Quick Comparison of the 3 Different Marin Bobcat Models for 2023 

I will buy trail 4 because for me its the best bike for the money and with dropper post and upgraded air fork is the bobcat trail 4 really great trail bike.

The Trail 3 because I can switch the front derailleur to accommodate street or trail riding. A added a dropper post and the bike is perfect for my needs.

@@worldismyoyster Nice, yeah it has been probably the most popular one over the years however the 4 seems to have caught up. Yeah, I get some people like the front derailleur, I’ve just never been a fan and are a pain to adjust (at least for me). Everyone is different though. Thanks for the comment and take care!

​@@worldismyoysterThanks! Your comment made me go for the 3 as I will also use the bike to go into town which is 12 miles away on good roads

Thanks for the the comment and sharing about your Bobcat! Sounds like it's turned into a pretty sweet ride! Hope you have fun on it. Take care

Sorry for the delayed reply! Not sure how I missed this one. Congrats on the Bobcat 4 and the Judy upgrade. Glad you are enjoying it!

Nice upgrades! Yeah, sometimes it ends up not being worth it but hey, you arguably built up a better spec bike than the 5, but still have the Miami Vice color!

Nice, congrats on the 5! Glad you are having a good time on it. Yeah, with a dropper post, it will make it a little easier to get on and off and good for confidence going down hill. Just make sure to measure correctly for the dropper or have a shop help you to make sure you get the right length due to those water bottle mounts on the seat tube. Good luck!

@@BikingRoots yes I think I have 255mm of insertion depth to those bolts for a post on my XL frame. As long as I can get that seat down out of the way I’ll be able to rip some trails with it.

@@williamgorman7867 Ok right on. Good luck with it

I bought a Marin Bobcat 5 in size small this past spring. For the price, it has excellent components. It's enough for me being a light trail rider. As things wear out, I'll replace them. All I did to start was to swap out the tires for Maxxis Ardent tires & swap out the pedals for Race Face Chester MTB pedals. My next upgrade is the fork to a Rockshox Rekon fork when I need it. A terrific bike!

Thanks for the comment. Yeah, I know what you mean. I think it came down to what's the best price they could get on a better coil fork and the only one they could get for whatever price they wanted to pay had the 15x100mm thru axle so they went with it. It is a better coil fork in feel and performance over the bobcat 3 and 4 but still heavier and not the feel of air. You can get an adapter from problem solvers and maybe others that converts the 15x100mm thru axle to work with quick release if you choose to go that route. Yes, boost and tapered are becoming the standard at least on a lot of bikes over $1k but in the meantime we still need options for the less expensive and older bikes! Oh cool, I like Germany! We have some German neighbors that are really cool and I've always liked your cars ;-). Take care!

Nice, congrats. Glad you like the 4. Yeah, tanwalls can be a bit tough to find these days, just be patient.

Yeah I know. Most brands unfortunately this is the case (to keep costs down and simplify inventory) unless you get into some real high dollar models like on some Orbea bikes where they have a huge color pallet to choose from (at a high price point).

Thanks for sharing and congrats on the new bobcat 5! Hope you have fun with it and do some cool upgrades!

Gracias, si el modelo de crema es padre. Oh que bueno, me gusta el team marin 1. Buena suerte con la bicicleta!

Ha, thanks Kevin!

ha, yep, 90s retro

No problem! Thanks for bringing it in!

Yeah for beginners, a FS bike is more forgiving (at least on our rooty trails) but budget usually has them starting out with hard tails. You want them to start off on a good enough bike where they get the proper experience of mountain biking. Thanks for the comment!

On the current version the drivetrain is what you'll feel the biggest difference in. The Bobcat 5 is a 1x11 drivetrain so no front derailleur and the rear derailleur has a clutch (so quieter and better over bumps). If you can go for a 4 that would be a 1x9 w/ a clutch and you'd feel the difference there. The 5 does have slightly different brakes (not a huge difference) and it does have a nicer coil fork (not air but nicer than fork on bobcat 3 and 4). Hope that helps! Also just FYI, new model rumored to probably drop soon on the bobcats so just keep that in mind that this time of the year brands start releasing new models and the bobcat is long overdue for a change. Thanks!

