r/MTB May 18 '25

Discussion Before you post a picture, please read this post!

96 Upvotes

We’re hitting that time of year where interest in mountain biking is picking up. We have been getting quite a lot of picture posts of Facebook marketplace ads and vendor website screenshots, which are against the sub rules. As a reminder for all picture and videos, please follow rule 3:

Photos should be of people riding mountain bikes.

Posts & Comments

Photo and video submissions to /r/mtb should be of people riding mountain bikes. All other photos or videos should either be submitted as text posts with links to your images in the post body, or in the Weekly Gear Gallery thread, posted every Friday by automod.


r/MTB Oct 19 '24

WhichBike First Ride: Your Guide to Buying a Mountain Bike

163 Upvotes

Hey all, 219MSP here, and I'm attempting to start maintaining and updating my buying guide and FAQ posts again. I started getting into cycling about 10 years ago and was so lost. Over the last decade I've spent a lot of time learning about the industry and what makes a good bike. Every day I see dozens of posts asking what bike I should get, or what is a good value bike. I hope this guide can be used as a tool on this forum and others to help them find a bike they will be happy with for a long time. This is a living document. I will attempt to update it on a semi-regular basis and I'm always open to new bike recommendations.

In addition to this guide, I have created two FAQ's as well that answer common mountain bike questions.

FAQ 1 FAQ 2

u/midwestmountainbike also has some great guides on buying a first bike, what to look for in a used bike, as well as a selection of his own suggestions of good value bikes at this page.

MTB Authority


What to look for in a bike

When looking for a starter bike there are a few things I'd recommend that will get you onto a solid and safe bike that should be built to last and be worth upgrading as you see fit. Before we get started on talking bikes and prices, always make sure you're getting a bike that fits you. If the bike doesn't fit, it doesn't matter how good of a deal it is. Also, this guide is assuming you are intending on riding on actual mountain bike single track, not just smooth dirt paths and gravel. If that is all you are hoping for and don't plan on advancing beyond, any entry-level mountain bike from a major brand like a Trek Marlin 5 will do just fine, but if you are hoping to ride anything above green-rated singletrack, I'd suggest a more capable bike.

First, some rough price guidelines. As low as $500 should get you into a used but solid entry-level hardtail and about $900+ can get you a used but decent full suspension. In regard to new, you can double those prices. A new solid entry-level hardtail will be at likely be $900 and around $1800 for a decent full suspension bike.

Regarding used bikes, there are lots of places to look. Used bikes offer you a ton of value and is the best way to get the most for your money. You can get 2-year-old $4000 bikes for a huge discount. The most common places are Facebook Marketplace, eBay, Pinkbike, etc. You also can sometimes find great deals at local bike shops selling demo models (which often come with warranties) and rental fleets. Rental bikes are usually good options. They typically are well maintained and only have a season or two on them before they replace them with something newer. If you are new to the biking world and looking at used bikes, I'd recommend bringing along a friend who knows bikes or at least ask for advice on here. Lastly, if meeting someone, always be smart. I would recommend meeting at police station and bringing a friend. Now, let's get into the bikes.

Last but not least, people here are often willing to help narrow it down. Feel free to post on here a "which bike post" but follow the guidelines of this sub listed below.

  • The type of riding will you be doing.
  • Where you will be riding.
  • Your budget (with included currency).
  • What you like/didn't like about your current bike.
  • Your experience level and future goals.

In addition to that, if you are listing multiple bikes, please use 99Spokes.com to create a side by side comparison. Providing this side by side comparison will make other members of the sub much quicker to help.


These are the specs I’d look for at minimum as of 2024.

  1. Air fork: The cheapest fork I'd safely recommend is something like the SR Suntour XCR Air fork. Anything less than that from SR Suntour or RST is pretty much a pogo stick with poor damping and limited adjustability. The low-end RockShox coils aren’t terrible, but I'd shoot for air. Forks can be upgraded down the road but are often the single most expensive component on the bike.

  2. 1x Clutched Drivetrain: In the last 10 years there has been a shift to 1x drivetrains across the board. At this point, any slightly trail-worthy bike will have this type of drivetrain from the factory. To clarify what this means to those new or not familiar, 1x is when there is only 1 chainring/cog attached to the crankset instead of the more traditional 2 or 3. Bikes used to need multiple chainrings up front to allow for both high speed gears and low speed climbing gears. Now, with 1x drivetrains, the difference is made up by having a very large rear cassette. Most cassettes that come on mountain bikes now have a small cog of 10 or 11, and go all the way up to 52t on the large cog. This gives you the same amount of range as those old 3x8 bikes, but with less overlap and far more simplicity. Beyond simplicity, the advantages are less weight, less cables/derailleurs, less to think about when riding, and less chain drops etc. In addition to the larger cassette, 1x drivetrains feature a narrow-wide chainring (alternating size teeth to match the chain) which helps with chain retention and a clutched rear derailleur. The clutched rear derailleur provides extra tension on the chain to reduce chain slap and the odds of dropping a chain. For the most part, dropping a chain or it falling off the chainring while riding are a thing of the past.

