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Opinion on this bike please?

DarK

Chimp
Sep 27, 2004
2
0
Ok, I know I'm posting this somewhat too late, but I've just bought a 2005 Marin Bobcat Trail



Just wondering what your opinions were on this bike, and Marin in general?

I paid £435 for it and it has a lifetime maintenance warranty on it - I can take it in weekly for a check if I want! I'm mainly doing road riding but after getting this nice new bike I'm starting to look at some slightly more adventurous stuff...
 

Darkreaper

Monkey
Sep 26, 2004
313
0
Away in the head
Well, I swapped the tires out at the start for semi-slicks with just some knobbling at the sides - a mistake in retrospect if I'm going to be going on anything softer than gravel but it rides very nicely on solid ground. The gears are a bit vexing, I was using an old manta ray with gripshift so a trigger system is new to me. I find that if I want a quick gear change up, on the rear derailleurs at least, I am best going one higher than I want and dropping down instantly - I don't know if it should work smoother than that or not, should I get that checked out?

The disc brakes are starting to work nicely now they are being broken in - I have a slight issue with them but I've already posted about that in the mechanical forum. I'm not planning any seriously hard riding, but being able to go down a flight of steps or hop up and down kerbs and off speed-bumps is always nice. If I find any easy off-road trails I might give them a go but I'm not sure how my tires would handle them.


I'm dark btw. Made a slight screw-up in the account registering
 

ioscope

Turbo Monkey
Jul 3, 2004
2,002
0
Vashon, WA
My dad has one of those, nice bike, don't pour any money into it though. It is not exactly a top of the line platform for expensive parts
 

Darkreaper

Monkey
Sep 26, 2004
313
0
Away in the head
Yes to all :D

The derailleurs are a tad wonkly, and managed to almost lose the chain last week when all I did was cycle down a kerb, but yes it all works. I just adjusted the brakes today so the pads arent rubbing any more.
 

Darkreaper

Monkey
Sep 26, 2004
313
0
Away in the head
I also had to replace the pedals today, after having broken off almost all of the plastic moulded grippy pins... Cheap set of DMR V8s but it's a vast improvement on what I had and should last a while. Picked up a puncture one minute into cycling home as well so it would appear that the bike currently has bad karma!
 
Mar 1, 2004
47
0
Montreal Area
Hmmm.... don't you just hate those "bad karma" bikes ?

4 bikes ago (yes, I measure life in bikes, not in years), I had a bike that was just one problem after the other... and the mechanic at the shop I bought it was an asshole !
<rant>
On my first ride with it, I noticed that the brake would rub on the tire on one side, so I bring it back to the shop. The mechanic starts telling me that I don't know how to ride if I managed to go through my pads that fast that the brake is already rubbing on the tire. He goes on saying the he built the bike himself and that it was perfect when he buit it up. Turns out, there was a spacer or something missing on the break and it was indeed HIS fault since HE built it. Anyways, I continue to complain about weird shifting and chain making weird noises. He checks it and says everything is perfect, so I ride off pissed. 3rd pedal stroke, the chain snaps on me. I go back in, he's with another customer... I throw the chain at him "Yeah, my chain is perfect !" I say very loudly (almost screaming due to the fact that I was f***ing pissed at that point). Anyways, after my first two days of ownership and once that stuff is fixed up and that shop is banned, I proceed to get flat tire after flat tire. Like, 4~5 flats per week sometimes ! I got 7 flats on one weekend. I was going through tubes like crazy. And, I always checked my tires everytime. Nothing was sticking out of them. Rim tape was fine, spokes were fine. Never figured out why it would pop like that. Ended up changing the tires and magic... no more flats... those tires were the worst piece of **** "pointy-stuff-magnet" things I ever got. Anyways, after that, the bike was stolen.
</rant>

The good news, that was my last cheap bike and I'm now fully into biking, the shop with the horrible mechanic went bankrupt, and I now have good bikes and am enjoying the sport as much as I can ! :D Yay me !

Sorry about the rant guys... for some reason, I started thinking about that yesterday and just needed to re-get that out of my system... calling up bad memories just doesn't sit well with me... hehe

Have fun with that bike Darkreaper ! May it lead you to a life of fun fun fun riding ! :D
 

Darkreaper

Monkey
Sep 26, 2004
313
0
Away in the head
Now you're just plain making me nervous! Here's hoping it isnt that bad!

