Submitted by
Dan
a Cross Country Rider
from Kissimmee, FL, U.S.
Date Reviewed: May 31, 2008
Strengths: Frame was designed and fabricated with an eye for extreme durability.
Weaknesses: Shifters, BALLISTIC forks, Brakes, Rims, Tires, and it is HEAVY!
Bottom Line:
Found this bike sitting by a dumpster all abused. Thought it showed potential, and remembered seeing it on the trails in the past. I reminded me of my 57 Chevy. It looked cool, and from it's condition it looked like it took quite a licking. Gave it some TLC, added some new tubes and slime, adjusted the brakes and shifter, and have ridden it hard for the last 3 years with the factory parts. The tires are shot, and it will be receiving a much deserved series of upgrades. This bike makes for a fantastic sleeper. Do the research, ask plenty of questions from old-schoolers when selecting parts and mechanics. You will get what you pay for. Like anything, if you expect this bike to perform like a $3,000+ bike, you will have to pay the Piper. But once paid, it will give you many years of happyreturns on your investment, at a fraction of the cost.
Similar Products Used: Schwinn, Trek, Huffy, Cannondale, Scott, Mongoose
Bike Setup: Stock from the store.
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
dave kalisz
a Cross Country Rider
from brighton MI
Date Reviewed: April 20, 2008
Strengths: strong frame
Weaknesses: everything but the frame
Bottom Line:
I built this bike as a joke with parts I took off of my enduro and friends bikes when we would do upgrades. we work at a local bike store and are avid riders. The truth of the matter is this bike is a little heavier than my other bikes but its a fun bike to ride and it handles great
Bike Setup: rockshox dho fork ,easton stem,answer bars,fox float r shock, specialized strongarm crankset,xt shifters and derailers,magura louise disc brakes f&r (tig welded caliper tab on swingarm) sun double track wheelset,WTB seat,sette seat post
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
stu tracey
a Weekend Warrior
from calgary alberta canada
Date Reviewed: July 2, 2007
Bottom Line:
People down the street got evicted...they are "packrats" and had to get a dumpster for most of their stuff, including this bike. Hey free bike 4 me.
Submitted by
Karl
a Downhiller
from Cheboygan, Michigan, USA
Date Reviewed: July 2, 2006
Strengths: HOLY CRAP it is tough! I loved the forks. Some people say that it is too heavy, but i am a heavier guy, so this is a strength for me. i could do so much on this bike and for me it was easy to control.
Weaknesses: If you are a small person, it will be hard to control without either taking pounds off of the bike or gaining some weight yourself. I think of it as a dual suspension KONA HOSS, though it may be a little heavier. the Tires that came with it are flimsy, as are the rims.
Bottom Line:
Get this bike if you can find it, it is a great bike for practicing, and if u can find a big hill, you will fly down it like crazy.
Submitted by
Jesse
a Weekend Warrior
from Check, VA
Date Reviewed: August 23, 2005
Strengths: cheap, sturdy, soaks up bumps pretty well, shifts well once adjusted properly
Weaknesses: heavy! front shocks a bit spongy but you get used to it. water bottle located under the bike - still haven't mastered getting it out without skinning my fingers on the front tire, so i have to stop to drink.
Bottom Line:
This is a great bike for someone on a budget or someone just starting out. It's also a great bike to train on because it's so heavy - you've got to work to move this thing, and you'll feel like superman when you finally upgrade to a lighter model. It's also a good bike to learn maintenance and repair on, because as you get more serious (or as things start to wear out) you WILL be wanting to replace components. The guy I bought it from replaced the right side grip shifter with rapid fire, which works great. Not 100% sure how much is stock and how much is upgraded. I'm a pretty big guy (6'1" 240) and so far this thing's hauled my fat ass around with nary a complaint. Just don't use the front brake with the water bottle in.
Submitted by
Mr.Snitch
a Weekend Warrior
from Hell , Mi.
Date Reviewed: August 8, 2005
Strengths: Built like a tank. Hard to destroy the frame. Takes lots of abuse..Low budget ride..that if properly upgraded can rival rides costing far more
Weaknesses: Too heavy. full suspension for under 3 bills ? get real you bozos...Nice potential..but the rest of the bike needs to be upgraded,as the stock fare,simply won't hold up to the constant riding and pounding..Moongoose is cooked!
Bottom Line:
Bought this clunker from a local junkie from Ann Arbor, (12 miles from Hell, Mi ) for 10 bucks..rode it stock for a couple of years, left it out in the rain..etc..Imagine my amazement, as the M-Goose,refused to die..Since then, have gotten a nice Schwinn MT Bike..but have upgraded the bleep outta this old heavy clunker..and once you shave 'bout 10 pounds off it, with all newer parts, it actually is a great old bike to haul arse in and around Hell and yuppie Ann Arbor..Actually, not a bad example of a dump truck type Mt.Bike..I'm finding that more than a few bike dweebs are snagging these old D-40's, and retro fitting the blep outta them..go figger !
Strengths: Good, solid frame, you can beat the living crap outta it. Even back in the late 90's, decent frame, that rivaled frames costing hundreds more..
