Help me choose a new bike

[crumpetman]

I am looking for a mountain bike for some light off road use but as it will be replacing the hybrid I use as my utility bike it must also be able to take a pannier rack and hopefully some sort of mudguards. I will need to lock it up outside shops so budget wise I am thinking under £500. I can get one on cyclescheme if that works out better.

I have no idea where to start, 26 or 29? Rigid or hard tail? Disc brakes? I suppose I am limiting the choices with the need of a pannier. The Decathlon Rockriders look like good value.

Please help, there is too much choice!

 

[Cubist]

For sheer VFM the Decathlon Rockriders take some beating. The 5.3 has a basic fork, cable disc brakes and SRAM X5 gears. It'll do some basic offroad stuff, but the undamped fork is a bit of a limiting factor. It's a tad porky at 14.5 kg as well. The 8.0 has a better fork with hydraulic damping, meaning less pogoing on bumpy tracks. It also has hydraulic brakes, and better tyres. It weighs a full kilo less as well. I can't see any reference to rack eyes on the 8.0 though, so you may need to check.

AT that price point most bikes are very basic, and unless you desperately want a 29er then you'll find that the price is still "finding its level" in the novelty stakes. 26 will be far more competitive.

If you can stretch your budget by going via C2W then you'll be moving up away from some basic bikes into the "entry level serious" stuff with better frames, and most importantly fewer compromises.