2009 Specialized Rockhopper

"Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs" (yowen)
07/16/2014 at 14:26 • Filed to: None

I know we've got some mountain bikers here and I need to get a good trail riding bike as the one I was riding has pretty much given up the ghost (LOTS of missed shifts, wheels not straight anymore).

Is this two-wheels-good as far as MTB's go? NPOCP at $300? (I think I'd try to talk him down to $250)

From what I read the front shocks aren't the greatest, but overall it's a good bike. And the fork is something I could always upgrade. Am I being too cheap here? Or is this going to be a good fit for me? I ride fairly challenging trails which can be somewhat tight, with quite a bit of high speed downhills as well. The trail I ride is considered the only true "flow" trail in Michigan (Merril in Rockford).

DISCUSSION (47)

HammerheadFistpunch > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 14:27

pic isnt loading...link? Also, as far as the wheels and gears...those are fairly cheap fixes, what do you ride now? edit: pic loaded. Hard to tell from the size but it looks in good shape. for $250 it might be worth it to bite the bullet. At the very least you could cannibalize for parts.

bob and john > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 14:31

if your doing downhill, then you will want a full suspension bike.

also, with bicycles, you have to make sure its the right sizing for you...thats why i buy new...i can always just pick another size.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 14:32

I'd personally spend slightly more on a trail bike. Not that this is a weak one I've heard good things about Specialised but there are bikes slightly further up the scale that survive abuse a bit better.

Mattbob > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 14:35

For that price, it is a good deal. Those brakes look like BB5's and it looks like a DART2. My bike had both of those when I got it. I have never had issues with the brakes, and the shock was alright, but I upgraded to a fox shock. You won't find anything new that is as good for nearly that cheap. What components does it have? What bike are you coming from? (specs?)

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > HammerheadFistpunch
07/16/2014 at 14:37

I think I ride a Giant right now, it's in pretty rough shape, it's my cousins extra bike, so it would be nice to have my own anyways. I think by the time I fix its shortcomings I'd arrive at the price of this Specialized bike, which is much newer.

The Specialized is advertised as "lightly ridden". I imagine if it has any short comings I could throw better parts on it?

Mattbob > bob and john
07/16/2014 at 14:37

booooo. Hardtails FTW. Also, Michigan doesn't really have much trailwise that needs a full suspension. If you are light on the bike, hard tails are way more fun

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > bob and john
07/16/2014 at 14:39

A 19 inch bike is the size I would need I think, I am 6'1".

It's not strictly downhill, I don't want full suspension as I don't want to waste my peddling efforts because my suspension is absorbing them.

bob and john > Mattbob
07/16/2014 at 14:40

I used to have a hardtail. then i went to a Fuel EX8 (2010) w/ lockout shocks. I can just absolutely RIP through trails now, no more worrying weather or not I'll taco my back wheel over a bump or not.

I'm not saying get a full, 6K downhiller. but something like an EX8 would work wonderfully.

HammerheadFistpunch > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 14:41

all things true. The rockhopper should be a good frame, im not sure if they were still using MMC on them, but my VERY old s-works MMC has been a amazing bike for ever.

Wishin & workin for an E39 M5 > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 14:44

Nice Price at $275 if it has a lockout for the front fork. If you are even average weight and size you will want that to stiff the front suspension when you ride on anything flat and are trying to speed up. Without the lockout, you will lose a lot of forward inertia as your weight compresses the fork. Looks like a good bike though and I agree, hardtails FTW!!

