I’m thinking about buying my first mountain bike used off of FB Marketplace. I came across a 2018 Juliana Joplin for $1800. Dude says he bought it from a Santa Cruz rep and isn’t sure whether it’s the S or R, but says the rep upgraded bars and wheels for his wife. Any red flags I should look out for? Is buying a used bike a bad idea?
by Nevada-Stormborn
7 Comments
Buying a used bike is fine. Try to see if u can find others for sale to see if the price is gooood
That is the 2018 Julianna Joplin 29 S Carbon. Originally retailed $4799. Not bad for the price. I’d try to get it slightly lower, but it looks like it’s in really good condition.
7 years is either little.to no use or a abuse where you need a ton of work to get it riding decently.
Just rebuilt a ten year old fork that the oil had turned to rock inside , had to chisel the interior out lol., aluminum corrosion , rust ..cleaned up and worked but expensive if you can’t diy.
Fork and shock full rebuild can be 600-800 $.
Brake bleed in the hundreds.
Parts like drivetrain / brake pads all add up.
Add that up and 1800 for them bike plus the repairs can easily get you onto a yt izzo or similar direct sales bike.
Or you can get lucky and get a recently worked on older bike that’s good as new. Bring a friend who knows bikes to inspect or even pay a shop to do so.
[https://www.bicyclebluebook.com](https://www.bicyclebluebook.com)
That bike looks like a ton of fun. If you are going to ride it hard, get the fork and shock rebuilt, seals and dampers. Could be maybe 400$ for both, but worth it. Those look like Santa Cruz carbon rims, which makes this a pretty good deal. Check for sag in the dropper post. I would get it.
I bought a 2018 Joplin CC used and it quite easily blew my old 2012 full sus bike out of the water. It rides super nice, it’s extremely lightweight and responds to input very well. I *highly* recommend it.
Buying used bikes is generally an okay deal, so long as it’s been well cared for. Having someone you know to buy hand me downs is also a win
If you want to go Santa Cruz, try and get something with the updated lower link suspension design. Its much better. In your price range, its very doable.
This is an S spec.