recommendations/advice please budget rigids

MarinMartin

Marin Fan
right guys Ive been thinking about this for a while and while I love my giant, I want something a little bit nicer. (Dont worry, Im keeping the stonebreaker as well)

long story short I fancy a rigid mountain bike now and whilst it will mostly be used on the road I want something that can handle the local trails as well. Im only going to be looking at around £50 budget but dont mind needing a bit of work. Not too bothered about weight either as my giant isnt exactly lightweight haha.

Would love a mid 90s muirwoods but that isnt happening any time soon haha. Obviously it all depends on what comes up local to me but are there any recommendations should they appear or any 'no-gos'.

The sort of bikes Im finding local are old saracens and that sort of thing. Im not a pro rider, I ride for fun so it doesnt have to be technically perfect, I just want something that will be able to handle the trails.

Just want to know if there is anything around my sort of budget that isnt a pile of rubbish or am I better off saving up and getting something better. Didnt want to spend a fortune as Ive got my marin for proper offroading, just fancy a rigid for when I want to ride something a bit different.

cheers guys and gals
 
Picked this up local to me for £20 after a non sale on ebay. Bargains are out there. Apparently it was underrated in its day. Rides really well. Had to change shifters but apart from that all good.
 

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IMHO £50 for an entire bike is not a lot, and although you might get lucky and find an amazing bargain, I would be saving at the same time so you could increase your chances of finding something ;) :D

Mind you if you are saying you have seen Saracens at £50 they had great frames with some awful groupsets 100/200 GS. Would be worth getting one of those and upgrading the parts over time :D
 
Or this for about £60 total spend. Was a barn find when i picked it up. :p It can be done.
 

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The History Man":2m5yn184 said:
Or this for about £60 total spend. Was a barn find when i picked it up. :p It can be done.

:shock: I am seriously jealous.

and to be honest yeah it is the frame Im most interested in. the saracen I looked at last year was £40, not sure on the model. just want something that doesnt feel like its going to fall apart on gravel (tip: dont take an old apollo offroad :LOL: )

the mech and that Im not worried about, I'll use it as it is then swap bits as I can afford them, just want a decent frame more than anything and I dont mind building from scratch

oh and there's no rush so if a frame came up cheap I would get it and build it. Ive got my marin and my giant to ride in the meantime.
 
cheers guys nice to know that it can be done. I know there are bargains out there (I regret selling my old Bolinas Ridge but it was just too small for me. cost me a tenner)

Ive seen so many cheap bikes that I dismissed before that now I would have like a shot. oh and just remembered my Giant only has 100gs groupset :LOL: rides ok to me. Like I say Im not a pro rider, I ride for fun so the spec isnt that important as long as its strong enough
 
Keep your eyes peeled and bargains should definitely turn up. I got my Karakoram Elite for £35 and whilst it was missing a few of its original parts, but it was fully rideable.

I picked up my Specialized M2 for about £65 and that was in great condition and pretty much all original - everything was super-smooth, so I assume it had just been serviced.

Being based in Cornwall should be an advantage, as it really limits the market for people who aren't willing to post a bike they are selling and hence more bargains should come up.

Use the "Item location" filter on ebay to search for anything within 25 miles, or however far you can collect and see what comes up. Also worth setting up a search to notify you of local bikes that come up on Gumtree.
 
I always think reading this forum gives you an overinflated view of what these things are worth.

Giant made lots of good bikes, but collectors aren't really that interested in them. The same goes for MTBS from Peugeot, Raleigh, Ridgeback and Muddy Fox.

Plus, there's lots of collectables that are available at car boots.

Just don't look too hard, and the right thing will come into your lap.
 
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