I ride a '12 Cannondale SL-4: Helix Hydraulic disk brakes, RST Deuce with single hydraulic lockout

bob and john > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 14:45

if you dont want FS, then i would suggest going to a 29er. rolls over rocks better then 26's. @ 6'1", a 19might work...I'm 5"10 and ride a 19.5 EX8 and a 20 devinci CX3. the devinci is a little big, i must admit.

and uhh, this is not a great bike. its great for just putting around the nieghboor hood and the occasional curb jump, but not for much more. i USED to have on of these, cracked the frame, broke the fork spring in 2 places, and seized a wheel within a year (and keep in mind i worked @ a bicycle store during this time, so I was well aware of how to maintaine a bike, it just wasnt made to hand the kind of riding I did. (fast XC, started to race on it for 2 months before wheel and fork crapped out on me)

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > Mattbob
07/16/2014 at 14:46

I'm coming from a older Giant, it's a 21inch frame I just found out. It has front suspension, no disc brakes and shifting is FUCKED. Haha. So i wonder if this 19 inch frame might feel small... I am 6'1"

As for the Specialized, I think i read it has a Dart3, but I couldn't be certain. What sort of benefits did you notice from having Fox shocks?

Nothing > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 14:50

6'3" here...I had a 21" 2009 Specialized Rockhopper Pro. Nice bike. Before that, I had a 2000 Klein Attitude Comp, 19", and that bike suited me fine size wise. I'd say $250 for a clean Rockhopper is a good deal.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell.
07/16/2014 at 14:53

Hmm, I am not incredibly hard on it, and I only weight 150lbs.

How does this one compare?
http://grandrapids.craigslist.org/bik/4560991809…

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > Wishin & workin for an E39 M5
07/16/2014 at 14:58

Yeah lockouts would be very nice to have.

Mattbob > bob and john
07/16/2014 at 14:59

Yeah, if I had the budget, I would go full suspension, but unless you spend a lot, they are heavy and come with some garbage components that you will want to upgrade anyway. I just stick with a good hard tail. It helps that I am not really heavy. especially for my frame size.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > bob and john
07/16/2014 at 15:01

That's the one thing I am worried about, whether or not I want a 29er. I've not had much of a chance to ride a 29er so I don't if it's a good fit for me and there are spots ont he trail I ride where I appreciate the maneuverability of the 26.

All-in-all it sounds like you aren't a fan of the Rockhopper though?

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 15:01

Out of the two I'd go for the Specialised just because I know people who use them for daily commuting with only basic maintenance and they last years. If you're not too hard on it on the trails it should be fine.

Mattbob > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 15:04

I'm 6'2" and I ride a 19" (I might be wrong it could be 21 but I don't think so) But I do have to make sure I'm stretched out or I do get some lower back pain if I'm hard on the pedals.

As far as going to the fox shock from the Dart, it was like night and day. The fox follows the ground and sucks everything up where as the dart was a lot more bouncy. You get way more confidence in corners and downhill, but if you are used to being able to use the front to pogo and bounce up over stuff, it will take getting used to. It just sucks it up if you push down. At least how I have mine set up, but they are very adjustable.

bob and john > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 15:09

dont take what I said as bad, te rockhopper is a good bike for what it was designed. light duty trail riding. I was not doing light duty trail riding, I was hauling ass.

the one time i rode a 29'er i had borrowed it for a race. I did accelerate a bit slower, and it was MINUTELY less agile in the very slow stuff. but once i picked up some speed, i was passing 26's left, right, center, over jumps, through ruts, you name it.

because of the bigger contact patch (lengthwise) you can carry more speed in a corner, and lean a bit harder. weight gains are negligable at that level, like one or 2 pounds at most.

what i will say if to avoid Giant if you end up getting a 29er or a 650B. giant simply scaled up their existing 26er frames to let in the bigger wheel, and the bikes ride like shit compare to a trek or a specialized.

if you want, you can split the difference on a 650B wheel. but you wont find too many used ones.

also, w/e you do, get something with DISK brakes stock. doesnt have to be hydraulic. if you want to swap over to hydros leter, its much easier to just replace a brake caliper/level then to have to get a whole new wheel, disks, sometimes bike (some frames simply dont have mounting points for disks)

sidenote: can you tell I also used to sell bikes at that store :P

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > Mattbob
07/16/2014 at 15:13

Ah, awesome, I will probably look into those then, I certainly like anything that'll smooth out the bumps a bit more.

