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Gary Fisher 2001 Mamba

MSRP $ 289.00
# of Reviews 9
Average Rating 4.44/5
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Submitted by Kent a Weekend Warrior from Cumming GA
Date Reviewed: September 17, 2004
Favorite Trail:Bull Mountain
Duration Product Used:2 Years
Price Paid: $200.00
Purchased At:Local Shop
Strengths:Good sturdy frame, very comfortable ride
Weaknesses:Soft braking, chain rings a bit larger than standard ATB, heavy
Similar Products Used:Specialized Hard Rock, Bianchi Timberwolf
Bike Setup:Stock + flat handlebar, lighter saddle and tires
Bottom Line:I ride this bike about 30-40 miles per week on rocky, rooty single track and could not be more pleased for the price. A few inexpensive upgrades can shed a little of the weight. I have never had the rim problems other owners complain about, perhaps because I fill up my tires. I'll trade some loss in traction for a lack of pinch flats and true rims.

The braking can be improved by upgrading to a larger curved pad with larger surface area.

Rear derailleur still tracking fine after 1000+ miles.
Value Rating:5Overall Rating:4

Submitted by Stan a Weekend Warrior from Montreal, Quebec
Date Reviewed: May 25, 2002
Favorite Trail:Mount Royal Gravel Road
Duration Product Used:3 months
Price Paid: $250.00
Purchased At:McGinnies
Strengths:Practically everything
Weaknesses:None so far
Bottom Line:I've ridden cheap big retailer bikes for most of my life. This was my first venture into an upscale bike, and I am thrilled. I had trouble with the shifters at first, but that was more do to inexperience rather than the bike itself. Great name bike for the price, carries my 230 pound body with ease, in essence I am extremely thrilled. I highly reccommend the bike for a first time purchase of a mountain bike.
Value Rating:5Overall Rating:5

Submitted by Brendan Pitt a Weekend Warrior from Sydney, NSW, Australia
Date Reviewed: March 10, 2002
Favorite Trail:2 creeks track Northern Sydney
Duration Product Used:6 months
Price Paid: $250.00
Purchased At:Clerence St Cyclery Sydney
Strengths:Strong Frame Decent Brakes Gears are ok
Weaknesses:Post Moderne Sporty SE fork tops out all the time gets very annoying,and when i rode it in the rain they filled with water and jammed up, plastic pedals broke quickly, I needed new bottom bracket for it recently the old one broke,wheels buckled easily, and the 2.1 tyre rubs against the fram because the wheel is buckled,heavy frame, my bike came in boring black and silver colours. The bike shop also says my cassette will just fail on me one day they cant fix it because its an internal thing so one day the bike will jus fail and need a new cassette.
Similar Products Used:Kona Caldera quite a big step up much better
Bike Setup:Same as bought except DMR V8 Platform Pedals, Back Michelin Wildgripper 2.1 red tyre wich is too fat
Bottom Line:i probably bashed it round a bit too much and probably misused it but it is a decent entry level bike. It got me heavily into mountainbiking. i got it for a good price at $480 Australian. im now looking at getting a new bike it served its purpose but I need something better really. I spose for the price it was pretty good.
Value Rating:4Overall Rating:3

Submitted by Cameron a Weekend Warrior from AL
Date Reviewed: November 1, 2001
Favorite Trail:Oak Mountain (B'ham, AL)
Duration Product Used:3 months
Purchased At:280
Strengths:price, looks, name
Weaknesses:hmmm...none yet
Similar Products Used:specialized hard rock
Bike Setup:stock, plus barends (though i hear you should only put them on flat bars...what do i know), and a sdg ventura comp saddle
Bottom Line:well, it is a gary fisher, and it is the cheapest hard tail you can get from GF. so far i've put probably 50 road miles on it and only about 5-10 trail miles on it. as it is really only my second "real" bike (and first hardtail) i don't have a whole lot to compare it to (except my brother's specialized hard rock). for a first bike, this is a better choice. my mamba was 100 bucks less than his hard rock, and i suppose the only big difference that i noticed was the shock (he has rock shox jett, and i have post moderne). his is a bit lighter, too, but he rides far more than i do. for a beginner's bike, the mamba seems to fit perfectly.
Value Rating:5Overall Rating:5

