I'm looking at getting back into MTBs cause my kids want to ride trails this spring/summer. I'm 6'7" and I'd love a Santa Cruz Tallboy - but can't justify the cost right now so I'm looking at a XXL Specialized Rockhopper Expert vs Trek XCaliber 8. Anyone ridden these bikes? Looks like the Expert has longer wheelbase and reach and a longer headtube. I was thinking about Specialized Direct - but then remembered I broke the chainstay on my last cheap MTB (trek 4500) and had to have the frame replaced - so maybe should buy at LBS ..read more

Old time member and I haven’t posted since 2009. Just bought my first new bike since then. Old ride is an 08 rockhopper pro disc. I also have an old mountain cycle rumble that I never ride. Anyway today I bought a Marin team Marin 2. Super happy with the purchase but have only ridden it in the shop so far. Lol. I’d ridden a few bikes over the last 6 months in my search but this one was the one. I love the build on this bike. Not sure I’d upgrade anything other than pedals. Anyway, nearing 50 years old, I’m back. ;) only pic I have so far ..read more

I have a fully-rigid hardtail running 2.5 Maxxis Ardents at the moment (photo below, if that helps). I'll be putting some Jones Loops on it to make it more of a dirt rando. I'll be doing an Everesting later this year, and I'm thinking of picking up a set of slicks so I can use this as my backup bike if something goes wrong--or maybe just a bike to swap to for a few hours to mix things up and save my back. It's light enough, and 36t up front will be plenty, since it's climbing and coasting. I could buy a cheap set of wheels, but if I can get away just throwing on a new set of tires on the rim ..read more

Hi guys, I have a question for y'all! I just broke my Sram X5 10 speed shifter, and I couldn't find any new shifters in stock anywhere. I mean I found some, but all of them are 9 speeds. My question is, that can I run a 9 speed shifter, with a 10 speed casette and derailleur? I know, its minus one gear, but I don't really use my highest gear, because I live at some flatlands in Hungary. Thank you for the answers, have a nice day ..read more

Hello guys, im begginer in mountain riding. Now ive been riding bicycle like 2 years somewhere whit pauses, last year i upgraded to Scott Aspect 960 L, now this year i want to upgrade something stronger, cause i feel not comfotable with this one driving in woods etc. Myself im more aggresive driver. Help me to choose something between, also would be nice to get full suspension, but i don't know if it is good idea to buy for money like this. If that helps my height is 1.81 cm 80kg Also i was looking this bike, thats why i figuared out to i need to write for help GHOST KATO FS BASE 27er ..read more

I'm new to mtb but came from road/gravel biking. There's of course just the fact that I need to get more hours behind my new fs mtb, and I will naturally improve quite a bit. But there are also elements to mtb that I just never experienced on my road or gravel bikes, such as driving straight through a small or moderate gutter at speed, riding over medium-sized rocks, taking a jump, etc... Basically, I am overwhelmed with the amount of different types of "features" and how to handle them all, and just watching hours and hours of YouTube videos on the subject only gets me so far, and often just ..read more

Coming from riding roads, I've always had success by not looking down near my front tire, or even right in front of the bike, but keeping a high visual horizon probably 200-500 feet out front (depending on speed). Another reason to do this is to spot cars at intersections and driveways. Is this also recommended for mtb in general and especially when descending at high speeds? One thing I did notice is that on roads, since the majority are smooth, I don't really have to "look" for obstacles in my main vision as much because a pothole for example will stand out in my peripheral vision due to the ..read more

I’ve finally managed to remove a very stuck dropper post from my carbon Whyte frame this evening. It took many days of being soaked in ACF-50 put in from the BB and a lot of patience. Now that I have removed the seat post; I have ordered a new dropper, however the seat tube really needs to be cleaned out as I think there will be a lot of corrosion in there. Has anybody got any tips for this please ..read more

Tl;Dr - I just don't understand why there is so much advice like "don't use a fs unless you absolutely have to", or "hardtails are more fun" because from my perspective, after riding road, gravel (with NO "suspension" at all), and now fs, this is the most fun I've had on trails and it tends to also be easier on my back and knees. Background: This may seem like a strange question, but my background is that I got into road cycling as an adult almost a year ago (rode a lot of bikes as a kid so not totally new), loved it and rode 1,000 miles. I also am not a huge fan of riding with cars and alm ..read more

Hey all, posting for a friend, He told me he was going to buy a base stumpy from the specialized site for 2650+ tax. i told him that before he pulls the trigger on that one he should consult bikeforums to see if there are better options, as i have had a great experience with this site in different subsections. So... is it a solid deal or should he get aomething else ..read more