Definitely buy used on Craigslist. Be aware of the few that think their junk is worth something. I would look for a good hard tail. Unless you plan to seriously ride hard then a full suspension would be good.
Also if you are on facebook look for local mountain bike trading/sale groups. Checking the board by the entrance of the trailheads are good places to source for sale ads also.
I will mainly use it on the streets, with occasional trail riding. Used would be great, but I don't want to be ripped for an older one. Is there a way to see what bikes were sold for when new?
I once bought a beat up Huffy mountain bike at a garage sale from my friend's kid. Wheel bent. Straightened it out. Never could get more than 5 gears to work, but I put miles and miles on that bike. I got to the point I would put it through hell just to see what would happen. Bearings were dry and clicking, chain dry half the time, I jumped curbs, rocky roads, and lots of pavement without issue. I had it for a few years. The gumwalls were cracked and starting to separate and it had developed a bulge in the side wall that was about to blow. Its days were numbered. I just leaned it against the house usually when I parked it, no lock. One night some jerk stole it. I envision they got it back home in the light and realized just what a POS they had stolen. I mentioned it to a buddy and he gave me a WalMArt Mongoose mono-shock type bike that was nearly new. I have ridden it all over the place and plenty of trails without issue.
Watch craigslist, I would take a used bike in a good brand any day over a cheap new one. I'm partial to Specialized, but Giant, Trek, Cannondale, Scott, Fuji and some others are all good bikes. I got my specialized XC used when it was a year old for almost half of MSRP off of craigslist.
I will mainly use it on the streets, with occasional trail riding. Used would be great, but I don't want to be ripped for an older one. Is there a way to see what bikes were sold for when new?
CN
Most the major good brands have an archive to look at previous years on their websites.
I will mainly use it on the streets, with occasional trail riding. Used would be great, but I don't want to be ripped for an older one. Is there a way to see what bikes were sold for when new?
My LBS has a sick trance 2014 brand new for $2700.
Nice. I rented one. Night and day difference from an entry level bike compared to a high end bike. I really didn't want to return it. I got back on my gt and I felt like it was a Walmart bike after that lol.
I'm currently rolling a 95' Trek Y22. State of the art carbon fiber, full suspension back in the day for $2500. I told my self I would never buy another bike but looking at them now. I'm now much more frugal so looking at used on Dorba and Craigslist as I can't justify spending that kind of coin at this time in my life.
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