[Broken]

I am looking into getting a hardtail. I am riding a Kona Stinky Dee-lux right now and want to get a hardtail specifically for riding on trails while I will ride the stinky on urban and freeride. I have been looking at either the 04 GT Ruckus 2.0 or the 03 Specialized Rockhopper Comp. I have never ridden a GT nor does anyone in my area have them but I have ridden a Specialized but its a 01 model before they started slacking on the components. The GT has better components and is just a few bucks cheaper (tryin to spend less than $1000) but just havent ridden one. Can anyone give me some thoughts on this since I have been racking my brain for a week and have gotten no where. Thanks

 

[solid]

did you check mtbr reviews?

 

[Deyv]

Originally posted by Broken
I am looking into getting a hardtail. I am riding a Kona Stinky Dee-lux right now and want to get a hardtail specifically for riding on trails while I will ride the stinky on urban and freeride. I have been looking at either the 04 GT Ruckus 2.0 or the 03 Specialized Rockhopper Comp. I have never ridden a GT nor does anyone in my area have them but I have ridden a Specialized but its a 01 model before they started slacking on the components. The GT has better components and is just a few bucks cheaper (tryin to spend less than $1000) but just havent ridden one. Can anyone give me some thoughts on this since I have been racking my brain for a week and have gotten no where. Thanks

Well the ruckus is supposed to be a urban/DJ/Freeride hard tail so it could be a little heavy and have a slack head angle for xc riding.

The Giant Rainier is a good deal for a strictly xc rig.

 

[Element]

That Haro at the shop is too heavy for trail riding also. Look into a true XC hardtail for the trails around here

 

[Drew360]

i have a 2004 rockhopper and i freakin LOVE it, it handles anything i throw at it. if you want the best hardtail out there go and get the santa cruz chameleon, it will live longer than you will

 

[Wingnut]

The Rocky Mtn. Blizzard is such a nice steel XC hardtail. It is very light for steel. Reynolds 853 cromo makes it nice and strong too.

 

[diesel]

Originally posted by lockemiester
The Rocky Mtn. Blizzard is such a nice steel XC hardtail. It is very light for steel. Reynolds 853 cromo makes it nice and strong too.

mmm just ordered one...399$ for a brand new 2002 frame. I cant wait to get her built up.

 

[HippieKai]

Surly Instigator?

 

[Wingnut]

Originally posted by diesel
mmm just ordered one...399$ for a brand new 2002 frame. I cant wait to get her built up.

I just noticed your other thread, good choice to go with the Blizzard. My riding buddy's mom rides one, it is such a nice bike, if I was in the market that would be my pick too.

 

[FreeHueco]

I still love my '95 Rockhopper. That thing is going strong..

But I really want a Yeti ARC.. Maybe next year.

 

[berkshire_rider]

How about this?

http://www.sinisterbikes.com/ridge.htm

 

[diesel]

I just posted this in that other steel ht thread but you might like the cotic soul

http://www.cotic.co.uk

steel, kinda agressive stance, built for longer forks, but still comes in semi-larger sizes so all-day xcish rides aren't a killer on the legs/back.

 

[tgaines72]

THE ANSWER

 

[YETI187]

jamis puts out some nice bikes with superior value with great parts spec. i have 2001 jamis komodo frame i built up as a trail bike that i love. my dad has a 03 jamis eureka. the eureka is under $1000 and should be onsale if you can get a 03 model since 04 will be coming out soon. the new model komodo is a bit more beefed up then the 01. check supergo.com or jensonusa.com for the komodo frames. they're about $200 for the frame. great value

 

[ghostrider]

Anybody ever hear anything about Fetish Cycles?
Here

 

[fasterTHANyou]

Originally posted by Mag204
Surly Instigator?

here here!! but can he do that with his budget? for $1000 i'd shoot for a khs... i'm always amazed at the value they put out for the money

 

[Serial Midget]

Maybe a little out of your budget but I ride a Giant XtC 1 and I love it, very light - even with disks. Giant sells just the frame for $400.00, you could easily build for under $1,000.00. MTBR rates the base model as their editors choice for XC hardtails. My frame weighs just a hair under 3LBS - the med size weighs 3.25LBS.

 

[fasterTHANyou]

Originally posted by Serial Midget
Giant sells just the frame for $400.00, you could easily build for under $1,000.00.

isn't that a little pricey for a giant frame? welded in taiwan, right? or is this model different...

 

[Serial Midget]

Originally posted by fasterTHANyou
isn't that a little pricey for a giant frame? welded in taiwan, right? or is this model different...

No. Most bikes are welded in Tiawan anyway... if their welds were so bad 90% of us would already be dead. American welding is not superior, just more expensive I'm not going to get into a debate about American labor - just stating the facts. There are crap Tiawan made bikes and there are crap US made bikes... the reverse is also true.

$400.00 is MSRP, most dealers sell for far less, say around $300.00. Anyhow it is their top end XC hardtail that rates very highly among those who actually own one... except for the integrated headset, I don't like those so I used a king. I got it as a frame and built it my self.

 

[Serial Midget]

Uh... sorry about the dirt, it's just gonna get dirty again.

 

[Serial Midget]

.

 

[fasterTHANyou]

i wasn't getting in to anything with labor, just curious. i thought that taiwanese frames came cheaper than that. and the welds do look good.

did we ever figure out how much he wanted to spend on this rig?

edit: btw, tasty avid mechanicals... i love my new juicys