MTB for female newbie

[roxmo]

Hi,

I would like to buy a MTB and I have a budget for ~£500.

I would like something that I can use for all mountain and downhill, mainly in the peak district. I am quite small 5'3" and 50kg so size and weight of the bike are important. If any of you have advice on good frames for my size and the type of biking I want to do, it would be appreciated.

Cheers,
roxmo

 

[mr Mag00]

bought my better half a Gary Fisher as it had a much better stand over height yet good frame size. wouldnt say it was suitable for downhill for that price

 

[ColinJ]

Hi roxmo.

I've just commented on your other post before spotting this one.

I would say for your size and budget you definitely want a hardtail MTB. I don't believe that you need or can get a good lightweight, reliable full suspension MTB for that sum of money and you definitely don't want a heavy, unreliable one!

I'm assuming that you are talking about general downhilling, not hardcore? Dedicated downhill bikes are extremely heavy and are not really suitable for riding uphill or cross country! I'm not a fantastic descender but my hardtail MTB has done some pretty big downhills in its time.

I reckon you should get something like this Merlin Malt 1. That is listed at £650 but you'd get 10% discount if you paid cash rather than going for the finance option so it would actually cost you £585. (The 13 inch size is probably about right for you too, though you should obviously check that out before buying.)

That's a pretty good bike for the money! If you shop around you can probably find quite a few other decent bikes to choose from.

 

[roxmo]

Hi Guys,

Thanx for the tips and the link. It is a bit of a maze but I am slowly figuring it out. I guess that I may have to spend a bit more money than I would like. I won't be doing any hardcore downhill for now so I don't think I will be needing a bike with dual suspension or that kind of weight.

Thanx again,
roxmo

 

[Kirstie]

Have you looked at Kona, Specialized or Trek? They have bikes with some good specs at those prices. I find that Gary Fisher have long top tubes, as do Giant, so they're not suitable for women riders especially smaller ones. Because you are 5'3" I would look at some WSD designs because that really works for smaller riders. Another thing is to try something which fits, and then try to find one second hand - you get more for your money that way. Singletrack classifieds are a good place to start, as is ebay. If you find something you might be interested in online, why not post the link on here and ask for opinions?


Edit: Don't know if you've seen the Kona sale on Wiggle at the moment. They've got 50% of a Kona five-O which from what I can tell is a rugged hardtail which would be suitable for DH or all mountain (it would climb like an arse though). They only have 14" frames left, which would suit you, and they're £499.

 

[3narf]

I bought my wife (gf at the time) a Specialized Hardrock Sport back in 1991. She still has it!

I mainly bought it for the price and colour, but it turned out that Spec bikes were popular with women due to a slightly short top tube.

Don't know if it's still the case, but it may be worth finding out. I think the top tube length is the only relevant dimension that makes a bike female-specific. Obviously, you want a nice, small frame within the range as well...

Enjoy the Peak! There's a real variety of terrain here.

 

[Ravenbait]

I still use my Hardrock, although it's a very early model and fully rigid. About 10 years old now, that bike, I think. I'm not a big MTBer because lack of 3D makes it difficult, but I've been on stuff rougher than firetrails. I really rate the bike and you do get a lot of bang for your buck from the Hardrock family.

Sam

 

[fimm]

My boyfriend is 5' 5" and 57kg ish. He got a MTB from Wiggle in the sale for £250 and rode the Strathpuffer 24 hour mountain bike race on it (in a pair). (He was joking that he had the cheapest bike there, mind you.) So you don't need a really high-spec MTB for that sort of thing (note that it is not a very technical course - but I get the impression you really are not going to be riding very technical ground either).

One thing he did find with his cheap bike was that the brake pads were a bit old fashioned and hard to get hold of! However he seemed to think that he had got a very reasonably spekked bike for the money.

One final caveat is that because he's male that fact that the bike might be a bit heavy isn't such an issue for him as he's stronger.

 

[02GF74]

My boyfriend is 5' 5" and 57kg ish.

I'm nearly twice that .... but on a diet now ....

but back to OP question. there are women specific frames, some with 24 inch wheel.

take a look at the Scott junoir bikes - they are not mickey maouse ARgos toy bikes but proper mountian bikes for smaller sized peoples.

try to sit on a few to see how they feel ... then go off to ebay and see what turns up.

.... I've done the peak district on fully rigid bike - for £ 500 I reckon you'll get pretty decent full suspension for that but obvioulsy an even better hardtail.

 

[rodgy-dodge]

Hi Roxmo I have a Kona Firemountain Delux paid justover £500 (do believe its a lot cheaper now and you would probably pick last yrs model up in a sale). I love it has everything I need, does everything I want it to do and the sadle is comfortable. Its a mans frame as the women specific where not right for my body frame. always! and I'm sure everyone would agree you really should go along to your LBS and try a few for size, there's knothing worse when a bike doesn't fit for aches and pains.

here is an example of one I found good price

 

[billflat12]

My sis had a hardtail kona shred off me an loves it, says it has attitude !!, kona market them as a jump bike (small frames), frames are hardcore , an marzocchi forks with basic 100mm of travel, faster handling an not as laid back or heavy like a freeride/downhill rig, there a tough allround beginners/intermediate bike and under £500, things i upgraded on it was the jump seat an pedals for v8,s., oh. and the discs to hydraulic before i eventually bought a kona stinky.
It should be easy enough to find one in a small size to try as they are quite popular.


Here,s Bikeradars review

http://www.bikeradar.../shred-08-28424

 

[Long Distance]

Specialized Rockhopper - an excellent entry-level bike with lots of scope for improvement, and the frame is fantastic

 

[Globalti]

Specialized Rockhopper is good. merlin bikes are great value for money.

Have a look at Islabikes, they are for children and teenagers but they are fantastic value and well specced.