Thanks for reaching out from South Africa! Unfortunately we do not ship overseas, sorry... I'm trying to think who might. What size frame are you looking for?

@@BikingRoots thanks for the reply. I’m looking for a size small (I’m 167cm tall). Happy to pay the Aramex shipping costs if this is a way for shipping it. Do you have an email which we can correspond on? Thanks Jason

Thanks for your question. It depends on when they were built. Some of the 4s and the 5s would come with WTB tires, then suddenly they were Deli tires or sometimes Vee. It all depends when they came out of the factory. Often they'll have a disclaimer at the bottom as other brands do as well saying that exact specs are subject to change. Makes it tough though because you never know exactly what you'll get

thanks for the info! 🙂@@BikingRoots

Hey, thanks for the comment. That’s a good question. Going to the advent x, dropper, and air fork is all that I would do on the bobcat as far as upgrades. Do you see yourself keeping the bike for a while? Or do you think you’ll have the itch to go to a full suspension like the Rift Zone? It depends on you and your riding style and budget. I usually advise that if you plan on keeping the bike awhile, it fits you well, and you like everything about it, then put some money into it and enjoy the upgrades and get your money’s worth. However, if you may end up selling it in a few months then you’ll be taking a hit since you never will get the money out of upgrades that you put into it. Some of our customers end up keeping their upgraded bobcats for a friend or family member but obviously not everyone can do that. If you are in between, I’d just do the fork and the drivetrain and not the dropper. The dropper is nice, but not as important as the other two in my opinion. Good luck!

Thank you for your reply. I do plan on keeping it for a while, this is my first real mountain bike and I don’t see myself getting a full suspension for a while since my riding style is that of a baby giraffe learning to walk for the first time. I’m scare of anything I can’t roll and some things I can if they look steep and just trying to get fit and maybe learn some jumps. Then will probably keep it for friends.

hello. medium 29er. The mediums come in 2 sizes 29 or 27.5. Good luck!

135mm quick release. Usually not great for upgrades unless you find a wheel that is 142 and has QR caps to put on it

Sorry for the delay. There are no frame mounts for a front derailleur but what the bobcat 3 uses is just what appears to be a top pull derailleur that just clamps to the seat tube. So, if you wanted one, I don’t think it would be difficult. I then wraps under BB shell and enters the hole in the frame to go up to the cockpit

Hello, thanks for reaching out. Medium for sure. 27.5 vs 29 is the challenge! Depends on you for that one... if you want a more nimbler, tighter turning, slightly lower standover height bike, go 27.5. If you want faster, roll over things easier, a bit slower in tight turn bike, go 29. If you're able to ride both, I recommend it to compare. I've had fun on both so that's a tough one for me (and I'm the same height)

@@BikingRoots Very grateful for the detailed answer! I prefer an aggressive urban driving style, then I think it’s better to take 27.5. Are you sure that size M will be the best choice? We're the same height, but size L is too big for you?

@@alexmadz Sorry for delayed response. Yes size large would be too big for me and probably you too. ok cool, 27.5

sorry for the delayed response. You can find the rockshox judy 27.5 120mm of travel here on our site. bikingroots.com/products/rockshox-judy-silver-tk-fork-straight-quick-release?_pos=1&_psq=judy&_ss=e&_v=1.0 we also have the Recon 29 100mm (they don’t sell them in 120 w/ straight steerer and QR). bikingroots.com/products/rockshox-recon-silver-rl-d1-suspension-fork-27-5-air-120mm-1-1-8-qr-rake-42mm-black?_pos=2&_psq=recon&_ss=e&_v=1.0

maybe for some people but I don’t anticipate them changing much on it honestly. The geometry is already more modern than a lot of the competitors at this price range. I probably see them just changing the colors honestly which for some people will be good and others not

@@BikingRoots посмотрю в Google translate

@@BikingRoots polygon bikes?

@@denisantivatnikov6velophot554 Yeah polygons are an option. They are the factory's brand (the same factory that makes Marins). Generally their designs are very similar so usually are released at the same time