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Summary: In a full-suspension mountain bike, look for an aggressive shock in the front, large tires, hydraulic disc brakes and a reinforced frame for heavy or downhill riding. Choose a full-suspension mountain bike that fits a desired style of riding, whether it be cross-country, free riding or downhill biking, with advice from an experienced cyclist and bike repair specialist in this free video on bicycles.
John Murray is a bicycle sales and repair technician at FJ Rogers in Florence, Mass. Murray has been working at FJ Rogers for several years, and is an expert on road, mountain, BMX and...read more
"So now I'm going to talk about what to look for and how to buy a full suspension mountain bike. The first thing you are going to want to do is think about what type of riding you are going to be doing whether it is cross country mountain biking, free ride, or downhill mountain biking. This right here is a downhill mountain bike and it comes with a really big aggressive shock in the front, large aggressive knobby tires, hydraulic disc brakes, a really big reinforced frame, a rear shock and it is only eight speeds. You have a chain tensioner and a chain guide on the front of the bike so that when you are going over lots of rocks and roots and the chain is slapping around you don't lose any tension and the chain won't come off. If you are looking at more of a free ride mountain bike something to do a little bit of everything with they are a little bit lighter weight than this, they come with less suspension and they don't usually come with a big huge triple crown fork but they still come with the disc brakes, might have a little bit more gears on it but it will still come with a bash guard so you don't smash up the chain rink. When you are looking for a cross country mountain bike those are a lot lighter weight. They don't come with triple crown forks, they usually come with a single. They are usually 21 up to 27 speeds and they're made out of anything from aluminum to carbon fiber. They are a lot lighter weight and they are not made for as aggressive riding."
eHow Article: How to Buy a Full-Suspension Mountain Bike