Hi, i’ve only got back in to mountain biking again in the last couple of years and have only had alu bikes, but harking back to my youth i had a kona fire mountain and absolutely loved it so am thinking of getting a steel frame and swapping my components over, the main reason that i am thinking of going steel is because after a hour or 2 my back is really stiff so i’m thinking a comfier flexy steel frame will help me out, i dont want full sus as i just have no need for it (not brave enough for big drops and the like). I’m liking the look of the rock lobster 853 it looks good value, and merlin cycles is only about 5 miles away from me, the only issue i have is im rather heavy and am worried that it might be a bit too flexy for me, so was just looking for other peoples opinions, and reccomendations.
Thanks for reading

depends on your budget really , I own a ragley blue pig and it’s more of a hardcore hardtail type bike with big forks ! cotic soul is very nice lovely finish and comfy but quite expensive . Another brand would be Pipedream sirus R853 they get rave reviews! 853 Reynolds tubing fantastic finish for £350 or if your on a real budget check out onone inbred, think there frames go for about £150 ish now ? to be honest there is quite alot of choice so take yeah time 🙂

On-one inbred/456
Voodoo Wanga
Genesis IO(I have s ssone for sale)
Ragley
to name a few. I am a big lad and have had all the top 3

Have the Wanga at the moment and love it

If its the Rock Lobster youre looking at then for that style of bike i would say Voodoo are really good value and there was a white bizango for sale on here a week or 2 ago, nearly went for it myself. What about Charge bikes, Dialled bikes and i’d say Cotic as well as Sanderson. If your back is getting sore is your seat and handlebars at the right height for you. Might be something simple like that…………..but you might as well get a new bike anyway 😀 😈

Mate, I’m no Jeywheight rider, not by any means, and I run 2 steel Hardtails.

Currently running a Dialled Love/Hate as a SS, and a Cove HJ as a XC HT..

Do it, Steel is great fun to ride..

You would be better off with one of these http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=7386 if you are suffering with a painful back.I have a 456 and it is no more comfortable than my Alu Mountaincycle hardtail, bigger volume tyres makes more difference imho

cotic soul and BFE get my vote

I think my Pipedream Sirius is great, but there should be a load of the new, lighter 853 Scions landing next month. I’ve got no experience of Genesis bikes, but the new Lattitude looks gorgeous (and something I’d probably be thinking about, along with the Scion, if I was after a new frame).

i love the feel of steel, (i have a P7) but i still get lower back lockup after a couple of hours if im riding off road.
another thing to remember is that when you had your fire mountain the frame and forks were designed to flex and absorb shocks/vibration,
but modern frames are designed to track better and let the suspension do the work instead.
this is my opinion, however, i could be wrong like.

I’m not that certain that backache after a 2 hour ride is down to an alu frame.

It’s more likely either riding position or a stiff back.

Much as my Soul is quite a nice bike, I’d get my position looked at (saddle height, seatpost layback, stem length, bar height etc.) or book a pilates class.

I prefer my Inbred to the Soul I had. Tis a bargain.
Sanderson Life would figure high on my list.

Thanks for the replies, I get what some of you are saying about riding position, but I’ve decided on getting a new frame ad my current bike is quite big and really doesn’t give me much confidence on technical sections so i’m wanting something a bit smaller and chuckable, my budget will be around £300 and I would like something that will be fine with 100mm travel forks as that is what will be going on it until I can afford to upgrade the forks

Kinesis Decade Virsa is around the £300.00 mark

Bish

http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/rock-lobster-853-steel-frame-19-plus-bits?replies=3#post-2216342

any interest? You don’t say what size you’re after.

I just acquired an old fire mountain frame in order to re-live my own youth…. good old retrobike…

there are loads of steel bike options about now… nothing seems quite the same as mid nineties konas though…

Dialed Alpine or a Transition TransAM.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300462679920&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

If you’re a big lad (i.e. over 14st) then you’d do great with the BFe. It’s a competitive weight with a lot of the bikes mentioned, but the oversized seat tube and stiffer general construction compared to the Soul and some of those other lighter weight frames will suit you really well.

If you’re not at that kind of weight, the Soul will be a great lighter option. It’s lighter than anything else mentioned above, and obviously I think the handling’s a match for anything. Email us if you’re interested.

CycleSurgery had some Decade Virsa’s for £240. You can’t add to basket on web site but they will sell them over the phone.

Just finished building mine nad very pleased with it.

I have found the ride from my 2010 Soul sublime easily the most comfortable HT frame I have ridden.

Seems to take the best bits that I have liked from all of the steel HT’s I have owned over the years and combined them into one frame.

I am 105kg and didn’t even consider the BFE as I thought it to be too gnarly for me 😳

Kinesis Decade Virsa is around the £300.00 mark

And blooming lovely.

Got mine ss’d with carbon forks, it’d be a treat with some decent 100mm suspension but I was going for a minimalist vibe.

Mines actually labelled ‘Virtue’ which I sort of like better 🙂

Wouldn’t go wrong with a Soul, but I think the Virsa is really well suited for 100mm and general all round trails.

My basic inbred with 100mm recons on is noticably confier on rough stuff than my old Kona Muni-mula and it definately flexes a lot as i noticed when I had my little boy on his bike seat – the front visibly twists when swinging on the bars (it’s a SS). It is comfy though and no probs with my 14.5 stone on it – even rode a dh track on it a few times to see what it was like – all good fun! However a 4″ travel xc frame will be nearly as fast if not faster as you can just pedal through the rough stuff.

I also get back pain (2 prolapsed discs and 2 degenerative ones) but find stretching my legs helps – Think its the quads – basically grab your foot behind you and try to pull your leg backwards whilst keeping you hips rotated forward.

Plenty of good steel frames out there now, many from boutique brands as steel seems to be having a resurgence, but imo for value for money it’s still hard to beat an On-one Inbred, they were selling them for £99 not long ago.

Thanks again for the replies, i was a bit dubious about using this forum after reading some of the comments on other forums, but i like it you seem like a nice helpfull and friendly bunch, i’ve decided to go with an inbred as its cheap enough for me not to be too worried if i dont get on with it, and i’m just about to put my order in 😀

Good choice, i just swapped all the bits off of mine on to a Scandal frame because i wanted a lighter bike, but there is a slight noticeable difference between the frames, the steel does feel just a little softer, like having larger volume tyres.