Fun, flickable, playful, lightish full-suss ideas please

pseymour

I'm finally looking to upgrade my 2012 Giant Anthem for a 27.5 full suss.

I've loved my Giant Anthem, but i'm looking for something a bit more playful, fun, flickable, easy to jump, easy to manual - you know the kind of thing.

Low weight is still relatively important, but I know I won't match the Anthem for that. The Whyte T-130 looks promising, but i'd prefer a double chainring as do lots of climbing, so the T-130S is a bit heavy at 13.9kg.

Are there any suggestions for full sussers with 'playful' short chainstays that are flickable and aren't too heavy?

My budget is up to £2-3k. I ride mostly Cwmcarn trail centre.

Thanks guys.

rockmonkeysc

To be honest nothing will be easier to throw around on winding single track than your Anthem. It's also as easy to jump (I jumped 20 foot gaps on mine) and manual as anything else. I had one for a year and it's an excellent bike. It's definitely more of a trail bike than an all out XC race bike.
Something like my Transition Scout is possibly the kind of thing which might be what you want if you want to ride more aggressively. It's much more stable through the rough stuff although that makes it harder work on tight, twisting trails. It's great over jumps as well.
You could spend £3k on a better bike but if you can't manual, corner or jump very well on your Anthem then a new bike won't suddenly make it easy.

pseymour

Hi RockmonkeySC. Thanks for your reply. I was under the impression that because the Anthem was a low and long slung bike, that it was more difficult to manual as a result. I'm still running a long stem and narrow bars too which probably dont help. But I appreciate the idea that £3k won't make me a better rider. The idea behind the new bike was to avail myself to the new technologies of 27.5 wheels, a dropper post, and updated forks and shock. I thought while i'm at it I might as well choose a bike that lends itself to 'playful' handling and gets into the air easier.

The Rookie

Your perception of the Anthem is a long way out, a shorter stem will get the front up easier, but the other things, if you can't do it in an Anthem, most other bikes will just be harder.

pseymour

Thanks for taking the time to answer Rookie. My perception of the Anthem is based on riding it for 4 years, but it is beginning to sound like the Anthem is one of the most flickable and playful bikes about which comes as a surprise to me. Always good to garner opinions though. thanks, Pete

pseymour

Hi Oxoman. Funny you should suggest that. That bike is on my shortlist of 3. If the Anthem is flickable after all, and it's just my lack of ability thats stopping me, then the SX version seems like a good upgrade at £2k and coming down soon presumably when the 2016 bikes roll in. Do you know the weight of your bike? Is it a medium size frame? How does it handle?

rockmonkeysc

Just fit a 120mm fork, shorter stem and wider bars and you basically have a 26" version of the Anthem SX.
I had Anthem for a year and it's one of the easiest bikes to ride that there is. It has a nice balance between sharp handling and stability. If you can't master the skills you mentioned above on this bike then I'm afraid it's not the bike which is at fault.
I would suggest that you may get better results by spending on some skills coaching before thinking about what you want from your next bike.

pseymour

What are the implications on geometry on replacing a 100mm fork with a 120mm fork? Is it ok to do, or does it effect the bike and the balance of everything?

rockmonkeysc

It will make the steering a little slower but a little more stable. A shorter stem and wider bar helps offset the slower steering with extra leverage.
If you have spacers under the stem removing 20mm of them will help maintain your current bar height.

ambo999fire

If I were you I would spend some money upgrading what you already have. The Anthem is an excellent frame - stick a dropper post and some 120mm travel forks on it and you will have exactly what you are looking for!