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May, 2025

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How much does a decent mountain bike setup cost?

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DrZoidberg
Posts: 5676 - Karma: 4,299
So I just went on a mountain bike trip with the outdoor club at my school. First of all, why have I never done this? It practically fills the void in my heart where tree skiing should be, since that doesn't occur much in jersey. I rented a bike from the bike shop here, not sure what kind but it had no suspension, normal (non disc) brakes, that's all I could spot as a noob. I'd be fine with a setup like that. Also, what's a decent online shop so I can look around? Not even sure if I am willing to drop any cash, but I'm just curious.

And, I'd assume it's like what people on here do for fks. They just find old race skis at garage sales and take the bindings. I'd bet I could go to a garage sale and do something similar.
14 years ago
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mountainviper
Posts: 1931 - Karma: -3
My first mtb bike was a specialized hard rock. I hooked it up but I still have it. Handles most easy stuff nicely. It's the bike I take out when my wife wants to mtb. Now I wouldn't try to run it down diablo but it's a decent, cheap, all rounder. You should be able to find a used one for like $200.
14 years ago
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mountainviper
Posts: 1931 - Karma: -3
Speaking of diablo and you being in jerz....go up there and rent a downhill bike. Place is super fun but will likely kickstart your mtb obsession...haha.
14 years ago
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TheAfterBang
Posts: 189 - Karma: 10
Downhill full suspension bike decent setup = 1500$ minimum Dirt jump bike decent setup= 750$ Freeride bike decent setup = 1500$ minimum as well I do a lot of mountain biking and these are juste some estimations to give you an idea. Definitely a costy sport!
14 years ago
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mountainviper
Posts: 1931 - Karma: -3
My dj bike cost $2400....lol....and I don't even ride it anymore.
14 years ago
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oakdog
Posts: 50 - Karma: 8
Both guys are spot on ... Mountainviper , u lookin to sell? Also im looking to sell a gary fisher sugar 3full suspension cross country mountain bike for like 500
14 years ago
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b.utters
Posts: 321 - Karma: 99
Yea get something like a Hardrock. I've had one for about 7 years and it's still going strong aside from snapping the cranks about 6 months ago.

Once you build up some skills get an all mountain or downhill bike. Most fun you will have off ski's for sure.
14 years ago
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mountainviper
Posts: 1931 - Karma: -3
What sell my blk mrkt dj bike? I wish. My wife won't let me. It's got all custom deity and atomlab parts. Things super sick. But the wife knows how much it cost me to build and how much it's worth now. And I quote, " you will keep that bike till the day you die!", lmao.
14 years ago
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ianj
Posts: 536 - Karma: 167
My Yeti 303 rdh cost $3100 used.... Bikes are expensive, but as it goes with anything, you get what you pay for. I would try to demo a few by going to your local resort that does biking. Try as many types of mountain biking as possible (XC, all mountain, Dj, DH, Freeride) and go with whichever you like the most. Hope this helps. Remember to expect to pay a good bit on a quality bike. look into demo bikes at resorts as well. That's generally a good way to get a bike at a good discount that hasn't been used much.
14 years ago
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cobra_commander
Posts: 16909 - Karma: 4,681
$3000-$4000 will get you a good new all mountain FR bike.
14 years ago
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ShredAZ
Posts: 1054 - Karma: 641
Spend 800. Learn on a good hardtail with good components and a solid fork.
Then decide if you want to keep riding and invest more money into it.

Bottom line: You think skiing is pricey? Butttt I can honestly say it's a legit amount of good fun.

I MTBed for 4 years before selling my last FS set-up. I miss it every day. Currently looking for an awesome hardtail to get back in the sport. You can get so much more for your money out of a hardtail. More efficient then FS too.
14 years ago
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racerJRP
Posts: 33 - Karma: 10

Since you are a beginner, you could spend 5-700 and have a bike that would be just fine for you.  If you really get into the sport you may outgrow this in a season though.  if yuo want something that will be solid enough for you to learn on and still be enough if you becdome more serious look in the 9-1500 range.

Bikes are fun.

I work at a bike/ ski shop in NJ.  Message me if you want more info.

14 years ago
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mountainviper
Posts: 1931 - Karma: -3
Well like I suggested early, if he got a spesh hard rock, that's a gear beginners bike and that shouldn't cost more than $400 brand new depending on the rig(brakes,etc).
14 years ago
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racerJRP
Posts: 33 - Karma: 10

You do not get much for $400 these days.  Basically if you take a $400 mtb and go use it like a mtb, and you are of any considerable weight and over 14 y/o you will break it in a few rides.  The wheels/ fork/ drivetrain i'm talking about, your not gonna snap a frame in half.  In fact the least expensive adult mtb we offer is $420.

