Show off your Mountain Bike!!!

How do you like your maxxis tires? My rear tire is wearing pretty thin so I was looking to replace it soon and had come across some maxxis I was considering. THanks

 

LOVE them. Night and day from the crap stock tires.

Trails here are hard pack with some loose packs, not much mud or gravel so they do well for me. Tubeless on them are amazing. Went through some hard pack with thorns and everyone else had to stop about 5 minutes into the ride to add air, i went without adding.

 

Nice! Thanks for the feedback. I'll probably end up getting a set of them next. Which model did you go with?

 

Maxxis Ardent EXO 29 x 2.4

http://www.jensonusa.com/Maxxis-Ardent-29-Exo-Tubeless-Ready-Tire

 

Thanks! I was also looking at the Aggressor as well

 

I'm running these on my Niner and I love them

 

The Aggressor has been an awesome back tire for me! I pair it with a DHF up front.

 

Mostly because of their stupid proprietary shit, like shock yokes, that make it difficult to impossible to use alternate shocks. Same with Trek.

They do have shitty, predatory, business practices as well, but that not the main reason. Their product is the main reason.

 

New rubber and cleaned it for the first time in about 9 months. Old tires were leaking like a sieve....nice to not have stans all over the garage floor.

 

Nice bikes guys!

Can anyone recommend a good beginner bike for $500 or under?

I went to my LBS today and they only carry Trek. The salesman was pushing the Trek Marlin 5, but after reading some reviews it seems some people have problems with the front forks or the front brakes. Ive looked on CL for Specialized, Cannondale, Giant, Trek and GT but cant find much for MTB in my area, only road bikes.

 

Giant does a pretty good job at beating most bikes in the price range. Check out the Talon, good overall hard tail that you can learn tons on.

 

+1 on the hard tail

$500 can get you a pretty decent used hard tail, or a good new starter. Avoid full-suspension for now. It's best to learn the skills on a solid hard tail first then worry about suspension later (not to mention decent full-suspensions start around $2k new).

Used bikes typically get you a bit better spec level for the price of a new bike with lower spec.
For new, the big names are a good place to start (as for the brakes on the Trek - those can be upgraded easily for not much money. The forks not as cheaply).
Either way, hop on and ride it first, and if it fits and rides well, it'll do the job for now.

Good luck.

 

That's a pretty Nomad. Love the all black and the Enve

 

Yea, ive been looking for a hardtail. But if I buy new im limited to a trek marlin 5... Ive read good reviews on this bike but also read some bad reviews on the MTB forums, people claiming that the bike was down right dangerous to use on trails.. Im not sure if that is true or if its coming from people who think anything that cost less than $2k isnt trail worthy.

Im a total newb when it comes to MTBs, I just sold my motorcycle but would like to stay on 2 wheels(just without cars trying to run me over). I would like a hardtail with 29s, that would last me atleast a year or 2. I'm just not sure if this is something I will stick with and dontwant to spend more than $500 right now.

Any specific models I should look for would be greatly apprciated.

 

Unfortunately, "You Get What You Pay For" rings especially true for bikes...
You can certainly get a safe trail-worthy bike for $500, but there is definitely a difference in performance between entry and higher end bikes (more than just numbers and fancy-sounding materials).

As far as major brands go, they each make entry-level as well as upper end bikes. Some of those brands aren't as reliable at the entry-level (Specialized), some are sufficient (Trek, Cannondale, Marin...) and some are actually a decent value (Giant - Revel 29 seems like a good fit for desire and budget).

You shouldn't feel like you need to drop a couple thousand just to get out on a trail.
Something to consider though - most big bike brands only make the frame. The rest is the build kit they choose, and it's pretty much all shimano or sram at that point. The frames all cost roughly the same to make, but you might pay a little more for a premium name. After that, the spec level (wheels, brakes, shifters, drivetrain) will determine the price.
It won't be the smoothest or the lightest, but once you own the frame, it's easy to upgrade as your desire and budget increases.

Hope that helps. PM me or any of the other guys that at least sound like they know what they're talking about and we can try to steer you in the right direction.

 

Sexy nomad ya got there

 

thanks!

 

So i'm very new to the mountain bike scene and was wondering benefits of tubeless and what is the best way to go with a conversion.
I have a Scott Scale 960 29er with stock Syncros XC-49 rims.

Hopefully I can find someone with an opinion on the internet.

 

Me on my

$33 Tr250 Truck Bed Coating Aerosol

Tr250 at Mt Bachelor

 

Tubeless is good.
Saves you some weight from the lack of tubes, and lets you run a little lower pressure (same concept as airing down your Taco tires - more grip, and puncture resistance).
Stan's No Tubes is one of the industry leaders in tubeless, and they sell kits to get you started. Comes with some rim tape to seal off the spoke holes, a new valve stem, and some tire sealant.
The sealant contains small particles in a latex-based liquid that fills and plugs holes. You'd probably not notice most of the time if you ran over something that punctured the tire, unless it was pretty big. You might just notice the tire is a little lower on air than before.
You'll definitely be running a lower tire pressure than with tubes. Average rider might be at 32-35 psi for tubes, and 24-28 tubeless. All depends on your tires, riding style, your weight... but the pressure is still lower.