terribad16

Yea I decided to go looking at the bike shops in town. I didn't have alot of time to look around, but I didn't see any of the companies yall mentioned. I saw alot of TREK though... Is that a pretty good company?

ramin

Check out this site for reviews on mountain bikes.

http://www.mtbr.com/

rdubb1031

so here's my advice as I was in your same shoes a couple years back. My friend and I decided to buy bikes at the same time, so I’ll include both our experiences. Based on some research I did on Mountain Bikes (MB) you hit a couple of thresholds in terms of components at $400 and again at $800. Try to look past how the bike looks and research the components. Shimano makes different tiers and the higher up you go the better off you’ll be in the long run. I was going to buy in the $500, but went to the $800 and I am thankful every time I ride. Components are killer and even got disc brakes. Try to get the $800 if you want the bike to take some good abuse and last. Also it’s all about fit, test ride every bike at least twice. You’re a$$ will thank you later. My friend bought REI, I bought local shop. Since then, I’ve taken mine in every year for its annual tune up, for Free! My buddy pays $50 each time. Next he’s had his in 3 times for the chain slipping and it’s still not right. I’ve had mine in one time and that was because I trashed it bombing down a hill and broke my chain. $30 and brand new (they adjusted all my cables too.) I like these brands; Trek, Kona, Gary Fisher. Kona is what I went with, the wife has Trek. Almost bought GF originally but Kona fit better. I have a hardtail (shocks in front only) and its fine, but that’s because the fit was so good. Trust me, MB and bad fit = sore a$$ after a long day.

Local shop all the way, and compare. Some will offer a free tune up, others will offer tunes ups for the life of the bike and other shop discounts. REI is horrible. Avoid if possible IMHO.

Next, on to racks. I bought the Thule spare me. Loved it.. till now. I want bigger tires and it doesn’t fit! Not sure what I’m going to do when my lift goes on this month w/ 35s. there are a ton of threads, but not a great solution. If you can go hitch it’s a good idea. My buddy and I are going to try cutting and welding (modifying) the rack. This may work, may not.. I’ll post when I do it. also, from what I’ve read the strain on the tailgate (w/ a bigger tire) is very questionable. Plan for the future, possibly roof, if not hitch, or just get 35s a nice bumper/tire carrier and custom up yourself a rack..

Hope this helps, PM me if you want more info..

74CJ5

Support your local shop and the service you get will be amazing. They can tell you about good local trails as well. Spend as much as you can. You will get a much better bike that lasts longer than 3 cheap ones will. I'm really into to riding though and go every chance I get. Even went out to Moab a couple of years ago. Best trip ever.

Check out Giant, Specialized and Jamis as well.

ItzaJeepThang

so I too loved my mopar spare tire rack. was a bit of a pain when full suspension bikes got rid of the top tube, but an adapter fixed that. however, i sold it with my 98 wrangler.

now it's time to get a new one to go with the 10 Rubi I was thinking hitch mounted - but the thule spare me looks pretty good...


rdubb1031 - did you get your bigger tires? gonna sell your spare me?

rdubb1031

I just got my lift last week and will be putting it on next weekend. Once that goes on I will see what options I have. My buddy is a welder and we were thinking of modifying it, but that just adds more weight to my tailgate. So I really have to weigh my options. You interested in buying it?

Sent from my T-Mobile G1 using Tapatalk

Bone206

I spent an embarrassingly obsessive amount of time trying to find a bike rack for my JK. I'm a mountain bike guy, and don't ride road bikes so I didn't care if my rack could carry road bikes. If you want a mountain bike rack, get a North Shore Rack (from North Shore Racks in Vancouver). I have had mine all season now and LOVE IT. it will easily fit 4 50 lb downhill bikes and it is rock solid, even on rough fire roads I use for shuttling. It is WELL worth every penny you will spend on it. The only downside of the rack is that it can't take bikes without front suspension, and it can't take kids bikes. Other than that, it will take everything you can throw at it with ease. Loading is very quick and easy, and the rack doesn't sway at all. It easily clears any size aftermarket spare tire (would have no problem with a 40") It also folds down all of the way with all of the bikes on it so you can open the barn door gate.

If you need a rack that will carry road and kids bikes, my buddy has a Saris T-Rax pro 4 bike and it can do that. It clears the stock Rubi spare (barely), and folds down too. It can adapt to any frame geometry if you get a crossbar adaptor. It is a nice rack too, but I'm heavily biased towards the NorthShore. The Northshore also holds the bikes far enough apart so they don't scratch; it can be tough to squeeze 4 bikes on a rack with a style similar to the Saris.

My vote is for the Northshore. here are a few pics. the bikes easily fit on with the hard top on too. One of the nice thing of the NorthShore rack is how modular it is. . .you can adjust it so it is as close or far away from the back window of a hardtop as you want.

JKChandler

Sick! I have not seen a rack like that before. Does it just attach to the head tube?? I rock a Santa Cruz Hekler specd out for more downhill riding and the DHX air gets it the way big time for a lot of the Thule/Yakma Racks. Been looking at tray racks, but Im digging this one.

mharper

I have a Thule T2 and it is great. It fits without a extender and can be used for all kinds of bikes. It DOES NOT fold up due to the design hitting the spare tire.

Its too bad that the north shore rack doesn't fit road bikes, cause it looks like the best design. The T2 is a close 2nd, bottom holder.

Due to the price and material of my bike (2010 Tarmac SL3) I did not want a rack that holds by the top tube. Too much movement and scratching for me...

Flat Foot

I'm a fan of Specialized Bikes. I've had my FSR Stumpy for a while now and love it, great trail bike. You need to look at your local shops and ride as many bikes as possible - I've always been a believer of "you'll know the right one when you find it."

As far as a bike rack... Do you have the tow package or a receiver hitch? If so look at Saris. They are a bit pricy but make a great product. I have the "cycle on" and I've heard the "thelma" is nice. The cycle on holds two bikes, but you can buy an extension that holds another two and boy, that thing is stout as all get out. I had it extended with bikes on and got rear ended - no damage to the rack or bikes.