Ok I'll bite...why?

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Why not?

Ok I'll bite...why?

The better question would be, "Why not?"

 

whats the headangle on that bike? it looks STEEP!

 

Weight?

I am very interested in doing the same thing with the mongoose pro xr if it will save me some money and create a great bike. Do you know your total cost of everything and most importantly do you know the weight when you finished? Factory these bikes sit around 37 lbs which is over ten lbs my current bike weight.

 

I am very interested in doing the same thing with the mongoose pro xr if it will save me some money and create a great bike. Do you know your total cost of everything and most importantly do you know the weight when you finished? Factory these bikes sit around 37 lbs which is over ten lbs my current bike weight.

I'm very interested in doing the same thing as well, as I don't have $2000 to drop on a good mountain bike at the moment. I wish the op would reply with more details.

 

He could of bought a new bike with the money he spent.I would guess around $1000.`+

 

He's got about $2k in upgrades, if new. However, since he got most everything used on eBay, I'd say he has $1k or less in upgrades. Add the cost of the bike and you've got about a $1,400 investment.

Practically speaking, he's got a bike that has superior components than what a new $1,400 bike would have, even in today's market with clearance prices. I know because I've been looking for the past 6 months on eBay, craigslist, online retailers, and LBS. The absolute best deal I've found for a FS 29er is right on the mark in price, but comes with X-Fusion or SR Suntour air shocks/forks. Those brands may be just as good as Fox, but you have to spend considerably more to get the Fox "name brand."

As to whether this was a wise investment or not, that is up to each individual. Yes, he could have found a used bike in this price range with similar components on eBay or craigslist, but do these owners take payment plans? Probably not.

There are 3 factors that drive a person to do a custom build like this:
1) Everything is personalized to your tastes, preferences, riding style, and body build, so you have a bike custom-tailored to your own specs, not a manufacturer's.
2) You gain knowledge of the inner-workings of bikes as you go throughout the rebuild customization process. For beginners, this is a much better option than starting with a blank frame in which you have nothing to reference.
3) The cost of the bike is broken up into small individual installments (payments) which can be scheduled at your own choosing. By upgrading a complete bike, you get to enjoy riding at the same time as the build and payment process!

Obviously, some find it more convenient to buy a bike pre-built and ready to ride with great components. Others enjoy this bike owner's approach to riding/building/paying. Choose the approach that gives you the most enjoyment and you'll be fully satisfied with your decision, whether other riders respect it or not!

 

I wanted to get a full suspension on the cheap as I already have a high end hard tail. I ended up finding a 2006 Giant Anthem 2 on Craigslist for $400. It was missing several parts. I was able to complete it with about $150 in parts. For $550 I have an awesome full suspension bike that weight in at 25.5 lbs. I like it more than the $4000 Trek EX 9 I test drove on the trails a few weeks ago. It is my favorite bike. I am able to ride wheelies all day long and I was never able to do that on other bikes. I would suggest doing the same and get a good used bike. As long as there is no cracks in the frame and the wheels are true. To upgrade the shocks on the Mongoose would cost $500 alone not to mention everything else.

 

I call BS on 25.5 pounds.

 

They were 25.9 pounds bone stock. Those are light bikes.

 

That is published weight. My Scott Spark 910 (carbon) weighs 25 lbs. I've also converted to single speed and lost the front dérailleur and shifter. There's no way that Mongoose weighs under 28 pounds.

 

You misread the post you quoted He has a giant anthem 2. Giant doesnt publish weights, so thats measured weight. My 07 trance was about 27lb stock, and anthems are lighter.

 

Sorry im new to understanding the details on setting up a mountain bike, if my bike has "8 gears in back, and 3 up front" does this make it a 24 speed....I am running the same platform...29" Mongoose XR-PRO and its seem this was turning into a 20 speed, 10 in back and what seems 2 upfront, so I can change the bikes amount of gears to what ever, so can I upgrade the rear to have 10 and still run the front 3 and have 30 total as long as I can find a trigger that allows for this selection....

