Anyone into mountain biking?

Im thinking about buying a bike...I found this used one on craigslist. I was wondering if anyone knew much about it...

http://kalamazoo.craigslist.org/bik/340012819.html

$425 is a great deal for a bike like that, check out mtbr.com (mountain bike review) for reviews from riders, if there aren't any for that specific bike, check out other fuels. I have a friend that rides one and he likes it...I have heard that they have some problems with the chainstay/swingarms for hardcore riders breaking them, but they are really good with warranties. I ride about 2x per week, but ride a Giant NRS.

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I found a few reviews that talk about chainsuck....what is that referring to? Other thing Ive read is that the disc breaks are much better than the calipers, which makes sense.

ooh. I actually looked this up the otherday...

http://www.diaryofamountainbiker.co.uk/chainsuck.php

discs are better than calipers, but if you aren't going to ride real seriously or a lot, don't worry about it. One of the best riders I ride with has a hardtail with v-brakes. true 'caliper' brakes don't come on mountain bikes any more. The discs main advantage is almost never having to adjust or change the pads and less effects of mud/water on brake performance.

As far as I have experienced, chain suck is more of an effect of worn or improperly adjusted components, although I would guess that the OEM chainrings could be a cause on this model.

good find ollllllo....thanks!

There are some awesome trails down around Pontiac. Pontiac Lakes is good, but the Patawotamy (sp?) trail is one of the best in the State. It's been about ten years since I've bee on it, but if I recall correctly it should be in the vicinity of Hell/Brighton area.

Trek makes a very solid bike. i have had my trek for 5 years and have put it threw hell and have never had any problems. 425 seems like a very fair price, I would go for it.

This is a fair price for a bike with this assortment of cost effective components.
Unless you are going to be hitting it hard or racing, this bicycle should fit the needs of an entry level rider.
My reccommendo is go an ride a new fuel 90 (if they still mak'em) to suss out comfort and frame size.

ColoradoXJ13 said:

discs are better than calipers

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While this statement is entirely true. In the context of the bike offered (V-brakes)
It is matter of opinion as to which is better disc or v-brakes. Same goes for FS and Hardtails.
It all depends on the rider.

I have a really beat up Schwinn hand me down mountain bike I still ride daily. I just bought my wife a Schwinn bike as well last week so she can go riding with me.

Biking is much more fun than walking for exercise though on my bike ride yesterday my dog broke leash and got sprayed by a skunk.

I just bought a new trek 3900 with discs. I went hardtail and didn't both a bike with deore dereailers since I wanted it mostly for city riding, though light trail riding is in the plans.

I went disc since I may or may not be moving to an area wehre it rains 6 0 8 months a year and wante dthe stopping power on wet city streets.

Trek frames are solid and have lifetime warranties unlike many others. They are also hand made in the US, not mass produced in china.

Now if I get my ass in shape I might buy a downhill bike. Probably a Trek or Rocky Mountain. Anything built in Canada or the US (and not just "constructed in" like norco). I will not be spending $4000 like my cousin did on his hardtail and downhill (4 grand each. Yikes!) bikes.

I just missed a damn clearence sale on 2006 trek 4900's. Only size they had left was a 13". Almost made me cry. The damn bikes were selling for less than my 2007 trek 3900. Deore parts, Rock shock brand front suspension etc.

Oh yeah, for price comparisons to that fuel 90 downhill bike. I paid $489 CAD for a 3900 hardtail with discs.

I am going to take a look at it I think....He lives like 1.25 hrs away ...Im hoping he comes out my way for some reason, otherwise hopefully he'll meet me half way. If I like it Im going to offer him 400....if he says no, Ill pay the 425.

then I'll have to buy some shoes and a helmet

Big clearance sale at Performance Bike:

http://www.performancebike.com/

olllllo said:

Big clearance sale at Performance Bike:

http://www.performancebike.com/

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yep, just spent $150 there this past weekend....ouch.

Dennys Fine Consumptibles said:

Trek frames are solid and have lifetime warranties unlike many others. They are also hand made in the US, not mass produced in china.

