normal MTB riding sensations, sliding, drifting etc. She also doesn't like the idea of falling off onto stones and rocks. Start small and easy but fun, the bike won't matter so much until you start to do harder stuff and hopefully by then she'll be hooked. Of course once she's hooked what'll you do whe you want a bit of peace and quiet 😀

littlegirlbunny – blimey, that looks a fun bike Well done for building it yourself – have you done that before?

Your bikes are not lightweights – 41 lbs !! I wouldn't be able to lift that, let alone … point it downhill

Nah – first complete build (although I admit I didn't bleed the brakes, me n DOT fluid would be a disaster waiting to happen). It wasn't too bad, just like putting together a jigsaw really, but with more interesting bits. And things to bash them together with 😆

Yeah, my bikes are definitely not lightweight, but tbh, I prefer them to feel 'planted' than nimble, especially for DH. When I first rode the 41 lb I was really worried I wouldn't be able to control it because of the weight, but I found it was way more stable and controllable than any of the other bikes. Wouldn't want to pedal it uphill though! The Marin Attack at 34lb really doesn't feel heavy. I find it easier than my old women's specific kona to pedal all day now, plus its far easier to handle on the descents so the weight penalty is well worth it. I definitely agree with stevenmenmuir about good tyres being a priority. IMO Confidence on the bike as a beginner is way more important than being able to ride fast/all day.

0range5 – Member
Helped a friend build up one of these:

Hansomedog XC03

Nice & light, tripple-butted, seems reasonably tough. Built up into a nice light bike even without the lightest parts. For £70 it has to be an option

I had a friend with one of these, built up with LX and Rebas and it was easily as light as my Kula Delux (at afraction of the price). He was like a rocket on it up hill, but said it was a bit harsh pointing the other way.

I reckon getting up hills is the biggest obstacle to any new rider enjoying themselves (male or female), the easier that is the better and then they can look at FS etc. once the fitness has come.

CG – In fairness, I did mention that I thought TT would be too long, but since the OP mentioned about "fanny bashers" I was looking at clearance not length. Aso you can't judge every 16" frame by the TT length of an On-One which is very long.

TT length can be compensated for by shorter stems and running saddle further forward, but smaller frames often end up with handlebars being WAAY higher than the saddle making climing problematic.

Thanks everyone. MrsHeathen thoroughly enjoyed her first night camping and walking ont moors; when we were walking she was picking lines so the signs are good 🙂