Is there an embargo on Orange bikes?

icarus

Or are they just not popular?

I haven't seen anyone recommend one to all the people asking for advice on buying a new bike and I've even seen them slagged off, suggesting they are overpriced rubbish.

dhxcme

Just people can't handle not having one. So they have to slag them instead.

MattW87

Ive never owned an orange, and ive not got much experiance of them either, but from points raised on the forum my assumption is that they are not the best value for money bikes out there, although they may be a prestiege brand and have great frames etc im guessing the price puts people off for the spec they are getting?

just my view from what ive read, not wanting to put down orange bikes at all

Matt

BlackSpur

There have been a lot of what trail bike threads recently, and the Orange 5 has been constantly reccomended/praised.

dhxcme

It's all about getting what you pay for.

Some people want to pay for something that was made by children in a sweat shop. Others don't buy Orange. (Joke)

It's all about paying for a hand made British rig that tells people that you don't mind paying to ride something special.

supersonic

The frames are good, with geometry liked by many. Its just the parts spec on some models that let them down compared to other brands - and some of these other brands have geometry and ride just as good, especially hardtails.

Not all are made in UK, many are made abroad now.

dhxcme

All the tube frames are forign. The bikes that matter, 5, patriot, big t, 224 are all built in the UK.

supersonic

That matter? So you would'nt recommend any of the others?

dhxcme

Matter as in made the name. I recomend any of them.

icarus

MattW87 wrote:

Ive never owned an orange, and ive not got much experiance of them either, but from points raised on the forum my assumption is that they are not the best value for money bikes out there, although they may be a prestiege brand and have great frames etc im guessing the price puts people off for the spec they are getting?
Matt

Thats a fair comment and tbh thats what put me off at first, until I actually sat on some bikes.

The only thing I didn't do (which I do regret) is go and try out a Malt-4, but as I specifically wanted a steel frame I didn't bother.

dhxcme

did you get an orange or are you still undecided

icarus

Yes, a P7.

So far its been awesome, apart from punctures in the standard speedkings, I avarage at least one everytime it leaves the garage.

Its a lot more relaxed than the pure XC bikes I tried but still handles well enough on the XC stuff.

dhxcme

Go for high-rollers or holy-rollers. Never had a flat on either, Maxxis all the way.

pcsplace

i pick up my orange 5 pro in around an hour, cant wait. I tested it against a stumpjumper expert with brain fade and it was the orange all the way for me. Everyone has their own opinion but to me the orange is superb, plus its uk build and not off the shelf like some bikes. All in all it comes down to the ride and that is completely individual.

I cant wait to pick my bike up today tho!

grantway

Firstly welcome to the fold Icarus, Orange brother.

Yes most of the hard tails are made in taiwan apart from the Subzero
for what i am told.

All the full sussers are made in Halifax,

One thing is most if not all the full sussers get 10 out of 10 points for all
Orange bikes.

These are all hand made and not mass manufactured custom drawn or
hydro formed Aluminium.

So there is one reason these are more expensive.

Then if you look at the spec all components are high quality
and not a mix bag such has Specalized with there hubs and gears.

Yes the single pivot is an old design but always tweaked but it
gets the job done and has the reviews say, it's done very well indeed.
Also before i bought one it had taken me two years before i made my mind
up due to technology and weight of the bikes.

Most of the reviews on full suspension bikes in the magazines i found that most
of the multi link bikes, had lost if not had bad fitted bolts.

Now i ride a lot in Dartmoore and when i look around theres only me.
and no shops or help.

The only bikes that never fell apart with missing parts was the Orange
bikes.

So when you look at the overall package, you have just bought into
what i would say is reliability and quality and strength, which you
can update for many years to come and still be no need to change
your frame.

Happy riding.

KonaMike

The Orange 5 is one of the all time great trail bikes,I would love one !! Orange is a great brand with a quality image.

