Try before you buy - my reccomendations for testing and buying a new bike

[BrandonF_]

????????????????????

 

Except you'd have bought another 5 bikes just to see.

Aaah Pikey,..such a Philanthropic (..whatever that means, it just sounds AWESOME.),.... always making the poor Hubber's dream come true, by making poor decisions on new buy's. #i...WELOVEYOUPIKEY!!????????❤

[Pikey]

Aaah Pikey,..such a Philanthropic (..whatever that means, it just sounds AWESOME.),.... always making the poor Hubber's dream come true, by making poor decisions on new buy's. #i...WELOVEYOUPIKEY!!????????❤

Dude I try ... I really do ????????????????

[trail - er - park]

Dude I try ... I really do ????????????????

I can vouch for that .... Pikey is quite trying most of the time ...

[Pikey]

I can vouch for that .... Pikey is quite trying most of the time ...

????

[PhilipV]

Hey Kaggel, how about a mini-review of the bikes you tested. It sounds as if you'd have some valuable information for the rest of us.

Or at least a quick write up with the different pro's and cons with a quick summary would be nice

[nox1111]

It's funny what a bikeshop would let you do if you disclose that you have the greenlight from management and the means for "spend whatever you want, on a do-it-all bike" - and you're looking at top end machines...

 

Cool write up, and good advice.

 

+1 on the mini write ups on the tested machines.

 

OH yes, and where's the pics?! Comeooooon!

[Robbie Stewart]

I'm not buying plane, but I do feel like testing bikes is something people often don't think about. I had a rad time and hit helped my process. If you ever want to buy a plane though, give me a shout

 

 

Having seen the price of your new steed on the supplier's website, you may as well have invested in a plane...  

 

Still, nice buy. I am about to chuck some cash at a new ride myself. I reckon I am gonna follow your advice.

[Kaggel]

As requested, a mini-review of the bikes I tested.

 

Note that these are not all from bike-shops and some were private bikes from some very kind riding buddies.

 

Trails ridden over a six week period:

• Jonkershoek (Firehut, Red-Phoenix, Canaries and Bennet’s new trails)
• Eden and G-spot
• Tokai (Snake Trails, Switchbacks and DH 1-2-3)
• Contermanskloof (DH Main Line, DH-Revised, Cheeky Corners, Kloof and Tree Charge)
• Table Mountain (The Glen and Pat’s track)
• Rheeboksflook full black
• Welvanpas full black

 

With the exception of one shuttle day at Conties I pedalled up everywhere to bomb down. My focus was on speed and confidence on the downhills, but I wanted a bike that was still engaging and climbed well. I’m not a top ten KOM hunter, but I enjoy technical trails (up and down).

 

Tested bikes in order of tests:

 

YT Jeffsy AL Comp (with some notable upgrades like carbon wheels)

First thing that blew me away was the lightness of this bike. If you want a featherweight look no further. I set PBs on every climb on this bike without the need to pedal-mode on the rear shock. This bike pedals insanely well and picks up speed very easily – so much so that I can see it doing duty on some very long rides. I found it to be quite progressive, but at the cost of plushness in the rear. This bike just wanted to pop of jump over everything rather than plow through it. The shorter rake on the fork also added to the sharp handling, but did make the front a bit more twitchy than I liked. I came away hugely impressed and very nearly bought one of these.

 

Rocky Mountain Instinct 770MSL (built up to BC spec)

Even though it was set up similarly to the others, I just couldn’t get confident on the bike. It felt like a long-legged XC bike rather than a modern trail bike which makes sense given that it is the oldest frame design of all the bikes I tested. It climbed well and pedalled very efficiently, but I felt too over the front on the downhills and couldn’t get the bike to flow even though the suspension was working well. I think if you are coming from an XC background you will feel more at home on this bike

 

Evil The Wreckoning custom build

Holy smokes! What a beast. Easily the fastest, most capable bike down a hill of all the bikes I tested. Pure confidence and speed made this bike just want to go faster and harder all the time. It also made it a bit dull (for me) at mere mortal speeds. The DELTA suspension is pretty amazing and was by far the best match with the Monarch rear shock. This felt like a big bike though and I just didn’t feel engaged unless I was going warp-factor five. DH-bike with 29er wheels I say, but not something I could fully take advantage of.

