Recommendations: Wifey needs bike for general use or light trail riding

Looking to find a used or relatively inexpensive bike for my wife. I am not a bike guy, so looking to learn how to go about buying used. What should I look for? What should I watch out for or things to avoid? Brands? Materials in frame? Components? I realize I dont know yet, what I dont know...

Intended to use this for some light trail riding on vacations and then out with the kids around the area and at some parks around MN.

Have been checking FB marketplace and there are just such a wide variety of options I am lost... help?

She is 5'7" and ~130LBS (thinking medium frame would fit)

By light trail riding, do you mean rail-trails, crushed gravel paths, etc or actual single track mountain bike trails?

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Originally Posted by Peruvian

By light trail riding, do you mean rail-trails, crushed gravel paths, etc or actual single track mountain bike trails?

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likely crushed gravel/rail trails. I would see her following our 6 year old as the only way to get to a single track...

In that case any bike with tires about 40mm/1.5” wide will do. Some gearing might be nice. Older mountain bikes will have more aggressive geometry than a townie/commuter/hybrid style so she should ride some to see what she likes.

Pick a price point (sub-$150 on craigslist or FB marketplace should give you lots of options) and check that the bike has minimal rust, shifts and brakes easily, and appears to be generally well kept.

If you have a LBS that you like, I suggest talking with them about your needs. Sometimes they have customers that are freeing up old rigs. More importantly though, you can pay them to do the once over and fit her to it.

For occasional, light use for a wife on mostly graded trails, fit is gonna matter more than pretty much anything else. Have her ride a few bikes to get a feel for what she feels comfortable on.

Thanks all - heading to some bike shops this weekend to see what she likes.

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Wife’s new rig. Should get me out of some trouble….

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Originally Posted by iriponsnow

Attachment 459884

Wife’s new rig. Should get me out of some trouble….

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Damn…. That’s a nice build. I assume you did something you have to make up for?


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Originally Posted by Sandbox

Damn…. That’s a nice build. I assume you did something you have to make up for?

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Yeah no kidding, is OP trying to make up for boning the housekeeper or something?

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Originally Posted by Sandbox

Damn…. That’s a nice build. I assume you did something you have to make up for?


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Just insurance :)

Our daughter is stepping up to her old bike. Couldn't see spending $$ on a kid bike.

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Originally Posted by adrenalated

Yeah no kidding, is OP trying to make up for boning the housekeeper or something?

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No doghouse issues here…
Trying to keep the illusion of an even field to offset my ski quiver expansions.


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Bumping this because i'm in the same boat here, want to get something for the wife for our SE PA trails, but she rides only occasionally so putting any real $$$ into this is foolish. But we have lost of rocks and roots so for comfort reasons would prefer to go FS, (she currently has a really old Cannondale hardtail circa 2005ish). Looking for a size small, likely XC travel range is more than enough, but not looking for a XC race machine at all. Lighter more important than bombproof if given a choice. 1x drivetrain preferable for simplicity as I know she hates dealing with her current 3x8 setup. What should I be looking for in the used market and where, and at what target cost?

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Originally Posted by Duffman

Bumping this because i'm in the same boat here, want to get something for the wife for our SE PA trails, but she rides only occasionally so putting any real $$$ into this is foolish. But we have lost of rocks and roots so for comfort reasons would prefer to go FS, (she currently has a really old Cannondale hardtail circa 2005ish). Looking for a size small, likely XC travel range is more than enough, but not looking for a XC race machine at all. Lighter more important than bombproof if given a choice. 1x drivetrain preferable for simplicity as I know she hates dealing with her current 3x8 setup. What should I be looking for in the used market and where, and at what target cost?

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Something like a ~5 year old specialized camber (shorter travel) or stumpjumper (a bit more travel) would be a good option. They're simple and pretty common, so they're easy to find and fairly cheap. And they came in both 29" and 27.5" versions, so you can decide which wheel size you'd want. For a small person on moderately techy trails, I'd probably go 27.5 - the big wheels can make the bike feel very un-maneuverable for a smaller person. As with most bikes, you can scale the price up or down based on the fanciness of the parts hung on the frame.

Consider Polygon for the wife? I have T8 that’s been perfect for my novice riding. Wife has a hard tail that she barely uses but enjoys when she does. There are even cheaper options. Good prices, direct to consumer.

My issue is that lighter weight is probably better for her than more rough trail capable components and suspension, but dropping weight gets spendy in a hurry. The Polygon T7 and such look pretty heavy for a under 5 5 woman

I keep checking back in this thread, and not one photo of said wife...

