recommendations for my first mtb frame

[Snacks]

Hi! Im very new to mountain bikes and id like to build myself a full suspension bike.  Ive been doing a bit of research and i think a trail mountain bike is what im looking for. ive read they're a good bike for all type of mountain biking. hopefully thats correct, otherwise if anyone has a suggestion for a better type of frame im all ears. i know the trails my friends ride have it all. hills, descents , jumps and they were saying some have slower technical sections so this is what lead me to look for more of all arounder. ive seen some companies list the type of mtb frame they are but others just have the name. Im assuming you can tell the type of frame based on the geo but im still not sure how to tell one type over another.

then there also different types of suspension. is one better than the next for different types of trails? or are they just different design based on manufacturer? ive read that vpp frames have good anti squat so ive been looking into those .although my buddy said i can get a lockout on the forks and shock so i dont need to worry about anti squat in the suspension. are lockouts commonly used? i see more people talk about dialing in suspension rather than relying on a lockout .

if anyone has any suggestions on a frame that would be great. i know they say buy nice or buy twice but if there is a cheaper frame that i can build up to try out the sport that would be preferred. Thanks!

[RedCruz]

Hi Snacks!

Many friends and I started doing MTB in 2020 because of that covid thing! I like this sport very much but I discovered like you that it requires a lot of knowledge to fully enjoy it!

1-Your fitness level is very important in your choice of bike. A friend of mine who was not particularly fit was recommended an All-Mountain bike which ended up with a weight of 35 pounds. As soon as he climbs, his hearts pumps up and eventually he often have to stop and retake his breath.... As opposed to me and my other friend in the triathlon team where we train all year long and we ride with extremely light cross country bikes which are often only 23 pounds, very good for climbing indeed!

2-But yeah descend is fun too so I agree that if you have to have only ONE bike, then a Trail bike is the best choice. That's why I ended up ordering a Carbonda FM1156 (now renamed FM1001) to have a more robust bike than my Santa Cruz Blur Trail. However the more you invest in more robust components, the more weight you add to your rig....
I knew I would never be a neck braker DH rider so a FOX 140mm fork and a Fox DPX2 is the best balance of performance without too much compromise in weight. Of course there are many similar possibilities...

3-You chose to build your bike like me and the others for two reasons: 1-MAYBE and I say maybe you are going to save some money by doing it yourself : but unless you are already fully equipped in term of specific bike tools, or you are going to borrow the tools ... then your first rig is going to cost you many hundreds of dollars in tools.
If you buy all the components for your bike you will see that they may be very expensive and in the end you won't save much compared to buy a brand new bike... But if you have spare or older parts from older bikes that you want to reuse, then you may save some interesting money! Where you save the most is by buying a Chinese carbon frame compared to a Brand name frame that can sometimes be more than 2-3K$ more expensive that a Chinese frame. 2-You want to experience the fun and satisfaction of building you own rig. By doing so you also acquire more mechanical knowledge making you less dependant on your local bike shop.

4-Rear suspension geometry: Horst-link (four-bar) and VPP are very popular, but I'm not sure it makes such a huge difference in light to moderate trail riding.

5-In the market of Chinese frames you probably know that there are very good brands as well as many bad companies. Go for Carbon and look for EPS molding, it appears to be better build quality and finish. For a Chinese Trail Frame I recommend you read the posts including mine with pictures of the FM1156/ FM1001. The geometry is quite modern and the build construction is very good. For now you can only have Medium size. For Large you'll have to wait until summer 2021. Ask Adam@carbonda.com, pay with Paypal and always order their headset and a spare derailleur hanger! Good luck with your bike project!

[Snacks]

Hey thanks for the detailed response RedCruz! I really appreciate it

Thankfully I am in pretty good shape. definitely heavier than most at 230lbs but luckily most of that is muscle . So I'm hoping frame weight isn't too much of an issue . Although, you're right, a lighter build might be a bit more beneficial since I do have to carry my own weight on top of a bike up any hills. I've only really had a 25lb fixed gear and a 17 lb road bike before this but definitely no issues with those.

Yea I want to built it half for the fun and half because I have all the tools after building myself a road bike , so might as well put them to use! Plus I figure if I can spend less on a frame I can put the money I'm saving into a better groupset or other components.

Thank you for the recommendation on the FM1156/ FM1001. I'll definitely check out your post and any other i can find with that frame.oh and if I continue my search I'll keep an eye out for eps moulded frames.

[Jotegr]

If you want to "try out the sport" as you say you really ought to look at a used complete....


Buying a frame on its own and building it up is a lot of work, research, know how, and there's a decent number of things that can be frustrating/hard if you don't know what's going on. This can be double-ed down on a chinese frame. There's a higher chance of bullshit happening. The bearings aren't going to be as high quality, so you'll need to change them sooner (and sometimes right away). Unlike a Norco, Trek, Giant, etc., you can't  look up a handy chart that has all the bearing part numbers. Cool. You get to measure! Hope you're good at that. Trying to put together your initial parts list? Well it's a whole lot more complicated when you can't look your specs up or whatever you're looking at is missing information. Sure, you can see what seat post you need, but they almost never list which rear rotor is sized w/ no adapter or what the seat clamp is. Get the calipers out again!


Worst case, there's a crack in your frame! Well, some companies are really good, but others might have you wait months... and others might never get back to you at all with no recourse other than to complain on this forum.


Don't get me wrong - I don't hate chinese  DIY bikes, and I don't hate building up frames. I think it's a cool aspect of the hobby. BUT for many of us it's just that - part of the hobby. Few of us start with NO other bike to ride if something goes wrong on our first build.

For someone who just wants to cut their teeth? Pick up something used and relatively cheap. If you love the sport, great - you have a couple options - keep/upgrade your used ride, or because it already hit most of its depreciation, sell it for close to what you got it for THEN look at something like this or a frame up build from elsewhere.

[Snacks]

 thanks for the suggestion and taking the time to respond!

Building the bike for me is half the fun. pretty much everything you just listed, all the research, is what i enjoy. Those close to me might say i enjoy the time spent learning something new and building more than using whatever it is i just put together.

although ive yet to build a mountain bike. ive built up two road bikes now, both chinese carbon frames so i get what you're saying. Ive actually posted one on this forum but i changed my name recently since i wasnt too fond of the original one. fortunately (unfortunately?) Ive also already had a pretty bad time with a company , tantan, so hopefully that experience is out of the way. I know most people here have had a much better time with them , and im glad for that. i just chalk it up to being the unlucky one in the bunch and nothing more.

that said, id still like to build my own bike. I have an idea of what parts to purchase aside from a specific frame so if you have any you'd recommend id really appreciate it.