WaltH

What hard-tail is regarded as the "best" all around mountain bike? I'm a roadie and looking to try the other side of the coin. I hear people speaking highly of Kona. Want to keep it under 2 grand.

Cdude

best all around hardtail is any frame with reynolds 853 steel. A jamis dragon will serve you fine. For under 2 grand you can get a hella ht. I dunno about those upper end hardtails though.

But Jamis dragon, look at it.

WoodyUpstate

Two grand buys you a great f/s bike. Check out a Giant NRS 1, Trek Fuel, Specialized FSR. Take your pick, you'll be happy with any of them.

Or. . .

$1,000 buys a raceable HT and another $1,000 buys a nice f/s bike with an upgrade-worthy frame.

RacerX

Steelman
Kelly
Litespeed Pisgah
...not sure if they are in your price range. 2K for the frame or full bike?

WaltH

I'm saying $2000.00 for the whole bike.

Thanks for all the responses so far.

RacerX

Kelly has some good bikes. They also have a 29" hardtail. I think they are under $2K for a full bike.

Maelstrom 

Well I love kona. I find they are the best all round mountain bikes in productions (at least for the stuff here in whistler). For 2000$ american you can buy just about anything they make in HT. For a totally different feel then a road bike go with the out of bound series. PErfect for freeriding and aggro xc (lots of obstacles). If you go for the Roast I believe the bike will cost you 1200 american. Upgrade the forks and rear rim to something more suitable for real out of bounds riding and you have one of the best all round hardtails on the market.

Coming from a road background I will give a warning. This series is slackened. Meaning you sit down and the handlebars will seem very high. They are like this to save any private area damage when doing a downhill sections, small or big drops and just plain having fun. It might take some getting used to but almost anyone I know who rides mountain bikes falls in love with the geometry once they try it. (Lazy man commuter bikes have a similar geometry)

If you want a pure xc bike probably listen to someone else. This bike will be a do anything go anywhere bike. Not just a road bike with bumpy wheels.

Oh, Don't get a dually. If you really want to experience the mountain biking and build you trail skills up the best place to start is a ht.

riderx

Agreed. Don't buy your skills, earn them.

Rich

I'd have to say that the Trek 9800 is probably the best HT for about $2000. Nice superlight carbon frameset, and XT groupset. Also worth looking at are the Specialized Stumpjumper series.

Let us know how you get on.

Rich

a2psyklnut

For $2000 there are soooo many good / great hardtails. The price point for what I consider "Race Level" stuff is around $1,500, so for another $500 you'll be set.

Gary Fisher, Trek, Specialized, Giant, Cannondale, Kona, .......the list goes on and on.

It really depends on what type of riding you're considering. If just for fun, take Maelstrom's advice and get a freeride hardtail. Something with at least 4" of front suspension travel.

If you're planning on racing, stick with about 3-4" of travel and concentrate on lighterweight. Frames could be any material of choice nowadays, aluminum, carbon, titanium and steel.

For your budget, look for a bike with a high quality frame, a good fork with a lot of external adjustments, and components that are mostly LX/ some XT mix for $1,500 range and more XT/ a little XTR for $2,000. The more XTR, the more $$$$

The biggest question you'll face is to disc or not to disc? If you ride in wet muddy conditions or have a lot of steep descents, you probably want discs. If you don't need them, stick with V-brakes. I will add however, that the technology in the discs is starting to get to the point where it makes sense for many/most riders. They still cost considerable more, but if you plan to upgrade later, bite the bullet and spend a little more money on a complete bike with discs now. It's a costly upgrade later.

If you decide you want discs, stick with Avid Mechanicals, or go to hydraulic discs. Names to look for in hydros: Hayes, Hope, Shimano XT, Magura, .....etc. Most are all good!

Another hot topic is to tube or not to tube. My verdict is still out on tubeless tires, but a lot of people swear by them. I'm going to keep my tubes and let the "bugs" be worked out a little bit more before I invest in this.

Good Luck
L8R