When reviewing mountain bikes, these are the things we look for:
- Frame quality
- Component quality
- Bike weight
- Bike style and aesthetic appeal
Frame quality
When assessing the frame quality, we are primarily concerned with 2 things – the frame material and geometry.
Frame material
Is the frame made of steel, aluminum/alloy, titanium or carbon fiber?
Steel frames frames tend to be relatively heavy, but also very strong and shock absorbent.
Aluminum and aluminum alloy frames are lighter than steel frames, but do less than steel frames to absorb shocks and can make for a rougher feeling ride.
Titanium frames have the shock absorption of steel frames and are also much lighter. They are usually more costly than frames made of other materials.
Carbon fiber frames are usually very light while still maintaining strength and flexibility. This allows these frames to be very responsive feeling for the rider and nimble due to the light weight. Carbon fiber frames are also more costly than steel or aluminum.
Geometry
Key aspects to the geometry of a bike that we look at are:
- Head angle – the angle of the head tube (and fork) relative to the ground. This affects how far ahead of your hands the front wheel is. A slack head angle, where the front wheel is further ahead of your hands, makes a bike better suited going downhill, but slows down the responsiveness of the bike’s steering.
- Seat angle – the angle of the seat tube relative to the ground. A steeper seat angle puts the riders center of gravity further forward and more directly overtop of the bottom bracket. This allows for more efficient pedaling and makes climbing easier as it helps prevent the front wheel from wandering around on you.
- Bottom bracket height – the height of the bottom bracket above the ground. A lower bottom bracket lowers the riders center of gravity which can give the rider better control and inspire confidence. Too low of a bottom bracket can cause issues with pedal strikes.
- Chainstay length – this is the distance between the center of the rear wheel and the bottom bracket. A shorter chainstay length allows can allow for more nimble handling and improve a bike’s cornering ability. The downside to a shorter chainstay length is that it can make it harder to control the front wheel on climbs.
- Wheelbase – the distance between the center (axle) of the front wheel and the rear wheel. A longer wheelbase will improve stability of the bike, especially on descents, while still being quite maneuverable. A shorter wheelbase will improve handling to a degree, and can improve cornering and tight turns..
We look for balanced geometry that allows riders to ride many conditions for most bikes we review. When looking at bikes for a particular style of riding, we favor those with geometry that suit that style.
Component quality
Suspension – Suspension refers to both the fork on the front end of the bike and the rear shock, if the bike has one. We look for the length of travel on each, as well as the overall responsiveness and how good of a job the bike does at soaking up rocks and roots and smoothing out the ride.
Brakes – We assess how quickly the brakes can stop a bike and how responsive and precise they are. This includes whether the brakes are hydraulic or mechanical, as hydraulic brakes will usually have more precision and stopping power.
Drivetrain – The drivetrain includes the chain, gears and shifters. We assess the makeup of the drivetrain (1×9, 3×8, etc.) as well as the smoothness and reliability of the drivetrain when shifting gears.
Other components – Other components we assess include things like the seat post (whether it is a dropper post or not), the pedals, grips, tires, and any other parts that come standard on a mountain bike and are notable.
Bike weight
A mountain bike’s weight is important when it comes to climbing and efficiency, so we assess it as part of our review criteria. For a mountain bike that you want to use on a variety of trails, weight will be an important consideration. For reviews of bikes meant purely for downhill riding, we place less importance on the bike’s weight.
Bike style and aesthetic appeal
While the function of a mountain bike is always the most important aspect, you want your bike to look as cool as your riding does. We assess the aesthetic appeal of every bike we review including how the frame looks with its colors and geometry paired with the various components of the bike. Simple things like whether there is internal routing for brake and dropper posts can impact how we rate a bike’s style. So can the uniqueness of the shape, color scheme, and just how capable a bike looks at first glance.