Anonymous

there are no 2 ways about it, orange make what are believed to be some of the best bikes around but to get top spec you need to spend top money.

there is definately better value for money to be had and for those who claim orange are some kind of miracle pill, ask yourselves would you love your bikes so much if it said emmelle on the down tube?

icarus

sheepsteeth wrote:

there is definately better value for money to be had and for those who claim orange are some kind of miracle pill, ask yourselves would you love your bikes so much if it said emmelle on the down tube?

No.
I said straight from the off that a lot of it was vanity.
I've always liked Orange, but in fairness if Merlin or On-one had an £800 steel framed All Mountain bike I'd have seriously gone after one of those too.

In fact my initial purchase was going to be On-one but by the time I'd added a groupset it was well over £1000 and for what I use it for I'd set myself a ceiling of a grand.

But yes, essentially I suppose buying a P7 means you're buying into the Orange brand as much as anything, I didn't want an 'off the shelf' mass produced bike.

GT Destroyer

I had to post.

My Orange is awesome - I didn't notice any lower specs with the full bikes but then again I bought the frame on its own then built the bike from there. The frame is tremendous, the Crush is an all mountain aggressive beast and it does exactly what it should, its a bit of a bugger on the climbs but point it downhill and theres no looking back.

I'll be buying an Orange for my full sus bike for sure.

zero303

I think the value for money argument rings true in the lower priced bikes - as a lower unit producer they just can't compete in that end of the market. I do think the Evo08, P7 S, and G-Series bikes look a little sorry in the spec stakes but the reviews always state the ride ends up being greater than the sum of parts.

When you get to the higher end of the market, I don't consider them bad value at all. Take MBR's recent trail bike of the year test - The Five Pro was so on the money for value and was specced very handsomely in that company, it's not like it was vastly more expensive (ignoring the brutally good value although slightly flawed Prophet 1).

Unfortunately, (sorry for this Grantway, has to be mentioned), the passion for the brand gets a little too vocal in some people and rubs others up the wrong way, especially when the reviewers then mark the bikes so well.

I've owned lots of Oranges and never regretted it - I don't get any hostility out on the trail so I think the issue is isolated to Bike Radar and other internet forums where tensions can run high of silly things. Out on the trail, people are normally highly interested in what I'm riding and willing to chat...

I guess it's a bit like Cannondale Syndrome but quite frankly, I'm not going to avoid the brand because of what others thing, they're wicked bikes and sexy to boot! I'm got a Cannondale Taurine and a Badboy on my wishlist!!

Anonymous

i owned a p7 and had always wanted one for sentimental reasons as it was the first bike i rode when i learned the art of cycling at the grand old age of 23. i crashed it so bad that i didnt swing my leg over a bike until about 4 years later.

i bought a p7 to compliment my other bikes (thinking i needed a hardtail, which i absolutely didnt) and upgraded it into various guises: rebas, nixons finally settling on revelationsand no matter what i did, i never felt that supposed steel springiness that these bikes are famed for, maybe im not an expert rider enough to tell the nuances of various hardtails (all of which suck balls in my own personal opinion)

i apreciate that orange make world class and podium occuping bikes but i do think your money can be better spent elswhere (apart from with a five which seems to be the un-disputed king of the world and i want one for that reason)

fly4fun

My 2 cents...

My 5 rides better than any other 140mm bike ive ever ridden - meta 5 is the only one that comes reasonably close. I know its almost £300 more expensive (frame only) and part of the extra money is in the brand and the 'made in UK' side of it. But i reckon the frame is over £300 better than the competition in the way it rides.....so get one!

toasty

How do the Metas differ in ride style just out of interest? I've demo'd a 5 and instantly wanted one, it's a tough choice though as they're a similar head angle, top tube, ground clearance, the only real difference is the pivot position and hence the seat angle to compensate for this. Spec wise the Meta 5.5 XT seems to compete with the 5 Pro for a bit cheaper. Still, don't think I'd dare risk it.

Sadly no where around here does them to demo.

