# Best Hardtail Under $2000



## Hoynoski38 (May 19, 2014)

i have been researching and i need to find a new bike, my limit is $2000 and i need something that is agile plus lighter, and have good components. (fork) Thanks!


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## Emeritus (Apr 7, 2014)

There is no best bike. Just get the one that fits you the best and makes you the most motivated to ride it. Past that, it depends on a lot of factors, like the type of terrain you are riding, whether you want to support your LBS by buying from them (thus limited to brands they carry), and your definition of agile. A lot of the hardtails that push $2k are 29ers, which IMO tend to not be in the "agile" category.

Going mainly with the larger brands, you'd probably enjoy any of these:
Cannondale Trail SL1
Trek Stache 7
Specialized Stumpjumper Comp HT
Giant XTC 27.5 2
Santa Cruz Highball R XC


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## Kona0197 (Oct 19, 2004)

You could get something like this. 30 speed. XTR drivetrain. Rock Shox Reba fork w/ remote lockout.

Shimano XTR DynaSys, Mountain Bikes - MTB - Motobecane Fantom Team 2011


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## HitmenOnlyInc (Jul 20, 2012)

I think for the money ($1599) this bike is spec'd awesome!!

Airborne Bicycles. Goblin Evolution


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## Learux (Jun 4, 2012)

Look for a GT Zaskar, really fun ride, I think for $2000 you can pick up a carbon one with SLX.

OK here you go, that will be a great ride.

GT Bikes Zaskar Carbon 9R Expert 2013 > Complete Bikes > Mountain Bikes | Jenson USA Online Bike Shop


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## bigfruits (Mar 21, 2011)

a steel frame, slx parts and a decent fork (revelation?) should be around that price range if you shop around. get the best wheelset you can...


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## Learux (Jun 4, 2012)

He wants something that is agile and lighter. I don't think a steel frame is the answer.


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## dbhammercycle (Nov 15, 2011)

Learux said:


> He wants something that is agile and lighter. I don't think a steel frame is the answer.


a high quality steel frame is always the answer...


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## bigfruits (Mar 21, 2011)

Learux said:


> Look for a GT Zaskar, really fun ride, I think for $2000 you can pick up a carbon one with SLX.
> 
> OK here you go, that will be a great ride.
> 
> GT Bikes Zaskar Carbon 9R Expert 2013 > Complete Bikes > Mountain Bikes | Jenson USA Online Bike Shop


He wants something that is agile and lighter. I don't think a 29" is the answer.


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## moefosho (Apr 30, 2013)

What are you riding now?
Is this going to be your "do it all" bike?

Personally if I was going to buy a do it all hardtail, I would go with something that has a longer travel, slack head tube angle, 650b, and good spec where its needed.
Whyte 905
Marin Rocky Ridge
Commencal Meta
Saracen Zen
Canfield Yelli Screamy


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## igno-mtb (Jul 18, 2014)

What did you get?
I am deciding between a Trek Superfly 7/8, Niner Air 9 (alloy) 2 star SLX build or a Specialized Stumpjumper. What do you think?


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## pdxmark (Aug 7, 2013)

There is your ride style that correlates to a bikes ride style geometry design. Figure out what style you ride and go toward that geometry. As far as bikes of a particular ride style, it's all about how you feel in the cockpit while in action; maybe you like a tight cockpit, maybe you don't. There are lots of things to consider. Like, do you mix DH into your AM/XC rides? If so, get a slack HT frame around 68 degrees with a 72 degree ST, capable of running a 140mm travel fork.


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## 411898 (Nov 5, 2008)

Specialized Bicycle Components

Specialized Bicycle Components


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## N518LF (Aug 19, 2014)

I second the airborne.


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## scottzg (Sep 27, 2006)

Hawg said:


> Specialized Bicycle Components
> 
> Specialized Bicycle Components


Okay... so you like specialized. Why those ones?


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## 411898 (Nov 5, 2008)

scottzg said:


> Okay... so you like specialized. Why those ones?


I don't necessarily prefer Spesh, I am just familiar with them more than any other brand. Those two models max out the budget, that's why I suggested them. Oh, and they are darn good bikes. I ride a Pivot these days. I've had several Spesh bikes and never had a complaint about any of them. I do also like that agro Airborne bike that was suggested here.


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## aerius (Nov 20, 2010)

igno-mtb said:


> I am deciding between a Trek Superfly 7/8, Niner Air 9 (alloy) 2 star SLX build or a Specialized Stumpjumper. What do you think?


Get a Rocky Mountain Vertex 950 instead. It's a better overall parts spec, but most importantly it has a Manitou Marvel Pro which is a much better fork than the RS Rebas and Recons found on the other bikes.

Vertex | Rocky Mountain Bicycles


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## 411898 (Nov 5, 2008)

aerius said:


> Get a Rocky Mountain Vertex 950 instead. It's a better overall parts spec, but most importantly it has a Manitou Marvel Pro which is a much better fork than the RS Rebas and Recons found on the other bikes.
> 
> Vertex | Rocky Mountain Bicycles


I LOVE my Reba and I've had no issues with it. It's light and it's solid considering it's weight.

I did not have good luck with a Manitou fork I tried once.


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## rollinrob (Feb 22, 2004)

If you are into 29ers check out the Aluminum Santa Cruz Highball. IT has really short chainstays at 16.93 and a short headtube. Its designed for anything between a 100 and 120mm fork. I have one that I built up with full xt and a Ripley. I ride this just as often or more than the ripley, its faster and and more fun on most of the trails I ride.... Just my 02 cents.