I'm quite chuffed with myself atm, just fixed my first ever flat - shows how much of a n00b i am... The tire managed to pick up not only a flat sliver of glass that left a 5mm slot in the rubber, but half a staple too - doesnt bode well! Still, it's a nice bike, and significantly better than the raleigh manta ray I've had for the past three years. I took that out yesterday cos my other had a flat, and dear god I can't understand how I managed to ride it - it's freakin tiny and so hard to pedal!

My front discs were rubbing on one side as well, but I fixed those myself with a couple playing cards and an allen key. Hope I havent screwed anything up too badly...
 
Mar 1, 2004
47
0
Montreal Area
Well Darkreaper, if you can fix your own flat and adjust your brake so it works properly, you're already on the good path to happy happy fun fun fun riding land... :)

I have to say, my experience with that particular bike was quite horrible. But, that was the only one. The rest of my bikes, wether the cheap ones or the good ones, all worked well. Of course the occasionnal flat and routine maintenance, but that's it. As long as you ride within the limits of yourself and your equipment, you should be fine ! :)

Happy riding ! :)
 

Darkreaper

Monkey
Sep 26, 2004
313
0
Away in the head
Ok, the bad karma issue is geting worse. I've fallen on it once, not bad but enough to push the front brake pad (piston side, away from the wheel) out so it's constantly rubbing and no amount of alignment fixes it. One of the handlebar end plugs has fallen out. The light is now on the blink, literally, it flicks off when the bike bumps a certain way and I have to tap it to get it back on.
 

Skookum

bikey's is cool
Jul 26, 2002
10,184
0
in a bear cave
Darkreaper said:
Ok, the bad karma issue is geting worse. I've fallen on it once, not bad but enough to push the front brake pad (piston side, away from the wheel) out so it's constantly rubbing and no amount of alignment fixes it. One of the handlebar end plugs has fallen out. The light is now on the blink, literally, it flicks off when the bike bumps a certain way and I have to tap it to get it back on.
Check your rotor to see if it's bent.... handlebar end plugs are a dime a dozen at a LBS (local bike shop) you should just buy some bar ends anyways, i have these and i love em.

and your light well can't help you there... haha you shouldn't worry so much, you bought a bike on the cheap that's going to lead to small problems and headaches inevitably but it's a good sign, because your out there riding and enjoying yourself....
Also since your riding so much you've fallen, welp welcome to the club, we all crash, so much so we've learned there's actually a method of doing it as to not get hurt. (Go limp, roll etc)
Sounds to me your're on the right track of beating yourself and your bike up, much better than those who get a new bike, hang it in their garage and sit on the couch all day. :)
 

ncrider

Turbo Monkey
Aug 15, 2004
1,564
0
Los Angeles
well, you get what you pay for. At least you're into the sport and this bike will teach you all kinds of little fix its. By the time it disentigrates you'll have a vast knowledge (or hatred of fixing parts) and know what bike to move on to.
 

s1ngletrack

Monkey
Aug 17, 2004
762
0
Denver
Sounds like you're coming along fine - beginning to break parts, falling off your bike, from the sound if it, you're getting closer to being an actual mountainbiker every time you straddle the bike :thumb:

I'm waiting for the post that says "Well, I've gone and flat-spotted my rim, again, came up short on the step up at the local resort & and my light is still on the fritz...."
 

Darkreaper

Monkey
Sep 26, 2004
313
0
Away in the head
That may be some time, mate... I didnt even understand all of your post :confused: I'm still pretty damn nervous about any big steps or jumps, my tires are way too skinny and so I have no grip if anything goes pear-shaped! They even skid out turning on a muddy pavement... :mumble: I may have to get some big chunky ones, winter's coming and in Ireland that means serious amounts of mud. I should also look at finding some decent jumps and trails
 
Mar 1, 2004
47
0
Montreal Area
Ah crap...

Looks like I teased my way into one hell of a good stick beating....

But still it's good to see that our baby is strong enough to lift large sticks ! :P

(Ok, I'm stopping now... :P)
 

Kornphlake

Turbo Monkey
Oct 8, 2002
2,632
1
Portland, OR
Ha, Ha, Ha, I haven't read a thread that was so dynamic without being derailed in a long time.

What kind of tires do you have now, and what are you looking to get? We'll be sure to find something that works well for you. One note is that on a bike like what you've got the biggest tires might have clearance issues. Most bikes come with cheap rubber, buying just about any other tire reguardless of size will make a differance.
 
