AM/play bike hardtail frame

dusk

I'm looking to buy a frame new or used for £500 or less that can be a good all rounder.

The sort of riding I will be doing is a bit of 4x, some jumps, a bit of xc and some general messing around.

I currently have a DMR Trailstar which is what I want to replace, I have some 140mm forks to go with the frame and I'm 6'5" tall so I need a decent size frame that can take a longer travel fork. I also have a 31.6 reverb that would be going spare so if that fitted it would be grand.

I think an 18" frame would be about right, small enough to jump with the saddle down and big enough to pedal with it up. I'm also not bothered about frame material.

So far I've thought a Stanton Slackline would be ideal except for the seat tube size and a used On One 456 Ti(2nd gen) which seems to fit the bill perfectly but I don't know if it would be strong enough??

Any suggestions welcome

lawman

The slackline should be perfect, had on one not had 456 carbons for £250 at the time I had money sat about, I would have saved for the stanton, it looks great on paper and all the reviews are very good too. Something else to consider is this:



http://www.production-privee.com/PBSCCa ... ID=1321476

Looks fantastic and the few reviews around are very positive!

warpcow

I'd be looking for as something with as short a back end as possible, without being a DJ bike. Cotic BFe, Slackline, Evil Sovereign. The only thing, which unfortunately nowadays is quite a big thing, against the Slackline is its 27.2 seat-tube. If it hadn't been for the CRC sale, I probably would've ended up with a BFe. NS Surge moght be worth a look too, with its adjustable dropouts, but it's very low for someone your size.

ilovedirt

There's too many to choose from these days! Ragley Blue Pig, Cotic BFe/Soul, Evil Sovereign, Dialled Alpine/Prince Albert, On One 456, Stanton Slackline, and that Production Bikes Privee looks ace as well.

I've recently bought a Ragley Bagger, and while it's on the longer travel end of the spectrum, it's loads of fun with a short back end and really nimble.

dusk

The Bagger looks nice, if only it had a 31.6 seat tube! I quite like the Orange Crush but it has the same seat tube and I'm not sure if you can get it frame only.

The Evil Sovereign looks good but too small for a lanky sod like me!

The Production Privee looks nice too but there isn't much info on the website

supersonic

It would be the 456 carbon for me. £250, tough, light.

ilovedirt

dusk wrote:

The Bagger looks nice, if only it had a 31.6 seat tube! I quite like the Orange Crush but it has the same seat tube and I'm not sure if you can get it frame only.

The Evil Sovereign looks good but too small for a lanky sod like me!

The Production Privee looks nice too but there isn't much info on the website

it's 30.9, a size which most/all dropper posts are available in.

EDIT: nevermind, you already have the post.

dusk

where is it £250? It's £400 on their website

supersonic

Ah, they have sold out of them at that price.

jairaj

The 456 has a quite a slack head angle, would this suit the the OP's needs for a 4X / DJ bike?

My C456 feels very planted and is cracking ride over technical terrain but aren't 4X and DJ bikes normally quite nimble and quick handling?

allthegearnoidea

They did have some in special colours in the bargain section?? Fancied the green/yellow one!

I'd seriously look at the cotic bfe, give the guys a ring and tell them what you want to do and they'll tell you which is most suited! 6ft6"on an 18" frames gonna be some seatpost for XC riding! Unless you've short legs/long body!??!

WisePranker

Sounds like a BFe would be spot on for you.
The Mk3 version will take the dropper post as well as doing everything else you need.

They're going for a decent price at FreeFlow bikes at the moment as well!

warpcow

ANother vote for the BFe then. With a u-turn fork it'd cover everything you wanted.

dusk

Thanks for the suggestions, I'm looking for an all round bike really but I have a full sus bike so it needs to be able to do things that a full sus bike won't e.g. 4x & dj. I know it won't be an ideal 4x or dj bike but I do a bit of everything so either I have 10 bikes or a couple of versatile ones!

I've got a 140mm fork to go on whatever frame I get so it's too long travel for a specific 4x or dj bike, I also know that an 18" will be a bit small to pedal but I shouldn't be in the saddle too long anyway

warpcow

Again, BFe.

Alternatively, what are the forks? Could they be spaced down to 100/120mm so you could get a more 4x specific frame? I'd guess there aren't many of those around that would be too comfortable on longer jaunts though.

dusk

Cotic Bfe looks perfect! 19" with no bottle bosses should be perfect to slam the post for 4x and big enough frame to pedal when seated.

I've got 140mm Fox Floats to go on, my wrist is pretty knackered so I wouldn't particularly want any less.

styxd

You can space your forks down to 120mm which will be a good compromise for the Cotic. Warpcow knows his onions, get something with a short back end. Ignore all the other suggestions of On Ones, Ragleys etc. They're basically just long travel xc frames that middle aged men use for mincing round trail centres.

bails87

styxd wrote:

You can space your forks down to 120mm which will be a good compromise for the Cotic. Warpcow knows his onions, get something with a short back end. Ignore all the other suggestions of On Ones, Ragleys etc. They're basically just long travel xc frames that middle aged men use for mincing round trail centres.

Oh noes, I've just aged 20 years.....

jairaj

so you're not denying the mincing around trail centres bit then

bails87

jairaj wrote:

so you're not denying the mincing around trail centres bit then

Well I can't prove that one way or the other, I can prove I'm not middle aged though!

supersonic

So what is the chainstay length of the Cotic BFE?

warpcow

414mm, iirc. It's a little over 10mm shorter at the back than an on-one, but with roughly the same length front end (couple of mm's longer iirc). Not sure how the 456 Evo fits in now.

supersonic

I looked it up as 419mm - not too much in it really!

dusk

Now the most important question, where can I buy a large Cotic BFe in Gritstone?? Cotic won't have them in stock until December earliest (this is the new model)

styxd

Try phoning round the dealers listed on their website