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Most Frame builders offer a lifetime warranty to the original owner. While TREK still maintains a factory in Wisconsin to fabricate it's high end models, I think they actually moved the production of their lower end bikes to Taiwan after they purchased Fisher in 1993(?).

Not according to their website. And there are a lot of bike companies that offer a 5 to 7 year warranty instead of lifetime.

Dennys Fine Consumptibles said:

Not according to their website. And there are a lot of bike companies that offer a 5 to 7 year warranty instead of lifetime.

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Okay, then I guess it must be true....

Glibbidy said:

Most Frame builders offer a lifetime warranty to the original owner.

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These tend to be pretty limited though (coming from a former bike shop employee here for close to 10 years), they are covered against manufacturers defect, which is arguable in most cases since most people who break bikes also tend to crash, and smash their bikes around. If you get hit by a car and the frame breaks, technically, it is not manufacturers defect, and technically dropping off rocks is what the bike is made to do, to an extent. I have seen people destroy bikes doing dumb things and get warrantied, I have seen frames break due to normal wear and tear, and get rejected for warranty.

Trek/Gary Fisher/Bontrager/etc tends to be very liberal with warranties. I have a buddy here who tends to break his GF joshua frame every two years and gets it warrantied every time.

Notice I said most fram builders.....I don't necc. mean Bikes that are mass produced, not unlike BMC
I'm sure glad Tom Kellogg built the frame for my road bike.

Glibbidy said:

Notice I said most fram builders.....I don't necc. mean Bikes that are mass produced, not unlike BMC
I'm sure glad Tom Kellogg built the frame for my road bike.

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sorry, didn't pay attention to that, I didn't think many people in this thread were considering/have custom frames, I certainly don't, but will as soon as I am rich

Then again, I make about $2500 per summer for maintaining the pool in my complex, been eyeing this for a long time...

Is the trek fuel 90 an upgrade from the 4900?

Particularly this one i found on ebay...

http://cgi.ebay.com/2006-Trek-4900-...QcategoryZ98083QQtcZphotoQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I've got a Trek 6500 hardtail that I absolutely love.

I got it years ago, and have ridden the hell out of it and it never fails me.

I'd love to upgrade, but I can't part with it, so I'm thinking I might just upgrade some components here and there. Thinking about disc brakes, and some clipless pedals.

That looks like a great bike to get into it with

Hope you get it

Trek 4500 Rider here...

I love my bike...i do alot of travel and take it with me everywhere in hopes of finding a new trail to ride.

I'm hoping to upgrade myself here in about a month and use the 4500 for all out trail abuse/commute, and have a much nicer bike for a good ride/racing.

As far as the Fuel 90 Vs the 4900...The Fuel definately has better components, especially considering that the price is virtually the same. More importantly though...which bike is the appropriate size? thats what matters most...hell half the fun is riding like all hell, breaking parts and replacing them all while you brew..then top the day off with a good ride.

ill.literate said:

I've got a Trek 6500 hardtail that I absolutely love.

I got it years ago, and have ridden the hell out of it and it never fails me.

I'd love to upgrade, but I can't part with it, so I'm thinking I might just upgrade some components here and there. Thinking about disc brakes, and some clipless pedals.

That looks like a great bike to get into it with

Hope you get it

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I really would not waste money on getting disk breaks. Its a pretty expensive conversion and a good set of V breaks you will have similar results. I think clip less pedals should be the first thing anyone getting into biking should buy. They take a while to get used to, and you will fall a few times stopping. But after a few rides its just natural. I have them on all my bikes and wont ride with out them.

Ryanh1801 said:

I really would not waste money on getting disk breaks. Its a pretty expensive conversion and a good set of V breaks you will have similar results. I think clip less pedals should be the first thing anyone getting into biking should buy. They take a while to get used to, and you will fall a few times stopping. But after a few rides its just natural. I have them on all my bikes and wont ride with out them.