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## igno-mtb (Jul 18, 2014)

Wow, that Rocky Mountain has very nice specs! almost full XT for $2000. I do however, own a Reba and have nothing but good things to say about it so I wouldn't know if the Manitou is a better choice or I'll be wondering about replacing it with a Reba. The only thing (if picky) that would put me off is the very yellow color of the whole ensemble.


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## jcm (Mar 25, 2014)

Get the Airborne Goblin Evo, it's on sale for 1,279.95 right now with free shipping 

Airborne Bicycles. Goblin Evolution


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## aerius (Nov 20, 2010)

Hawg said:


> I LOVE my Reba and I've had no issues with it. It's light and it's solid considering it's weight.
> 
> I did not have good luck with a Manitou fork I tried once.


Do you by any chance remember which Manitou fork you tried, and roughly which model year it was?

My experience has been the other way around, every RS fork except the Pike and Revelation has been solidly outperformed by its Manitou counterpart, and even the Revelation gets edged out. I found the Reba to be pretty average, it was OK for XC riding but it goes to pieces when asked to deal with AM style speeds & abuse. The damper just isn't up to it and packs up & spikes, it just can't keep the wheel tracking nearly as well as the Marvel or Minute Pro can. The Manitous are like the Pike, once they're dialed in they just keep getting better when you push them faster & harder on nastier terrain.


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## Sevenrats (Jan 2, 2014)

Any hard tail for around $2000.


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## eb1888 (Jan 27, 2012)

igno-mtb said:


> I am deciding between a Trek Superfly 7/8, Niner Air 9 (alloy) 2 star SLX build or a Specialized Stumpjumper. What do you think?


I would do what it takes to get a Superfly 9.6 for the frame. Negotiate 15% off, call it a Black Friday deal, and you are right at your limit. You can only do price reductions with a manager. Salespeople are told to say 5% only. You may have to talk to several shops to get one who will work with you to get a deal done. You'll die from the stiffness of a Vertex when compared to a 9.6 SF.


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## 411898 (Nov 5, 2008)

aerius said:


> Do you by any chance remember which Manitou fork you tried, and roughly which model year it was?
> 
> My experience has been the other way around, every RS fork except the Pike and Revelation has been solidly outperformed by its Manitou counterpart, and even the Revelation gets edged out. I found the Reba to be pretty average, it was OK for XC riding but it goes to pieces when asked to deal with AM style speeds & abuse. The damper just isn't up to it and packs up & spikes, it just can't keep the wheel tracking nearly as well as the Marvel or Minute Pro can. The Manitous are like the Pike, once they're dialed in they just keep getting better when you push them faster & harder on nastier terrain.


It was an R7 with a very clunky anti-squat valve that drove me NUTS! Probably a 2010 or 2011 model.


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## aerius (Nov 20, 2010)

Hawg said:


> It was an R7 with a very clunky anti-squat valve that drove me NUTS! Probably a 2010 or 2011 model.


That would explain your experience, you were riding a previous generation Manitou with the SPV system which was not exactly loved, even by Manitou fans, in fact there's a lengthy thread on MTBR on how to disable the stupid sonovabeech thing.

Current Manitou forks use ABS+ which is a completely different damper system, very high performance and fully adjustable for pretty much anything you may run into on the trails. IMO it's one of the best systems on the market, the Charger damper from the RS Pike and the MC2 system on the Manitou Mattoc are the only 2 I know of that can beat it.


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## 411898 (Nov 5, 2008)

aerius said:


> That would explain your experience, you were riding a previous generation Manitou with the SPV system which was not exactly loved, even by Manitou fans, in fact there's a lengthy thread on MTBR on how to disable the stupid sonovabeech thing.
> 
> Current Manitou forks use ABS+ which is a completely different damper system, very high performance and fully adjustable for pretty much anything you may run into on the trails. IMO it's one of the best systems on the market, the Charger damper from the RS Pike and the MC2 system on the Manitou Mattoc are the only 2 I know of that can beat it.


Well I am glad to hear that Manitou now has it's sh!t together.


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## aerius (Nov 20, 2010)

Hawg said:


> Well I am glad to hear that Manitou now has it's sh!t together.


Me too. The SPV era were some dark days for the Manitou faithful. 
Imagine if every short to medium travel fork sucked as much as a Fox Evo series CTD. 
Thank Vishnu those days are over, and Manitou is back to making kick-ass forks.


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## Ducman (Feb 29, 2004)

dbhammercycle said:


> a high quality steel frame is always the answer...


I agree. On a hardtail, a good steel is the way to go. It had a much better feel/ride than AL. I recently picked a Breezer lightning, it has been an awesome hardtail to ride


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## slapheadmofo (Jun 9, 2006)

I likey steel HTs too.
Jamis Dragon is a pretty sweet ride.


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## leeazjr (Feb 7, 2014)

I'm a big fan of the salsa el mariachi, it is a true swiss army bike, and a blast to ride. With a 44mm head tube you have fork options and the adjustable dropout you can shorten your wheelbase or lengthen if you want, lots of clearance for wide tires and a very comfortable steel frame that's built to last. I have several bikes from single speeds, fat bikes, full suspension trail bikes and all mountain hard tails and the salsa is always my number 1 choice, it can handle what you throw at it. Good luck with your choice, lots of fun options out there!


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## CS2 (Jul 24, 2007)

dbhammercycle said:


> a high quality steel frame is always the answer...


I agree, the difference between a good steel frame and AL is maybe a pound tops. The ride is vastly different. I think you will notice it more on a hard tail.


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