[Closed] Suggest a Downhill Mountain Bike for minimum cost

Ok so i have a equal spread of people saying the charge lender, the 456 and the pig.
i will have to make a decission, but based on that video what would be best of the 3?

The blender would certainly be the most fun and multi use out of all of them.

The 456s and hardcore hardtails, despite the name "hardcore" are still geared to somewhat sensible riding (despite what these old codgers claim). Going on a bike ride and clocking up some miles, doing some technical bits along the way.

The blender is very much more a play bike, better for jumps and messing around, learning and very capable. It will be bteer suited to jumping, freeride and mucking about in the woods.

Though i know people who learnt of 456s, DH and bmx trackes, and it certainly did not hold back their progression.

Ok so im thinking the Blender, and it even seems best for my height so I may go with that

The Blender is only 100mm travel,

I have u-turn Pikes on mine. I run them at 120mm for xc and 4x and wind them out to 140mm when wangin it.... Copes brilliantly with all settings.

crashtestmonkey: 😆

based on that video what would be best of the 3?

I'm out.

I have u-turn Pikes on mine. I run them at 120mm for xc and 4x and wind them out to 140mm when wangin it.... Copes brilliantly with all settings.

U-Turn is just the fancy name given to the Pike forks that have adjustable travel. It means you can adjust the travel to the kind of riding you're doing at that time like going up hill or downhill. Very handy if you have a do it all bike but easy to get obsessed with adjusting.

@matamomo you do have the distinct whiff of a troll. Go and find a proper mountain bike shop or two (ie not Evans) around the areas you want to ride, try out a few bikes and then buy what you want. You've gotten lots of good advice here including that post from Herman, there is no one right bike for you, many many options.

i will have to make a decission, but based on that video what would be best of the 3

when you say you have a u-turn, what is that and do i need one if i buy the bike?

oh well, now

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U-Turn is just the fancy name given to the Pike forks that have adjustable travel. It means you can adjust the travel to the kind of riding you're doing at that time like going up hill or downhill. Very handy if you have a do it all bike but easy to get obsessed with adjusting.

Im just goonna choose to ignore the troll message things as its breaking up the help i got from this thread, thanks for the waste of my time btw . . . appreciated

+1 for a blender see below links for photo & vids:

Photo (my blender): http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/6719126/

Videos:

Me on the blender (I'm in the purple): http://www.pinkbike.com/video/223512/

Not me, not a blender but a local track I ride with similar style bikes: http://www.pinkbike.com/video/144123/

Not me, not a blender, its a stanton slackline which looks awsome, only real difference is comes in a bigger size, ment to pedal up a bit easier and takes a 160mm fork, but the style of bike and the way the guy rides is how I like it, xc blast, hit the trails, dh tracks and 4x, versatile fun, good price.....this is special.....enjoy: http://www.pinkbike.com/video/144123/

P.s as much as I love my blender if i had funds I'd run a slackline with lyrik 2 step air forks 115/160but twice the price of my frame and forks, slackline is £400 frame on mine was £200, plus blenders come up 2nd hand with a good spec for £500-£600 often, slackline are new (and pretty special) and hardly come onto the market 2nd hand.

Small point mat. I wouldn't be complaining about having my time wasted. You're on holiday and asking for our advice. A bit of fairly friendly ribbing would seem a decent price for lots of good advice. Like I said. If you're not a troll don't let it get to you. But as far as I can see, no one's wasting your time.

My advice would be to get the 456. I started riding about the same ages as you, just as jump bikes were beginning to appear. Mine is currently sitting in the garage and gets no use at all, whereas if I'd bought a 456 equivalent at the time I'd still be riding it. Dirt jump bikes like the Blender are designed very specifically for jumping, so aren't as versatile as the 456 which can do bits of trail, bits of downhill and small jumps. If you live next to a dirt jump set then buy one of those. If you are doing what I was riding at your age, just ragging around the local woods, building a few little tracks and jumps, and occasionally going on longer rides around, then get the 456. It's a great beginner bike as its far more versatile than the Blender. The Blue Pig is an ok option, but you should go for whichever is cheaper, which is the 456.

I'm glad people have swung you around to a jumpier bike.
The 456/Blue Pig are all-day XC bikes able to handle techy stuff.
They aren't jumpy play bikes (not that it means you couldn't).

Best thing to do is look at the culture of the companies and see for yourself if they match your desires. The types of videos they release, the style of riders the owners are, etc.

The Blender looks good, as would similar bikes from more jumpy companies like NS Bikes, DMR, Transition, Stanton, Curtis, etc.
It's a sector of the market which has seen huge growth over the last few years and there are loads of options.

Buy a copy of Dirt magazine and see who all the advertisers are and have a good read around.

.

I smell troll too, but I'm sure there are others reading this thread who would appreciate all the discussion.

