Pakana82

This would be my first post, so I will give a little introduction as well as my intentions with riding. I am from Southern California, and have rode bikes (mostly 20" BMX) since I was a kid, just for fun. I've ran a few events, like the 4130 BMX Subway series through downtown LA. That was until I ate asphalt in 2014, lost teeth an all. Fast forward to today, I am now living Southern Oregon (GP). We have a lot of trails, and some bike only trails. I would like to eventually hit these, but I need to drop some weight. For now I want to commute to and from work (about 6 miles one way). I am heavy, very heavy actually. 6'4" and 335 LBS. I'm interested in a Hardtail 27.5" or 29." Looking for something under $1,500.00 if possible. I was thinking of buying something closer to the $1,000 and just upgrading or rather reinforcing it to accommodate my weight. I have some concerns, as to what would likely break first. Would I need to run a stiffer fork, bullet proof bottom brackets, and wider tires, etc? Other suggestions are welcome.

Bike's I've looked at are the Specialized Fuse 27.5 and the Marin San Quentin 27.5 3.

Thank you for reading my post, and look forward to hearing what others think.

veganbikes

I know you are looking towards the lower end of bikes but I would recommend looking at stuff from Lennard Zinn. For instance he offers this bike: https://zinncycles.com/product/khs-b...mountain-bike/ which has some decent components on it designed around taller and bigger riders. He also has a full suspension bike under his own brand: https://zinncycles.com/product/b-i-g...mountain-bike/ as well as loads of great custom stuff.

I think as well going for a bike like say a Fuse will lead you with something maybe a little smaller than you want. Plus the lower end components lead to a bike that will not be very durable and if I am going to be replacing a bunch of parts I might as well look at a good frame and build up from there and if I am doing that I would want a much more stout frame built for a bigger and taller rider which leads me back to someone like Zinn who understands those needs more as a taller rider and super knowledgeable person around bikes.

If I take an already built bike about all that would remain would be headset, derailleur, shifter, crank and maybe bar and stem and while those are important bits I would be pretty much replacing everything else and trying to sell all the other stuff won't net much money as it will be a lot of cheaper OEM parts that are OK but nothing worth much. I would rather build from the ground up with the right components to do what you need to do which is more expensive but leads you to your bike built for you. All of my bikes save for a couple which couldn't be built from the frame up have been built from the frame up with the components I wanted. Not being quite as big and tall as you but have a more ample figure and also being a bit of a bike nerd there are parts I really like or know will work well for me that most manufacturers wouldn't spec or would find cheaper or different solutions for.

Wileyrat

You might be better off asking this in the Clydesdales and Athena’s forum.

2old

The suggestion above is where I would begin. There are beefy hardtails manufactured and if they have decently wide tires (2.6"or so) should suffice for you as you trim down especially since you'll be using the bike on the street and smooth trails initially. This is a great time to purchase a bike with the dealers overstocked. I would look to a major OEM (Trek, Giant or Specialized) that is in your area.

biker128pedal

Salsa rates their bikes up in you weight. Look at the Rangefinder in XL. I’m your price point too.

https://www.salsacycles.com/bikes/mountain/Rangefinder

Look on the Salsa site for a local bike shop. REI also carries the but you have to see if they have one to test ride.

veganbikes

I love my Salsa Timberjack Ti but don't see a weight limit on their site other than their use common sense. Very vague and certainly would recommend going for a frameset in that case and make sure to have the right wheels and fork that can better support the weight but also reaching out to Salsa and confirming things before going forward.

biker128pedal

I contacted Salsa a few years ago. Let me look up the email. ASTM Condition 2 for Warroad rated for 300 lb rider and 55 lbs of luggage.

Then put on my Google FU and found on REI for Rangerfinder under the questions. I thin the 5 should be 50 or 55.

A: The maximum weight capacity for this bike is 305 pounds (300 pounds for the rider + 5 pounds of luggage).
REI service
8 months ago

Rangefinder is Condition 3.
https://www.salsacycles.com/assets/1...heet_ASTM3.pdf

Found this for Timberjack. But links are dead.
https://www.mtbr.com/threads/super-h.../post-14687343

Best to ride it loke you stole it until it breaks.

This as the ratings.
https://www.salsacycles.com/assets/2...ASTM_Chart.pdf

You'd have to contact Salsa for the current bike rating.
Best to ride it like you stole it or until it breaks.

Kai Winters

IMO
Buy a used bike that fits and is relatively inexpensive. Ride it until the wheels fall off and you lose a lot of weight. Treat yourself to a nice bike to go with your svelte form.
Or buy a used bike as above, Realize you don't really care to ride that much and you aren't losing the weight you hoped to lose. At least you're not out a lot of money and have something to ride when the mood strikes.
It is likely any bike made for your weight is going to cost a lot of money and will probably not work out in the long run as it is the wheels that take to most beating as they move far more than a frame does.
Good luck.

veganbikes

I would caution on the REI numbers. I have seen some that are not correct in the past for various items. If the OEM doesn't list it I would be wary of non-tested numbers. 300lbs is going to be a bit too low for the OP currently not far off but would be cautious for a commuter. If just for casual riding not a big deal but a failure while commuting could be quite bad depending on where the OP lives and is commuting too and their current job.