 

Evil The Following custom build

One of the original gangster 29er fun-bikes. True to the reputation this bike absolutely rips. It wants to hit everything, jump everything, takes some shots and start some fights. It punches above its weight, but I ended up finding myself in trouble without the talent to get out. As hard as it wants to hit the trails, I also found myself more tired at the end of a run than on bikes with more suspension travel. A bit of a difficult bike to label as it sort of blurs the lines for what a short travel trail bike can do. Could definitely do some big rides on this bike and have a blast doing it. I wanted it to be enough for me, but I needed longer travel.

 

Trek Remedy 9.8

One of the bikes I was most interested to test given the rave reviews and awesome reputation. I really thought this would be the one. Unfortunately for me it wasn’t. The build was on the heavy side and certainly felt like it needed more deliberate effort to get up, down and around the trail. It was nothing special up the hills even though the DRCV shock was supposed to give epic grip and pedalling efficiency. Only when things got fast and rowdy did I see the genius. I also think if the bike had a lighter, more nimble wheelset that I would have had a very different experience. A bit too much of a handful for me and unfortunately I also don’t think I spent enough time riding it, but such was the availability of the test bike.

 

Giant Trance Advanced 1

This was the first time I’d swung a leg over the 27.5 bike in a long time and I was pleasantly surprised. Smooth, efficient and fast… for a 27.5 bike. With a super light build this thing floated up the hills, but downhill I missed the grip and rollover confidence of the wagon-wheelers. I also felt like it had an odd cockpit with a narrow bar for the type of bike. With a little tweaking of the cockpit the feel was much improved, but still I missed the big wheels. I wasn’t really looking at one of these, but my mate suggested I try a 27.5. I was pleasantly surprised, but I kept thinking that this bike would be much improved with 29er wheels. If 27.5 is your thing, check our this bike as it is insane value for money.

 

Santa Cruz Hightower custom build

One of the unicorn bikes in the test and seriously impressive. With a monster build this bike also just wanted you to let go of the brakes, pick up speed and plough through gnarly terrain. I can see why some pinners swear by the Hightower as their one-bike solution. I personally felt like the bike felt a bit cumbersome at slow speeds and climbs probably due to the 160mm fork and long front centre (can run a 140/150 fork as well). I also felt like the Rockshox rear needed more support. The owner had set up the bike to come alive at speed and I think with a deliberate, big-bike riding style it could do great things (I was not that rider). Riding position was also one of the best with the longesttop tube for a size large. Definitely worth the hype, but I also wish I’d had more rides on this beast possibly with a lower cockpit set up.

 

Specialized Stumperjumper FSR 29er S-Works

Also a bike I had high hopes for and very nearly what I ended up getting. All around awesome and in my opinion the best-suited bike for the majority of our trails. Great handling and just the right balance of pop-vs-plough ability. The perfect do-it-all bike! I didn’t think I would love the SWAT box as much as I did, but it is a game-changer. Seriously you can fit two boerie rolls and tools down there. Even if it isn’t an unusual or exciting brand, it is one of the most popular for a reason. Like buying a BMW if you like a car that is going to be a pleasure to drive. This bike is just as comfortable with a four-hour mission as it is bombing around a DH track. I think if I was a more capable rider or into longer rides, I think I would have bought one of these.

 

Specialized Enduro Elite custom build

So why did I get this bike? I’d totally stuffed up the suspension set up through my own foolishness and totally hated the bike the first time I rode it. I was super confused so that evening I put in some to set up the bike and cockpit correctly. Then it all just clicked. HUGE confidence and a good balance of big bump capability and playfulness. I’d expected it to be almost identical to my old Enduro, but I needed to muscle it a bit more. The slacker head angle and steeper seat angle meant the riding position was identical, but the geometry was different so I felt comfortable even though the bike handled differently. This Goldilocks set up and more aggressive riding resulted in personal best times everywhere – up and down the hills. I was hitting jumps and drops I hadn’t done before while having an absolute blast. I was sold… You don’t buy a bike to flatter things you can already do well so I wanted something that would make a faster rider downhill.

