Sub £600 mountain bike?

Question

I am looking for a new bike to ride cross country and look to race a few times a year. Currently i am considering the Scott Scale 80 (or 70), Cannondale F4 Z or a Kona Four. I would be grateful for any keen bikers with some knowledge to provide their thoughts.

My preference at the moment lies with the Scott due to owning one in the past, however I am also keen on the Cannondale. The Kona Four is full sus but just within budget but obviously the components suffer in favour of a full sus frame.

Any opinions welcome! Thanks

Answer 1

Hey

All nice bikes youve chosen there, they'ver all got their pros an cons but imo i think you would be best off with the scott or canondale. For the prices they both have pretty good components. The Scott generally looks better though tbh but performance still counts. Personally though i would go for the canondale because the scott doesnt even have disks where as the canon's got avid juicy 3's. The Kona is nice i must admit but for a full sus bike at that price you arent going to get very good components. If you're looking at a good full sus you maybe looking at a £1000+, Plus the kona comes with **** brakes 'hayes mx4 mechs' ive had them before and they just a dissapointment lol.  

So yeah overall i would reccomend the cannondale but its up to you.

Hope i helped!  ;)

Answer 2

The Scale is a good bike for XC racing.  It was originally designed with the Swiss Alps in mind, so the geometry is geared towards hill climbing.

I would not consider the Kona Four.  In order to get a full suss, your components for the rest of the bike are not going to be great.  While these components will be fine for general XC work, their lifespan will not be as long and, more crucially, they will be heavy (Not good for racing).

Dales are good bikes and, while not as pure race bread as the Scott, might serve you better as a general XC bike.

For the £500 - £600 mark, I would definately look at a hardtail.  Kona do other machines that are worth considering.  You might also look at some of the European makes that are starting to get onto the UK market, like Cube.

Luck

Answer 3

You can a hardtail Orange with hydraulic discs for £600.