FBMP post:
Ibis Ripley XL full suspension mountain bike.
Good condition, a few small rock chips.
FOX shock and forks.
Raceface 34/24 crank set with Shimano drivetrain.
WTB tubeless tires with Stan's NoTubes ZTR Arch EX 29er
Price negotiable
I haven’t rode a bike in years, and never mountain biked, but I recently moved to a new house with great mountain biking trails down the road and am interested in the sport. I have a fair amount of disposable income but not enough to drop 2K on a budget mid tier bike for a sport i don’t know if I’m gonna love. So I have been cruising FBMP for deals and this one popped up. I am a big fan of buy once cry once so I’m cool with spending a fair amount on a used bike but don’t know much about the so I would love to know what you bike nerds think about the above bike. With “price negotiable” I’m think 700 is feasible but, again, I’m dumb.
Appreciate any advice.
by peaheezy
2 Comments
Looks like it was put away after the end of a season and then forgotten about for a few years. The hard part about older MTBs is that maintenance is a killer. If you take this into a shop you are looking at the better part of 300 just to have a good service. If you want a shock service that will be another 200-400. That is before replacing any major parts if they are worn. Reallisticly it would take $800-1200 to get it into very good shape. Even DIY would be several hundred with parts and tools.
The other option is to ignore major maintenance. Do the minimum, tires, brake pads, maybe a chain and a cassette. As long as the shocks rebound send it.
It has a quite dated short wheelbase geometry. That makes the bike responsive to inputs but harder to control. Modern MTBs are quite stretched out. Maybe a front derailleur, guessing early 2010s.
Cheap used FS bikes usually end up being expensive. Get a solid new hard tail and ride worry free.