Choosing Mens Bikes

Overview Of Mountain Bike Frames

Mountain bikes were created for off road cycling. Many mountain biking activities would be extremely harsh on a typical street or kid's bicycle like the paper boy might use. Jumping logs and rocks, skidding down steep hills and traversing overgrown trails and old logging roads will take its toll on any bike.

For that reason mountain bike frames have been developed to withstand the stresses and strains associated with mountain biking. Better construction, engineering designs and new lightweight materials make mountain bikes better able to withstand the demands placed upon them. Cannondale bikes and Scott bikes are two companies that make these specialized mountain bikes.

One design of mountain bike frames is called fully rigid and is based on the suspension. These cross country mens bikes have a frame with a rigid fork which saves weight but puts the rider's skill to the test. They have a fixed rear and no front or rear suspension. Kona, Cannondale and Salsa make fully rigid bikes that are useful when riding single track or fire roads. Rigid bikes allow the rider greater control, and they usually weigh much less than other bikes.

Typically rigid bikes are lower priced than similar suspension models. A fully rigid steel frame mountain bike is considered to be the most responsive because you don't lose the momentum associated with compressing a shock. Rigid bikes are common on bicycle trails with mild terrain, and they are usually single speeds.

Hard tail mountain bike frames consist of a frame with a front suspension fork and rigid non-suspended rear wheels. Hard tail cross country mountain bikes are very popular; in fact, hard tail bikes are the ones used most often in cross country competitions. Hard tail bikes are more efficient to pedal and are lighter than full suspension designs. They are popular in dirt jumping, dual slalom and pump tracks.

Many cyclists choose Trek mountain bike hard tails for single track. Trek also makes womens mountain bikes. Mongoose makes a decent dirt mountain bike in the hard tail style. Hard tails are not particularly well suited for freeride or downhill. They perform better for cross country use that does not involve giant bumps and large drops.

Soft tail mountain bike frames employ a small amount of rear suspension that is not activated by pivots. Regular full suspension mountain bikes have pivots to work the suspension mechanism. The soft tail limited suspension works on flex alone. The small amount of travel in the rear is caused by the flex or spring of the metal, and it takes the edge out of sharp bumps for a more comfortable ride.