Having had a blast on a mates new Cube AMS 130 Pro, I've decided the 6 year old Kona Lisa no longer cuts it and I NEED a new bike! Really don't want to spend any more than £1500 (and less if possible). All my bikes are women specific and I like the altered geometry so
- Should I stick with a hardtail or go for a full sus?
- Any recommendations?
It gets bounced round the local 7stanes red trails fairly regularly but I'm no great technical rider!
My misses has a Spesh myka fsr and loves it.
Don't rule out mens bikes! As for full suss or hardtail, you really need at least one of each. 
Do women's specific bikes have frames with altered geometry? Always thought it was just marketing bollox; could well be wrong though. Anyhow, FS is fun to ride and definitely recommended if you've always previously owned HTs.
If you're looking for value for money then maybe something from canyon or boardman? Canyon are online only, spec apparently can't be beat for the price. Boardman are sold by Halfords. FS available from both brands with a lot of satisfied owners. Boardman look like they have a women's specific line as well.
Top tubes are shorter so the deciding factor will be your height! Preference for frame material? Fork travel? Potential for upgrading in the future?
You really need to try as many as possible which of course is extremely difficult when you're a girlie!
Could have a women's specific Lapierre Zesty 314 for sale if you're interested. Very good condition and a fabulous bike. Let me know if you are interested.
+1 on the zesty 314. My gf has it and loves it to bits. Rode it in Morzine and a fantastic all round bike that looks quite nice too...
Garry - I've found that my (admittedly road) womens bikes are significantly more comfortable than any of the male / unisex ones I road before purchasing them. My womens specific mbt bike is also more comfortable than my husband old bike that I used to ride (tho that may just be because it's closer to the right size!)
Cinnamon_girl - I do indeed need (at least) one of each! But my bank account disagrees 
I enjoy riding my bike - but I'm clueless when it comes to spec. And it's almost impossible to find a womens specific bike locally, never mind one in the right size. I need a shopping trip to a big city.
Recycler - Zesty looks interesting! What year is it and how much do are you want for it?
My good lady & young daughter have had female specific bikes, Gills had a D4W Stumpjumper & a Safire, the young ones Had a Spec hardtail in ladies guise & an extra small Giant Talon in female guise too, they both now have male frames Gills on a Heckler with a 50mm stem & the young ones on a Commencal with a 50mm stem & I don't think either of them would bother going female specific again tbhwy. Same with a girl who rides with us She tried a Female style Orange but settled on the male version after riding both. Its just hard work as a woman getting a demo to try which is a bummer I suppose....
My misses has a Spesh myka fsr and loves it.
Mine as one as well, she tested a meta and now thinks the myka is uber sh1te.
I need a shopping trip to a big city.
Good luck even then! Bike shops just don't seem to stock the female specific full sus bikes, and if they do it's one model and they only have it in the larger sizes... which is just great if you're looking for female specific bikes because you're so short!
Do women's specific bikes have frames with altered geometry? Always thought it was just marketing bollox;
HTH
I would stay away from the zesty and lapierre for two reason.
First they are very long. Like in very long.
Are you a funny shape Juan? You said similar about on one frames.
No not in a funny shape, but then as I said I can't ride on-one unless I have the full the authorised length of a 400mm seat post showing. And to be fair that is something I'd rather not have as it would mean taking risks of bending the seat post. Or I go to a 18" and they are longer than the equivalent from the industry.
I would stay away from the zesty and lapierre for two reason.
First they are very long. Like in very long. Second they don't work as well as the other bike when pointing down.
This is a personal opinion. The top tube is shorter on the female specific model, thats the whole point, and they work very well downhill, IMHO.
they work very well downhill, IMHO.
All IMHO indeed
There's generally more variation in sizing between different brands than between mens and womens versions of the same bike. I wouldn't dismiss womens frames completely but I wouldn't restrict myself to only women specific either.
I got the better half a Specialized Saffire FSR last year. Its an absolutely cracking bike. I may have in fact borrowednicked it for Hit the North on Saturday 
Other half rides an older Patriot, in 16".
She's 5'2", and combined with a short stem (Spank Spike), in-line post and girly specific saddle it fits perfectly.
Don't rule out mens bikes
Sorry for the delay alcrooks. As I said it's a Zesty 314L and in pristine condition. The model is the 2010 version, all white with dark red graphics.
Given its condition we would be looking for around the £1500 mark. What size (in terms of height) are you and where are you based?
I could email some photos if that would help
Juan, I really wouldn't say the Lapierres are long at all. The new ones are much shorter than they were (which I don't like as much) and they have inline posts and short stems. Perfect for most folk (but I would lengthen them out!). Also, I honestly have had nobody ride our demo Zesty and said it cannot descend. In fact, the complete opposite.
I'm not particularly in love with Lapierres (although I am a retailer of them) but after seeing that, I thought I should introduce some balance to the chat!
I may be selling my cove hustler soon, 15.5 frame. Great bike and I prefer mens bikes with a short stem. I rode the orange 5 ladies and it really is TINY (no I am not tall, in fact very short for a dutch girl at 163cm).
The cove is lovely and I have used it from xc to alps trips.
Simone
Depends on the brand and frame material as to whether or not women's specific geometry is applied to 'womens' bikes.
e.g.
Scott...
ally spark Contessa - Womens specific geometry and paint and saddle
carbon spark Contessa - womens paint and saddle only
Genius Contessa - womens paint and saddle only
I got the wife a 2010 Spark Contessa (alloy womens specific) to move her off the Giant VT1 that was too large/long for her.
She's running a Talas 140mm on the Spark and that bike will do everything she needs from it in Squamish.. she loves it too! - although then got pregnant... twice.. so its not had the time it deserves
For women trail riding, I think shorter travel FS is the way to go. Easier to get it up the hills, and the Spark feels to have way more travel than it does, especially for lighter people.
I reckon you could pick up a 2010/11 Spark Contessa for pretty reasonable
Upgrade down teh road to an adjustable travel fork and you're set.
My girlfriend bought a new full sus last month. I went over all the specs, and basically there is not any difference in geometry between the mens frames and the womens frames (on the ones we looked at). A juliana for example is literally the same as a superlight, but with a different paint job.
She went for a medium mens spesh camber, and put her own seat on it.
I went to the shop with her armed with a measuring tape - the thing to worry about is the length of the frame, this is what matters. i measured up her old hardtail that she is happy with fit wise to use as a baseline.
You can tweak things in by moving the saddle or changing the stem. One thing to consider is that girls complete bikes tend to have shorter cranks than the mens (didnt bother us because we threw away the crappy cranks that came with the camber and fitted xt) so if you are used to 170mm cranks, beware.
I adjusted the reach of the brake levers and she is very happy with it.
Ohhhh so much bling 
I feel a shopping trip coming on. Thanks so much for all the responses. I'll make sure to try the mens bikes too!
A
BearBack - what height is your wife? Evans recommend 67 - 71 inches for the medium - by my maths, that 5'7" to 5'11 which seems fairly tall for a women to me! I'm 5'7" and have never felt particualrly short.....
Nice bike btw!
My wife has an Anthem X1w with a shorter stem (bike shop changed it) and a specialized saddle that she was measured for. Her first mountain bike and she loves it
The womens specific designs reflect the fact that MOST women have longer legs and a shorter body than men of an equal height hence a 17in WSD bike will be shorter than a 17in unisex bike . Many women are happily riding unisex bikes , the thing is to sit on a few and see which feel right for you and then try to take a test ride .
Lapierre Zestys are not long for their size .
WSD bikes should have the same length cranks as the same sized unisex bikes.
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