Bicycle suggestions

Wired

Wired

Active member
Hey bicycle geeks, anyone got a suggestion on a decent bike? Looking to ride around on some trails, maybe some street / paths.

Here's what I'm thinking of so far from Trek: http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/compare/#/police,3900disc,montare

The Police model, the 3900 series, or something in the Fisher Dual Sport line. First 2 are Mountain Hardtails. No mountains here in FL, hence looking at the Fisher Dual Sport line since they're for bike paths.

The local bike store's stock is mainly Trek, but I'm open to any suggestions on bikes from other companies. Been years since I've been on one!
 
I ride a Trek 7.3 FX (a hybrid) and it's been awesome. It doesn't have a front suspension like the ones you linked are. The front suspension adds to the cost of the bikes (you can get nicer components if you elect to go with a non-front suspension model at the same price point), and I don't think I've ever felt the need for a front suspension on a bike path - I ride in some gravel on occasion, but nothing too rugged.

With that said, if you intend to go on unpaved bike trails, I'd probably go with one of the bikes you have. Road bikes, or even hybrids offer a pretty rough ride on anything unpaved - hybrids offer some flexibility with different tire options and even some front suspension, but mountain bikes have the wider tires. It's all about what you're looking for really - riding a road bike on unpaved surfaces will be rather uncomfortable, but a mountain bike is pretty pretty bulky and much harder to get to higher speeds...
 
Wired said:
Thanks for the input, looks like I'm on the right track. Down to these 3: http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/compare/#/3900disc,4300disc,police

Kier: Never heard of Marin. From their website it looks like they've been around for a while. There's a dealer not too far from me. Which mountain bike from their line would you recommend?
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Mine is a 2006 (I think) Palisades Trail hardtail - though their range changes fairly dramatically every year, so that's probably of little relevance to the 2010 line-up.
 
I've heard of Specialized, but no store near me carries one. Could drive a ways to get to a store that does, but I'd rather have a store that's close for the occasional tune up / question. I live close to work, and the bike store's practically on my route, so it'd be easy to stop by before / after work or during lunch.

Having said that, it looks like their Hardrock or Rockhopper line would be similar to what I'm looking at?

Shaun, I created a thread there (based it off of my thread @ another bike forum). Thanks for the suggestion!
 
I really need to get myself a mountain bike again (last time I rode one was almost 10 years ago now and I'm only 26!) If I do I want it to be anothe GT i-Drive, I had one of the first ones they released and I loved it, was the best I'd ridden at the time :)
 
Wired said:
Thanks for the input, looks like I'm on the right track. Down to these 3: http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/compare/#/3900disc,4300disc,police

Kier: Never heard of Marin. From their website it looks like they've been around for a while. There's a dealer not too far from me. Which mountain bike from their line would you recommend?
Click to expand...

Between those I'd probably go for the 4300 Disc. Disc brakes are nice, but they add some weight to the bike I think. Having regular rim brakes, I can attest that stopping in wet conditions is a bit of an adventure. My back brake probably needs to be adjusted, but they certainly don't sound smooth either. ;)

The 4300 Disc also has a nicer drivetrain. If you keep the chain/drivetrain relatively clean, the Trek bikes with the shimano drivetrains run as smooth as better generally ;)
 
Pyro said:
Between those I'd probably go for the 4300 Disc. Disc brakes are nice, but they add some weight to the bike I think. Having regular rim brakes, I can attest that stopping in wet conditions is a bit of an adventure. My back brake probably needs to be adjusted, but they certainly don't sound smooth either. ;)

The 4300 Disc also has a nicer drivetrain. If you keep the chain/drivetrain relatively clean, the Trek bikes with the shimano drivetrains run as smooth as better generally ;)
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Thoughts on this?
Darth_Firebolt @ BikeForums.net said:
4300 non-disk. get better pads for the front v-brake if you have problems when the rim gets muddy/ wet.
cheaper mechanical disk brakes can be a pain in the keister. "bad" v-brakes are a lot better with better pads. "bad" disk brakes aren't really worth spending the money for upgraded pads.
my $.02
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Regarding 3900 disc v 4300 disc, I'm leaning towards the latter. Someone suggested the 6000 over the Police, and now that's got me thinking as well, arg.
 
Went to the store @ lunch, went back and forth between the 4300 and 6000. Then they mentioned the 4500. SOLD! Picking it up after work :)
 
Only issue is that it's a smidge too big. 16" frame using the crotch test is too close, but they said on a 13" my knees would be hitting the handlebars.

FRAK I wish I could remember which one I had in college!
 
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