Which full susser £1500 ish?

tonyeynon

Hey chaps,

My heads going to explode soon unless some one helps me out.

Im desperatly trying to get back into the game after a long break but I really cant come to a decision on what to shortlist. I Like to ride cross country/all mountin. For me I love the downhills and like to push my aggressiveness, that said, the uphills kill me so any help their is always going to be a bonus!!

Ive read and read and read and now I fell as if my heads going to explode so if you guys could just give some advice I would be forever in your detb. I have saved a very good budget and am so parranoid about wasting it on a lemon - arrrggg

Please heeeelp

milkywhite

XC full suss bikes are generally about 4" travel. AM bikes typically around 6". Quite different types of bike.

If your riding encompasses XC and AM, with everything in between then I'd say your best bet is a 5" trail bike along the lines of a Stumpjumper FSR. Quick and light enough for fast XCish riding but enough travel to ride most stuff barring big drops and jumps.

chrisnind

im in the same situation as urself mate, but i seem to have narrowed myself down to 2 choices, if you can scrape an extra £500 then the Giant Trance X2 is an awesom bike, but i was also interested in the Marin mount vision 5.7 but again this is £300 above ur budget, iv een told theyre both very good bikes, but the Giant comes with alot better components, hence the price difference. apparently Marin Frames are built by a different company, which means they are more expensive for obvious reasons, but Giant build there own frames so they can afford to give u the better components. Keep me updated on ur progress.
I unfortuantely wont be purchasing my new ride until februatry time so would be grateful for ne updates or tips.
hope iv helped a little bit.
chris

supersonic

GT Force worth a look. Quite responsive geometry for a 6 inch travel bike.

tonyeynon

Thanks everyone, I think my style would be more AM than XC if I had to choose between the 2... If this helps at all?

milkywhite

Specialized Pitch or Enduro?

Trek Remedy 09 (if you can stretch the budget)?

Giant Reign?

All worth considering.

tonyeynon

Any comments on the Enduro 2008 vs the 2009?

milkywhite

Weren't there some suspension issues with the older enduros (S'sonic)?

grumsta

Specialized Pitch is what I've got and I love it, has made my riding much more aggressive.

Also worth a look are Commencal Meta 5, Giant Trance X, Lapierre Zesty.

grantway

If your into aggressive then try a Orange 5 S model built on the best Trail bike
frame and built stronger than the catergory its in and the frame is much more
stronger than most of those above.

I ride Downhill/Freeride sections mainly on this and Orange says its fine has
long as I dont do the large Jumps and drops.

Ok I have the 5 AM version but you can always spec up on a sound frame.

Best thing is to get a few Trail bikes and test them out and see what pushes you
to the next level.

tonyeynon

Yeah I like the look of the Orange 5 S model but couldnt figure out of it would be suitable for me and my riding style. Woulds it be a complete nightmare on the uphills or not at all?

I want the bike to be at its best when its going down as thats what all the hardwork is for right! But at the same time I would still it to be graded as "Not bad" on the grueling hill sections which lets face it, take up about 90% of the day

If I was to do a short list now, this is probably where Im up to (In no particular order):

Enduro comp 2008-£1400 in sale, I heard they are good spec but the folks have had issues.
Enduro Expert 2008 - £1600 in sale
Enduro comp 09 - £2000 top end of my poss budget
Kona Dawg 09- £1400
Pitch Pro 09 - £1400
Orange 5 S -£1800 (I dont know too much about them)

Arrgggg??! Confused.com

tonyeynon

Maybe add the Trek Fuel after reading the other post in this forum?! arrg
Still very much need you help guys :?

Steve_F

I'd add the 08 Marin Wolf Ridge to that list too. My mate has one and it's a really nice bike.

Have the 2008 bikes started to come down in price yet cos that might help you grab a bargin?

passout

Don't go for 150mm travel it's too much for climbing especially on rides over 2 hours - I know from bitter experience! 140mm is much better as an all rounder that can cope with everything - people ride 140mm bikes in Morzine with no issues. I can testify that 140mm is ideal for tha Lakes where I do most of my riding. Weight and especially geometry are issues too.

Ideally a Commencal Meta 55, Orange 5 or Kona Dawg I'd say. A trance X if you decide to go a bit more XC. Last years models would be good for all these too.

You get a much more usable and responsive bike at the 5 inch point. 6 inches feels 'wallowy' to me.

Cheers.

passout

Look at:
Wiggle for Trance X (£999 I think)
Merlin for Commencal Meta (2008 - if there are any left)
Plenty of 08 Konas going cheap
Winstanleys is worth a look too.

