Have been looking at on-one but I was wondering what other manufacturers out there (smaller brands) do this kind of bike for a similar price. Pics too would be good.

Cheers!

Singular

ive just built a singular. most lovely.
http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/new-bike-singular-swift

If you want to give one a try, rutland cycles ebay shop is selling diamondback mojito's for £199 delivered.

Seem to be decent value for money.

Used to have a singular and it was very nice. now have a surly karate monkey that is nice too. Both worth a look. And Sam at singular is a top bloke to deal with. Still miss my swift 🙁

I'll give them a look, ta.

crocodilian, i'm looking too, what's your budget? bit of difference between on-one off-the-shelf complete bike and singular custom build 😕

Lynskey Ridgeline 29er is a corker…or pro 29 if you feeling a bit more flush……On the cheaper side look at a Tomac Flint frame Bushnell EBB for £450! http://www.tomac.com/bikes/flint-29.php

Sam at singular is a top bloke to deal with

Met Sam at 24/12 last year and seemed a top bloke. His bikes were bloody lovely too.

If I was considering a 29er (which I am), I'd be inclined to wait and see what some of the bigger manufacturers and importers bring into the UK for 2011. I reckon next year'll be when they finally start offering a good range of options.

I bought one of those Diamond Backs and upgraded it a bit with stuff from my parts bin. For an introduction into 29ers its been great for me. The forks are pretty harsh when it gets really rough though and some of the welding is a bit blobby! . . . but hey its the cheapest bike I've ever bought and its the one I choose for most of my rides now. The 26er Ti Inbred keeps getting left in the shed!

I'd love a Singular but funds won't allow at the minute.

Me Diamond Back…

Fisher Superfly

borrow/ test ride before you buy, they are all very different

Stu Mcgroo, probably around £1500.

Those Singulars look lovely but that Diamond Back's surprised me, looks very good too.

big_n_daft – Member
borrow/ test ride before you buy, they are all very different

I'd agree with that – there are a lot of very average ones out there…

find it surprsing that only salsa and singular are the only decent ptions around the £500 price point , considering both are sold out there must be a gap for another brand to have something similar ?

29ers aren't big business in the UK, no matter what distorted view you might get on this forum…

Niner EMD. I got one a couple of months back and its awesome.

crocodilian – Stu Mcgroo, probably around £1500.

Those Singulars look lovely but that Diamond Back's surprised me, looks very good too.

several in the fifteen hundred quid bracket, my research so far has found these (in no particular order);

giant xtc2 £1400, gary fisher paragon £1400, kona big kahuna £1280, khs flagstaff £1199 and rocky mountain vertex £1499.

all are complete bikes, off-the-shelf and hardtail except the khs which is full suss, the vertex might be hard to track down and there are cheaper versions of the giant, fisher and kona but the ones i listed are the closest to £1500.

as for frame only, if you've got to source all the bits you can be into stupid money just to get an average build, if you've got bits lying around it might be different but i haven't so i deffed the idea.

and the diamond back surprised me too. wonder how much it weighs? or what happens when you start to hammer it? you can pay over the odds for a name but at the lower of the market you invariably get what you pay for and common sense tells me at £199 you ain't paying for much. 🙂

worth a riskthough for £199 (you don't get gears though i don't think)

I bought a Diamondback Mojito, it was £280 when I got it. It is SS. I liked it, but I've since swapped out some parts as I only got it to see if I'd like 29er's.

Nope – no gears for that price.

I'm not saying you can compare the DB to bikes like the Singular, there is no comparison.

It ain't the nicest riding bike I've ever ridden, and weighs about 28lb ish at a guess, so not especially light. But if you want to try a 29er for very little dosh its a great choice. I even managed to get £70 odd quid for the bits I stripped of it!

I think I'm sold on the idea of the Singular Swift, the pricey option but worth it in the end I reckon…I've just sent an email about a demo although I'm doubtful of anything happening near me (Bucks), these things usually occur up North.
Anyone on here and from round Bucks have one that they'd let me have a go on?

Do Head for the Hills in Dorking do Singular demo's? They're not a massive distance from Bucks are they?

Cheers ctznsmith. I'll get in contact with them.

I think I just replied to your email but Bucks is not awfully far from me – I'm sure we can sort something out.

TBH I'm not sure the 'buy a budget one to see if you like it' logic is that great. Like any cheap bike it will be heavy and feel slow. A much better option would be to see if you can get a ride on a few different decent ones (as above, there is much variation between them, as with 26" wheeled bikes) – something of a similar quality to what you are riding now. I could certainly do a pretty nice complete build on a Singular for around the £1500 mark.

Thanks for the flattering comments guys 🙂