Bike Recs?

SpartaBard

SpartaBard

Well-Known Member
I am in the market for a new bike. As of last weekend I was riding a hardtail Kona, but am interested in some of the full suspension models. I am looking for a bike that I can use for single track and some XC. I never go downhill at places like Diablo😱 .

For the most part I have been looking at the Specialized Stumpjumper and Epic because of the brain technology allowing for a full suspension bike to feel like a hardtail. Does anyone have an recs for other brands? Trek? Kona? Santa Cruz (Jason)? 😕 😕 😕

Thanks all.
 
brad - check out the giant trance. the folks at cycle works on rte 206 in byram sell 'em. you can take mine for a spin if you show up on satyrday.
 
Well I love my Heckler but if I had the cash, I'd be riding a Turner RFX. I love the ride on my Heckler and the price certainly was right but finding a dealer with one put together to try is a whole other story. You are welcome to take mine for a ride and see if you like it but I think your original choices of Stumpjumper and Epic match your needs much better. I absolutely LOVED my epic even though most ppl just didn't understand nor wanted to deal with the increased complications with the brain shock. I think it's magical! lol

Best suggestion I can give you is test ride as many bikes as you possibly can. With the usual group here you could easily test some of the best bikes on the market. 🙂
 
Seems like you are looking for a 4 inch travel bike. Here are my choices in order

1. epic
2. epic
3 turner flux
4 epic
5 trance
6 epic
7 stumpjumber with brain(but its a 5 inch travel bike)
8 epic


Oh and if I did'nt mention it I think the epic would be a good choice too.😛
 
Trance is the most fun 4" travel bike ever made. Way better than the epic. 🙂

A hardtail feel is great on the easy stuff that Heythorp likes to ride but imho you'll want a real good squishy bike for more technical terrain.
 
Thanks for the input everyone. I will check out the Giant also. Jason are you familiar with the SC Nomad? Do you know any place that sells the Turner?

No thoughts on Trek?

Where are you guys going this Sat? Maybe my Kona can last one more weekend.
 
i am the only TREK man

well, i am. brad, you saw mine (fuel ex7) at PP/LM last weekend and for what i do with it, which is what you want to do, it's a fantastic bike. no one readily recommends them, why, i truly have no idea (i have the feeling someone at Trek may have run over someone's grandma or something), but they are incredibly well made. i'm a little bigger than you and this bike takes every ounce of beating i give it. it's spec's out pretty well and for $1,700 you can't find too many bikes made as well. to be honest though, i really don't have anything to compare it to other than the cannondale SS i rode earlier in the season. i would really recommend (as others have mentioned) to demo as many of the bikes that you are interested in as you can.

for what it's worth, i know i'll be riding this bike (well the frame at least) for at least another three or four years upgrading components as i need them. if you're looking for a tough bike that can take a beating (less the rims, but that may be a clyde issue) i would highly recommend it.
 
Sparta Brad said:
Thanks for the input everyone. I will check out the Giant also. Jason are you familiar with the SC Nomad? Do you know any place that sells the Turner?

No thoughts on Trek?

Where are you guys going this Sat? Maybe my Kona can last one more weekend.
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There is nothing wrong with Treks in general. Many people say they have no soul. They are kind of boring to look at and they do not give a very inspiring ride. But that does not mean they are not a good product. There are just many other option out there in the same price range that get peoples' juices flowing.
 
Most bike shops will say Trek technology is behind the times in terms of mountain bikes. They've put a lot of their efforts into road bikes in the last few years. This, as they say, is the word on the street.

I have a Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Comp and think it's great. But I'm not too particular about these sorts of things. For myself, I'm of the belief that it's the rider not the ride that makes more of a difference.
 
normZurawski said:
Most bike shops will say Trek technology is behind the times in terms of mountain bikes. They've put a lot of their efforts into road bikes in the last few years. This, as they say, is the word on the street.
Click to expand...


100% True
 
I just looked up the Turner Flux online, way out of my price range. I think just the frame is outside of my price range. 😱 Although it would be cool to ride a bike with my last name. 🙄

It seems like I have it narrowed to Specialized (Epic/Stumpjumper) and Giant (Trance). I will check out Marty's and Cycle Works next week.
 
cycle works also sells turner, BUT they do not keep them in stock. i believe the Cupp specced his on line, and outlasted the shop to eventually get a very good price on his 5 spot. brendan at Cycle Craft in Parsipanny carries cannondale and trek, and i would say they are a more reliable shop than the folks in jefferson. he is also a santa cruz dealer, but you can hustle a better price for a frame on line. however, you may run into problems finding someone to build it, like jay said earlier.
 
Yeti

The Yeti ASR-sl is a great XC bike. It eats up the downhill as well or better than any other XC bike out there, and is more efficient on the uphills. The bike seems to like to climb. It has pro-pedal rear, is desgned to accomodate 100mm fork and is built strong enough for most big riders, yet rides light. Made in USA.

pixychick
 
I think the Yeti is outside of my budget which is ballpark $2k. Once again just the frame is beyond my budget.

Any info out there on the Specialized FSRxc?
 
Sparta Brad said:
Thanks for the input everyone. I will check out the Giant also. Jason are you familiar with the SC Nomad? Do you know any place that sells the Turner?

...
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The Nomad is a nice bike but its the All Mountain (long travel, heavy for technical XC) / freeride / light DH side of the sport. If you don't plan on diablo, you won't need it. I believe its a 6+ travel bike.

The Heckler would probably be over the top too, its All Mountain 5+ travel.

More towards the XC fleet of bikes you can consider some of these below. But first, is price an issue? If not then:

Turner Flux is great. Also, consider a Titus Racer X. Personally I'd really like to make a Turner 6 pack or the Titus Moto-Lite my all around bike.

The SC Blur XC might be a good bike to consider.

On a budget? If you want a good bike at a cheap price, the SC Superlights can be bought fully loaded, pretty cheap. I've had mine for 6 years now. I am looking to upgrade but its served me really well.

Cyclecraft does Turner. Also Town Cycle in West Milford has a beutiful Flux frame hanging over the register.
 
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