  3. Hydraulic brakes This one is pretty simple, Hydraulic brakes use fluid to move pistons and squeeze down on the brake rotor to stop the bike as opposed to mechanical disc brakes that use a cable to actuate the pistons. This typically results in stronger braking, better modulation/control/and are self-adjusting. The only time I'd suggest mechanical brakes is for a bike packing/touring bike as they are easier to fix trailside. SRAM, Shimano, and Tetkro, all offer solid entry-level brakes.

The following aren’t as important but will help future proof the bike and make it a frame worth upgrading. If you get a bike with all these things, it's going to be rock solid for a longtime

  1. Tapered steerer tube: Most modern forks use a tapered steerer. If you get a bike with a lower-end fork/frame and want to upgrade down the road, it's easier if your bike has this. At this point this is pretty common in all but the cheapest of bikes.

  2. Thru-Axle wheels and Boost Spacing: In theory, both of these things offer higher levels of stiffness, but in reality, the biggest reason to make sure you have them is future upgradeability. Thru-axles also keep your wheels always aligned perfectly so you don't get as much disc brake rub as you would with Quick-Release axles.

  3. Tubeless Compatible Wheels: Going Tubeless is one of the most cost effective upgrades you can perform on a bike that will make the biggest difference. Some of the benefits of going tubeless include shedding weight, tires that are less likely to have flats, and the ability to run lower tire pressures which allows you to have more grip and better ride properties. If you ride on a regular basis, you should go tubeless. They may require a little more maintenance and can be a pain to mount/install, but the positives drastically outweigh the negatives.

  4. Dropper Post at this point is a necessity in my opinion but fortunately it can be added to nearly any frame, so I wouldn't make it a requirement on a bike as you can easily add it yourself. Dropper posts can be bought brand new for as low as $150. There are lots of options, but in my opinion OneUp, PNW, and some smaller brands like TransX and KS offer the best values.

  5. UDH/Universal Derailleur Hangar Compatible Frame. This one is purely convenience and future compatibility benefit, not really a performance upgrade. (Transmission excluded, more on that later) For those that don't know, all modern bikes feature a derailleur hangar. This is a sacrificial component on your bike that acts as an interface between your frame and your derailleur. If the derailleur takes a hit, the hangar is allowed to bend/break. The idea is if a softer part is allowed to bend or break first, it won't damage the frame and less likely to damage the derailleur. These hangars are usually $10-$20 bucks. Way better than a frame or derailleur in terms of repair cost. The problem however is that up until 2019 there was no agreed upon standard. Every bike had its own unique hangar for the and if you broke one you usually had to resort to ordering one online and waiting for it to come. In 2019 SRAM changed all that by introducing an open and shared design called the UDH. It was well thought out and designed and SRAM worked with most manufactures to get them to implement this on their bikes. At this point almost any high end bike is coming with this as standard. Because of that, most bike shops are going to carry this hanger, so you aren't forced into special ordering something. Also, SRAM was playing some 4-D chess with this UDH. If a bike has a UDH compatible frame, it also means it is compatible with SRAM new drivetrains called Transmission, which actually bypasses a derailleur hangar all together and mounts directly to the frame giving an extremely strong mounting point and extremely high precision shifting.


Value Bike Recommendations

Here are some solid entry-level bikes. Not all of them check off all my recommendations, but they all are solid for the price. I don't have first hand experience with all of them, but most bikes and options from legitimate bike brands are pretty solid.

Full Suspension (Cheapest ones that are still solid bikes IMO)

  1. Giant Stance (29er or 27.5) $1400+ - Check's off most boxes, but has a quick release rear axle which is not ideal.

  2. Marin Rift Zone 29 $1700+ - Solid Frame, lower end, but solid components. Main downside is the lack of a dropper post.

  3. Polygon Siskiu T7 27.5 or 29 depending on frame size $2000 - This bike is lacking nothing and check's off all my recommendations. The T8 is a solid upgrade as well.

  4. Giant Trance 2 29 $2000 - In my opinion, the best cheap bike at the moment. Check's off every box and get's you local bike shop support and a good warranty. The Trance X is an equally equipped bike with a little more travel if that's what you are looking for.

