Bike for the Mrs

[ootini]

Hi all, me and the breadknife complete her first bikepacking trip this weekend. I'll be sorting out some pics and write up soon. She really enjoyed it and considering she hasn't ridden any real distance or elevation on a bike in a very long time she did really well. However, her bike is a complete tragedy, it's an Emmelle Nightshade and with a sleeping bag, half a tent and some clothes added came in at 22Kg, and it only has a horrible 2 x 5 SRAM gripshift drive train.
I'm trying to convince her to splash some cash on a new bike, but she's concerned about spending a fortune on something she might not use that often. I'm thinking we could budget up to about £400 which puts us in the low-mid range hardtail neck of the woods. I was simply after some advice on what kind of things to look for and avoid. I know lots of you guys ride rigid frames, I'm assuming this is simply to save weight, which is a good idea, she doesn't do fast downhill stuff. I'm assuming that the things to look for would be the best drive train for the money, preferably disc brakes; hydro or mechanical, and get something as lightweight as possible. Anyone have any pointers, advice etc? So, in summary, what's the best bikepacking bike you can grab for up to £400? She may prefer a women's specific frame, but it's not a deal breaker.

Ta

[Bearbonesnorm]

There's so many variables and things to consider, however I'd suggest looking at something from the Pinnacle range from Evans. They're very well thought out (thanks to JamesO ) and well specced.

Jarrah 2 might fit the bill and it's under budget at the moment. Not sure how good the forks are but they're easily / cheaply swapped to rigid if need be. The Ramin 1 would also be worth looking at, slightly over budget and rigid but rides very well.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/pin ... e-ec055205

[ootini]

Thanks very much! I think they're actually the same, or at least similar to the forks on my KTM UltraFire. Might not be the best but they do me OK. I'm not really sure what benefits better forks would actually provide, guess it's one of those things you'd only notice once you've ridden them.
Thanks for the info.

[Single Speed George]

yea the pinnacle frames are ok ( use to work at Evans part time when at 6th form and uni ), would want better forks especially if go in use it on trail centers etc as well as bike packing. if just bike packing on easy terrain may be go ridged on it as would be better (less flex) than cheep sus forks.

if you can push to around the £500 mark i would go for one of the Canyon Yellow stone, as canyon bikes are vaguely exciting and good value. as they suppy straight to the customer. i had a top end canyon Downhill bike and is the best thing i ever had, cheaper than the equivalent bikes i could have got when working at Evans and the speck of them is great. even though they are German the customer service if stuff goes wrong was good in the uk too. so worth a look anyway..

[HaYWiRe]

For £400 I just picked up a Btwin 560 from decathlon
Rockshox soloair forks, hydro brakes, and deore/slx drivetrain

Comfortable on long distance runs, and tours nicely. lockout is very handy, climbs well and handles windy singletrack if that's your thing.

My whole family runs btwin bikes, excellent value for money in my opinion,
I've put hundreds of miles on my btwin triban road bike without a single hitch.

[ootini]

Thanks for all the info. Gotta say, the Btwin 560 looks like a very, very good spec for the money on paper... Hmmmm

[HaYWiRe]

I thought the same when I was looking, Bear in mind I've only put 200 miles into it so far so very early days, but I'm very impressed, not the lightest but more than light enough to shoulder and run up a hill with

It might not be the best for bikepacking, being 26" and air suspension, as apposed to the common rigid 29ers, but makes it a good all round bike, and I know being on a budget, you never want to go too specialized if its your only MTB

Its not women specific but the trail geometry gives it a nice low stand over height, myself and my girlfriend are both hobbit sized and have no issue

[Single Speed George]

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/verenti-indulgence-2015/

this looks interesting not quite what you were looking for may be . but a sub £500 fat bike migt be good for bike packing !