When it comes to details that will get your attention near the mountain. Do not fall victim to the market. Do your homework and you end up with a bike that will stand up to the real world.
Cross-country mountain bikes - full suspension
Many high-end and low-end bikes suffer the same problem. Pivot wear leads to a sloppy back-end, both the switching and bike handling. The department store with>bikes it is because it is running on low quality bushings while the higher end bikes are running on small pivots and small bearings, leading them to wear out quicker. As a bike mechanic I've had the experience of working on 6-month-old $5000 bike from one of the big three brands that wouldn't stay in gear when ridden due to the play in the pivot bearings.
When you choose a full suspension bike, in addition to the design and the specs, look closely at the pivots and bearings. If the outside diameter is smaller than a quarter don't be surprised if you need to replace them a few times per season to keep the bike working reliably. Companies go with the smaller size to save weight but it comes at the cost of durability. To be happy in the long run, get a frame that is a little heavier and put the money you save into lighter wheels. That will make a much bigger difference in how fast you will go and will let you spend more time on the trail and less time with your bike in the shop.
Another peeve of mine is the use of carbon fiber on mountain bike frames. This goes whether full suspension or hardtail. Mountain bikes crash - Carbon fiber doesn't take impacts from crashes well. Damage from crashes isn't covered under warranty. You figure it out.
Cross country mountain bikes - Hard Tail
Unless you are sponsored and get your stuff for free, I would avoid carbon fiber mtb Frames. Sounds like a good idea until the bike into a spin and cracks. In addition, the pop can thin aluminum frames that are at the top of a lot of race hardtails societies are more susceptible to fatigue cracks. Most of them are under warranty, but the bike will not be replaced.
Aluminum frame that is less than 3.5 to 4 kg. Dent will be much more in an accident and to develop appropriate cracking problems through normal use. Iwrecked a few frames in my day and they have all been aluminum. I'm not against aluminum, just when companies push the limits.
Which leads me to my favorite material for hardtails. Steel is real.
Quality cromoly steel frames were pretty much the only option 15 years ago. When it became cheap to make aluminum frames, steel fell out of favor because it is much easier to market lighter weight than it is get people to into ride quality, durability and the coolness that is a sleek steel with only a magazine add. Ross Bike companies are sheep.
Large companies went to aluminum, so that everyone followed. The same happened with the steel. old dogs like me, remember that how well our bikes in steel before I went, Soma back to steel, particularly from niche as the gloomy e. Once a certain critical mass bike company was noted for the mainstream. Now your company looking steel bikes offered by most. Just as29″ wheel bikes, nobody want to miss the next big thing so a major case of bandwagon jumping is going on. While many of these companies offer only one or two steel bikes in the lineup, I think it's great as more people are being exposed to ride benefits of a nice steel hardtail.
By making smart choices when choosing your next mountain bike, you will reduce the problems associated with pushing the weight limit.
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