Norco Aurum

rockmonkeysc

I have decided to buy myself a Norco Aurum, what I can't decide on is whether it's worth paying the extra £1200 to get the Aurum 1 instead of the basic Aurum 2. Biggest differences are:
BoXXer R2C2 instead of BoXXer Race
Jumping Flea hubs instead of Norco branded hubs
Vivid R2C shock instead of X-Fusion Vector RC (Is the Vector a good shock & can I get it serviced?)
Elixir 9 instead of Elixir 5
X9/X0 instead of X7/X9
and some fancy Easton finishing kit instead of the Norco branded bits.
Both look really good but I am tempted to go for the higher spec but not sure if it's worth the extra cash for what I ride (uplift days & the occasional race, for fun rather than to win)

rockmonkeysc

Anyone?

delcol

if i were in your shoes i would ask my self, can i afford the better specced bike if so then go for it IME better parts seem to last longer, x0 last longer than x9 and loner than x 7.. not to sure on the shocks but i only hear good things on the x fusion stuff... you can get x fusion serviced by these
see here

try pricing up the cost of the parts on the better bike to see if it is a better buy..

rockmonkeysc

I could afford either. I was originally planning to spend £3500 on a Glory 1 but they aren't available until September.
What I'm thinking at the moment is that there is nothing I would want to change on the Aurum 1 other than as transmission parts fail I would replace them with Shimano. I would also sell the brakes as new & fit some downhill specific brakes, possibly Formual The One or Shimano Saint.

delcol

i would say you have answered your own question there...

i was tempted by the aurum it's a smart looking bike and i know i would get one for not much more than trade from whistler, as we good friends with the guy who runs fanatykco and they deal with norco... but i decided that i dont want a full on dh bike,, something with 180mm travel will be more than enough for me...

Stevo_666

Always go for the best you can afford otherwise you'll get upgrade-itis. And having a bike that's pretty much right for you 'out the box' is worth something. I think you already know you want the 1.

lawman

Stevo 666 wrote:

Always go for the best you can afford otherwise you'll get upgrade-itis.

I can happily (my wallet more un-happily) testify that despite this probably being sound advice, you can never, ever not get upgrade-itis

the aurum is a sweet looking bike, the 1 is the errr one you want, so just go for it if moneys not the issue

Thewaylander

Though i would argue against the say x9 lasting long than x7 for isntance, i find oftent he cheeper heavier items in terms of drive train often are alot toughter.

But yeh on the whole i agree with the guys, get the shinier one, it will make you happy.

rockmonkeysc

I have learn't the hard way about upgrades, I have spent a heap of cash upgrading my Reign X & found that although it's really great what I really want is a full DH bike so I can go racing.

@Delcol:
Are you looking for a long travel FR bike? I know of a very nice Reign X for sale. High spec Lyriks, 721 wheels, SLX, one careful lady owner etc...

Stevo_666

lawman wrote:

I can happily (my wallet more un-happily) testify that despite this probably being sound advice, you can never, ever not get upgrade-itis

I dunno, in 8 months the only 'upgrade' on my Spicy is a set of Minions. How about that for will power?

Chunkers1980

Everything else is much of a muchness and can be replaced when broken. Are those forks and shock worth £1200 extra????? that's a lot of dosh - think of the bike you can get for that!

Chunkers1980

On the brakes. Sell when new and get some new saints, easy net - 150.

paul.skibum

Give me a month and I will be able to take one of our rental aurums for a spin in the bike park and let you know if the 2 is any good.

But - I'd go for the 1 if you can stretch it - the forks are a significant improvement in terms of tune-ability and the shock will be similar (my guess). The Elixir 9's were pretty decent in the bike park last season, hard to see you need more than them in the Uk.

The norco branded stuff was all alright on our rental fleet last year but scuffed up quick, had butter allen bolts and so on - the easton stuff will wear better and longer and continue to look good well past the point you would be thinking of upgrading the norco stuff. I dont know the flea hubs but the norco hubs were pretty average on our bikes last season.