I am torn between the Blender and 456, but there seems more support now for the Blender so I guess I will pick one up 😀
I think the main appeal about it is its size, it would suit me perfectly where as a 16" frame may end up being too big

Mattamoto - there's a minc condition Charge Blender in the classifieds right now for £380 [url= http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/charge-blender-price-drop ]here[/url] buy it & you could still get another bike, or more likely get the parts you'll break! HTH!!

I'm glad people have swung you around to a jumpier bike.
The 456/Blue Pig are all-day XC bikes able to handle techy stuff.

That's not really right. The bikes that match your description from those two companies would be the Inbred and the Piglet. The 456 and the Blue Pig are the "do-it-all" bikes, or the "hardcore hard tails", depending on your marketing preferences. Anyway, they're the ones that I'd be recommending. They're the most versatile, which I think is the most important thing for a beginner with only one bike. They will also take a few jumps. If Matt later gets really into dirt jumping he can always pick up a DMR Drone for £500. Alternatively if he gets really into Downhill he can save for a Specialized Status, but the 456/Blue Pig will always be a good bike to have alongside those others. Whereas if he gets the Blender, grows a bit and then decides he's not that into dirt jumping he'll be left with a bike that isn't much use.

Now i dont know, do i buy that £380 Blender . . . or should I get a pig.
Because that blender looks like a good deal.

Although i believe the Blender being sold is single speed, is that something i should go with or avoid?

I wouldn't buy that Blender. It's only got one brake and is singlespeed. It's not a versatile 'only bike'.

Thats what i was afraid of, its a real shame, looks very neat

Can't disagree more with bleaderwilliams, the blender is not a dj frame its 4x and is very versatile, not a mountain goat when it comes to climbing but easily capable of many types of riding, just ask any blender owner, there is a reason why it was featured is dirt 100 3 years running as best do-it-all hardtail! It's good around FUN....the only complaint dirt had is that it only comes in 15" so small if your over 6".

Dj frames are predominantly single speed without the capability of running gears and extremely compact.

Ok my gut feeling is to go with the Blender

Yeah the blender advertised needs a front brake gears and would benefit from an adjustable fork,sawing that it looks sweet for the intended purpose and price, gears and a front brake wouldn't break the bank!

What did you think to the vids I linked!? Does that look like the kind of ridding you want to do...bearing in mind we live in the UK!

gears and a front brake wouldn't break the bank!

And yes thoose are all the kind of style tracks i go to or find (make)

Buy a book on bicycle maintenance (or go on a course?) and buy a toolkit. The amount of money you will save (same as servicing your own car in the future) compared to paying a bike shop to fix it will be a massive amount!

Ok, where could I look for a second hand Charge Blender that is not single speed? Is there any selling here?

With 2nd hand it sometime pays dividends to wait just a short while, until recently there were some bargains on pinkbike.com all look to be sold, seen some steels on eBay in the past too.

Edit: just looked on eBay nothing looking like a bargin, looked on pinkbike and was this:

http://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/1054552/

Decent price & spec.

Hi there.
It's my Black Blender your talking about.
I also have the 8sp cassette and 8sp shifter which came off the bike.
a front brake would be peanuts on here or on ebay.

You wont find a better condition second hand blender, I can guarantee that!

I'm open to sensible offers on the bike if it's what you're looking for.
Just drop me an email. (in profile)

Cheers

Rob, just to clear up, the bike does come with the parts to have gears applied, or would i need to buy anything else apart from a front brake?

I would get a preloved IH sunday 2008 wc.

Make sure you get one that's had a recent bearing/shock/fork service.

I would get a preloved IH sunday 2008 wc.

Make sure you get one that's had a recent bearing/shock/fork service.

Why would you buy 2 IH Sundays, in case the first one broke? Not sure the OP can afford 2 bikes, or should buy something more reliable?

🙂

yea, two bikes is a little on the pricey side, im really considering getting the £380 Blender but im just trying to weigh up all the possible options. Its kind of overwhelming with how much choice there is

You'd only need a rear mech. Plenty on here for sale.
I'll chuck in the cassette and shifter. No problem.

ok, can I drop you a message tomorrow? I am very interested and I will know for deffinate tomorrow if im able to take it off your hands. 🙂

Yeah no worries.

well it is looking promising on the Blender, so if i do buy it with the 8sp shifter and cassette what rear mech could anyone on here recommend for smooth gear changes and reliability. I am not to fussed about the front brake yet as i dont really use them anyway.

bump

It's a Sram shifter so anything like an x5 right up to an X0 would do the job.
If you're still interested in the bike drop me an email. (in profile tab)

Cheers

well this should end the troll debate anyway!

Damn, I lost out on the Charge Blender sale 🙁
That ends any chance that I could get a bike in the Easter holidays, shame as it looked great and the weather is perfect out.

Just to improve my chances of getting a good deal, I would appreciate the help if you happen to stumble upon a good deal on a Ragley blue pig or Charge Blender please inform me 😀