Mar 1, 2004
47
0
Montreal Area
Hahahaha... Ok, I may have been whacked, but, it was worth it for the fair amount of teasing I got in ! :)

And, when you wanna upgrade, just shout out and we'll all be there to recommend what we like and start a flaming war over who is right and who isn't... but in the end, we all know that I'm gonna be right... cuz.... I rule this world ! :P

(Illusionnary bubble-wrapped worlds are the best)
 

Darkreaper

Monkey
Sep 26, 2004
313
0
Away in the head
I was looking at continental vertical tires as an off-road option. I don't have the stocks on, i swapped them out for semi-slicks but now it's getting muddy those are next to useless except on road/pavement.

I went down to the lbs today and got a pair of ODI Ruffian grips, since my handlebar plugs had fallen out and they didnt just sell the plug. I had to move the brakes and gear shifters in to make them fit though, so it feels all weird having a narrower grip. I'll see how they feel tomorrow when I take the bike out. I don't wanna have to shell out for wider handlebars! Also got some winter gloves, having frozen my fingers off this morning. I never realised biking was so bloody expensive!
 
Mar 1, 2004
47
0
Montreal Area
a single lock ring SHOULD be enough to hold the grip in place, but, I'd strongly advise against it if you intend to ride anything where you need to be sure your grips won't move...
 

Darkreaper

Monkey
Sep 26, 2004
313
0
Away in the head
I'll leave it as is, it wasnt too bad today. However, I did take another spill which ripped up both brand new end-caps... Cornering too tightly and the back wheel slid out, and my light broke again :(
 

Darkreaper

Monkey
Sep 26, 2004
313
0
Away in the head
Ok, anther newbie question - what do I do with a broken spoke? The spoke appears to have broken just where the thin bit joins the nut at the rim. Can I get it fixed easily, is it expensive, or should I complain to the LBS because I've had it less than a month and havent bashed it around too much?

[edit]And can I ride on it, even road riding?
 
Mar 1, 2004
47
0
Montreal Area
you CAN ride on it... but keep it VERY light...

what you should do is go back to the shop and have them fix it up... you'll need a new spoke... that should be like 75¢.... and then, the labor should be like 4~5$ I guess...

you're not looking at big expenses in the case that the shop doesn't do it free...

(Our baby is breaking parts !!! How cool ! I think it's safe to say that he's one of us now)...
 

Darkreaper

Monkey
Sep 26, 2004
313
0
Away in the head
Here mate, I've warned you before. Less of the 'our baby' unless you really want a close-up view of the broken spoke coming really quickly at your eyeball...

Well, I got to school and the wheel is still round. That was the hard bit, all uphill. Taking it to the LBS this afternoon and it is downhill all the way, so touch wood it should be alright
 

Kornphlake

Turbo Monkey
Oct 8, 2002
2,632
1
Portland, OR
If you're clever you'll watch the shop guy replace the spoke, it's really not hard and truing the wheel is one of the basic skills every biker should learn. Next time you break a spoke you'll be able to con the shop guy into a free spoke and you can replace it yourself.

As far as the continental tires go, I've heared both good and bad about them. Generally the people who don't like them are the people who really need a full on downhill tire that will weigh about twice as much. For a newbie I'd think the continental's should be just fine. If you're comfortable posting you should try asking in the downhill forum. It gets way more traffic, use the search function to do a little research and ask for opinions on specific tires there.
 

Kornphlake

Turbo Monkey
Oct 8, 2002
2,632
1
Portland, OR
I use my bike as a truing stand. In the old days when I had cantilever or vee brakes I'd just use the brake pad as a referance point and try to keep the wheel consistantly spaced from the brake pad. Now that the whole world has gone to disc brakes I rubberband an allen wrench or some other tool to the frame or fork and use that the same as you would a truing stand. You might have to get creative on how you do it personally but I think truing stands are unnecessary for the casual mechanic, they sure are nice to have but unnecessary.
 

Darkreaper

Monkey
Sep 26, 2004
313
0
Away in the head
Fair enough. I wasnt allowed into the workshop yesterday to watch, they were too busy. Ah well, at least I've got a new spoke. I think I must've gone up a kerb too hard, I've to a very slight dent in the rim directly opposite the broken spoke. Cost me £8, which I thought was a bit steep until I went to my other lbs and they quoted me £12!

It'll be new rims next... balls