Weaknesses: Very heavy..like a friggin' tank...spongy original tires, most of stock equipment was low budget, and after a while, let you down...el-cheapo rules
Bottom Line:
A good ,low budget bike, with a solid frame, that you can beat it to death, and still comes back for more..After destroying my Gary Fisher on a trail, pulled the olde yellow D40, outta mothballs..Will replace most of the original equipment, tires,rims,and more..probably raiding from my Fisher & Schwinn carcasses..i.e. rims, tires, gears, SEAT, and more..as the city of Memphis is too !@#$ing cheep to keep up roads & bikepaths, so I really need a bike-that'll take the pounding..and some instead of spending a couple of grand..and I can do this for well under that budget..anything that I can't retro fit on the D40, I'll get from local bike shop, or Nashbar..
Similar Products Used: similar budget priced Schwinn, Raleigh,Trek Mt bikes, and a couple of high dollar ones..that could not hold up.
Bike Setup: This D40 is stock..yellow paint job,with red mongoose decals..even yrs ago, bought it for a song
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Matt
a Cross Country Rider
from Minnesota
Date Reviewed: June 9, 2003
Strengths: Frame is built to BEAT, nice price, and excellent upgrade-ability
Weaknesses: Crappy components, but I couldn't break them...
Bottom Line:
I POUNDED this thing for 7 years while telling myself "when stuff breaks, I'll replace it." I couldn't break anything except the rear wheel(got a little too brave). Just lucky I guess. But now that I'm upgrading, I like it a lot more. Has potential to be real badass, and is built to take it hard.
Favorite Trail: The one with the no trespassing signs
Duration Product Used: More than 3 years
Price Paid:
$130.00
Purchased At: Wally World
Similar Products Used: Number of cheaper hardtails and FS bikes
Bike Setup: Shimano STX shifters/levers, f derailluer, r derailleur, deore crankset, new seat, post, and weinmann wheelset
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
adam
a
from colorado springs, co, usa
Date Reviewed: May 17, 2003
Strengths: looks really cool, and it was a good bike for three years
Weaknesses: derailer kept breaking! and it is pretty heavy
Bottom Line:
Ok, this was an awesome bike, i have been a mountain biker for about three years now, and this year is when i got into a little more "hardcore" riding. I loved the look, and I even bought all the biking accessories to match it. Now like I said this year I got into a little more hardcore. I was riding at a local park/trail, and then I noticed a small probably 3 foot drop. So me, being fairly daring decided it would be a great idea to fly off it. Now my bike thought a little different. I ended up going off it and landing it quite nicely. BUT! That is just it I landed nicely my bike did not. My derailer ended up getting caught in one of my spokes and ripped off the frame. It also ended up bending my chain, breaking my spoke, and breaking my rear break. So if you really like the look of this bike and plan to do a little hard core mountain biking then you better change what looks cool. If you just want a simple good looking bike then this bike will work fine for you. Remember this bike ended up last me three years before I ended up with a real problem(you know, besides flats…stuff like that)
Submitted by
Rich
a Weekend Warrior
from Merrimack, NH USA
Date Reviewed: July 28, 2001
Strengths: Good durable frame as stated in almost every other review. Good beginer bike.
Weaknesses: Brakes. Had to repair the front ones because they snapped. Kind of heavy. Front shocks bottom out and they started that less than a month after I bought it. Chain slips. Every time I go up hill and try to go fast I am worried that the chain is going to slip and I'm going to land right on my croch.
Bottom Line:
Good beginer bike. If you use hard trail bikes and want to try out a full suspension bike, this is good for you. For the moolah its good too. If you go on trails and ride every once in a while like me, you dont want to spend big bucks on a bike.
Strengths: maybe i am just dumb or something but my bike doesn't have any of these problems i like it. it had some problems out of the box but they were easy enough to fix
Weaknesses: seat blows back wheel starts skidding really easily
Bottom Line:
i like it may be my bike has a different stock set up then you guys (notice the price diference) but i enjoy it. it gets my were i want to go.
Submitted by
Chris Harl
a Weekend Warrior
from Tulsa Oklahoma
Date Reviewed: October 4, 2000
Strengths: Very strong frame, and very heavy but most down hill frames are. This frame is built like a tank and can take a serous beating. on top of it all it has good looks. I would highly recomend this frame to build on as a down hill racer. why? because one it has the wieght, two it is built strong like a tank, and three it is cheap rather than spending 1000 dollars on a super nice down hill frame that your going to eventually bend.
Weaknesses: If this frame is to be used as a mountain bike or down hill racer, the first thing that needs to be done is strip all stock components that came with this bike. the reason for this is because all the components that came with this bikes suck. The rear and front derailer dont last a week, the front shock bottoms out on the water bottle, the rear shock makes a wierd squeeking sound, the shifters suck, and the brakes blow.
Bottom Line:
the bottom line is that this frame has oppertunity to be a bad a** down hill racer or mountain bike, if the money is spent.
Similar Products Used: The only thing I can see similar is maybe a huffy. the difference is that I highly speak on the frame.
Bike Setup: Avid brakes, levers, shifters, rear and front derailer. Salsa rims shimano hubs with WTB tires. race face headset, seat post with WTB seat, and race face cranks. Rock shox Judy TT with 80mm of travel and a Sid air rear shock. Wellgo clip in pedals, and of course a new chain.
