Buying A Mountain Bike

you wont get anything from wiggle at that budget, the cheapest u'll get is around £300.

But those £300 bikes are decent so if you can stretch to that.
If you happen to be a british cycling member, you can also get 12% off at wiggle.
althou if you plan to spend that much at either wiggle or halfords, its worth getting a membership with British cycling, the discount you get will cover the cost of the membership.

I think they also do discounts at evans as well

I would echo what has already been said here. For £250 and buying new you will not get anything beyond a very basic and heavy hardtail. At that price I would avoid disc brakes and completely rule out full suspension.

On the other hand, for £250 you could get yourself a very decent hardtail second hand that was originally about £600 new. That may sound like a horrifying amount of money, but if you want to do more than just toddle down to the shops, £5-600 is actually entry-level. An entry level 'proper' full-suspension bike will set you back at least £1000 for something half decent if new.

The difference? at £500 new, frames will be high quality steel or aluminium, and will be butted so will be (much) lighter and stronger. Disc brakes will be good quality and probably hydraulic, and wheels will be migh lighter and stronger, which makes a huge difference. Bearing surfaces and bushings will be hardened and will last much longer, and suspension will be high quality and well damped, rather than a flexy pogo-stick.

My advice - look for a well maintained, second hand, known-brand bike being sold by someone that is upgrading. Specialised, Trek, Giant amongst others all do good bikes with good gear.

Check for smooth bearings, and smooth action of any suspension. Any clonks, rumbles or play, walk away. The repair costs will swamp the purchase price. And bear in mind that if you do use it properly off-road then the maintenance costs will be an ongoing expense - grit is nasty to bikes.

Gord

RhysAC wrote: »

For use on road and mountain ranges across North Wales. I have looked at 2nd hand bikes but they seem so over priced.

No way, will your budget allow for a new bike that could cope with that terrain

Why do you say the second hand bikes are overpriced? The price will be in relation to what it was new. Bikers know their stuff and if they are still going for,big money on ebay, then thats because the bike is worth it

If you plan on doing downhill or singletrack then a bike off the highstreet wont cut it (unless evans, cycle surgery, et al). The less you pay new, the heavier the bike (so less enjoyable to ride), cheap components that break and need replacing often, and lets be honest, no street cred at all (which counts on the ranges in wales lol)

You really need to consider second hand, as you will most likely get more bang for your buck. There are lots of decent bikes on ebay in your pricerange, that most likely were bought by posers, riden once and then left in the shed. So like new, but cheaper.

You really need to do some research. Go to,the area you plan on riding and loiter in the carparks. See what people are riding, so you know the kit needed and then start looking at online shops for last seasons models. The look on ebay and compare the prices. Try local specialist mountainbike shops. Most take old bikes in p/x so they have 2ndhand stock to shift too

Does your employer offer bike to work scheme. If not, offer to set it up. This way you can get a bike cheaper than rrp. So your budget goes further

Hth f