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Bought a 2017 Trek Marlin 5

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Bought a 2017 Trek Marlin 5

Old 07-24-19, 10:34 PM
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RH Clark
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Bought a 2017 Trek Marlin 5

I've been bit by the bike bug pretty bad guys. I'm a 51 year old who has lost 145 lbs in a year and has a new life started. I bought a Trek 820 Singletrek a couple months ago and have put a bunch of miles on it. I have since learned it was too small. I'm 6'1 and it's a 17" and old with a steel frame. I love it except that I had to put on a 5" riser to get my handle bars even with my seat. I've rode the snot out of it though, and loved every second.

Anyway
I just paid too much for a 2017 Trek Marlin 5. I'm going to get it tomorrow and if it is as well taken care of and ridden as little as appears it's coming home with me. It is a 19.5 frame with 29" wheels. I've ridden a Marlin in this size but didn't like it because it was a lesser model without the locking suspension. I don't do much rough stuff but love to fly down the dirt roads here where I live.

I can do 3 miles right out of my yard before touching pavement. Then just about 3 miles on a county road puts me on dirt log roads that go into the next county. I could do 25 miles on rutted out dirt roads that only get local 4 wheeler traffic and there's many miles of skid trails all over those hills. Plenty of excitement for me and nobody around.

Thanks to everyone who has suffered my newby questions and I'll post you guys some great pictures soon.
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Old 07-25-19, 06:28 AM
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Originally Posted by RH Clark
I can do 3 miles right out of my yard before touching pavement. Then just about 3 miles on a county road puts me on dirt log roads that go into the next county. I could do 25 miles on rutted out dirt roads that only get local 4 wheeler traffic and there's many miles of skid trails all over those hills. Plenty of excitement for me and nobody around.
I enjoy that kind of riding. Plenty of dirt roads where I live too. I can almost go from my door if I'm willing to slog up the stonkingly steep paved street that leads into the snowmobile system. More often I drive out of town to a parking area. The Marlin is a nice bike, btw.
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Old 07-25-19, 06:59 AM
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Thanks for the confidence boost on the bike. I do think it will be a huge upgrade for me. I have put over 100 miles on this old 820 and it seems pretty great except my toe sometimes touches the front tire in a hard turn. I just didn't know enough to know how it fit when I bought it.

Doing review research it seems like a lot of posters will trash a bike if it doesn't have the very best shock, rims, tires or whatever. I heard some say that they had about destroyed their Marlin 5's in a short time. The way I look at it is that I won't be trying to fly on this bike so won't have to worry about the landing gear so much. It should last me forever.

I think it will be a real blessing for me. I actually bought it lower than the blue book says and it was the only decent bike I have found at my price range in a month of obsessively reviewing facebook marketplace. I would love to have something in the $2000 range but I honestly just don't think it's necessary for my style of riding.
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Old 07-25-19, 08:11 AM
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Congrats, enjoy the bike
It's only a terrible bike if you abandon it in the garage
Buying a 2k bike now won't make you a better rider, keep up with the weight control and post pics when you get out
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Old 07-25-19, 08:22 AM
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Originally Posted by RH Clark
Doing review research it seems like a lot of posters will trash a bike if it doesn't have the very best shock, rims, tires or whatever.
Sometimes we fall prey to a bit of bike snobbery. We don't really mean to though, and we are all very nice people in real life.

Our local trail association owns a half-dozen Marlins that we use as loaner bikes in some of our kids and family programs. They are good bikes, and one can always have fun upgrading the parts.

Props on the weight loss. That's an area I struggle with, and frankly am often discouraged about.
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Old 07-25-19, 11:33 AM
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The bikes at that level don't have any damping in the fork. That's the first big differentiator between price-conscious and performance-conscious. But it can still take a big hit or land a wheelie, and Suntour forks can be easily improved with cartridges and they have an upgrade program if you want to try nicer. Bikes at the Marlin's level have other advantages. They are way more useful as do-anything bikes that you can turn into a family bike or commuter or tug, they have a very wide gear range and lots of accessory mounts for racks and fenders.
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