 

Giant Reign Advanced custom build

Even though I’d pretty much decided to get the Enduro, another riding buddy had a spare Reign Advanced in his fleet and offered to let me ride it while figuring out the details of the new bike. I was pretty blown away by the descending capabilities of the Reign. Short of the Wreckoning, it was one of the most confidence inspiring bikes I’d ridden down a hill. Low, long and slack is overused these days, but this bike is one of the original modern Enduro race bikes. The Maestro suspension felt super smooth, but also pedalled well. Colour me impressed. And then I had to pedal up a hill. FML. It can do it, but you won’t enjoy it. Even with the pedal-mode on the shock, the angles just don’t encourage enthusiastic climbing. Mini-DH bike for sure.

 

 

There were some general things I learned like the difference between Fox and Rockshox suspension. They both perform, but in very different ways. I’m used to a Pike and I found I could easily transfer my settings and feel comfortable quicker on bikes with Rockshox forks (Lyriks and Pikes RCT3). When it came to set up the Fox forks (36 and 34 Factory Fit4) I took a bit longer to get it feeling how I wanted. I found the Fox forks more taught and racy while I found the Rockshox forks a bit easier and cushy. Conversely, I found the rear Fox shocks easier to set up than the Rockshox. Something about the Monarch and Debonair air-can made things a bit tricky.

 

I also learned that I love the e-thirteen TRS tyres and these became my go-to for all the test bikes. Having a narrow rim width or average set of tyres let down the side so I did change the wheels/tyres on some bikes to equal the playing field.

 

In the end I bought a bike to improve my riding where I could use the help instead of flattering skills I already had. Woohoo!

 

[nox1111]

 

Lekker! Congrats on the new bike!

Sure it will serve you well.

[Pikey]

Awesome write dude . Very real world riding that the average joe can relate to. And the terms you use to describe the bikes I get completely . It's was like having a conversation with a mate the wat you describe them.

 

I have been giving looking at a few of the bikes you rode,mostly the following & Hightower .

 

Great write up for the laymen. As I have been through a fair few bikes my self in the last 2 years I really wish I had taken the time to do what you did.

 

Very nice dude and sweet ride you ended up with ????

 

After all it's how the bike makes you feel that matters ,nothing else .

[BrandonF_]

 

As requested, a mini-review of the bikes I tested.

 

Note that these are not all from bike-shops and some were private bikes from some very kind riding buddies.

 

Trails ridden over a six week period:

• Jonkershoek (Firehut, Red-Phoenix, Canaries and Bennet’s new trails)
• Eden and G-spot
• Tokai (Snake Trails, Switchbacks and DH 1-2-3)
• Contermanskloof (DH Main Line, DH-Revised, Cheeky Corners, Kloof and Tree Charge)
• Table Mountain (The Glen and Pat’s track)
• Rheeboksflook full black
• Welvanpas full black

With the exception of one shuttle day at Conties I pedalled up everywhere to bomb down. My focus was on speed and confidence on the downhills, but I wanted a bike that was still engaging and climbed well. I’m not a top ten KOM hunter, but I enjoy technical trails (up and down).

 

Tested bikes in order of tests:

 

YT Jeffsy AL Comp (with some notable upgrades like carbon wheels)

First thing that blew me away was the lightness of this bike. If you want a featherweight look no further. I set PBs on every climb on this bike without the need to pedal-mode on the rear shock. This bike pedals insanely well and picks up speed very easily – so much so that I can see it doing duty on some very long rides. I found it to be quite progressive, but at the cost of plushness in the rear. This bike just wanted to pop of jump over everything rather than plow through it. The shorter rake on the fork also added to the sharp handling, but did make the front a bit more twitchy than I liked. I came away hugely impressed and very nearly bought one of these.