 

You can fit a 10speed cassette on the back of you bike:

Shimano SLX HG81 10-Speed Cassette

you can add on a 10 spd derailleur:
Shimano SLX RD-M670 SGS Rear Derailleur

Add a 10spd chain:
Shimano Ultegra CN-6701 Bike Chain 10 Speed

add a 10 spd shifter:
SRAM GX 10-Speed Rear Shifter

Add in some chainrings:
FSA Pro ATB 104mm x 44T Chainring
FSA Pro ATB 104mm x 32T Chainring

Add a granny ring if you like:
Shimano Deore LX M580 22T Chainring

maybe some new cable housing and some adjustments and that should get you there.

That's about $218. Probably could find it cheaper, maybe a take off groupo online somewhere but at the end of the day you are still over half the cost of the bike originally. I didn't figure a front derailleur as you can usually make them work ok.

if you went 1x10 and used something like a fat thin chainring (Race Face Narrow Wide 30T Chainring) you could cut out $40 or so and maybe drop some weight on the bike. The cassette comes with a 36T so it wouldn't be horrible with the 30T chainring. It wouldn't be like a 20T for sure but it would be doable.

If you can work on your own bike and have access to the specific tools that are needed, that is a pretty reasonable amount of money to gain more gears, I don't know if performance wise you gain anything, probably better shifting performance and more accurate shifting.

I frankly would spend my dollars on tires, maybe try to convert to tubeless or just save my dollars and move up in scale to a new bike with 10spd on it already.

 

Please be more specific about what you're asking.


Changing to 10 speed will cost more than buying several Mongoose bikes like that and not worth the time and money, IMO. Lipstick on a pig.

 

I think the bike would need a 10 speed crankset, shifter, and front derailleur too if he wanted 2x10 or 3x10. A 10 speed chain is not going to play nice with 8x optimised cranks and FD.

 

Can anyone tell me how much travel the rear suspension has...at the rear wheel? Thank You

 

He probably just followed this YouTuber.

I like the idea behind it. But for basically the price of this bike and upgrades you can get this.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Felt-Dec...ecree-30-Trail-27-5-Full-Suspension-MTB-Mountain-Bike-18-Medium-Black/800586118

For a beginners bike this isn't that bad. It's just the rear suspension has bushing's and not bearings. And that gives me the dry heaves.

 

Great job, how does it ride?

 

This thread is almost 5 years old. The author posted one thread and never returned. I don't think anyone is going to learn anything from him at this point.

 

The Avid BB7s did him in

 

Alright two questions...

1. How much suspension travel does the XR Pro have in the rear?

2. How wide can you go with the rear tire before you start dragging on the chain stay?

Been to three local Walmarts and none of them had an XR Pro...not sure it is worth messing with if it has about 2" of travel and won't accept over a 2.4" rear tire. Well at least for me anyway.

The appealing thing to me is that most of the Big Box Store bikes have a pretty steep head tube angle and where I ride the trails are super tight. If I ride anything with a head tube angle of 67 degrees or less/slacker then I can't turn quick enough. The issue is everything that has a decent rear suspension has a head tube angle that is MUCH less/slacker and it is tough to negotiate the trails. High speed downhills are a totally different story...there just aren't many of them in Florida .

 

That bike doesn't have rear suspension, it has a rear spring with no damping. With no control, the spring will oscillate and move with every pedal stroke making riding the bike an unpleasant experience. Any hardtail frame, even one with a dent on the side of the top tube, with provide you a better and controlled ride.

 

2.4 xking continental does not fit in the rear.

 

Thanks guys...I sincerely appreciate your opinions and info.

Boulder Pilot...you like it that much ? Problem is...I agree with you when the bike is stock. I was just wondering how much up and down movement is available if I were to use the bike as a donor BUT I now realize it would take a good bit of money in the attempt to make it something that it is not.

Thanks Jarhead2531. I appreciate the info. Just a little too narrow for what I want to do.

Since there is not enough room for what I would call a big tire and not a lot of movement available in the rear suspension....I decided to pass on buying one. For anyone looking...a Hyper Hydro-Form is designed a little bit better and about half the price of the XR Pro...IMO. It still lacks enough clearance for a very big tire and doesn't have enough allowance for suspension travel...for me.

I abandoned the idea of using either one to build an electric powered mountain bike using a mid drive BBSHD motor. If you have either...they are good bikes to play with so don't let my comments diminish your enthusiasm.