14 years ago
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a_pla5tic_bag
Posts: 9244 - Karma: 5,694
well what if you fulfill the second part but not the first. 19 and like 125 max.

i never bothered to check out the downhill thing at creek. shame on me
14 years ago
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Justo8484
Posts: 3905 - Karma: 206
you sound like you're in a similar scenario to what i was. tried mountain biking when i lived with a friend who biked. i rode his old (2002?) diamondback hardtail. shitty fork, only front disc brake, etc, but for singletrack, it worked fine, and i had a ton of fun. i spent 700 and got basically a step down from an xc race bike on a good closeout deal from a local shop. basically all solid compenents except for the fork. i found a better for on craigslist (32 float rlc for $250, not sure why the idiot sold it that cheap...) and that made a huge difference on the bike. i rode that for about two years until i started riding more aggressively and breaking things regularly.

then i found a trek remedy (5.5" full suspension freeride frame) on craigslist for like $500. swapped parts over to that and it was like a whole new world. drops that were sketch on the hard tail turned into super fun features on the full suspension bike. it was like freeride skiing's summer cousin. long story short, i snapped the remedy frame, trek and my local shop hooked it up big time with the warranty, and i now have a $3500 bike that i've spent maybe $1500 putting together, but i can ride it at diablo, launch (spring mtn, pa's new bike park), rode it at blue last summer, and it's light enough that it's fun for xc rides, but burly enough that i'm not gonna be going through minor repairs all the time like i was with the hard tail.

sorry for the rant... if you want to bike like you ski, you're probably gonna want to look for something with at least 4" of travel front and rear, which will allow you to hit jumps and drops without totally wrecking your bike and your spine. it's getting close to the end of bike season in PA/NJ, so you should be able to find some closeouts sitting around. not sure where in NJ you are, but if you get down to the philly area at all, there's a few great shops here who i'd be happy to point you to.
14 years ago
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DrZoidberg
Posts: 5676 - Karma: 4,299
Wow you all are right, shit's expensive. And I wouldn't even but jumping off crazy stuff. It's just that there are decent trails in riding distance from my dorm here in delaware. Just downhill and uphill sections, logs and rocks and bumps, and a bit of a "skills trail" as they called it. 2 people that were with us had to walk/coast out because they broke parts. One kid broke the derailleur hangar (which apparently isn't that expensive) and something happened to the other kids chain. So I'd guess stuff breaks often. I'm sure eventually it would snowball into going from recreational hobby terrain to more extreme stuff though.

So I'd have to be on the lookout for used/cheap stuff, if anything, cause I'm trying to buy a retro fish or some sort of summer board at some point.
14 years ago
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mountainviper
Posts: 1931 - Karma: -3
That statement about a $400 bike being for 14yr olds is horseshit. I spent that for my hard rock and it's still in excellent condition for single track and xc use. Now before ya start talking smack about how I jus don't know, I have 4 bikes ranging in price from $400 to $5000, 3 of which I built myself from the frame up. If your starting out there are some real decent big company hardtails you can get cheap new like the hardrock. I eventually swapped out the fork on mine for a dj1 but that was only because I obtained one for free and not because the og fork was broken or couldn't handle it. I have also replaced the derailler but that was because I sent that bike end over end through some massive rocks and would've bent ANY derailler.
14 years ago
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mountainviper
Posts: 1931 - Karma: -3
The point here is that your obviously a college student and may not have a ton of money to throw around. If you can afford to buy a decent bike than by all means. You do pay for quality. But if your gonna be jus dickin around with your friends on some single track and xc, you can totally get away with a lower end bike from a reputable company. By that I mean dint go to wall mart and buy the most expensive $250 huffy mtb bike they got. That shit will def crumble on ya. But specialized, giant, etc. They all have decent bikes on the lower end. Heck nowadays you can get a complete blk mrkt dj bike for like $700 if ya wanted to go that route.
14 years ago
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Justo8484
Posts: 3905 - Karma: 206
i'm assuming you're talking about white clay/middle run. possibly riding there on sunday... that said, that place is practically paved. more or less any hard tail will work fine there. ideally, a 29er with like a 3" travel fork would slay that place, but 29ers aren't really cheap to be had yet, since most companies only make them with a high end spec at this point. check philly craigslist, there's always tons of hard rocks and old stumpjumpers and whatnot showing up there.
14 years ago
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mountainviper
Posts: 1931 - Karma: -3
Yeah if your talkin about white clay (which i doubt cause he said jerz and white clay isn't the only trail system with a skillz park) but if you are pm me dude. My home base is right there and I could def point ya in the right direction bike wise. Plus the above poster is right which makes my posts all the more relevant. I ride my hard rock there no probs.
14 years ago
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