# Is it worth upgrading entry level bike?



## hags707 (Apr 22, 2010)

Hi all, as the title say's is it worth upgradeing a entry level bike? I paid $600 for my entry level bike is it worth upgrading the fork with a $300 plus fork? And upgrading shifters and derailers and brakes?


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## Marko G (Jun 24, 2009)

In the long run no, because you will end up spending a lot more on parts then you would have if you bought a new, nicer one right now. 

But in the short run, it is cheaper to buy new parts and upgrade your bike.

Really depends on how good or crappy the bike is. If all the components are bad, then you will have a LOT of upgrading to do, and itll get really expensive. If the majority of the components are good and just a few things need upgrading, ie brakes, fork, then just upgrade what you want and enjoy your bike. 

So really, whether or not its worth it, is up to you.


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## vaelin (Sep 3, 2009)

Depends on the frame, and what you intend on doing moving forward.

If you bought a really nice frame but with crappy parts, swapping parts as they break for newer stuff (or when you feel the whim) will be fine.


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## captainjoon (Aug 11, 2009)

vaelin said:


> Depends on the frame, and what you intend on doing moving forward.
> 
> If you bought a really nice frame but with crappy parts, swapping parts as they break for newer stuff (or when you feel the whim) will be fine.


+1

Frame quality will justify your move to upgrade.


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## Moodrid (May 6, 2008)

If you told what bike you have you can get a better feedback.:thumbsup:


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## bRyAZSig228 (Jan 25, 2010)

i say upgrade when parts gets messed up.


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## hags707 (Apr 22, 2010)

Well I have a 2010 rocky mountian edge if that helps, the only things that I want to upgrade befor it mess's up is the brakes thinking bb7's, and fork all off ebay for as cheap as possible.


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## Stu In Tokyo (Mar 12, 2010)

vaelin said:


> Depends on the frame, and what you intend on doing moving forward.
> 
> If you bought a really nice frame but with crappy parts, swapping parts as they break for newer stuff (or when you feel the whim) will be fine.


That is what I did with my Cannodale, way back in 1988, as stuff broke, or wore out, I replace them with better parts. Now, 22 years later, I just did a major restoration on my old Cannondale, and I'm still riding it, so it has been a good deal for me.

If your frame is nothing worth talking about, then I'd either sell the bike now, while it is still worth something, and upgrade to a new bike, or ride the pants off of it, until you have a better understanding of what kind of riding you are going to do and what kind of bike you want to upgrade to, then get a new bike.

Cheers!


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## BBW (Feb 25, 2004)

you can get a good fork and brakes but save the old ones so when you decide to sell the bike you swap the components again and sell it in good shape but keeping your fork and brakes for the new frame. Yes it is worth it


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## Moodrid (May 6, 2008)

Thats a nice frame.I started on a 08 Trek 4500.Its not to much better than you have.I was still riding it till two weeks ago,around two and a half years.I upgraded the whole thing.I learned a lot over the time about what I needed or wanted.I jtst bought a new frame and used all the parts on it.The reason was the Treks geometry was not what I liked and I also wanted a bigger frame.I dont regret doing what I did.If my frames geo was like yours and the right size I might be still on my first frame.


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## captainjoon (Aug 11, 2009)

hags707 said:


> Well I have a 2010 rocky mountian edge if that helps, the only things that I want to upgrade befor it mess's up is the brakes thinking bb7's, and fork all off ebay for as cheap as possible.


Definitely upgrade worthy.


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## vaelin (Sep 3, 2009)

hags707 said:


> Well I have a 2010 rocky mountian edge if that helps, the only things that I want to upgrade befor it mess's up is the brakes thinking bb7's, and fork all off ebay for as cheap as possible.


Yep, that's the epitome of my example. Great solid frame, so-so parts. You're good to go with upgrading that as you go.


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## FacePlantinNewB (Mar 13, 2010)

if your in love with the frame ....sure. If not you will end up with a lot more bike by selling it and taking that money plus the money you would spend on parts and buying a better bike. It's always cheaper to buy a whole bike than components


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## dadstoy (Feb 18, 2010)

BBW said:


> you can get a good fork and brakes but save the old ones so when you decide to sell the bike you swap the components again and sell it in good shape but keeping your fork and brakes for the new frame. Yes it is worth it


I just wanna zoom in on your avatar!:crazy:


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## intoflatlines (Mar 31, 2010)

FacePlantinNewB said:


> if your in love with the frame ....sure. If not you will end up with a lot more bike by selling it and taking that money plus the money you would spend on parts and buying a better bike. *It's always cheaper to buy a whole bike than components*


Sorry, I don't necessarily agree here. That's true when comparing a new bike + upgrades with a better new bike, but if you ride until stuff breaks and upgrade that way, you'll end up with better stuff in the long run and won't have to pay the large sum up front. I think this is very important for people who just want to go out and ride, instead of waiting possibly a long time to save up the money and get a better bike in the first place.

OP, I say if you like the frame and everything's working fine, ride it until something breaks or you absolutely know what the weak parts are, and upgrade from there. You'll get a customized ride in the end, which is much nicer than spending more money for a better stock bike, in my opinion. :thumbsup:


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## spag_187 (May 5, 2010)

intoflatlines said:


> Sorry, I don't necessarily agree here. That's true when comparing a new bike + upgrades with a better new bike, but if you ride until stuff breaks and upgrade that way, you'll end up with better stuff in the long run and won't have to pay the large sum up front. I think this is very important for people who just want to go out and ride, instead of waiting possibly a long time to save up the money and get a better bike in the first place.
> 
> OP, I say if you like the frame and everything's working fine, ride it until something breaks or you absolutely know what the weak parts are, and upgrade from there. You'll get a customized ride in the end, which is much nicer than spending more money for a better stock bike, in my opinion. :thumbsup:


I agree....

