full suss bike £1000

woodenman

I have been looking at a full susser for a few month now , i dont really wanna spend much more than a grand as i have a fury 08 hardtail i been thrashing so looking to upgrade. I mainly ride xc , a lot of singletrack and woodland trails that can be pretty rocky and bumpy. I also do trail centres now and again and i will be doing a lot more this year so am looking for a full suss thats pretty light but can also take some decent jumps and hits , nothing too crazy but i do like to throw the bike around from time to time(dont we all!). Ideally i want roughly the same travel as fury 80-130 mm but not essential for the right bike.
Have been looking at the Giant's range anthem x4, trance x4 but not sure which one really, both look great bikes and like i said maybe spend a little more money but not much for the right bike.I do like the anthem x4 2011 good spec and looks great but is it a little too xc for 'woods' and decent decents and trail centre big hits? Same for trance x4 2011 can it climb well and keep the pace on xc runs too?
Also the boardman fs look great but not sure if they are 'burly' and strong enough for the big hits look a little lightweight for me and a bit bland.
I also dont have loads of time to test ride loads of bikes so am asking you guys on your thought's on these and also have i missed any 'great' bikes around that price?????
thanks i know a lot of questions but any help/pointers would really help

bennett_346

Those are more fast cross country bikes. Don't get me wrong they are excellent bikes for the money, but i don't think theyre really what youre looking for. I would go second hand on a bigger hitting bike on ebay if i were you. Maybe a second hand specialized pitch? Theyre around £800 used at the minute, quite a few on ebay and will be perfect for what i think you want.

bennett_346

If you take a medium frame have a look at this: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/specialized-p ... 3cc1c5f9db

And no it isnt mine either, although i did used to own one.

woodenman

Wow that is really cheap and looks a great bike, whats the front fork on this bike btw??
A friends trying to get me to buy a zesty 214 2011 its a bit above my budget but at evans cycles at £1299.00 looks a great bike!! what you guys reckon??

bennett_346

woodenman wrote:

Wow that is really cheap and looks a great bike, whats the front fork on this bike btw??
A friends trying to get me to buy a zesty 214 2011 its a bit above my budget but at evans cycles at £1299.00 looks a great bike!! what you guys reckon??

It's a nice bike but no better than the pitch. The forks on the pitch are rockshox pike by the way, but really they're recons with motion control. Theyre very capable.

Stu Coops

Giant Trance will do everything you want it too, 125mm travel is ample for your kind of riding and trust me the Trance will do a lot more than you think, I have one and a Zesty which is a 140 travel and I have ridden both bikes in exactly the same way over the terrain so as for the Trance is not for you is nonsense.

My mate also has the Anthem which ok is a 100mm travel bike but again will take some serious abuse

bennett_346

Stu Coops wrote:

Giant Trance will do everything you want it too, 125mm travel is ample for your kind of riding and trust me the Trance will do a lot more than you think, I have one and a Zesty which is a 140 travel and I have ridden both bikes in exactly the same way over the terrain so as for the Trance is not for you is nonsense.

My mate also has the Anthem which ok is a 100mm travel bike but again will take some serious abuse

If he was racing i'd reccomend that bike but for general messing about in the woods you may as well go slightly overboard and playful

hainman

http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/ ... 1-12-45756

woodenman

What do you think is the best bike then stu coops? Are you saying the trance is the one to go for as its cheaper too? Cant help but think the tora fork is a bit 'standard' when ya spending £1100 quid , i got that fork on my fury already.
Did ladybower other day and i plan on doing a lot more , was pretty rough though so i think i can forget the anthem.

t0pc4t

I ride my anthem x4 all over Swinley forest most weekends, I've also done some racing on it, it's not a bike for big jumps but it's far more capable than the 100mm travel would suggest.

People describe it as 'too racey' - it's not, it is my first FS and a pussycat to ride, I've also heard it described as 'twitchy' which to me it isn't.

It's fast up and down hill and very light, I regularly ride with chaps on stumpjumpers and have not found any terrain they can ride that I can't.

I would have to find some very different terrain to make it worth losing the speed and fun of the anthem for something with more travel.

rockmonkeysc

Trance is more than up to the job. I did all sorts of stuff on my Trance X3 including 5 foot drops and fairly big jumps.
There is nothing at trail centres you couldn't do on the Anthem either but the Trance has slacker geometry which will make it all a little easier.
It all depends what you consider a big hit. I have never seen anything at a trail centre I would call a big hit. Something like that Pitch in the link is a bit ott unless your going to start doing bigger stuff and hitting big jumps and rock gardens etc.

bennett_346

RockmonkeySC wrote:

Something like that Pitch in the link is a bit ott unless your going to start doing bigger stuff and hitting big jumps and rock gardens etc.

Which most people inevitably do then are put off by having a bike with steep geo etc etc

Bcxbcx

I really like my trance x4 2010. I have ridden it everywhere from my local woods to the alpes. Did the megavalanche (badly) on it when the Marz forks broke on my other bike.

I have admittedly changed most of the components over the last two years as a gradual process. A 140mm revelation on the front really makes the bike so much fun, but I still have the standard giant shock on the rear.

If I could do it all again I would get a reduced higher specced previous years model (if I could find one), for better inital components.

woodenman

Yes i think the specialized is a bit much for me , also i want to buy new. I do love the look of the anthem x4 2011 pluss it has fox fork and rear shock too and is only an extra 50 quid more than the trance x4. I know the trance got bike of year too , mmm i think its a close call.
Also had a look at the trance x limited and the lappiere 214 , i know they are more expensive but is it worth hanging on a while and saving for one of these?
I know am being a pain but its a lot of money and i wanna get it right , oh and also i wont be doing 5 foot drops or any major downhilling or crazy stuff like that. Just want a bike that can take the rough with the smooth

Wankleburr

have you looked at the boardman team fs good spec for 999.99 good bike for the riding your looking to do ?

woodenman

Thanks bcxbcx sound advice!!