theTman

i am currently looking to get a new bike in the 300-400$ range. I've been getting a feeling that specialized is best, and i don't hear much of giant. The bike shop carrying specialized has a lifetime warranty on defects, one free tune up, and 2 years of free adjustments. In the other bike shop prefered by my dad, giant is the best mountain bike maker there. That shop has a 5 years of free repairs if something breaks, and free spring tune ups i think for life. My question is which deal is better, and if the second shop has the better deal, is it worth getting a giant over a specialized? My dad swears by giant because that is the brand of road bike he bought over 10 years ago, and claims it was said to be a really good brand. By the time i get this bike i will be 18, so i am not so worried about my dads opinion. Some insight would be appreciated.

I<3Spraypaint

I would say giant for you. THats if your a begginner cause it seems like a better deal for the tuneups for life and the maintence plan seems better .i mean it all depends on you and your riding style. Can you specifiy which bike your looking at that might help us on the advice we give you

santiago

Giant is the largest bike manufacturer in the world and sells quality product. If the bike fits well, the Giant LBS sounds like they offer good customer service.

theTman

i can't specify what giant bike i might get, but for specialized it would be the 2007 hardrock XC. one other thing is that the store selling giant is a lone store, where the other store is a series of chains across minnesota and wisconson, and i am going to be moving out in a year or so hopefully. so what brand would be better generally if the service didn't matter? Is giant up to snuff with specialized when it comes to mountain bikes? Oh, and this bike will be possibly doing 20 mile round trip commuting through the countryside, and maybe some easy cross country or single track. lighter is always better, as long as it doesnt horribly impact strength. I can handle a bike slightly on the heavy side because i currently ride a magna exitor dual suspension bike that is excesively overweight and can still hit 25mph, and i'm just starting training. i need a mountian bike because in winter i need fatter tires, and use studded tires, and also road bikes hurt me.

theTman

i just weighed my bike, it's 41 LBS!!!! and thats without my accessories.

Svr

Giant has been building frames for Specialized for the past 20 years or so. They're not only up to snuff, but probably superior.

theTman

here is a link to the current model of the bike i bought in 2001
https://www.magnabikes.com/models.php?model=excitor
think of that bike but not as pretty. the weight is good for building strength though lol.

JonathanGennick 

IMHO, both brands are good. I personally prefer the fit of Specialized bikes. They size their mountain-bike frames in odd numbers (15-inch, 17-inch, etc), and for some reason I have better luck with companies that size in odd numbers. (Fisher is another brand that I get on well with, for that reason). But I also have two Giant bikes in the house, that I bought at various times for my kids. Both brands are excellent.

Try some out of each brand. Decide which models feel "right" on you. Buy the one you like the best. Honestly, the only way to go wrong is to let someone else decide for you.

theTman

i know in the end it comes down to what i like the feel of, and then i will decide which store and brand to go for.

lofnsjoke

if your dead set on a specialized dont get the HRXC, spend the extra $40 or so and get the hardrock. the double wall rims are worth the little extra cash.

Ricardo

Dude, get a specialized if you are willing to pay for the marketing hype. Giant is the largest bike manufacturer in the world and they do offer serious bang for the buck.

RR

theTman

i looked at the giant website, and i think i will go for a yukon, rincon, or boulder se. it all depends on what i can afford. i'm glad i looked into giant, because i just about gave into all the hype and advertising for specialized and thought tht it was better because it made me think it was better known. then again, if i wanted a well known bike brand i would go to a big box retailer like walmart and buy a piece of crap. come to think of it, my sister bought a giant mountain bike from the same store i'm looking at buying from. with it getting a tune up every spring it is in great shape.

sk0tt

I bought a Giant Thermo 1 and the dropouts were out of alignment, Giant wont help, so I wouldn't base your decision on the warranty.

Scott.

theTman

the warranty and service is through the bike shop, not the manufacture, and it doesn't cost extra.

DirtPedalerB

I bet if you asked this question 1 or 2 years ago the answers would be different. Why has the forum fell out of love with specialized??? Well besides the lame brain and future shock, and the butt ugly downtubes on the full suspensions.

santiago

Specialized sucks.

DirtPedalerB

rockabilly808

my vote goes to specialized, to hell witht he rest of the forum, I think their bikes look great.

santiago

Having to explain jokes sucks.

mohawkfohawk

id say go for specialized there a really good brand for doing some hard trails with.

mohawkfohawk

ya you should go with a specialized

theTman

I get the feeling that people are not actually reading the thread now, and just posting due to bias. I have decided to go with giant already because they are good quality, i get a great deal on service at the LBS i would get one at, and giant makes specialized's frames for them anyway.

mohawkfohawk

really i never knew that well good choise

w8up4me

last yr I had the same decision to make between specialized & giant at the same price range. I chose the Giant after riding both, I prefered the shifter locations, and it also came with better derailurs. Also most of my riding is and was gonna be commuting and the Giant was higher @ the front, so that would be easier on my back... jus my 2 cents

mohawkfohawk

cool cool