 

Rocky Mountain Instinct 770MSL (built up to BC spec)

Even though it was set up similarly to the others, I just couldn’t get confident on the bike. It felt like a long-legged XC bike rather than a modern trail bike which makes sense given that it is the oldest frame design of all the bikes I tested. It climbed well and pedalled very efficiently, but I felt too over the front on the downhills and couldn’t get the bike to flow even though the suspension was working well. I think if you are coming from an XC background you will feel more at home on this bike

 

Evil The Wreckoning custom build

Holy smokes! What a beast. Easily the fastest, most capable bike down a hill of all the bikes I tested. Pure confidence and speed made this bike just want to go faster and harder all the time. It also made it a bit dull (for me) at mere mortal speeds. The DELTA suspension is pretty amazing and was by far the best match with the Monarch rear shock. This felt like a big bike though and I just didn’t feel engaged unless I was going warp-factor five. DH-bike with 29er wheels I say, but not something I could fully take advantage of.

 

Evil The Following custom build

One of the original gangster 29er fun-bikes. True to the reputation this bike absolutely rips. It wants to hit everything, jump everything, takes some shots and start some fights. It punches above its weight, but I ended up finding myself in trouble without the talent to get out. As hard as it wants to hit the trails, I also found myself more tired at the end of a run than on bikes with more suspension travel. A bit of a difficult bike to label as it sort of blurs the lines for what a short travel trail bike can do. Could definitely do some big rides on this bike and have a blast doing it. I wanted it to be enough for me, but I needed longer travel.

 

Trek Remedy 9.8

One of the bikes I was most interested to test given the rave reviews and awesome reputation. I really thought this would be the one. Unfortunately for me it wasn’t. The build was on the heavy side and certainly felt like it needed more deliberate effort to get up, down and around the trail. It was nothing special up the hills even though the DRCV shock was supposed to give epic grip and pedalling efficiency. Only when things got fast and rowdy did I see the genius. I also think if the bike had a lighter, more nimble wheelset that I would have had a very different experience. A bit too much of a handful for me and unfortunately I also don’t think I spent enough time riding it, but such was the availability of the test bike.

 

Giant Trance Advanced 1

This was the first time I’d swung a leg over the 27.5 bike in a long time and I was pleasantly surprised. Smooth, efficient and fast… for a 27.5 bike. With a super light build this thing floated up the hills, but downhill I missed the grip and rollover confidence of the wagon-wheelers. I also felt like it had an odd cockpit with a narrow bar for the type of bike. With a little tweaking of the cockpit the feel was much improved, but still I missed the big wheels. I wasn’t really looking at one of these, but my mate suggested I try a 27.5. I was pleasantly surprised, but I kept thinking that this bike would be much improved with 29er wheels. If 27.5 is your thing, check our this bike as it is insane value for money.

 

Santa Cruz Hightower custom build

One of the unicorn bikes in the test and seriously impressive. With a monster build this bike also just wanted you to let go of the brakes, pick up speed and plough through gnarly terrain. I can see why some pinners swear by the Hightower as their one-bike solution. I personally felt like the bike felt a bit cumbersome at slow speeds and climbs probably due to the 160mm fork and long front centre (can run a 140/150 fork as well). I also felt like the Rockshox rear needed more support. The owner had set up the bike to come alive at speed and I think with a deliberate, big-bike riding style it could do great things (I was not that rider). Riding position was also one of the best with the longesttop tube for a size large. Definitely worth the hype, but I also wish I’d had more rides on this beast possibly with a lower cockpit set up.

 

Specialized Stumperjumper FSR 29er S-Works

Also a bike I had high hopes for and very nearly what I ended up getting. All around awesome and in my opinion the best-suited bike for the majority of our trails. Great handling and just the right balance of pop-vs-plough ability. The perfect do-it-all bike! I didn’t think I would love the SWAT box as much as I did, but it is a game-changer. Seriously you can fit two boerie rolls and tools down there. Even if it isn’t an unusual or exciting brand, it is one of the most popular for a reason. Like buying a BMW if you like a car that is going to be a pleasure to drive. This bike is just as comfortable with a four-hour mission as it is bombing around a DH track. I think if I was a more capable rider or into longer rides, I think I would have bought one of these.

