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  1. #1
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    Default Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    My Schwin is about ten years old now and needs a bit of work (cables, pedals, chain, derailleur. nothing major, although there is a very slight buckle in the front wheel but not noticeable when riding) so was thinking I might just upgrade so I can benefit from disc brakes and front suspension. Only ever used my Schwin to go into town but am hoping to start using some of the new cycle tracks around my way and hopefully get fitter and lose some weight.

    Quite fancy a Mongoose Sector 29" from Halfords for £300.

    Could refurbish and upgrade mine with discs I suppose and could use the spare cash to get a Shimano rear wheel with in hub gears to avoid the annoying chain crunching you get when you have suddenly had to stop in a higher gear and you try and move off while changing down. Can do the work myself so no labour costs involved.

    Looking to make an informed decision so has anyone had experience of Mongoose bikes and how reliable this type of front suspension is going to be in years to come? (">

  2. #2
    DF VIP Member tips's Avatar
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    If you decide to go the new route, take a butchers at http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/offers.php?cat=1 always has good deals on past season bikes.

    Personally, if you are going disc brakes, I'd looks towards hydraulic and avoid mechanical (cable), and if you go for something with a good frame, then the other components can be upgraded as/when you want to replace them.

    2 Thanks given to tips

    BigBird (26th May 2014),  Zoots (25th May 2014)  


  3. #3
    DF VIP Member Rhinoz's Avatar
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    Quote Originally Posted by BigBird View Post
    Looking to make an informed decision so has anyone had experience of Mongoose bikes
    I had a mongoose...... Back in 1984. ;-)

    It was a well built bike then, it helped me win a few trophies as well, good welding on the frame if my memory serves me right.

    The only concern I would have is Halfords themselves, I thought they only sold cheap bikes, I'm probably wrong as not bought a brand new bike for a long time.

    Thanks to Rhinoz

    BigBird (26th May 2014)  


  4. #4
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    Or you could get a pretty tidy 2-3 year old 2nd hand bike for that sort of money. I just recently got a giant xtc 3.5 for £225 has lock out front forks, hydraulic disc breaks & was in pretty much mint condition. My dad got a specialised rockhopper for about £300 too

    Thanks to RSV

    BigBird (26th May 2014)  


  5. #5
    DF VIP Member Larrylakes's Avatar
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    I would say you'd be better just getting a new bike compared to the cost of upgrading your old one. The Halfords Carerra bikes normally get a good review and are pretty well specced as they are competing against the big brand names so pound for pound there good value. I had one for years with no issues. The other thing is that Evans cycles do a price match, at least they did when I got mine. And I paid £400 for a £600 Scott that I'd seen on the Internet.

    Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk

    Thanks to Larrylakes

    BigBird (26th May 2014)  


  6. #6
    DF VIP Member funkyg's Avatar
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    If I had to get a bike from Halfords I'd rather go for one of the Boardmans.
    Ooh, ooh, ooh, the funky gibbon.

    Thanks to funkyg

    BigBird (26th May 2014)  


  7. #7
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    mate has a boardman mtb and its pretty good sure they have recently dropped price on them also

    have a look at http://www.damianharriscycles.co.uk/ they always seem have some cracking deals also

    Thanks to Mobileman

    BigBird (26th May 2014)  


  8. #8
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    Been following everyone's advice and having a look around. Looked on a few second hand bike sites but nothing local enough that takes my fancy at the moment.

    I am considering this Carrera as an alternative to the Mongoose I originally was going for. Can't really justify the price of the Boardman bikes for the amount of use it will get. The Mongoose and the Carrera are the same price but the Mongoose has 29" wheels compared to the Carrera's 26" wheels. Would like hydraulic discs but will work out cheaper to upgrade later. I assume the mounting lugs are the same?