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Definately true about the Clipless pedals....once you are comfotable riding get a set, what a difference it is....the crazy part is that you wont fall at speed or in anything particularly tricky, but when your nearly at a stop and forget that your clipped in...It really only takes around say 3-5 rides to get the hang of em though. As far as the brakes...It seems like most bikes come with disc nowadays anyways, and agree partially that in dry terrain v-brakes will yield just about as good results, but in the wetter terrain i wouldnt trade my discs out for a thing. Thats just MY* personal preference though.

*I know people can be pretty opinionated about they're bikes...All views are my own

I think the fuel 90 is going to fit me well. Im only 5'6" and its a 17.5" frame. Does that sound about right to you guys? I have plans to meet with the guy next wednesday to check it out.

Petey said:

Trek 4500 Rider here...

I love my bike...i do alot of travel and take it with me everywhere in hopes of finding a new trail to ride.

I'm hoping to upgrade myself here in about a month and use the 4500 for all out trail abuse/commute, and have a much nicer bike for a good ride/racing.

As far as the Fuel 90 Vs the 4900...The Fuel definately has better components, especially considering that the price is virtually the same. More importantly though...which bike is the appropriate size? thats what matters most...hell half the fun is riding like all hell, breaking parts and replacing them all while you brew..then top the day off with a good ride.

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Petey said:

As far as the brakes...It seems like most bikes come with disc nowadays anyways, and agree partially that in dry terrain v-brakes will yield just about as good results, but in the wetter terrain i wouldnt trade my discs out for a thing. Thats just MY* personal preference though.

*I know people can be pretty opinionated about they're bikes...All views are my own

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I will agree with that, I don't have to deal with the rain and very humid weather like some of yall. Bet hey who needs brakes anyways.

First off, the Fuel 90 is a full suspension bike and the 4900 is a hardtail, apples and oranges. Second, if you are 5'6", the 17.5" or the 18" frame is too big for you, you should be looking in the 16" range, 17" MAX if the bike has a hugely sloping top tube, this is a mountain bike, you are going to fall, protect those nads.

Oh, and anyone who claims that V-brakes are better than discs has never ridden discs more than once. Would I upgrade if I had v-brakes, maybe, the costs of discs has gone way down while the quality has gone up, do I have v-brakes on my commuter bike, yes, and no plans to upgrade, but I wouldn't ever buy a mountain bike with v-brakes again.

Tophe, you need to go into a bike shop, a good bike shop, and talk with a salesman, test ride some bikes, and learn a bit more before you buy. You don't have to buy at the shop, but learn the differences between suspension types, component levels, and ride a few different frame sizes.

Ryanh1801 said:

I really would not waste money on getting disk breaks. Its a pretty expensive conversion and a good set of V breaks you will have similar results. I think clip less pedals should be the first thing anyone getting into biking should buy. They take a while to get used to, and you will fall a few times stopping. But after a few rides its just natural. I have them on all my bikes and wont ride with out them.

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I've been riding with clips since I was 14, so I'm pretty used to it. I'm just looking forward to not having to deal with the clips and my toes falling asleep inside them.

Well guys, I bought the Fuel 90 today and love it so far. Ive only ridden around my yard and around the streets around my house but its pretty smooth. I went and bought some shoes and a helmet right after I bought the bike.

I love the clipless pedals so far. Havent really had trouble getting out of them yet. Fell over once though...lol.....I was trying to do a wheelie walk in the yard and started going to the side and couldnt get my foot down to save me, but somehow i released both of them as I fell to the ground.....nothing hurt though....well maybe my pride a little since the 12 yearold neighbor was watching and laughing at me.

Need some new tires before I tear it up too hardcore. Went to the bike shop and realized I just got myself into another expensive hobby!

Tophe said:

I was trying to do a wheelie walk in the yard and started going to the side and couldnt get my foot down to save me, but somehow i released both of them as I fell to the ground.....nothing hurt though....well maybe my pride a little since the 12 yearold neighbor was watching and laughing at me.

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Save the wheelies for when you are used to the pedals. You'll save yourself a trip to the emergency room for a sprained ankle...or worse.

Yep.....I'll leave the wheelies alone for now....I want to go jump man....I'm diggin the fully suspended bike.

Yep.....I'll leave the wheelies alone for now....I want to go jump man....I'm diggin the fully suspended bike.