Mattbob > bob and john
07/16/2014 at 15:15

I second that bit a about 29ers being way faster... They are always the ones who blow by me in the straight parts of the local trails. Its not just a bit faster either. Knobby tires on 26's don't help the speed though.

bob and john > Mattbob
07/16/2014 at 15:18

you feel like you are on a steam train. it relentless. (we were also racing on woodchips on the douple track, and coming back down the hill wasnt even comparable...the 26s guys where doing like 38kmph and the 29s were topping out at 47 or so)

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > bob and john
07/16/2014 at 15:19

Hmm, you are sort of talking me into the 29er's there, hard to find one on my local CL though! What would you expect to spend on an entry level new 650B or 29er?

Haha and I won't tell my cousin, who i ride with, that his Giant 29er is a scam!

I definitely want something with disc brakes.

bob and john > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 15:21

i know norco (was) making an entry lvl 29s for the EXACT same price as the 26's (IIRC ~500?) not sure about the 650B's, havent been in the bike game for a few years now. i woudlnt ecpect much of a difference.

To get a REALLY nice 29, i would imagen something in the 700$ range would be awesome. anymore then that and your starting to get into airforks.

Mattbob > bob and john
07/16/2014 at 15:23

wow. Yeah it makes a big difference, especially when you start playing with how they react to different air pressures. 26 with low pressure handles great in technical stuff, but man is it slow! It wouldn't be too bad if there was no frame of reference for speed like the guys on the 29ers going by so fast.

bob and john > Mattbob
07/16/2014 at 15:27

yea, that course was also much more flowing then most of the other ones we had raced on, so anyone who was on a 29 was just duking it out for top spot.
also, those were the junior SPORT guys. the masters level guys were hitting something crazy like 65km/h on 29's

Rock Bottom > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 15:35

This bike looks decent to me, but I will say this: ignore anyone who says "don't buy a full suspension because you live in Michigan". I live in the South East of the Great Lakes State and have ridden a few of the local trails since my arrival. On every ride I have been thrilled to death that I brought my dually Cannondale Rush with me when I moved here from Northern California a couple months ago. The roots in this state are brutal and the softy really takes the edge off when you're bombing a hard-packed mess.

That being said, it's really all about your budget. Dually's aren't cheap and they require a bit more money to keep alive after you buy them. You can buy a really nice hard tail for a few hundred bucks. My Cannondale was pretty rough when I bought it and I probably have about $1,100 into it now. And mine isn't even a nice bike! The more modern bikes out there are WAY pricier.

If it were me, I'd go ride everything in my price range. dually, hard tail, 29er, everything. You can't go wrong with a Rockhopper, but you might fall in love with something you would otherwise miss. I had a friend in NorCal who rode a single speed, fully-rigid Salsa 29er at a demo day and absolutely flipped out over it. Now he does mountain bike races on it and leaves his really nice Rumblefish at home. Nobody saw that coming!

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > bob and john
07/16/2014 at 15:53

Hmm, just stumbled across this:

http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motob…

Seems too good to be true. It gets decent reviews though:

Some drawbacks I saw is it uses somewhat cheaper components and it's on the heavier side because it's a steel frame.

http://www.mtbr.com/cat/bikes/29er…

bob and john > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 15:55

NO. NO NO NO NO
we had one on our stand once, then the frame disintegrated on the stand. turned out, they somhow got water in it, and rusted from the inside. the second the clamp squeeze to hold it as it was a dam heavy bike, it just fell apart right in front of the owner.

guy only buys CF bikes from trek, norco or specialzed now.

bob and john > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 15:57

if you really want to save, try to source everything seperatly like a computer. I know chain reaction cycles usually has decent deals on gruopos, might be able to bag urself something nice there.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > Rock Bottom
07/16/2014 at 15:57

Hmm, very interesting, I've wondered about those single speeds, I imagine it's for someone that has a high average speed and is able to really carry that into the uphills.