    So at the moment it's down to whether its worth having the 29" wheels (not much I suppose as it will mainly be used on tarmac cycle paths) and how each bike feels when sitting on it in the shop. The Carrera has very good reviews but none so far on any of the the Mongoose models. Having said that the Mongoose brand only debuted in Halfords in April of this year. As far as I can tell the quality of both brands is pretty even. (">

  9. #9
    DF VIP Member BertRoot's Avatar
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    I would go for a mongoose over a carrera every day of the week. Disc brakes have two different mounts post and IS. Of the two post are easier to set up and you can get IS to post adapters but post to IS are bonkers. As far as cable discs being shit they generally are till you get to Avid BB7 which are highly rated. Other thing with hydros is check the ease of bleed out. Avids generally come needing bleeding and in my experience are shit. I have used shimano avid and Hope and the winners are always Hope but could cost you the price of a cheap bike.

    Thanks to BertRoot

    BigBird (27th May 2014)  


  10. #10
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    I called down to Halford's today and after taking some in store advice I went for a hybrid as the main use will be on tarmac cycle tracks with the odd bit of flat dirt track. So put a deposit of £10 on a Carrera Crossfire 3. Was £100 more than I intended to spend at £400 but it has lock off front suspension as well which will be useful for tarmac ans smooth tracks.

    On the way home I made the mistake of calling off at a small independent bike shop, just out of curiosity. Big mistake because I took a keen fancy to a Whyte C7 Malvern which is also a hybrid and has the added bonus of hydraulic disks. £669 though. I know if I go for the Carrera I will always be wishing I had gone for the Whyte so may never be 100% happy with the Carrera if that makes sense. That's a bit much to spend on a bike though. May push me to use it more to get my moneys worth so will get fitter I suppose.

    Going to have to think about this for a couple of days. (">

  11. #11
    DF Rookie shawry's Avatar
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    Not sure if you work, or if you have far to travel if you do, but the cycle to work scheme can get you a lot of bike for your pound

    Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

    Thanks to shawry

    BigBird (30th May 2014)  


  12. #12
    DF VIP Member BertRoot's Avatar
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    Lock out is something I have never understood. Why have suspension of you lock it out on Tarmac? My daily ride has 150mm of travel up front and 140mm at the back. I never lock it out even on Tarmac cos I can hit whatever pothole is in front of me and the bike isn't phased. Thought the Whyte would have floated your boat with it being welsh as well. Probably shouldn't listen to me though as my rear shock was my last purchase and cost me 475 though...

    Thanks to BertRoot

    BigBird (30th May 2014)  


  13. #13
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    Reason I lock my forks out on tarmac is for when I'm up on the pedals going up a steep hill, stops wasting energy in bouncing the forks up and down IMO.

    Thanks to RSV

    BigBird (30th May 2014)  


  14. #14
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    Quote Originally Posted by BertRoot View Post
    Lock out is something I have never understood. Why have suspension of you lock it out on Tarmac? My daily ride has 150mm of travel up front and 140mm at the back. I never lock it out even on Tarmac cos I can hit whatever pothole is in front of me and the bike isn't phased. Thought the Whyte would have floated your boat with it being welsh as well. Probably shouldn't listen to me though as my rear shock was my last purchase and cost me 475 though...
    Cancelled the Carrera Crossfire from Halfords. If I order a different bike from them I can still use my £10 deposit but not bothered if I lose it. Another option is to buy the parts and build my own so I can have all the features I want without compromise. I'm guessing it will probably work out more expensive though.

    Why do you say that Whyte is a Welsh brand? The company address is East Sussex. (">

  15. #15
    DF VIP Member BertRoot's Avatar
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    Really? Thought Whyte were welsh. You live and learn I guess.


  16. #16
    DF VIP Member tips's Avatar
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    Default Re: Refurbish my old bike or upgrade to new? Are Mongoose bikes any good?

    Quote Originally Posted by BertRoot View Post
    Lock out is something I have never understood. Why have suspension of you lock it out on Tarmac? My daily ride has 150mm of travel up front and 140mm at the back. I never lock it out even on Tarmac cos I can hit whatever pothole is in front of me and the bike isn't phased. Thought the Whyte would have floated your boat with it being welsh as well. Probably shouldn't listen to me though as my rear shock was my last purchase and cost me 475 though...
    Surprises me that Bert, don't you lock out on non techy climbs for an easier climb? I have 170mm Lyrics on the front and I'm constantly locking them on climbs to conserve a bit of energy (lock the rear out as well on most climbs).
    Last edited by tips; 30th May 2014 at 08:50 PM.

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