hardtail mountain bike recomendations?

[doona]

I saw a thread on this however the thread was not detailed and the user was on a different budget. I havn't ridden in a few years due to travelling among other things.

I am looking for a new mountain bike. My budget is <$3000 ($2500 preferable). I am going to be using the bike to ride to work everyday so i will be riding on roads etc. however on weekends i am looking to go mountain biking regularly riding all the trails around where i live.

My question is for the budget i am willing to spend what brand or specific bike do you recomend me getting. The only specific requirements i want is a hardtail bike with disk breaks.

I have been looking really closely at a Gary Fisher or a Trek mountain bike. What are your thoughts on these and what are your recomendations?

 

[sirjames]

For that price bracket you will be able to get a nice hard tail with a mix of XT/XTR. Fisher and Trek's are great, so are Giants and Scott at that price. I would go with an alloy fram to keep the component quality high and you wil have a bullet proof bike for many years to come.

I have a Giant XTC1 which has been fantastic. I got it for 2k and it does the job fantastically. Lasted XC races, 24 hour races, 6 hr enduros, 100k etc over the past year and keeps copping the punishment.

Go to a shop and ride a few around that range and see which one feels best for you. They are al a bit different in top tube, seat tube lengths depending on the ride they are trying to achieve.