Submitted by DUDEK Wojtek a Cross Country Rider from Warsaw, Mazowsze, POLAND
Date Reviewed: September 19, 2001
Favorite Trail:Cross Country Crazy Biking (CCCB) on Podlasie
Duration Product Used:Less than 1 month
Price Paid: $250.00
Strengths:Acera SGS is a top quality for me to this time. In my old bike it was Altus C-10.
Weaknesses:Weight of all bike is little big, but I'm a Big Boy too! Rear brake little soft.
Bike Setup:Acera (21 speed) and front fork- Post Modern Sporty
Bottom Line:The best bike for this price in Poland. And this strong enough Gary's frame 'll be enough to the end of your life:))). Next weekend (29.09.01) I'll test my Mamba in Kampinos National Park (almost 200 km per a day!).
Value Rating:4Overall Rating:5

Submitted by DUDEK Wojtek a Cross Country Rider from Warsaw, Mazowsze, POLAND
Date Reviewed: September 19, 2001
Favorite Trail:Cross Country Crazy Biker (CCCB) on Podlasie
Duration Product Used:Less than 1 month
Price Paid: $250.00
Strengths:Acera SGS is a top quality for me to this time. In my old bike it was Altus C-10.
Weaknesses:Weight of all bike is little big, but I'm a Big Boy too! Rear brake little soft.
Bike Setup:Acera (21 speed) and front fork- Post Modern Sporty
Bottom Line:The best bike for this price in Poland. And this strong enough Gary's frame 'll be enough to the end of your life:))). Next weekend (29.09.01) I'll test Mamba in Kampinos National Park (almost 200 km per a day)!
Value Rating:4Overall Rating:5

Submitted by Antoine a Cross Country Rider from Quebec Canada
Date Reviewed: August 3, 2001
Duration Product Used:Less than 1 month
Price Paid: $315.00
Purchased At:Boom Velo Ski
Strengths:The price is the major advantage. This is not a great bike but this is a Gary Fisher and it's about the best bike you can have for the price
Weaknesses:The shimano altus su...s , i had too much problems with it and i had to put on a new Paint job cause of the shimano altus
Similar Products Used:Trek 4500 specialized hard rok
Bike Setup:Full altus but i will put xt or xtr real soon...
Bottom Line:This is a great bike for the price.
I got a lot of problems with my derailleur but everything else is perfect for me. I do about 50km a week and 10-15 km of trail so it's the perfect bike for me.
Once i will put on a new derailleur it will be a great bike
Value Rating:5Overall Rating:4

Submitted by Kilgore a Weekend Warrior from MI
Date Reviewed: June 21, 2001
Duration Product Used:6 months
Strengths:Cheap, looks sweet, can't be the quality for the price.
Weaknesses:None really given the cost.
Bike Setup:Stock (+Judy SL & barends soon)
Bottom Line:Had some problems shifting at first, but once tuned, the derailleurs work perfectly even after months of commuting and weekend offroading. I love the rapid fire shifters, don't really have to pay attention when shifting. The caps popped off the fork over the winter making it pretty useless, but no biggie, getting a Judy SL for it anyway. Only real complaint is that the seat is starting to come apart, but I guess that's what happens when you ride on a cheap stock seat every day for 9 months. It is comfortable enough, just wish it would have lasted longer.

Overall, this has been an excellent bike for me. Works great for getting to class every day, and is a blast to ride off road on the weekends. Given the extremely low price, it is a great entry level bike for anyone who is looking for something that will do well on- and off-road but doesn't want to pay a lot of money.
Value Rating:5Overall Rating:5

Submitted by pete a Weekend Warrior from PA
Date Reviewed: May 22, 2001
Duration Product Used:Less than 1 month
Price Paid: $250.00
Purchased At:www.thebikehub.net
Bike Setup:stock
Bottom Line:This is my first MTB (i had a road bike and yes i am european), I use it for city and light trail. My city is not your regular one though its all hills and downhills and road quality sucks (potholes/patches all over). The shock has been doing good and required no preload, handling is excelent, ezfire shifters work with no error and shifting is very accurate. Breaks on this bike are awesome, as i said hills are big at my place and you need to ride them pretty often but so far all is good. Bike is fast, reliable and for the price you wont get a better set up. Also when buying bikes never pay the list price, ask them if they can give you a break if you buy some accesories most places will do it, , and make sure you compare the components (shifters, deraiullers and so on)

I put about 30 some miles on it so far I just got it last week but i am very happy with it. I have to go off road some to see how it does there but from what it seems on the crapy roads i was on it wont be a problem.

Bottom line is its a comfortable ride, handles good and stock comps are all you need unless you are way into riding. For 250 its the best deal you can find.

I will post in few months when i haev some more miles on it.

4 turds only because i dont know if it will be as good in few months
Value Rating:4Overall Rating:4






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