I am looking around a bit more and also stumbled across this:
http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motob…

What are your thoughts on it? Too good to be true? Or awesome deal?

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > bob and john
07/16/2014 at 16:00

Hahaha. So that's pretty bad... WOuldn't that be kind of a lemon though? I imagine they don't actively try to put water inside of all of their bikes.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > bob and john
07/16/2014 at 16:01

Hmm, that's an interesting approach for sure. I do see all kinds of parts pop up on craigslist and such.

bob and john > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 16:04

I agree on the lemon thing, but i've NEVER seen such a thing happen with treks or specialized.

if you shop for hydraulic disks, id go with shimanos. Avid's juicy and elixir systems arent bad, but I MUCH pretty the feel of a shimano set up.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > bob and john
07/16/2014 at 16:56

OMG I am going insane, lol, so many different components to learn about! Suntour, rockshox, shimano, sram...

Still kind of researching these Motobecane's, they are a very interesting price point as far as new bikes go, haha.

This one seems to get good reviews:
http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motob…

I really like the looks of this one (pictured below):
http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motob…

...But then there is the option of building, or the option of holding out for a nice used one. Also, I need to see what my local bike store has on offer.

All that aside, this one I think looks great:

Kinja'd!!!

bob and john > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/16/2014 at 17:17

ok, quick low down:
3 main fork compans.
SR suntour (lower -med end stuff_
rockshocks (med to high end stuff)
fox: high end shit. i have this on my fuelex. awesome stuff.

brakes: AVID and Shimano and magura
AVID and shimano are the two bigger ones, i prefer the feel of shimanos, but i head they are kinda nasty to work on.

drive train:
for MTBs, you looking at SRAM (who owns AVID) and shimano.

PERSONALLY, i'm a shimano guy. I find their gear changed to be a little smotther, but the SRAM stuff is more mechanical.

you can mix and match certain components, but for the best feel and performance, keep it one family for the drive train. brakes are a completly seperate system, so you can do w/e there.

one thing I find a lot fo guy do it slap on a raceface crank set )the gears at ur feet) and run the rest as a single company. this does work, as the cranks from shimano or SRAM are kind pricy.

if you want a decent system, the real quality starts at the 9 speed and up. when you see 3by9, this means three gears @ the crank, 9 at the wheel.

wheels: ehh, kinda forgot about this. something that works :P. need to support you gear slection and disks. I remeber that crank brothers produces a REALLY nice set of rims, but $$$$$$ (i mean like 4-1100 JUST on wheels)

frame: you can try getting a Chinese carbon fiber knockoff. they are pretty cheap, and a friend of mine has one. personally, i wouldnt. they ride like wood. but they are light, going to admit that.

these are the major compnents. you will need smaller stuff (seat post, handlebars and stem, bottom bracket, head bearings, the seat, and grips, off the top of my head)

my advice: go on chain reaction cycles, and see what looks pretty. I'll see if i cant sneak some time TMW and build up a 1/2 decent bike from parts there and post the link (or parts list) here

tromoly > Wishin & workin for an E39 M5
07/16/2014 at 22:08

I kinda think it has a Rock Shox Lyrik on it, which IIRC is a lockout fork. My brother had one on his Gunnar for a while, really nice fork.

Mattbob > Rock Bottom
07/17/2014 at 07:19

Being the only person who mentioned Michigan, I would like to address this. I said you don't really NEED a full suspension in Michigan, unless you are doing some crazy stuff or can't be bothered to stand up and let your legs absorb some shock instead of your ass. If you get off the seat, roots aren't a problem. Given a constrained budget, it is better to get a good hardtail than a cheap full suspension bike. It will last longer and give you less problems in the long run. I'm not saying he shouldn't get a hard tail because of Michigan, just that given a budget, a hardtail is the best fit for the environment, and most trails aren't that bad as far as major drops and things where an FS would be a huge benefit.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > bob and john
07/17/2014 at 12:39

Wow, thanks for that! Very helpful. I'm starting to somewhat understand bike specs as I browse them now.