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Originally Posted by jbrine

She is 5'7" and ~130LBS (thinking medium frame would fit

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Originally Posted by Duffman

My issue is that lighter weight is probably better for her than more rough trail capable components and suspension, but dropping weight gets spendy in a hurry. The Polygon T7 and such look pretty heavy for a under 5 5 woman

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Valid point. My T8 is around 33-35lb. No idea if their ‘down country’ bikes are lighter. Wife’s hard tails Xtrada 7 is 30lb for what it’s worth.

What about this weird "path" bike from Canyon?

https://www.canyon.com/en-us/hybrid-...te-6/2792.html

Oddball part set...XT derailleur and crank?

Full Shimano 12x group for $599.

If I were in this scenario, I'd consider this bike (and just take the XT parts for myself, give my SLX version to the wife). Goofy fork, but that's fine for a gravel path bike (and its a legit air fork, not some coil pogo stick).

Any thoughts on 29 vs 27.5 wheels for the smaller frame sizes? Looking at the entry level Giants (stance 1) and while the 29 wheel seems more appealing to me since I really don't want another wheel size in the house , would a 5'4 to 5' 5 rider struggle with that size wheel? Looking at the geometry charts , the smaller 29 stances seem to get a little wonky with high stack vs short reach, and a fairly high standover at 730mm. Unfortunately neither the 27.5 or 29 are available locally in a size small to check out.

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Originally Posted by Duffman

Any thoughts on 29 vs 27.5 wheels for the smaller frame sizes? Looking at the entry level Giants (stance 1) and while the 29 wheel seems more appealing to me since I really don't want another wheel size in the house , would a 5'4 to 5' 5 rider struggle with that size wheel? Looking at the geometry charts , the smaller 29 stances seem to get a little wonky with high stack vs short reach, and a fairly high standover at 730mm. Unfortunately neither the 27.5 or 29 are available locally in a size small to check out.

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Just based on my wife's preferences, I think it depends on the rider and the trails she's riding. For techier trails, my wife has always preferred a 27.5 just because it feels more maneuverable and she has an easier time making the bike do what she wants it to. But she's fine with a 29er on another trails where she's mostly just kinda pedaling along. She's 5'7", so I would imagine that would be amplified a bit if she were shorter.

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Originally Posted by Lvovsky

Consider Polygon for the wife? I have T8 that’s been perfect for my novice riding. Wife has a hard tail that she barely uses but enjoys when she does. There are even cheaper options. Good prices, direct to consumer.

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Bumping this since we have been looking at the Polygon T8 and none locally available to try out. What kind of trails have you been riding with this? Want to make sure that it pedals decently since most of our trails while very rooty and rocky , and undulating pedal fests. Not a lot of long sustained uphills then downhills.

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Originally Posted by Duffman

Bumping this since we have been looking at the Polygon T8 and none locally available to try out. What kind of trails have you been riding with this? Want to make sure that it pedals decently since most of our trails while very rooty and rocky , and undulating pedal fests. Not a lot of long sustained uphills then downhills.

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T8 pedals just fine on New Mexican rocks. But I am a noob and have nothing to compare. I’m on the road bike more often than on the T8.

FWIW Polygon is running a sale. T8 is $2000. I paid $2200 in ‘21.

https://www.bikesonline.com/2023-pol...xoCNUkQAvD_BwE

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Originally Posted by Lvovsky

T8 pedals just fine on New Mexican rocks. But I am a noob and have nothing to compare. I’m on the road bike more often than on the T8.

FWIW Polygon is running a sale. T8 is $2000. I paid $2200 in ‘21.

https://www.bikesonline.com/2023-pol...xoCNUkQAvD_BwE

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Yeah, was.excited by that pricing but no smalls in stock. The Marin Roft Zone 2 is a similar.price also now, so considering that also

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Originally Posted by Duffman

Yeah, was.excited by that pricing but no smalls in stock. The Marin Roft Zone 2 is a similar.price also now, so considering that also

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It’s in stock in charcoal color but not in purple.

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Originally Posted by Lvovsky

It’s in stock in charcoal color but not in purple.

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Unfortunately with her color choices , that's not gonna work :)

I picked up a Norco Fluid FS for the wife. Perfect for trail and progressing into slightly technical flow/downhill. She's pretty happy, just need to get her into a camp next year I think.

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Originally Posted by Duffman

Unfortunately with her color choices , that's not gonna work :)

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I understand

with every bike club membership SMBA give out a pair of sockguy bike socks, so Danielle the organizer speced the sock color as the Lavender from the Santa Cruz website which all women love and comment about

so my socks match my Bullit and Lavender is the new Turquoise eh

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Originally Posted by XXX-er

so my socks match my Bullit and Lavender is the new Turquoise eh

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A buddy has a Stigmata in that lavender. He fills his bottles with a matching color mix.