I think the thing people don't like is the elitism and dragging down other brands, much like Grantway saying Specializeds wheelsets are inferior in the last post. I don't know if it's just an attempt to justify the cost or something, he's only owned it a couple of weeks yet seems to have formed a long term conclusion it's better at going up, down and along than anything under the sun. All the crap about them copying Commencal in the last thread too, have you seen the ST4 shock design?

supersonic

Where do you draw the line with price? Would you buy the Orange 5 if it was £3000? £4000? Its still the same ride. Its just with the hardtails, especially the sub £1000 bikes, people draw this line a lot quicker. I've ridden £200 hardtails with well sorted geometry, workable parts and a spritely ride, but it doesnt mean I'd pay £500 for it. While frame dictates a large part of the ride, especially with a full susser, fork, wheels and contact points also have a big role. You can have the best hardtail frame in the world, but hang a clunky undamped fork of it, heavy wheels, brakes that dont work and crap tyres, and that frame is nigh on useless. Often balanced packages for the money perfrom better than the ones that have the perceived better frame, and besides, what one person likes in feel and geometry and ride, another might not.

Anonymous

grantway wrote:

Then if you look at the spec all components are high quality
and not a mix bag such has Specalized with there hubs and gears.

ermm, have look at the bargain basement hubs, rims, mechs and shifters on the orange 5s, bear in mind it is a1700 quid bike. infact, the fork could be better too.

http://www.orangebikes.co.uk/2008bikes/five-s.php

now feast your eyes on the top spec of the specialized stumpjumper for 1700 quid:

http://www.specialized.com/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=33435

supersonic

"These are all hand made and not mass manufactured custom drawn or
hydro formed Aluminium. "

There is nothing wrong at all with the latter methods, and some of the lightest frames on the market are made this way using the latest technology.

marika

i'd rather have my frame made at a state of the art facility in taiwan with second to none qaulity control,don't know what the problem is myself,orange bikes are dearer because our wages are higher than a robots in taiwan,no other reason,thats why their bikes are simple also

fly4fun

marika wrote:

ithats why their bikes are simple also

No, the bikes use a single pivot design because it has had years of refinement and works far better than many of the multi link system. Why over-complicate it when you can do something this well on a s.p.

toasty

marika wrote:

i'd rather have my frame made at a state of the art facility in taiwan with second to none qaulity control,don't know what the problem is myself,orange bikes are dearer because our wages are higher than a robots in taiwan,no other reason,thats why their bikes are simple also

On the flip side, single pivot bikes will always have their fans, the main companies doing them seem to be Orange, Santa Cruz, Commencal (well ok, not quite, it's close!) etc?

It's a shame all the Treks, Specialized, Giants, Marins, GTs etc have more complex pivot setups.

supersonic

Everyone tries to get the best they can for their money. What this bike this is entirely down to opinion. I buy bikes based on what works best for me in my budget. I don't care what brand, whether it looks good or what other people think. It is pure coincidence that out of the 5 bikes I own, 3 are GTs: the Zaskar is a classic, and still works well, the Ruckus an incredible bargain, and the Idrive - well, i have yet to ride a bike that pedals as well as an Idrive.

SP vs multilink - some prefer one over the other. There is no best. As above, I prefer Idrive due to the way it pedals. I find high and forward SP bikes like the Orange kickback a bit through the travel, and no amount of frame tweaking or fancy shokcs will ever cure this, unless the pivot is changed. But that pivot works well for other reasons.

dhxcme

i'd rather have my frame made at a state of the art facility in taiwan with second to none qaulity control,don't know what the problem is myself,orange bikes are dearer because our wages are higher than a robots in taiwan,no other reason,thats why their bikes are simple also

When you say there simple because there handmade in the UK thats bullsh*t. They're simple because they work and don't neet to be molested to improve them.

If you look at the price differences between the mass produced bikes compared to the handmade stuff, you'll not see a vast difference maybe £300 pounds which considering a CNC hydroformer and the rest of the "robots" cost about £10 million a production line.

End of the day you are paying for the brand, the badge the right to say that is what I ride.