What's like the newegg/amazon/tigerdirect of bike shopping? Is there a place I can piece my own together?

bob and john > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/17/2014 at 12:41

chain reaction cycles. my go-to website for bike parts. I'm going to try and sneak some time on it now and build you a nice bike on it. price range? (roughly)

bob and john > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/17/2014 at 12:51

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/us/en/vitus-bi…

this is the cheapest 29's they have on CRC right now. ts a good company, good quality items on it (though I would swap out the brakes for shimanos)

and id slap in a fox fork too, but i'm spoiled by that on my bike, so w/e.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > bob and john
07/17/2014 at 13:45

Nice looking bike at a good price, pity it's another $99 to ship it >_<

I agree on brakes/forks, from what I've been reading it could do better in that dept.

I'm sure those are components I can start out with though. For brakes I was looking at Avid BB7's. Since I hear hydraulic brakes take a lot more maintenance and know-how to keep in good working order.

For forks I really don't want to spend the money, at least not right away, what do you figure I'd need to spend on fox/rockshox to get a decent fork on there? Looks to me like 300-400 dollars. I saw some entry level ones around the $170 mark.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > bob and john
07/17/2014 at 13:46

I'm really trying to get the best possible bike at budget level prices. Like around the price of the 29er in your other post.

Rock Bottom > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
07/17/2014 at 13:52

I think you need to be a friggin' monster of a man to enjoy a single speed mountain bike... and I am not. They require a TON of horsepower to ride. If you're a bouss, then give one a spin! You might like it!

I don't know anything about the newer Moto-bacon bikes. I know they used to build nice-ish road bikes like 40 years ago, but I'm pretty sure they're actually a different company now. My gut tells me this is a solid case of "you get what you pay for". Something like the Specialized you found would probably be a better idea. I mean, it's really hard to go wrong with a Specialized. Even if it needs a tune-up or a little work, as long as the frame is straight it's going to serve you well for pretty much ever. And it'll have standard parts, which makes upgrades WAY easier down the road. My pride and joy is a beautiful 1984 Peugeot PH-11 road bike, but it uses all weird French threads and sizes on everything. Makes finding upgrades/replacement parts a REAL whore! You'll never have that problem with a Specialized/Trek/Cannondale/Giant!

Rock Bottom > Mattbob
07/17/2014 at 14:07

I meant no disrespect, good sir. My statement stems from the fact that the original post mentioned MI and I've heard it all since I got here. Mostly "why do you NEED a dually?" Of course, I don't. I bombed some ridiculous gnar in NorCal on an early 90s Diamond Back Ascent for years and feel that I could tackle anything I've ever seen on that rigid, old machine. The dually simply makes the rides much more enjoyable for my fat ass.

I simply suggest not rushing out and buying the first cheap bike that comes along. I have no idea what the OP's real budget is, and frankly don't need to know. I also don't know what his technique is. I only feel that it's important to shop the shit out of something if you're not desperate to have it (he has another bike to ride in the mean time, even if it is less than perfect). I've rushed into bike purchases before (specifically a beautiful lugged celeste Bianchi road bike that was just a touch too small) and want to make sure he loves whatever he spends his hard-earned coin on. It's best if he looks to see what his options are in his price range, samples each option, then selects the option that best suits his needs. He might fall in love with the dirrectness of a fixed fork. Maybe he actually has thousands to spend and decides on a carbon Yeti. Who knows!

Mattbob > Rock Bottom
07/17/2014 at 14:35

Definitely agree on the shopping around bit. A bike isn't something that you can break in if it isn't quite right. I just tend to get a bit edgy when I get the feeling some gear snobbery is afoot. This isn't the case as I see now. I just hate for the snobs to discourage people from getting out and riding even if it is on a cheaper bike.