Think 5 inches, think discount and don't worry too much about which one as all of the bikes mentioned on this thread are good quality. Main thing is to get out on your bike!!

Kowalski

I'd go with an Orange 5 for the money and type of riding you are looking to do.

passout

An Orange 5 is ideal and one of the most repected/relaible FS bikes out there. You won't get much of a discount but it's still a good choice.

tonyeynon

Yeah I do like the look of the orange 5, so you wouldnt say its too heavy to make my life miserable on the ups, but obviously not as light as say the endure & epic etc?

Would that be an accurate description?

Thanks by the way guys!

passout

No, it's fine - sturdy yes but not too heavy. I know guys who have done endurance events and the Karrimor thingy on a 5 with no problems. I don't like 'very' light bikes either - it's about achieving a balance. Anyway, I much perefer the geometry of an Orange (or Commencal Meta) to Specialised. It is a personal thing of course but you simply can't go wrong with a 5.

dmb

Virtually all the bikes that have been mentioned are excellent but the proof of the pudding is in the eatiing. Best try first many places allow you to hire a bike before trying it. Rutland water cycles for instance.

grantway

The Epic is a XC bike not what you need and Enduro is a 6 inch Bike.

The Orange 5 weighs in for the 5 Pro at 28 lbs and a little lighter for the
Se model. The AM version is 29 and Half lbs and this is in a Medium frame size.
Unsure what the S model weighs, you can give Orange a call.

You dont want to a light bike hammering down hard sections has the frame may
not be able to take it.
Going up hills well has it says in the mag tests it gets the job done but on the
downs you simply fly.
On some days I ride with some guys and do 23 miles approx in the sadle.

With all the Orange models you can add or change the spec so you dont have to
have a certain fork which most people usaully change when buying the 5 S model.
You can always upgrade the fork to one with a lockout.

I mainly change the front to 100 on the ups and ride 140 then open up to
160 and hit it hard

But 140 fork is really all what you need for England, unless you just want to
go harder and faster.

I wouldnt go for the Specalized forks there not in the league of the Fox forks.

tom_majski

I had a ride on a pitch pro recently. I'm normally not a fan of spesh full sussers but to be fair i couldn't fault the pitch pro at all! and for £1400 you're getting good kit for your money. I rode it on a DH track and it was pretty fast. I've not ridden it up anything, but it pedalled well on the flat!

tonyeynon

This is all great stuff guys I cant thank you all enough.

I think my minds nearly set on an Orange five s, or maybe above if I can find a good deal on a 2008, in a shop that does the cycle to work scheme thing...

tonyeynon

In fact chaps, one last question for you all? Sellers of Orange appear to be a bit scarce..

Does anyone know fo a shop selling a 16 Orange 5 s 2008, or maybe some of the others five models in the 08 (in the sale) and accept the ryde to work thing?

Thanks

passout

Not really sure who has got what in stock but you could try Biketreks in Ambleside, The Edge Cycleworks in Lancaster and Warrington or Leisure Lakes in Preston. Leisure Lakes is a pretty big shop with a few outlets. I think all these do cycle scheme. personally I really rate Bike Treks but they are all good. The Orange website should list dealers in your region.

A RS Pike would be a good (performance/value) 140mm fork to get by the way but needs a 20mm bolt through hub.

1340jas

try Sunset MTB in Cardiff. They have a web site. Give them a call in the shop. They do mail order and interest free. If you have the cash you may get a better deal.
I have a 5 Pro and It is a great all round bike. Climbing is very good, but as Grantway says it comes into its own when pointing down hill. I have had it just over a year and have started to upgrade a few bits as they have worn or I have broken them. Nothing serious just wear and tear. i ride two to three long rides (20 to 30 miles) a week in all weathers.

grantway

Take a look at Orange web site under dealers and check for one near you.

Also Orange have redesigned the Orange 5 frame and is even stronger
for 2009

grantway

Go on You Tube and type in Morzine and look at the Terrain they are riding.

Because if you dont have a bike most hire places out there will give you
a Orange 5 to ride with a 140 fox Float R upfront which will cost around
£ 70.00p if you upgrade from Orange.

mendipracer

Maybe consider an Cannondale prophet 2 08 (1250)
or the 09 prophet 1 (1500)

You can adjust the frame geometry and it beat the pitch in an MBUK test

jamespollock

If you have £1500 there are few bikes better value than the Cube AMS Pro. Probably on the XC side for you, but maybe look at one of it's AT brothers. I have had more fun on my Cube AMS than anything else this year (hope my wife isn't reading this).

Cps

More to make you think

http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtop ... t=12592793