New full susser help and advice!

jonny2773

Im currently looking at new full sus mtb and would like some opinions on my shortlist.

I am 16st, 5'9" and my fitness is not the greatest, well tbh its shocking to the point that i hav'nt managed to ride all the way up either side of hamsterley yet, but its improving and i hope to do it by the end of the summmer.
I probably ride Hamsterley once every week, sometimes every fortnight depending on work, and also intend to use the bike for trips to other trails eg :- kielder, lake district, and glentress, so it needs to be good for a bit of everything. To be honest im one of those guys that only rides/pushes uphill so i can come down again and although i want something i can ride uphill its the ride down thats important.

Here are the few bikes i was looking at :-

Cube Stereo race
http://www.bike-discount.de/shop/a54135 ... html?lg=en

Cube Fritzz pro
http://www.bike-discount.de/shop/a54128 ... html?lg=en

Norco Sight 3
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/nor ... gn=froogle

Canyon nerve AM 8.0x
http://www.canyon.com/_uk/mountainbikes ... tml?b=2565

Canyon Nerve XC 9.0
http://www.canyon.com/_uk/mountainbikes ... tml?b=2560

Max Budget is 2k really but i might be able to con the missus into letting have another 100 or so - not sure how yet, perhaps promise her i wont pester her for sex @ 3am for a month or 2 :roll:

Thanks guys, all advice/comments appreciated

Bishbosh10

Have you test ridden any of them? I wouldn't want to drop £2k on a bike and then find that although everyone on the web loves it, for some reason I can't get on with it....

chez_m356

Norco Sight 3
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/nor ... e-ec031661 so does the colour of the bike dictate which rear shock you get

FBM.BMX

What's the reason for full sus?

It sounds like fitness maybe the limiting factor for you, why not go for a hardtail?

No matter how "good" a full sus frame claims to be, they simply do not pedal as well as a hardtail. (I get to try out all the fancy new, "best things".)

You could get a ragley blue pig or one-one complete, ride that for a year, up your fitness and skill level, then maybe go for a shorter travel full sus than you're listing.

In all honestly, using hamsterley as an example, a 160mm bike is perfectly capable and happy on the hardest DHs there. A DH bike is only required if you race or care too much about being 0.5s slower over a rock garden. What i'm saying is a 160mm bike is surplus to any regular riding in the UK. A 140mm bike is getting on for too much too. Too much suspension to lug around, making it hard work just so you can boulder over stuff in a uncoordinated fashion on the way down.

jonny2773

chez_m356 wrote:

Norco Sight 3
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/nor ... e-ec031661 so does the colour of the bike dictate which rear shock you get

I dont know why it has the monarch on the silver one on the webby - its defo a Fox on the 1 in my local evans.

The reasoning behind a full suss is i have one already that i got through c2w and halfords
http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/ ... r-09-34201
but ive also rode a m8s boardman ht and prefer the extra cushioning out back. I could upgrade what i have at the moment but that to me seems like a money pit, and it was only ever intended as a bike to get me started.

Ive managed to get a test ride on Cube Fritzz and it felt nice but it was an 18" and felt a tiny bit to big for me, as far as im aware the Cube Stereo is virtually the same geo as the Fritzz but it is shorter travel, which means i get better components for the same money.
The Norco i have only thrown into the mix because of its recent reviews, i have sat on one and it felt very comfortable, but riding it could be a different story.
And the reason behind thinking about a Canyon was that as far as im aware i wont get a better specced bike anywhere for the cash and not heard a bad word said about them.

If 140mm is "getting on" for too much travel, then i take it that its not too much? And if 160mm "is" too much then surely you are in a better position having more than just enough?

FBM.BMX

So you started out on a full sus? Spent any real time on a hardtail?

What grade of trails do you normally ride at hamsterley/trail centres? Is it only trail centres you ride? What's your riding style?

PS- stereos and fritzz's don't ride well.

Briggo

FBM.BMX wrote:

You could get a ragley blue pig or one-one complete, ride that for a year, up your fitness and skill level, then maybe go for a shorter travel full sus than you're listing.

So if he rode a FS for a year he wouldn't get fit and he wouldn't increase his skill levels? Brilliant.

Riding once a fortnight (or even once a week) isn't going to improve fitness very quickly no matter what bike you have, and even then it's what you're doing not what bike you're riding that counts.

FBM.BMX

Briggo wrote:

FBM.BMX wrote:

You could get a ragley blue pig or one-one complete, ride that for a year, up your fitness and skill level, then maybe go for a shorter travel full sus than you're listing.

So if he rode a FS for a year he wouldn't get fit and he wouldn't increase his skill levels? Brilliant.

I'm saying that having a heavy bike that's hard work, if you're unfit, it's not going to be doing you any favours, you will find it harder work, get less reward for the effort put in and have less incentive to ride. It will be a harder mental battle to convince yourself to go riding, also more likely to give up if things are hard work.

The full sus skill bit and skill, if you don't learn things right, a hard tail or full sus isn't going to increase your skill. It's just more likely a hard tail will give you a kick up the arse if you're not doing things right and prompt you to learn it right. The full sus will give you a bigger margin of error and less prompt to learn it right.

EVERYONE benefits from time spent on a hardtail in terms of picking up technique.

cooldad

FBM.BMX wrote:

EVERYONE benefits from time spent on a hardtail in terms of picking up technique.

Well that settles it. End of thread.

jonny2773

Im riding red trails atm and yes i started out on a full susser, i do intend to ride black and could probably handle the downhill sections..i have ridden a hardtail but like i say prefer full suss.
The issue of gaining fitness quickly isnt an issue, i dont mind if it takes 3 months or 3 years, i just want to have as much fun as possible while im out and be on the best/most suitable bit of kit i can afford.
As for my riding style, i usually opt for a windswept look, but as we are approaching summer i might just shave it all off to keep cool.....hahaha....seriously i dont think i have a style and if i do then its very haphazzard

The Stereo's and Fritzz's dont ride well? but they felt better than my GT, so my GT must be a real dog. But ive also had look at the bike radar reviews on them and they seem to agree with you.

So back to the question in hand of which full sus bike, and i guess that just leaves the norco which i can sit on but cant really test or the canyon which i buy blind but are meant to be cracking bikes!

chez_m356

FBM.BMX wrote:

PS- stereos and fritzz's don't ride well.

i'm sure that everyone who's bought one agrees with you too, i must remember to keep my eye out for all the cubes that must be getting dumped at the side of the road