 

Specialized Enduro Elite custom build

So why did I get this bike? I’d totally stuffed up the suspension set up through my own foolishness and totally hated the bike the first time I rode it. I was super confused so that evening I put in some to set up the bike and cockpit correctly. Then it all just clicked. HUGE confidence and a good balance of big bump capability and playfulness. I’d expected it to be almost identical to my old Enduro, but I needed to muscle it a bit more. The slacker head angle and steeper seat angle meant the riding position was identical, but the geometry was different so I felt comfortable even though the bike handled differently. This Goldilocks set up and more aggressive riding resulted in personal best times everywhere – up and down the hills. I was hitting jumps and drops I hadn’t done before while having an absolute blast. I was sold… You don’t buy a bike to flatter things you can already do well so I wanted something that would make a faster rider downhill.

 

Giant Reign Advanced custom build

Even though I’d pretty much decided to get the Enduro, another riding buddy had a spare Reign Advanced in his fleet and offered to let me ride it while figuring out the details of the new bike. I was pretty blown away by the descending capabilities of the Reign. Short of the Wreckoning, it was one of the most confidence inspiring bikes I’d ridden down a hill. Low, long and slack is overused these days, but this bike is one of the original modern Enduro race bikes. The Maestro suspension felt super smooth, but also pedalled well. Colour me impressed. And then I had to pedal up a hill. FML. It can do it, but you won’t enjoy it. Even with the pedal-mode on the shock, the angles just don’t encourage enthusiastic climbing. Mini-DH bike for sure.

 

 

There were some general things I learned like the difference between Fox and Rockshox suspension. They both perform, but in very different ways. I’m used to a Pike and I found I could easily transfer my settings and feel comfortable quicker on bikes with Rockshox forks (Lyriks and Pikes RCT3). When it came to set up the Fox forks (36 and 34 Factory Fit4) I took a bit longer to get it feeling how I wanted. I found the Fox forks more taught and racy while I found the Rockshox forks a bit easier and cushy. Conversely, I found the rear Fox shocks easier to set up than the Rockshox. Something about the Monarch and Debonair air-can made things a bit tricky.

 

I also learned that I love the e-thirteen TRS tyres and these became my go-to for all the test bikes. Having a narrow rim width or average set of tyres let down the side so I did change the wheels/tyres on some bikes to equal the playing field.

 

In the end I bought a bike to improve my riding where I could use the help instead of flattering skills I already had. Woohoo!

Proper. Thank you. ????????

[Hairy]

Thanks for taking the time to pen your experiences, made for a great read

[nox1111]

still waiting for dem photos though...

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

[Josh0]

WOW that paintjob is sliiiick!!!

[Kaggel]

Awesome write dude . Very real world riding that the average joe can relate to. And the terms you use to describe the bikes I get completely . It's was like having a conversation with a mate the wat you describe them.

 

I have been giving looking at a few of the bikes you rode,mostly the following & Hightower .

 

Great write up for the laymen. As I have been through a fair few bikes my self in the last 2 years I really wish I had taken the time to do what you did.

 

Very nice dude and sweet ride you ended up with

 

After all it's how the bike makes you feel that matters ,nothing else .

What a fun descision to be making between the Hightower and The Following. I found them to be quite different in feeling. The Hightower felt like a bit a of bruiser with ultimately higher capabilities. The Following was more fun and nimble. Depends I guess on what you also plan to ride.

 

I would also say the Hightower can be more versatile in terms of set up:

29er or 650-plus wheels with a boost frame

Fork travel from 140 to 160

Even more interesting is now the talk about a long-shock options giving you up to 150mm at the back.

It is also a light frame so you end up with a good, light build regadless

 

I liked the rear suspension of The Following more than the Hightower though.

 

Good luck and have fun!