Recommend me a mountain bike for £1100ish

[Dave7]

Its for my son. He has my old Giant hard tail but its re-awakened his old love of mountain biking.
I know nothing about mountain bikes (I assume they are a breed of thier own).
He likes the look of one in Go Outdoors which (he tells me) is £1400 but reduced to £1100 with the GO store card. I think its the Calibre or Calibra and apparently has won awards for the last 3 years.
Any other/better options out there ?

 

[vickster]

Presumably he means the Bossnut? Which is full suspension, does he want that or a Hardtail (front suspension)?
maybe @fossyant or @Jody among others can advise?

 

[fossyant]

@vickster has hit the nail. The Bossnut or one of the others are very well regarded and you'll not go wrong with them. I'll also recommend the Boardman MTB's. The Bossnut is full suspension, and a capable trail bike.

You could also take a look at Planet X & On-one - if looking for a hard tail the 'Scandal' is excellent for the money

Trail bike - Scandal

https://www.planetx.co.uk/c/q/bikes/mountain-bikes/on-one-scandal/

More XC - Whippet in carbon.

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CBOOWHSX/on-one-whippet-sram-sx-mountain-bike

The difference in XC and Trial is that a trail bike is more capable on tricky downhill, and has shallower angles and longer suspension. The XC bike will be faster cross country. Enduro bikes come even burlier, and are the next step up before you hit downhill, that only really go down, horrible to ride up.

 

[Jody]

Bossnut is the full suss option. It's had some really good reviews for the price range and is a good contender for a grand.

There is going to be little to compete with it unless spending a good amount more, buying second hand or switching to a hardtail.

Edit: Fossy beat me to it

 

[Dave7]

Presumably he means the Bossnut? Which is full suspension, does he want that or a Hardtail (front suspension)?
maybe @fossyant or @Jody among others can advise?

Yes....he just sent me this link.
https://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/15903684/calibre-bossnut-mountain-bike-15903684

 

[Dave7]

Presumably he means the Bossnut? Which is full suspension, does he want that or a Hardtail (front suspension)?
maybe @fossyant or @Jody among others can advise?

He has my old hard tail which is a good bike.
He wants a full sus' mountain bike.

 

[fossyant]

Bossnut then. @Hacienda71 bought one last October

 

[Cycleops]

What about this from Decathlon:
https://www.decathlon.co.uk/xc-100s-full-suspension-mountain-bike-29-id_8518388.html
Lifetime frame warranty which could be a plus with the sort of life a bike like this leads, plus a year on components.

 

[Hacienda71]

At the price point the 2020 Bossnut is as good as it gets for a trail orientated bike. So if he likes riding rough bridleways and trail-centres like Llandegla and Coed y Brenin then go for it. The geometry on the Boss Nut is spot on. It feels pinned at speed and the geo is good for technical climbing as well. The only negative comments I would make are the paint tends to wear of fairly easily so a bit of helicopoter tape on the areas where you are likely to suffer from rub is a worthwhile investment. It isn't an xc bike though, so if he is more into cross country then my advice would be a hard tail 29er. Personally having had an xc orientated full suspension bike before if I was going down that route having raced a little bit of XC on a full suspension I would go hardtail. But for trail centres and rough stuff in general as said the Bossnut is a great place to start. Budget though for a dropper post as an early upgrade on any MTB. I got a Giant one which has been excellent for about £100.

 

[Dave7]

What about this from Decathlon:
https://www.decathlon.co.uk/xc-100s-full-suspension-mountain-bike-29-id_8518388.html
Lifetime frame warranty which could be a plus with the sort of life a bike like this leads, plus a year on components.

Looks nice.....I will send him the link.
I used to have a rockrider hard tail and really liked it.

 

[Dave7]

At the price point the 2020 Bossnut is as good as it gets for a trail orientated bike. So if he likes riding rough bridleways and trail-centres like Llandegla and Coed y Brenin then go for it. The geometry on the Boss Nut is spot on. It feels pinned at speed and the geo is good for technical climbing as well. The only negative comments I would make are the paint tends to wear of fairly easily so a bit of helicopoter tape on the areas where you are likely to suffer from rub is a worthwhile investment. It isn't an xc bike though, so if he is more into cross country then my advice would be a hard tail 29er. Personally having had an xc orientated full suspension bike before if I was going down that route having raced a little bit of XC on a full suspension I would go hardtail. But for trail centres and rough stuff in general as said the Bossnut is a great place to start. Budget though for a dropper post as an early upgrade on any MTB. I got a Giant one which has been excellent for about £100.

Thanks.
As I say, he has a hardtail.
I will pass your thoughts on.

 

[Hacienda71]

Thanks.
As I say, he has a hardtail.
I will pass your thoughts on.

I suppose the big question is where he is likely to ride. A Bossnut is not great for fast xc type riding as the suspension on the rear is open all the time and will bob under load (The front does lock out), and the geometry is what they call "slack" with a short stem and wide bars. This keeps it all much more composed going down rough tracks but not as good at smashing out miles and miles of less technical riding.
See what type of riding he likes doing. That should be the main influence on his decision.

 

[fossyant]

Oh, only down side of the Rock Riders is that they use Manitou =forks and shocks. For better parts availability and servicing, Rockshox or Fox are better in the UK, just saying, as both very common, and parts can be bought (e.g. seals and oil).

Trail bikes do give you the best all round performance, plenty of suspension travel, without it being too much. The big 160mm Enduro bikes are a bit of a slog going up hill. Trail sit's nicely in the middle.

My choice:- Full suspension = Calibre Bossnut. Hard Tail = On-One Scandal (I'd love one).

 

[Dave7]

Oh, only down side of the Rock Riders is that they use Manitou =forks and shocks. For better parts availability and servicing, Rockshox or Fox are better in the UK, just saying, as both very common, and parts can be bought (e.g. seals and oil).

Trail bikes do give you the best all round performance, plenty of suspension travel, without it being too much. The big 160mm Enduro bikes are a bit of a slog going up hill. Trail sit's nicely in the middle.

My choice:- Full suspension = Calibre Bossnut. Hard Tail = On-One Scandal (I'd love one).

Fossyant....he is going for the Calibre as he has a hard tail and this will be for, shall I say, rougher riding.
He is 45 and when he showed me some of the rides him and his mates were doing 3 years ago!!!! Well beyond anthing I have ever attempted.