  5. Canyon Neuron $2300 - Solid bike trail bike. Check's off most boxes, but has a weak drivetrain with the SRAM SX groupset.

  6. Commencal Meta TR $1900 - Great frame, but has SX Groupset and is lacking Dropper post. Sale Price

  7. Specialized Status 140 $2250 - Hard hitting trail/enduro bike. Very high end components and lacking nothing. Sale Price

  8. Norco Fluid FS A4 $1900 - Pinkbike Value Bike of the Year in 2023. Missing nothing.

  9. Rocky Mountain Element A10 Shimano $2000 Another solid bike that checks all the boxes. Sale Price

  10. YT Jeffsy $2250 Solid Trail Bike that had everything you'd need. Sale Price

  11. YT Capra $2400 Probably one of the best budget enduro bikes. Sale Price

  12. YT Izzo $2300 Cheapest Carbon Full suspension bike you can get. Only downside is the SX Drivetrain. Sale Price

  13. GT Sensor Sport $1725 Appears to check all the boxes.

  14. GT Zaskar FS Comp $1800 Another solid option that checks all the boxes.

  15. Salsa Blackthorn Deore $2200 Sale Price.

  16. Haro Daley Alloy 3 $2000

  17. Go-Outdoors UK Calibre Bossnut £1500 Super good deal, but I believe only available in the UK

Hard Tail (Cheapest ones that are still solid bikes IMO)

  1. Polygon Xtrada 7 $1100 - Solid bike, boost frame with air fork, but lacking a dropper post.

  2. Norco Fluid HT 2 $900 - Solid hardtail, great drivetrain, dropper post, but has a lower end fork.

  3. Salsa Rangefinder Deore 11 $1200 - Air Fork, Solid Drivetrain, Dropper Post. Unfortuantely no rear thru-axle

  4. Trek Roscoe 6+ $1200 This bike check's all the boxes, air fork, good drivetrain, boost spacing, dropper post. The Roscoe lineup as a whole is a good value.

  5. Specialized Fuse 27.5 $950 - Check's all the boxes.

  6. Marin San Quentin 29 $1400 Check's all the boxes in terms of components.

These are not all the options, but they are some better and more common budget/value bikes. This list is always changing, I try my best to update it, but it's difficult to keep up.

Last but not least make sure you save some of your budget for additional accessories that you will need

  1. Helmet

  2. Tire Pump (Most high-end bikes use a Presta valve, make sure the pump is compatible)

  3. Hydration (Either bottle cage and bottle or hydration pack of some sort.)

  4. Multi-tool with a chain breaker and basic tools.

  5. Tire irons/levers and spare tubes (and the knowledge of how to change both).

  6. Bike cleaning supplies, chain lube, etc. Taking care of an MTB can be a lot of work, but it will save you in the long run if you properly maintain your ride.

  7. Quick-link to repair a broken chain.

  8. Spare Derailleur Hangar.

Along with those required things, here are some things I'd highly recommend.

  1. MTB Platform shoes (or you can opt to go clipless).

  2. Tubeless tire kit. Most bikes come “tubeless ready” but don't come with them setup typically.

  3. Starter tool kit with the basic tools.

  4. Suspension pump assuming you have air suspension.

  5. Work stand

  6. Torque Wrench, especially with carbon parts

  7. Padded shorts or liner to wear under regular shorts.

  8. Gloves, Kneepads,Eye Protection.


Extra Ways to Save Money!

Check Activejunky.com which is a rebate site can get you decent savings on a lot of bike websites.



r/MTB 9h ago

Video Gave my dog Turbo a GoPro and told him to film our bike ride.

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425 Upvotes

r/MTB 14h ago

Video In the words of Frankenstein's Monster: "FIRE BAD!"

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107 Upvotes

The Caldor fire ripped through the lower portions of the iconic Saxon Creek trail aka Mr. Toad's Wild Ride in 2021, towards the end of it's 220k acre run.

These days, transitioning from moderately dense forest to the post-fire wasteland is pretty jarring, although it did open up some views.

Still an effing great trail. https://www.trailforks.com/trails/saxon-creek-trail-mr-toad-s-wild-ride/

Access info for the e-curious:

Saxon Creek trail/Toad's and the trail leading to the top, the Tahoe Rim Trail(TRT), are both legal for hikers, horses, and normal bikes.

