Tumbleweed Posted November 11, 2007 Share to ride with michh is to put up with a diatribe about how good commen?al bikes are. but, yesterday, i got to try one out for myself. i took a demo model of the meta 5 for a thrash down the spruit with graham and jean-luc. and i almost didn?t make it out of the parking lot - trying to get used to the feel of the bike, i popped a wheelie and nearly got caught out by how quickly the front end came up! it didn?t take too long to find the balance point. it also hopped pavements with ease, trackstanded well and dropped stairs with nary a rattle.it ate up the first coupla sections of singletrack, but i struggled at first to get my head around the sram x-7 gears (have been a shimano devotee for many years). then i got dropped after the shifting got, well, shifty. but a quick adjustment and i was back in business.i wasn?t prepared for climbing a bike with such a relaxed head angle. but, as graham later pointed out, this may have be easier had i been on a medium frame rather than the small i had chosen to demo. that said the rear end tracks well up hills ? but that was nothing compared to how it went downhill!!!!in a word it flies. it?s stays glued to the ground, but easily defies gravity should you choose to launch it off even the smallest bump or hit. cornering on descents is made all the more pleasant by the fomula oro brakes (another product i hadn?t up till then tried out). they?re sharp and easy to modulate (note to self: not everyone rides with the front brakes on the left). they saved my bacon, when one chubby guy failed to make way on the long hill. it nose-wheelied gracefully to a halt inches from his front wheel.maybe it was the coffee at the midway point. maybe it was the mostly downhill gradient of the singletrack. but the meta really wanted to play on the way home! it felt like it was dragging me through the singletrack. it cornered suprisingly true and confidently considering the ?raked-out? front end. i found you could also hit corners faster than normal knowing that the 5+inches would forgive you for straying off-line. the only thing that could slow me down was the left-side fire x crank which wouldn?t play nice and conspired to work its way loose twice! but you can hardly blame the commen?al for that. and, besides, it was cool having to force my legs to spin the big ring even faster to catch the guys who'd opened a gap on me.my verdict: absolutely loved it. the travel may been a bit much for the kinda riding i normally do. that said, the meta is a bike that dictates to the rider what it wants to do, and that?s to jump, drop, pump ? hmmmmm, maybe i?ll be taking one home after i flog my trance after the epic next year! ? or maybe sooner!thanks for the demo ride, guys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ewep Posted November 11, 2007 Share HR, what's the price on these bikes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tumbleweed Posted November 11, 2007 Share i'm not sure. i will do a search, cos i'm sure jldam posted the price elsewhere on the hub, but i seem to remember that they're reasonable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean Badenhorst Posted November 12, 2007 Share There's a review in the Dec 07 issue of Mountain Bike mag (comes with Bicycling) on the Commencal Meta 4.2. Also reviewed are Ellsworth TiRuth, Tomac Carbide XC1, Giant Trance 1, GT Marathon Team and the Wheeler Falcon 10. All around 4 inches of travel dual suspension bikes - ideal (for the majority) for stage racing and marathons. Mag should be on sale at 94.7 Expo later this week I reckon. More similar category bikes to be reviewed in the next issue of Mountain Bike (Feb 08). Sean Badenhorst2007-11-12 01:31:04 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLDAM Posted November 12, 2007 Share to ride with michh is to put up with a diatribe about how good commen?al bikes are. but' date=' yesterday, i got to try one out for myself. i took a demo model of the meta 5 for a thrash down the spruit with graham and jean-luc. and i almost didn?t make it out of the parking lot - trying to get used to the feel of the bike, i popped a wheelie and nearly got caught out by how quickly the front end came up! it didn?t take too long to find the balance point. it also hopped pavements with ease, trackstanded well and dropped stairs with nary a rattle.it ate up the first coupla sections of singletrack, but i struggled at first to get my head around the sram x-7 gears (have been a shimano devotee for many years). then i got dropped after the shifting got, well, shifty. but a quick adjustment and i was back in business.i wasn?t prepared for climbing a bike with such a relaxed head angle. but, as graham later pointed out, this may have be easier had i been on a medium frame rather than the small i had chosen to demo. that said the rear end tracks well up hills ? but that was nothing compared to how it went downhill!!!!in a word it flies. it?s stays glued to the ground, but easily defies gravity should you choose to launch it off even the smallest bump or hit. cornering on descents is made all the more pleasant by the fomula oro brakes (another product i hadn?t up till then tried out). they?re sharp and easy to modulate (note to self: not everyone rides with the front brakes on the left). they saved my bacon, when one chubby guy failed to make way on the long