Best mountain bikes for beginners

A few months back when i first started taking interest in the mountain biking i did all kinds of research because my budget was tight and i was trying to get as much value as i could out of it so here are some of the bikes that i short listed at that time and how i came to this short list and everything that i experienced, Hopefully after reading this article you would be able to get some value out of it.

If you are struggling what kind of bike to buy and where to buy this article is all about you I will be covering some budget friendly mountain bikes what’s good about them, what to look for in a mountain bike and how and why you should look out for something.

For starters here’s a list of some of the budget friendly best mountain bikes for begginers.

• Diamondback Sync’r
• Vitus Nucleus 275 VR
• Vitus Sentier
• Vitus Rapide

• Diamondback Hook Hardtail

All of these bikes cost around 1000$ and this is the best what the market has to offer.

These are some of the best beginner friendly mountain bikes that I could research for but I will keep track of this and keep growing this list with time for now these are all good beginner friendly mountain bikes.

Now how did i make this choice and what did i look for in them to short list them and how should you go about it and what are the most important things to look for while in the process of choosing them.

What to look for in a begginer/low budget mountain bike :

In a new mountain bike that you would be looking for are two main things.

• Affordable
• reliable

Mountain bikes are not cheap and for an entry level bike to get the gits of the things a cheaper bike is the way to go.

I have already listed good bikes under 1000$ for reliability here are the things you should look for.

Disc brakes :

virtually any bike being released these days are equipped with disc brakes but if you see rim brakes its a big no no, disc brakes are essential for mountain bikes will have twists turns decensts assents jumps and ofcourse the tracks can be some time muddy or shallow discs brakes have more power and are more reliable anything.

• they are reliable
• less service cost
• save the rims
• great grip

on the other hand rim brakes may be good for road bikes or normal bikes they are not made to perform on mountain bike tracks so be aware.

disc brakes require as little maintance as changing pads from time to time and they are not too expensive as well.

Air forks :

Air forks are the suspensions on the front wheel and you will most probably be get XC bikes in this budget which are hard tail mountain bikes, hard tail means they lack the suspension on the rear wheel but its okay XC/ hard tail bikes are great for biggners the provide a very big learning curve and you can always buy a full sus once you think that these bikes are holding you back.

Air forks come in all kinds and are probably in between 100mm to 160mm for a beginner like yourself 100, 120 0r 130mm forks are okay so don’t worry too much they perform very well and are very reliable.

Clutched Drivetrain :

clutched drive train helps keep the chain tight and prevents it from dropping meaning if you are on a rougher track chain drops may be often so it is equipped with a clutched driver tain its a plus point since upgrading it can be costly,

If on your shorts list you are not getting a clutched drive train there is a cheaper solution but its not long term so you should try pressing this first but if you fail to and you are experiencing chain drops often you can use a tool call chain guide.

It will help your chain from dropping but as i said it is a cheaper solution you should first look for drive train most often 10 speed cassettes or 11,12 speed cassettes already have them but if they dont now you know what to do.

Hydraulic brakes :

I your budget you might not be seeing hydraulic brakes as well but if you are that’s a bonus as well if not its ok.

Hydraulic brakes are not another type of brakes but rather they are a different mechanism instead of traditional wire brakes bike, fluid is used in the tubes that pushes the brakes basically it makes the brakes much more smoother and easy to press.

Quick release levers/through axles :

quick release levers are a must since all new bikes these days have these because they make the job easier also anything else would be considered outdated and you will be left stranded trying to find new parts.

Quick release levers are great upgrades in the mountain bikes and they help remove the wheel without any tools, it helps a lot out on trails because getting a flat tire on the trails is pretty common and having a wrench on you all the time would be annoying so if you do not see quick release on the tire do not buy it its not worth it.

More expensive bikes are equipped with through axle but a quick release is good as well.

Pinch bolts/threadless headset :

Pinch bolts on the handle bar head sets are a good indication of a good bike if you see screws or anything like that dont buy it since lately all of the mountain bike manufacturers are making threadless head bars and if you go with the one with you screws you might be the one screwed so watch out.

Although manufacturers are careful these days and almost everyone follows the same trend in the industry but you can never be too care free.

Single front gear :

Another most important thing would be a single cog front wheel casset/gear, Why? it will be confusing as a beginner to have multiple gears on the front and the rear at least in this way you will learn quicker and if the casset has pinch bolts on it as well that adds to a bonus as well it means you can upgrade to more gears in the future.

Front wheel gears help in the uphill driving or going faster and all kind of situations but as a beginner it best to keep it simple and just use one gear on the front you can have 9 or 10 speed casstte on the rear wheels.

Most bikes come with 3 gears on the front cassette and it can be confusing especially if you have never ridden road bike or any other kind of bike even most people prefer only 2 gears on the front. But that’s for later for now the lesser the better.

And even if there are 3 gears check what are they supported by or there any screws or bolts there if there are there’s a good chance you can remove the other 2 if not just ditch it and find another model.

Frame geomatry :

While geomatery of mountain bikes can be confusing but a bit of knowledge is better.

Most modern mountain bikes these days are already made with a sturdy and comfy geomatery in mind.

frame geometry or geometry on a mountain bike is a really important part you might be looking at them as a triangles and not see much of a difference but when you are riding the trails they can play a major role is keep you stable and providing a more subtle and cushy ride.

You will often come across the phrase in mountain bikes geomatry Long low and slack i wont get in to the specifics but here’s what it means.

Long – how for the front wheel is its the longer it is the more room it provides to move around.

Low-Low refers to bottom bracket height.

Slack-refers to head angle, in a slacker hanger the forks would be absorbing the shock more so its more beneficial.

But i am assuming it is too much to digest for a beginner so here’s a tip don’t worry too much if you are not a bit of geek modern day geomatery on any other mountain bike is same they are already made keeping the beginner’s in mind as well. But ofcourse higher the price better will be the geometry.

Conclusion :

While all of this might be a bit confusing to you since you are a beginner but if you want something for the value this is the best route to take its better than blind charging and regretting it afterwards.

This the same method that i used to buy a new bike i am sure it will work for you as well as long as you do these checks before hand you can buy any bike on the internet a used bike or from any retailer shop.

If you are still having trouble let me know how can i help.

Also let me know if you used this methode or not what were the results did this article helped you?