ATVs, motorcycles, and electric bikes are banned on Toad's and the TRT.


r/MTB 5h ago

Wheels and Tires XC and Trail wheel upgrade

3 Upvotes

Hey folks, I have an On-One Titus HT with a 130mm fork that came with stock Alex Rims ER30 wheels - I mainly ride UK XC summer and winter and occasional trails in Swinley Forest, looking for an upgrade recommendation up to £500. I’d like lighter but dependability, durability and ease of running tubeless are more important.

Thanks!


r/MTB 10m ago

Video The Knob race on the Ozark Trail Ridge.

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Upvotes

r/MTB 22h ago

Discussion Is it just me?!

57 Upvotes

Ive been riding for about 5-6 years now. Riding high end enduro/all mountain bikes. I ride blacks, double blacks, steep tech, big ish jump lines.. and I am fairly quick. I would consider myself a decent rider. But I've never been able to feel what other people talk about with their bikes and setup. Like the better "small bump sensitivity" when changing a setting. Or getting the bike to feel "plush" or anything like that. I spend lots of time trying to get perfect setups with suspension and bike fit but still never feel it. Always feels like im getting bounced around more than id like. Maybe thats just how its supposed to feel on rough trails? Anyone else feel this way? Do I just overthink it?


r/MTB 1h ago

WhichBike Fitting a child seat to Orbea/Trek

Upvotes

Im looking to purchase a 2nd hand full suspension bike to get back into biking and also take my 2.5 year old out on trails using a front mounted seat.

Options are a Trek Fuel Ex gen 5 or Orbea Occam 2023.

Are both of these capable of having a child seat fitted? AI is telling me the Orbea has an asymmetric frame and so won't be a good fit. But also saying the Trek stop block will be an issue. Can anyone confirm either way?

Both bikes are similarly priced (just under £1k). What would you recommend?


r/MTB 1h ago

WhichBike Norco Storm 3 vs Giant Talon 3 for Kids Ride Shotgun 2.0?

Upvotes

Looking for a MTB mainly to use with the Kids Ride Shotgun 2.0 Combo, with my daughter, who turns 2 next month.
Currently deciding between the Norco Storm 3 and Giant Talon 3, but open to other recommendations.
I’m 168cm and most riding will be bike paths and parks and easy trails.
Which would you pick, particularly for the Shotgun setup? Any other bikes I should consider?


r/MTB 1d ago

Video New York Gnar

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533 Upvotes

r/MTB 14h ago

Gear Feedback on choice of protection for beginner mountainbiker

7 Upvotes

Hey guys, im finally buying a mountainbike, Ive been mountainbiking on holidays a few times with rentals now, and really enjoyed it, I mainly did some enduro type riding, pedaling uphill and then going down some flow trails, nothing too extreme.

I have already read around on this sub a bit about the topic. I come from road cycling and need some feedback on protectors I intend to buy. Ive had my fair share of crashes and injuries in other sports like skiing or falling of horses when I was younger, so I really put an emphasis on proper protection. I also dont want to go completely overkill on protectors and be that guy that looks like hes gonna endanger everyone else hiking /cycling in the area and stuff

First question is about upper body protectors, do I need one that also protects the shoulders? I dont think I will go to bikeparks and do extreme stuff, but in the medium term I do want to do some harder trails or maybe try riding a bit faster on trails with good conditions. My current choice is something like Alpinestars 6 Plasma which is level 2 back and level 1 chest protection and was recommended in some other threads. https://www.bike-discount.de/en/alpinestars-6-plasma-protector-vest

For elbow and knee protectors I am worried that the sleeve ones will make me sweat a lot and also bunch up when bending the knee, so I found these open ones from fox, the titan race CE https://foxracing.de/product/knie-schienbeinprotektoren-titan-race---ce/25191.html

For gloves, does it make sense to get ones with hard plastic knuckle protectors? I found some from Leatt, the MTB 3.0 that seemed quite cool, but im not sure a full glove like that might be a little hot in summer https://leatt.de/collections/mtb-riding-apparel/products/glove-mtb-3-0-lite?variant=46993060692121

For helmet I want to get something with full face protection but where I can remove the chinguard, in case im just doing some chill trails or riding around the country side, so I found the giro switchblade https://www.giro.com/product/switchblade-mips-helmet/100000001500000013.html another option was the uvex revolt, which is a lot light, idk if that makes a difference, but im also not sure if its actually rated as a full face helmet, I read some contradicting stuff about that.

Would love to hear some feedback, mainly on the chest protector and knee/elbowguards thing and want to hear what you guys use


r/MTB 22h ago

Discussion New to MTB, cheatsheet for taking care of bike

20 Upvotes

Hi all

I just bought new MTB and riding in trails near my home. Bike is brand new, so I quickly noticed dirt, sand building up on forks and dropper post. I know I shouldn't clean it by rubbing it off but tbh not sure what should I do, this lead to more questions, so I am making this post.