hill. it nose-wheelied gracefully to a halt inches from his front wheel.maybe it was the coffee at the midway point. maybe it was the mostly downhill gradient of the singletrack. but the meta really wanted to play on the way home! it felt like it was dragging me through the singletrack. it cornered suprisingly true and confidently considering the ?raked-out? front end. i found you could also hit corners faster than normal knowing that the 5+inches would forgive you for straying off-line. the only thing that could slow me down was the left-side fire x crank which wouldn?t play nice and conspired to work its way loose twice! but you can hardly blame the commen?al for that. and, besides, it was cool having to force my legs to spin the big ring even faster to catch the guys who'd opened a gap on me.my verdict: absolutely loved it. the travel may been a bit much for the kinda riding i normally do. that said, the meta is a bike that dictates to the rider what it wants to do, and that?s to jump, drop, pump ? hmmmmm, maybe i?ll be taking one home after i flog my trance after the epic next year! ? or maybe sooner!thanks for the demo ride, guys[/quote'] Hey HR, Glad you enjoyed the ride. Next time, the Meta 4.1. Less travel, the head angle is not as slack, and would definetely suit your kind of riding, better. AND you can try a medium this time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLDAM Posted November 12, 2007 Share HR' date=' what's the price on these bikes? [/quote'] Hey Ewep, we have three bikes in the Meta 5.5 range, priced as follows : The Meta 5.5.1, which is the top of the range retails at R 26 899.00 (Vat incl.) The Meta 5.5.2 retails at R 20 599.00 (VAT incl.) The Meta 5.5.3 retails at R 15 899.00 (VAT incl.) We also have a 4" inches travel bike, calles the Meta 4, which is available with the above specs (Meta 4.1, Meta 4.2 and Meta 4.3), and at the same prices. PM me if you want to demo one of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NotSoBigBen Posted November 12, 2007 Share HR - interesting your comments about the Firex. I have one of those on my HT and it did the same. I whipped it off last week and put some 'plumbers' tape on the bolt. Tightened it back up real tight and have now ridden 3 rides with no problem yet. Before that it worked its way loose within 10-15 minutes of riding! We'll see how it goes this week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Mig Posted November 12, 2007 Share Well i was ready to write my own review after joining HR and JL yesterday but how can i add to what HR has commented on? Enuff said....truly a great ride. I did feel rather high up in the cock pit but then being a roday i am not used to this tyoe of ride anyway. All i have ever ridden is my good ol hard tail. Not sure if it was my handling or the bike that saved me from near disaster after only 10 minutes when i nearly got swollowed up by a huge crevice on the left hand side. How i stayed on is clueless to me. I am sure the bike played a part though. Sorry bout the double puncture but thanks for the awesome test ride guys... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danger Dassie Posted November 12, 2007 Share Framesets? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tumbleweed Posted November 12, 2007 Share HR - interesting your comments about the Firex. I have one of those on my HT and it did the same. I whipped it off last week and put some 'plumbers' tape on the bolt. Tightened it back up real tight and have now ridden 3 rides with no problem yet. Before that it worked its way loose within 10-15 minutes of riding! We'll see how it goes this week. hey bb, funnily enough, after the first time it came loose, graham (or graeme?) did say that he'd mentioned this to the peeps who bring in the firex, and they agreed it was a hassle. it worked loose twice more before we got back to the m&b. and it's not like my puny legs were putting any huge torque on crankshope your bodge works, though. bigmig, said it before: that was an awesome save. even for a seasoned mtber, let alone a roadie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tumbleweed Posted November 12, 2007 Share jldam, invitation accepted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLDAM Posted November 12, 2007 Share Framesets? Hey DD, quite a criptic question. Are you asking if framesets are available, the answer is yes. Beautiful limited edition team issue. Check out the bike below with one of those framesets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NotSoBigBen Posted November 12, 2007 Share JLDAM - just wondering if you can comment on the Firex issue? Shamefully in my own interest of course! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLDAM Posted November 12, 2007 Share jldam' date=' invitation accepted [/quote'] Cool, we doing Groenkloof, next?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tumbleweed Posted November 12, 2007 Share i've seen that bike in the flesh, so to speak. drool-worthy!!!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tumbleweed Posted November 12, 2007 Share jldam' date=' invitation accepted [/quote'] Cool, we doing Groenkloof, next?? yip! let me just check my diary. this weekend's out, cos i gotta cart some kapies around for the 94.7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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