Hi to all and help me choose question

[swinada]

First off a Hi to everybody that calls this forum home.
I'm in the mid 40's and haven’t ridden a mountain bike for the past 18 years or so. My last one I purchased back in 1991 an Alpinestar, of course way before Suspension and such things. (At least that I could afford)
Now since i would like to make some life changes and get back in to biking I'm facing the challenge to figure out what all the numbers mean. There is only so many reviews a guy can read in a day.
So I think I limited myself down to a few models that I consider.
First I am 6'1" and presently about 245lbs, the bike is supposed to help me get that down to the 200's again.
Trails i will be riding are FSR, single track with some rocks and roots, small logs etc. West coast riding.
My budget is somewhere around 1000-1500 Canadian. Due to my location and what the local dealer can get in I limited myself to Giant or Norco in the 29er offerings.
Giant Talon 29er 0 or XTC 29er 2
Norco Charger 9.1 or Nitro 9.3 or 9.2 (don’t like the 9.2 color that’s displayed on the website, don’t know if you can order different colors)
-Can anybody provide some real life experience with one of those bikes? Have you personally owned one and care to share?

- So now as I compare all the specs on these bikes it really sounds like Chinese to me.
But after hours reading reviews and trying to find information it seems to me that Norco in general has better quality parts on their bike. Am I wrong with this assumption?

- All Giants i looked at use Avid Elixir 1 brakes, I have read that they are quite troublesome.

- the Giant XTC uses a Marzocchi 44TST2 Fork which I cannot find any info or real life test data for. How would that fork compare to a RockShox Recon Silver or Gold which are used on the Norco Nitro's?

-is it worth spending the extra money to go from a Giant Talon line to the XTC line even if at the moment I could only afford the lowest model in the XTC lineup, and same for Norco Charger 9.1 (top of charger lineup) vs. Nitro 9.3 (lowest in Nitro LU)

Looking forward to get some input, thank you.


Add on: Lets throw another one in to the mix : RockyMountain Trailhead 29

[matbar20]

Hi. I work in a bike shop as a bike mechanic, and the shop I work at sells giant bikes. We are located in Fernie, British Columbia. Let me start by saying that you have picked an exciting time to get back into mountain biking. The technology that you can get at the price point your looking at has never been better, and the 29" wheel has really come into its own. I think at your size, the 29er will be a great fit. As you have noticed Giant, because its the largest bicycle producer in the world, will give you some pretty good bang for the buck. My advice to you would be to go, at least, for the best value. Our shop hasn't brought in any of the Talons, so I can't speek about their quality from experience, but I'm pretty sure that we didn't order them because they seem 'cheap' buy what we have seen in the catalogue. The XTC frame is highend, and they offer really good build kits for the price. If only can work your budget up to get into the XTC 29er 0 you would be getting the awsome 2012 shimano xt full kit, for only around $2000. It is an incredible deal man!

As for avid elixer 1 brakes, they work fine, and really don't have any more trouble than any other brake you are going to find on a bike that cheap. One thing to keep in mind here, is that you will hear about a lot of problems from Avid Elixer brakes, (to be honest, we are servicing them all the time in the shop!), But that is mainly because almost 95% of the OEM brakes on new bikes these days happen to be Avid Elixers! They are on just about every bike we sell in our shop, there fore it is to be expected that they are the brake we see most in the shop needing service.

Hope i've helped a little. I can probably answer more specific questions later, if you need

[swinada]

Thanks for the reply, better double then none at at all
My local dealer has not received the price's for the GIANTS yet so i dont know if i can go that high up. (I kind of doubt it) but he is gving me a pretty good deal on the NORCO's so i might go for the Nitro 9.1 which seems to be pretty good quality components at least as far as i can tell.
Do you deal with Norco, any coments on them?

Frame N1 alloy XC w/formed and butted tubing
Fork RockShox Reba 29er RL Tapered
Rear Shock N/A
Rims WTB SpeedDisc 29er 28h - Black
Tires Continental X-King 29x2.2 SL Folding
Front Hub Formula sealed bearing disc 28h - Red
Rear Hub Formula sealed bearing disc 28h - Red
Spokes Stainless black w/Red alloy nipples
Shifter Front SRAM X7 2x10speed - Storm Grey
Shifter Rear SRAM X7 2x10speed - Storm Grey
Front Derailleur SRAM X7 - Storm Grey
Rear Derailleur SRAM X9 - Black/Red
Cassette SRAM PG-1030 11-36T
Bottom Bracket FSA Mega Exo BB-7000
Crankset FSA Afterburner 39/27 - Black
Pedals Resin body w/steel cage - Black
Chain KMC X10
Seat Post Norco - Black w/Red
Saddle WTB Silverado Race SL - White w/Red
Headset FSA No.57 ACB Cartridge Bearing - Tapered
Stem Norco - Black w/Red
Handlebar Norco Lite flat bar - Black w/Red
Grips Norco Gradient dual density lock-on
Front Brake SRAM Elixir 5 MatchMaker - Gloss Black
Rear Brake SRAM Elixir 5 MatchMaker - Gloss Black
Brake Levers SRAM Elixir 5 - Black
Colour
Sizes Available 15,17,18.5,20,21.5
Bike Weight (lbs) 26.60
Bike Weight (kgs) 12.05

[swinada]

Well ordered the XTC 29er 1 couldn't quite justify going for the zero as I'm not sure yet how much I really getting in to this again. At least I get a good frame and can always upgrade next season if I feel to.