Mountain Bike Collection at Wrench Science
Though mountain bikes started out as makeshift wide-tired bikes that could be ridden on unpaved roads, the category has exploded to include a diverse range of different types of mountain bikes designed to do everything from fast cross-country riding to even faster downhill racing.
You can find all categories of mountain bikes from XC to trail, enduro, downhill, and everything in between at Wrench Science. Our complete selection of mountain bikes combined with the deep knowledge of our salespeople and experts will ensure you can find exactly the mountain bike you need.
What to look for when buying a mountain bike
The first question you will need to ask yourself is what type of mountain biking will you want to do? What types of trails do you have access to? Is there a bike park nearby? What is your skill level? What would you like it to be?
Answering these questions will get you well started on figuring out what type of mountain bike for sale you’ll ultimately want to buy.
If you are looking to ride or even race XC/cross-country trails, then you will want to focus on XC-oriented mountain bikes. They will typically be lighter weight frames that come either as a hardtail – where the only suspension dampening is provided by the fork – or full suspension frames. Front suspension travel will be between 100 and 120mm while the rear suspension will generally be about 100mm travel. Keep in mind, hardtails will be lighter and will have been designed so that the rear seatstays will still offer a degree of controlled flex, so that the ride won’t feel overly harsh on your backside.
Hardtails are excellent for riders who are focused on keeping the bike as light as possible and are willing to exchange a modicum of capability on rough downhills for the speed. Full suspension XC bikes are great for people who want to have access to trail riding, and can also help people who are still needing to build up their bike handling skills on rougher trails.
Trail riding and all-mountain
For most people, when they think of mountain biking, it’s trail riding they have in mind. It’s a mix of fireroads, singletrack, and a bit of downhill that makes mountain biking not only challenging but mega fun. Trail bikes split the line between lightweight XC and more durable and heavier all-mountain options. The rear suspension for these bikes will run between 120 and 150 mm to allow you to handle rough trails and downhill sections more assuredly. Though heavier than XC bikes, trail and all-mountain bikes still are designed to be lighter and maneuverable since you’ll be pedaling up as much as you’ll be freewheeling down.
Enduro and downhill riding
Considering the level of technical skill and confidence these mountain bike disciplines require, you’ll have to have done quite a bit of trail riding before you know you are ready to graduate to enduro and downhill mountain bikes. These types of bikes are defined by the long travel, durable construction, and super modern geometry.
Mountain bike geometry is always going to be slacker and lower than anything you’ll find on a gravel bike, but enduro and downhill bikes take modern geometry to the extreme. If you are not used to it, you’ll wonder how anyone can even ride a bike like that! But these bikes are not designed to be overly efficient when pedaling uphill. It’s all about the way they track and grab the trail going super fast downhill.
With rear suspension travel going anywhere from 150 mm to 200 mm – that’s a full 10-inches! – you’ll get the idea that these bikes are built for the gnarliest, more demanding trails around.
Best mountain bike brands
At Wrench Science, we live and breathe mountain biking. So we have been very focused on curating a selection of the absolute best mountain bikes for all types of riding. Brands like Ibis, Evil, Knolly, Intense, and Niner mountain bikes have all a deep history of making top quality aluminum and carbon mountain bikes. We also are proud to have Litespeed, Mosaic and Moots mountain bikes among our titanium mountain bike offerings.
If you haven’t had a chance, please check out our blog on the Best Mountain Bikes of 2023 to get an idea of which brand your new ride could be. And please feel free to get in touch with our experts any time if you have any questions or are ready to start the journey of buying a new mountain bike!