Originally Posted by
habes78023
Mountain bikes are expensive, but there's also a lot of trails these days that older mountain bikes probably don't belong on.
That didn't stop (sometimes literally...) the original Klunkers. I'm not sure "don't belong" was in their vocabulary.
I think many on here would pause at the idea that you wouldn't be able to get the rockhopper back on the trails but rather get the stumpjumper and not have the same situation in a year or less time. Doing offroading is going to require maintenance and things will break and wear out, just like any hobby. So there's going to be cost no matter what, and if you replace a bike every time one gets a little worn, you're gonna cost yourself more in the long run.
350 dollars buys a decent amount of replacement parts and labor. I'd be very surprised if it cost more than that to get the Rockhopper feeling like new, barring any major damage to the frame or wheels.
+1; seems like I'm not the only one mystified by the brake work on the OP's 'Hopper making them worse. How hard can it be, provided the wheels are true, to dial in a decent quality set of V-brakes with fresh pads properly?