I wouldn't drop any amount of cash on a Wal-Mart special, but a decent entry level bike... for sure! I needed to start working out asap for health reasons. I really wanted to get into riding, but I couldn't afford to wait and save $1000-1500 for a "high-end" equipped bike. So, I spent around $450 on a decent entry-level bike and I'll begin upgrading components as needed.


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## mwayne5 (Apr 4, 2009)

I was wondering the same thing when i bought my entry level hardtail. I got a specialized p1 all mountain, the first year it came out. The parts weren't anything special but the frame seemed bomb proof. If gone off some pretty high drops and its still in one piece. So far I've upgraded the fork and anything that rotates.


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## captainjoon (Aug 11, 2009)

spag_187 said:


> I agree....
> 
> I wouldn't drop any amount of cash on a Wal-Mart special, but a decent entry level bike... for sure! I needed to start working out asap for health reasons. I really wanted to get into riding, but I couldn't afford to wait and save $1000-1500 for a "high-end" equipped bike. So, I spent around $450 on a decent entry-level bike and I'll begin upgrading components as needed.


Right-on.

And who's to say that the $1500 or so that you drop on a bike will have exactly everything you want on it, right?


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## FacePlantinNewB (Mar 13, 2010)

Maybe I've been somewhat misunderstood..... I realize that upgrading a bike here and there as it breaks or as you can afford to is cheaper UP FRONT than buying a new bike.
BUT.. If you have a 500. bike that your not satisfied with to begin with lets say you spend 350 bux on a fork and 250 bux on drivetrain, 65 on shifters, and 400 on a wheel set, 200 on brakes and on and on.. All of a sudden you've got close to 2k in a that bike.... If you sold the bike and took the money for all the other stuff your buying, imagine the new or slightly used bike that you could have at this point, plus you would be on a more advanced frame..
I had a Rockhopper which is a great entry level bike and I thought about upgrading it with a fork and wheelset. Would've cost me 700 ish to do it, and would have still had other things to upgrade later... I chose not to because I knew I could sell the bike and use that money plus the 700 to buy a bike that already had everything upgraded


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## intoflatlines (Mar 31, 2010)

FacePlantinNewB said:


> Maybe I've been somewhat misunderstood..... I realize that upgrading a bike here and there as it breaks or as you can afford to is cheaper UP FRONT than buying a new bike.
> BUT.. If you have a 500. bike that your not satisfied with to begin with lets say you spend 350 bux on a fork and 250 bux on drivetrain, 65 on shifters, and 400 on a wheel set, 200 on brakes and on and on.. All of a sudden you've got close to 2k in a that bike.... If you sold the bike and took the money for all the other stuff your buying, imagine the new or slightly used bike that you could have at this point, plus you would be on a more advanced frame..
> I had a Rockhopper which is a great entry level bike and I thought about upgrading it with a fork and wheelset. Would've cost me 700 ish to do it, and would have still had other things to upgrade later... I chose not to because I knew I could sell the bike and use that money plus the 700 to buy a bike that already had everything upgraded


I still think it's better to upgrade a solid entry-level frame. Sure if you took the $2000 you could buy a real nice bike, but at the same time if you spent the $2000 on the good frame and upgrades, you could have all the exact components that you want, which isn't likely with a factory bike no matter what the cost is.

I have a 10 year old hardtail with a great frame geometry, that was selling for $450 back in 2000. Recently I put on a new fork ($200). Yesterday I put on $600 worth of new components (full XT drivetrain, new bars/stem/grips) and the bike has many better components than most $1200+ built bikes available new. When I spend $300+ on a new wheelset and brakes it will definitely be up there with some of the best stock hardtails out there, plus it will have every component that I hand picked for my style/needs..

And regarding newer frames.. Let's be honest here.. a 10 year old good solid hardtail frame is going to be pretty much the same as a new solid hardtail frame, although the new one might be a little lighter. :thumbsup:


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## FacePlantinNewB (Mar 13, 2010)

It's definately something to do with preference too... That's why I said if you love the frame you have then sure it's worth upgrading... Personally instead of adding 1500 worth of stuff onto a 450 dollar bike, I would sell that bike for 200 and spend the 1700 on a new hardtail.. Not only is the frame gonna be lightyears better, but the bike manufacture's get much better pricing on components than someone paying retail for them so more than likely on a 1700-2000 bike they will be as nice as the stuff you're buying anyway.. 

Example.. I just got a stumpjumper fsr expert, and you could not come close to building this bike with the components it has for the price of the bike complete.


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## FacePlantinNewB (Mar 13, 2010)

I'm not saying anyones way is right or wrong... Just my opinion


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## intoflatlines (Mar 31, 2010)

FacePlantinNewB said:


> I'm not saying anyones way is right or wrong... Just my opinion


Very true. I can see why some might want to go with a new bike instead. Some of the new frames are very tempting!


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## biggoofy1 (Aug 24, 2009)

I vote yes i bought an entry level hard tail for $600 at the end of last year and have put a good bit into it but i love the frame and the way it felt so i found it to be a good idea to upgrade it as i could afford to and it has turned out to be a really fun bike to ride


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## hags707 (Apr 22, 2010)

Thank you every one for your input, matter resolved


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## intoflatlines (Mar 31, 2010)

So what did you do?


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## hags707 (Apr 22, 2010)

will upgrade fork and brakes soon and the rest when it breaks


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## intoflatlines (Mar 31, 2010)

Good choice! :thumbsup:

Have fun!


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