Bike advice

[daraghheff]

i was looking to upgrade from my current hardtail to a hardcore hardtail. saw this recently and was wondering if it was worth a try ? http://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/1223874/

[dannyk]

Hi Darragh,
I'd say going by the age of the frame and that it's a very small frame (15"), it'll be far to short and small to be any way practical as an everyday bike. a more modern Ragley - frame size closer to 18" would probably be a better idea. - assuming you're around 5'10"

[daraghheff]

Right. I was going to use my current hard tail for everyday use and keep that for trails. The price was very tempting though. Thanks for the advice.I'm about 6 foot so should an 18" frame fit me?

[neil_]

Right. I was going to use my current hard tail for everyday use and keep that for trails. The price was very tempting though. Thanks for the advice.I'm about 6 foot so should an 18" frame fit me?

Large frame (20" in most brands) is probably best

[nathybren]

I'd stick with an 18 at your height.
It'll be damn close to perfect for pedalling and will be quite a bit more agile than a 20" gate.
I'm close to 5'10" and I reckon my next frame choices will be 17" or less, currently being on a 17.5".
18s were always rideable for me but they feel more like trying to fuck a girl twice my size. It's grand and I get the job done but I'm a bit spread out.
2 inches between us doesn't make too much of a difference.
Joe Tuohy has an 18 if I'm not mistaken and he's 6'1".

[Joejoebeans]

Yup, I ride an 18in and it's perfect. Means you can really throw the bike around and if you find it's a bit small you can put on a longer stem etc

[daraghheff]

Great, thanks for the help. I think I might buy a ragley 2014 18" frame and make a custom build :/

[Joejoebeans]

Good choice. I ride an on one 456 which is quite similar in geometry. You might find that it's not as good for climbing as whatever you have at the moment but that's universal for longer travel hardtails. But they more than make up for it on flat/downhill

[daraghheff]

yeah that's to be expected i suppose. would think it's alright to buy second hand forks or should i spend the extra to make sure they're in good shape? i was thinking of going for the ragley piglet instead of the blue pig by the way

[Chimaera]

Bear in mind that frame geometry varies a bit between brands/models too, so an 18" frame on one bike might suit you perfectly well while on a different bike you could find it too big. Do your research and if at all possible try and get a test ride on the size you're after.

[daraghheff]

oh right, thanks. I'll check them out so. what other sites sell bike components apart form pinkbike and chainreaction?

[Joejoebeans]

You'd be pretty safe buying second hand forks. Just make sure you check the stanchions for wear and scratches. I don't know of anyone with a ragley in the Limerick area but some of the Dublin guys have them, although I don't think they're piglets. It could be worth asking on the MAD forum to see what sizes other people bought

[Psycholist]

Dimitri on the forum here has a Blue Pig AFAIK. I don't know anyone else with one, but last I checked it was working well for him. You should also have a look at Pipedream, Cotic, Charge and On-One if you're looking at steel frames though. They all make great bikes - I like the Pipedreams best personally, but that's because I get an adjustable wheelbase (413 mm minimum chainstay length), bridgeless chainstays, so almost no mud collection there at all, Reynolds air hardening tubing and a 650B ready frame (My fork is a 650B ready X-Fusion Velvet too) with a tapered headtube. They've also never seen a broken one, which is encouraging given my long history of fatigue cracking almost every frames I've ever owned.

[daraghheff]

http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/CBOO456CDEO ... ntain-bike

thanks for all the advice .i think this is a fairly good deal. what do ye think?

[Psycholist]

It looks like a good deal, but I'd stay away from Carbon fibre if I was planning to transport my bike in bike rack, car boot etc. It wears away a lot more quickly than metal frames if anything rubs against it and clamping the tubes can delaminate them internally, leading to failures - most CF frames aren't warrantied if they are clamped into a bike rack/workstand. You'll be able to get a steel frame with a mostly XT build for that money (XT parts run better for a lot longer than Deore). It'll weigh a little more though, but it'll take more abuse.

[neil_]

I think Waylon had that exact frame? You could ask him how it was..

[daraghheff]

I've decided to go second hand as it will be my first proper mountain bike. These are the 2 bikes i am considering. what do ye think. thanks for all the previous help by the way.

http://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/1540769/

http://www.adverts.ie/mountain-bikes/no ... il/6521278

[Psycholist]

I'd buy the Kona stuff, though those definitely are not Hope floating rotors... Nothing wrong with either of them though, but €200 will get you most if not all of a Deore groupset to get the bike feeling like new... Make sure the frk is in full working order though - check that the lockout and damping adjustments work.

[Eoin Keyes]

Here's what you want Darragh! http://www.madmtb.com/forums/showthread.php?15341-2014-piglet-rolling-chasis

[daraghheff]

yeah i saw that on buy and sell,sent the guy a message but he had someone meeting him already. plus i don't think id have enough money cause it'd end up costing around 850 to finish. thanks for the help anyway.