£500 mountain bike for my son?

broona · 12 May 2020 at 13:28

He's currently got a 24" wheel Genesis Core, but at 4'11", he's just starting to outgrow it.

Looking for a small adult bike, 26 or 27.5" wheels, hydraulic disc brakes, front suspension, etc.

Had anyone got any recommendations please?

Haze · 12 May 2020 at 13:37

£500 for a bike is going to out grow.... Owch

broona · 12 May 2020 at 13:42

Haze said:
£500 for a bike is going to out grow.... Owch

Unfortunately, children are always going to outgrow things, and £500 was a maximum.

His current bike was around £300 and it's lasted him about 2yrs, hoping for similar this time around.

merlin · 12 May 2020 at 13:59

Trek Marlin.

UTmaniac · 12 May 2020 at 14:59

https://www.halfords.com/bikes/kids...junior-mountain-bike---26in-wheel-251436.html is well regarded, but the current £450 is as high as normally goes, in promos I think it's been as low as £275 in recent years. Limited stock though, as with a lot of Halfords bikes, also worth checking their Ebay store as sometimes extra stock appears there.

broona · 12 May 2020 at 15:54

merlin said:
Trek Marlin.

UTmaniac said:
https://www.halfords.com/bikes/kids...junior-mountain-bike---26in-wheel-251436.html is well regarded, but the current £450 is as high as normally goes, in promos I think it's been as low as £275 in recent years. Limited stock though, as with a lot of Halfords bikes, also worth checking their Ebay store as sometimes extra stock appears there.

Thanks for the replies, I'll have a look now, not sure if he might outgrow the Voodoo quickly as he's coming up 13.

MadMossy · 12 May 2020 at 20:27

Either

https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/fuji-nevada-29-1-9-hardtail-bike-2020/rp-prod192471

or

https://www.tredz.co.uk/.Cube-Aim-Race-Mountain-Bike-2020-Hardtail-MTB_218625.htm

Probably need a 14" or 15" for 4ft 11", but maybe consider a 16" so it lasts a little longer as no doubt he will grow into it in a month or two.

mattyfez · 13 May 2020 at 09:59

The voodoo is a bit of a tank at 16.4kg - think I'd go with the Cube out of those mentioned, The Cube is a more reasonable 14.2kg

The Fuji and Marlin 5 are 3x7 speed with awful forks. Marlin 6 is about the same price as the Cube but the forks are one model lower, Not that the forks on the Cube are amazing.

The Marlin 6 looks a lot nicer though, the frame geometry looks more modern and is about the same weight as the Cube - I'd be tempted to go with the Marlin 6 I think.

broona · 13 May 2020 at 12:05

MadMossy said:
Either

https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/fuji-nevada-29-1-9-hardtail-bike-2020/rp-prod192471

or

https://www.tredz.co.uk/.Cube-Aim-Race-Mountain-Bike-2020-Hardtail-MTB_218625.htm

Probably need a 14" or 15" for 4ft 11", but maybe consider a 16" so it lasts a little longer as no doubt he will grow into it in a month or two.

mattyfez said:
The voodoo is a bit of a tank at 16.4kg - think I'd go with the Cube out of those mentioned, The Cube is a more reasonable 14.2kg

The Fuji and Marlin 5 are 3x7 speed with awful forks. Marlin 6 is about the same price as the Cube but the forks are one model lower, Not that the forks on the Cube are amazing.

The Marlin 6 looks a lot nicer though, the frame geometry looks more modern and is about the same weight as the Cube - I'd be tempted to go with the Marlin 6 I think.

Thanks again, I'm thinking second hand might be the way to go, as an air fork would probably be much better for him as he's built like a racing snake, lol!

An air fork should also being the overall weight down, I'll have a look at last years models too, might get a slightly higher model for the same price.

cheesyboy · 13 May 2020 at 12:16

We got a Pinnacle Cobalt 1 from Evans for my boy, in February, who's a similar height (think he's possibly a shade over 5'). It's a hybrid, but at the mountain bike end of things. Supposed to be for 5'4" to 5'7", but he fits it fine.

They're £400 in store, but we actually picked it up 2nd hand, barely used (the guy said he'd ridden it 2 or 3 times, and it did look like it was true) for ~£200.

They also sold a Cobalt 2, which cost £100 more, but now seems to be no longer sold.

mattyfez · 13 May 2020 at 13:58

Another option is you could retro-fit an air fork such as this: https://www.amazon.co.uk/SR-SUNTOUR-Epixon-Suspension-Travel/dp/B075SD7M43/ref=cts_sp_2_vtp

Its a pretty good fork, I use one on mine, and pretty light too, as its an air fork with magnesium alloy lowers.