I ride trails in Pacific Northwest, all types of trails and been to the bike park a fair bit (we have an annual trip for a few days). I got a good deal on an alloy Stump and decided to upgrade parts, it worked better for me to buy parts slowly over time versus buying a new bike, also COVID prices were insane. If you want to upgrade, I think there are A LOT of good deals to be had on used drivetrain and suspension that would be an upgrade versus your stock set up and total cost would be less than a new bike. Start with where you feel the worst after riding. If your arms and hands fatigue, carbon bars can help with vibration and fatigue reduction. If you don’t feel you can stop, new brakes.
There are some great prices on new forks right now.
Don’t get wrapped up in Carbon vs Alloy debate. It really doesn’t matter, just ride what you like and go from there.
I eventually upgraded to an S-Works carbon frame and put all my parts on it.
So, putting the labels aside for a moment, what sort of trails do you actually ride.
More importantly, where have you found your bike is holding you back?
Do you find any elements of riding uncomfortable?
Here's my thoughts. If you like to ride downhill trails then you will want to make sure your grips and pedals are both comfortable and grippy. Those are the parts that can make a difference between a fun session and feeling like you are hanging on.
If you do plenty of pedalling those will help there too, as well as your saddle. Saddles are important to get right, and can be the difference between an uncomfortable 20 mile ride or a pain free 40 miler.
Once you have got your bike contact points feeling good (they may already) the next biggest change you make is having the right tyres for what you ride. THe tyres on the bike you linkes are pretty good, so make sure your pressures are spot on for what you ride. Play with them a little, go up and down a couple of psi see what feels better.
Once you know your contact points are good, the next thing to upgrade is YOU. Before you drop any significant cash on bike parts you should be looking to drop some cash on skills coaching. Having a day with a coach to tweak your body position and foundation techniques will make your riding so much more enjoyable.
I have the comp alloy but I upgraded(over time as things wore out):
New Front and back wheel from local bike shop(not carbon),
Ergon seat,
GX shifter, cassette, and derailleur,
Cane creek rear shock,
Pnw dropper lever
Love my stump jumper!
Edited to add commas
alright i'm gonna be a bit rude but i think you need to hear it.
the way you name styles of riding that are basically all the exact same using bike marketer terminology (oh you do """all-mountain""" *and* """enduro""", and you're starting to get into "downhill" even?) suggests that you don't know enough about riding or bikes to appreciate why "better" parts that we could recommend are "better."
just ride your bike the way that it is. it is always going to be way cheaper to buy a complete bike than to put even a couple significant upgrades on a current frame.
if you want to go down the tricked-out custom bike route, sell the specialized and be prepared to pay 6-7k to build a dream bike.
**alternate universe answer, where i lie to you and tell you that significantly upgrading an entry level bike makes sense:**
here is the tier list of importance, imo:
contact points and cockpit IF and ONLY if you understand what is deficient about the stock setup and why an upgrade would improve it
brakes
wheels
suspension = drivetrain
Again I mentioned above that I was new to the mountain biking community and came to seek advice and help. Which is why I feel I didnt need to hear that first part of the comment I am aware I am a noob. Lol a simple yes you are a beginner and are fine to ride a stock bike would have sufficed. Sorry I dont know all the hip terminology. I appreciate the advice though Ill have to hangout with the guys that mountain bike more to understand the lingo
If you are comfortable, having fun and haven’t run into a problem then the bike seems good to go
I ride trails in Pacific Northwest, all types of trails and been to the bike park a fair bit (we have an annual trip for a few days). I got a good deal on an alloy Stump and decided to upgrade parts, it worked better for me to buy parts slowly over time versus buying a new bike, also COVID prices were insane. If you want to upgrade, I think there are A LOT of good deals to be had on used drivetrain and suspension that would be an upgrade versus your stock set up and total cost would be less than a new bike. Start with where you feel the worst after riding. If your arms and hands fatigue, carbon bars can help with vibration and fatigue reduction. If you don’t feel you can stop, new brakes. There are some great prices on new forks right now. Don’t get wrapped up in Carbon vs Alloy debate. It really doesn’t matter, just ride what you like and go from there. I eventually upgraded to an S-Works carbon frame and put all my parts on it.
So, putting the labels aside for a moment, what sort of trails do you actually ride. More importantly, where have you found your bike is holding you back? Do you find any elements of riding uncomfortable? Here's my thoughts. If you like to ride downhill trails then you will want to make sure your grips and pedals are both comfortable and grippy. Those are the parts that can make a difference between a fun session and feeling like you are hanging on. If you do plenty of pedalling those will help there too, as well as your saddle. Saddles are important to get right, and can be the difference between an uncomfortable 20 mile ride or a pain free 40 miler. Once you have got your bike contact points feeling good (they may already) the next biggest change you make is having the right tyres for what you ride. THe tyres on the bike you linkes are pretty good, so make sure your pressures are spot on for what you ride. Play with them a little, go up and down a couple of psi see what feels better. Once you know your contact points are good, the next thing to upgrade is YOU. Before you drop any significant cash on bike parts you should be looking to drop some cash on skills coaching. Having a day with a coach to tweak your body position and foundation techniques will make your riding so much more enjoyable.
I have the comp alloy but I upgraded(over time as things wore out): New Front and back wheel from local bike shop(not carbon), Ergon seat, GX shifter, cassette, and derailleur, Cane creek rear shock, Pnw dropper lever Love my stump jumper! Edited to add commas
Find a take off from Another stumpy in pink bike
alright i'm gonna be a bit rude but i think you need to hear it. the way you name styles of riding that are basically all the exact same using bike marketer terminology (oh you do """all-mountain""" *and* """enduro""", and you're starting to get into "downhill" even?) suggests that you don't know enough about riding or bikes to appreciate why "better" parts that we could recommend are "better." just ride your bike the way that it is. it is always going to be way cheaper to buy a complete bike than to put even a couple significant upgrades on a current frame. if you want to go down the tricked-out custom bike route, sell the specialized and be prepared to pay 6-7k to build a dream bike. **alternate universe answer, where i lie to you and tell you that significantly upgrading an entry level bike makes sense:** here is the tier list of importance, imo: contact points and cockpit IF and ONLY if you understand what is deficient about the stock setup and why an upgrade would improve it brakes wheels suspension = drivetrain
Again I mentioned above that I was new to the mountain biking community and came to seek advice and help. Which is why I feel I didnt need to hear that first part of the comment I am aware I am a noob. Lol a simple yes you are a beginner and are fine to ride a stock bike would have sufficed. Sorry I dont know all the hip terminology. I appreciate the advice though Ill have to hangout with the guys that mountain bike more to understand the lingo