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Which one preferably from a shop or online retailer. Don’t need a big Enduro 160mm + monster. Something between 100-150 mm.
Any thoughts?
Calibre Triple B, Bossnut, etc. pretty good bikes. I think there’s a Boardman that’s under that price as well
Go Outdoors don't seem to be doing Calibre Bossnuts anymore and instead are just selling Polygon Siskius rather than rebadge them.
As well as the Boardmans mentioned above both the Sonder Cortex and Evol can be had in sub £2k builds.
I've got an Evol and it's Brill.
If they ever come back into stock, these look good:
https://vitusbikes.com/collections/escarpe/products/vitus-escarpe-27-cr-mountain-bike
Sonder cortex or evol
I believe Calibre had problems with Polygon (either quality, ripping off their bikes or actually getting them to make the things) plus the madness of the last 2 years! So they’re moving production to somewhere else. They currently have Polygon bikes in their shops as a stopgap I believe, which is a shame as my Line 29 hardtail is great and the wife has a BBB (originally bought as we could no longer justify top end bikes for the next few years due to having twins) but they ride really nicely and are perfect for the local stuff we only manage to get to ride (Ashton Court and FOD).
Do Vitus still do some sub £2k bikes?
I find it hard to believe that Polygon were sub-standard suppliers for Go Outdoors and the solution was to offer a wide range of their bikes!
FWIW all things being equal I'd rather ride a Siskiu than a Bossnut!
If you would consider SH my Santa Cruz 5010 is still for sale! Amazing bike for 2k... Just saying!
On a strict £2k budget, I'd put this Vitus at the top of my list:
https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/vitus-escarpe-29-cr-mountain-bike-2021/rp-prod195276
And the Polygon Siskiu would also get a look if available in 29in for that price.
If you're confident buying secondhand, then prices have settled down again now and you could get something nice - but not all sellers are realistic about price so you need to know what you're doing.
And the Vitus bikes are so well specced, you won't always do better with secondhand anyway.
I managed to get a 2021 Vitus Mythique 27 VRX earlier this year in one of their stock drops (listed on their website now I think) as I was in the same place. I have the cheapest bike out of the group I ride with but thus far everyone has been impressed with the spec of it.
I was torn between the Escarpe and Mythqiue but ultimately decided the 10mm of travel wouldn't make much difference nor did I want a carbon frame. I've since learned if I was so inclined I could get a different airshaft for the Bombers and make my forks 150 which I might do one day but for now 140/140 is plenty for me. The brakes will likely be the first thing that "needs" changing to something more powerful.
I also didn't have any issues with how it came. I have seen some horror stories about broken parts etc.
They seem like great bikes too, have ridden with a pal on one and it wasn't holding him back up or downhill.
Another point for the OP to consider: At that price point, try to avoid bikes which come with the Rock Shox 35 fork.
The Bomber Z2, Fox Rhythm or Rock Shox Revelation will all be significantly better.
On a strict £2k budget, I’d put this Vitus at the top of my list:
https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/vitus-escarpe-29-cr-mountain-bike-2021/rp-prod195276
/blockquote>Me too, but only if you're a lanky bugger, they've only got XL
They give notice of incoming stock drops:
https://vitusbikes.com/pages/2021-vitus-bikes-stock-availability
Unclear if that means that model has been and gone, or is still to make its way to CRC/Wiggle though?
Worth keeping an eye out anyway.
Check out the Marin Rift Zone series as well. Available (in the loosest sense) in 27.5 or 29.
Specialised Status is slightly more then £2000 but maybe some haggling in a shop would get it to £2000.
The Saracen Arial 30 mentioned above is insanely long per size. Medium has a 480mm reach which is proper long for a medium. It’s also Super Boost rear which is annoying - I wish manufacturers would drop that idea. We don’t need another hub standard.....
Ended up picking up a Giant Trance X 29 3
Bit more than I wanted to spend. But I popped into local bike shop for some Chain lube which is Giant dealer and a brew and walked out with a new bike.
Love it.
That should be fun - and more importantly in stock. Enjoy!