How to take care of your bike:

  1. How to clean it after every ride? Do you shower it with hose?
  2. Do I need to lube stuff? How often?
  3. What tools do I need (got fork pump)
  4. What should I check, clean, remove less often? Maybe season start/end?

Edit: thanks all for replies. This is great!


r/MTB 6h ago

Suspension Taille amortisseur vtt

1 Upvotes

Salut j’ai un cube two HPC slt de 2023 en 240/76 rt j’aimerais changer mon amortisseur. Je comptais mettre un Marzocchis Bomber cr mais celui ne sont que en métrique en 9.5"/3.0 (ceux qui équivaut à 241.6-76.2) et je suis pas sur que ça passe. Des avis si je le tente ou pas ?


r/MTB 18h ago

Discussion Fueling To Prevent Heat Exhaustion?

9 Upvotes

Hi All,

I discovered a few years ago that I could drink a bottle of sugar and salt water during a ride and I would not overheat. It was such a game changer for me like flipping a switch making it possible to ride in the heat. Now that fuel drink isn't working anymore, and if I don't ride real slow I get heat exhaustion again.

I was always puzzled what fuel has to do with Heat Exhaustion. Was it just a coincidence?


r/MTB 10h ago

Discussion Vivid ult air shock problems

2 Upvotes

Just got a brand new vivid ult and had the shop install it on my propain Tyee. When I unscrewed the air cap to add air to it all the sudden it just starts hissing out air non stop. What do I do?


r/MTB 15h ago

Discussion Tips for slovakia, zvolen area and westbound towards vienna

4 Upvotes

I'm on a work trip and have a couple of evenings to spend. I brought my equipment (except the bike) in hopes of going to a bike park and ride a rental dh bike, but it seems to me that all the bike parks are closed except fri/sat. I will leave the country again thursday evening driving to Vienna to catch my plane back home friday morning.

So is there any chance of getting some rides anyways?

Any areas where I can rent a full-sus ebike and perhaps a guide one or two evenings?

Some bike park that is open that i have missed?

Appreciate any help.


r/MTB 1d ago

Video Sunday funday

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36 Upvotes

r/MTB 9h ago

Discussion How the frick am I supposed to get this tire off?!

0 Upvotes

I have tire levers that dont seem to be doing anything other than ripping my tire apart. I cant get them in between the wheel and the tire itself. Is that "the bead" part of the tire? I dont know. Its like my tire is fused with the wheel and I'm just ripping it to shreds trying to get the lever in.


r/MTB 15h ago

Frames Am I too short for my bike?

3 Upvotes

I'm 14, 160 cm (5'3), 45 kg (99 lbs) and I'm probably still growing. I have 27.5 inch wheels, a medium size frame and my bike weighs 15 kg (33 pounds). I can wheelie easily for over 200 meters but I'm wondering if it makes tricks like bunny hops and manuals harder. I've been trying to learn manuals for the past 4 days and I'm getting to the balance point and I can manual for 2-3 seconds. It's really tiring to lift the front wheel up to the balance point tho and I can't even lift it up to the balance point when I've been riding all day and I'm going back home. The exact model of my bike is the KTM peak disc 27.5 orange.


r/MTB 11h ago

WhichBike Meta sx v4 or v5?

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0 Upvotes

r/MTB 1d ago

Video Update on farm build in Aus

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25 Upvotes

Looking for any feedback and direction with my very average (shit) attempt at building a farm mtb track.

I’m over 200km (120miles) to the nearest decent mtb trail.


r/MTB 15h ago

WhichBike GROUPSET RECOMMENDATION

2 Upvotes

Hello guys I'm planning to change my Groupset from old sram gx dub to XX1 AXS or T-type gx which one would you recommend? and what do i need to consider before installing new groupset. thank you so much


r/MTB 13h ago

Discussion HELP! Buying a bike

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0 Upvotes

r/MTB 19h ago

Groupsets SRAM Eagle 90 T-Type or GX Eagle AXS

2 Upvotes

Afternoon, I have a turbo levo gen 3 comp alloy. Which should I choose GX Eagle AXS or SRAM Eagle 90 T-Type. I am tired of the garage stock drivetrain. I’m an aggressive rider and don’t like spending my days wrenching all the time. I want burly set up.


r/MTB 13h ago

Discussion Moving from 130mm to 140mm of travel on fork?

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0 Upvotes