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Originally Posted by Stuntmonkey

I picked up a Norco Fluid FS for the wife. Perfect for trail and progressing into slightly technical flow/downhill. She's pretty happy, just need to get her into a camp next year I think.

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Which build did you get and how heavy is it? Was looking at the Norcos but heard the Fluid frame is particularly heavy as compared to similar type frames. My Ripley AF is no lightweight but I'm curious how heavy a bike can be before it would be challenging for my wife

I went with a Juliana Joplin for my wife for light trail use around here. She takes it to the farmers market and can ride light tech pretty easily, and it climbs/handles well. Plus it comes in pink, which was a requirement.

The ALU version can be found on sale for decent enough prices.

Bumping for advice on end of season deals coming out.

Ripley AF Deore build $2625
vs
Norco Optic C3 $2900
Vs
Kona Process DL $2500

All in a small for a 5'4+ woman , although as usual the Ibis size break points is weird

Vs The Field (Juliana Joplin, Tallboy, Marin Rift Zone, Polygon T8)

The optic is purple which is a bonus and may be a bit lighter The Ripley AF is my bike (but in an XL SLX build) and I love it ,but don't find it particularly plush on our very rocky and root covered local trails, so I wonder if something plusher would be more comfortable for her. Ease and comfort biggest priority over speed and ability to rage

Thoughts?

Not having ridden any of the above bikes, so take this with skepticism, but that Norco Optic C3 is the only one on your list with both a carbon front triangle and a reservoir shock. Those two things together should theoretically increase dampness and reduce chatter, and that rezzy shock and Pike should also be easier to tune for plushness off the top as a priority. For those things I think it’s worth the $4-500 premium over the other options.

I was gonna put the Canyon Spectral 125 CF7 on your list but that bike also only comes with an in-line shock.

Which Ripley AF build did you get for yourself? The fork and shock might be easily tunable to get more soaking of EC roots … or they might be due for an upgrade at some point.

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Originally Posted by SchralphMacchio

Not having ridden any of the above bikes, so take this with skepticism, but that Norco Optic C3 is the only one on your list with both a carbon front triangle and a reservoir shock. Those two things together should theoretically increase dampness and reduce chatter, and that rezzy shock and Pike should also be easier to tune for plushness off the top as a priority. For those things I think it’s worth the $4-500 premium over the other options.

I was gonna put the Canyon Spectral 125 CF7 on your list but that bike also only comes with an in-line shock.

Which Ripley AF build did you get for yourself? The fork and shock might be easily tunable to get more soaking of EC roots … or they might be due for an upgrade at some point.

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I have the SLX build with the Fox Performance 34 130 fork and Performance DPS shock.

It's not that I find it really harsh, I'm perfectly happy with it. Just thinking for her bike comfort will be king.

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Originally Posted by Duffman

Which build did you get and how heavy is it? Was looking at the Norcos but heard the Fluid frame is particularly heavy as compared to similar type frames. My Ripley AF is no lightweight but I'm curious how heavy a bike can be before it would be challenging for my wife

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FS A2 I believe. I didn't notice much difference between frames in terms of weight over the others. She tried the Devinci Troy, Norco Optic and the Transition Spire. Would have chosen the transition but they didnt have her frame size and the price difference was $2k between. She was riding the shop owners wifes spire and really loved it.

The Optic was pretty close but again, the price difference is what sold us (her).

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Originally Posted by Duffman

I have the SLX build with the Fox Performance 34 130 fork and Performance DPS shock.

It's not that I find it really harsh, I'm perfectly happy with it. Just thinking for her bike comfort will be king.

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Gotcha. Well if you want a little less bite off the top over roots you might consider trying a Luftkappe for that 34 fork.

With the Pike spec’ed on that Optic C3, you can also add a Luftkappe if it’s not plush enough over roots, and then if the Super Deluxe shock isn’t plush enough you’d have the option to add a MegNeg air can.

So apparently we are both dumb and my wife has no idea what her actual height is. Did some real measurements today. 5'5 plus a few mm in vans, 30.5 inseam, normal ape index, maybe slightly under by a 1/2 in. Now thinking Medium in the shortish cockpit Ripley AF.

Because it has a lower stack height than the Optic? The Optic has the lowest standover. All have 450mm reach.

Sorry wasn't clear. Just looking at the Ripley we are now torn between medium and small since the cockpits run shortish in real life. Still considering the optic in a small also .

Also love the look of the SC Joplin / Tallboy, but SX builds for the same price as these bikes even while on sale seems like a poor value proposition

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