Forum menu
Cheers Shackleton, unfortunately not, being Leeds based.
Although you're still probably closer than Pedals in Edinburgh or Blazing Bikes in Shropshire as these are the only two I know of with demo bikes.
I might have to do some ringing around this weekend.
So shes done...Just waiting for my Stealth Pike decals. Taking her for her first shakedown this weekend! Woohooo
[img] 
[/img]
logo to valve alignment needs to be addressed. I'll reserve judgement till then.
Shackleton, I'm in Hampshire at the moment. Thanks for your description, very helpful!
I know the Phantom is what would suit my needs best 90% of the time, but essentially the reason I'm looking for a new bike is for times when the hardtail doesn't cut it, which brings me to the Spitfire.
What sort of riding do you do Shackleton? Would you be happy with the Phantom for enduros and uplifts?
I know they've been used in EWS, and Pat at Ison said he would use one in UKGE but road bike party proved there is no point in trying to use top riders as a barometer of what can be done on a bike!
Don't know exactly how to describe my riding.
I rode the innerleithen and local DH tracks on mine without issue (apart from the stupid big drop that I wouldn't even do on a DH bike 😕 ). I've ridden a few Enduro courses (Tweed valley, Perth and Dunkeld) but not raced as I don't like racing! I've ridden it in the Lakes, Torridon, Peaks, Colorado and the Alps and live in Scotland. It so far has never missed a beat. Certainly gets me down more stuff than my heckler ever did.
If you are tired or don't pay attention then you don't have the safety margin but I think it rides better overall than the Spitfire so long as you commit. In the end, if you want a bike that gives you the confidence to go bigger than your hardtail, then get the Spitfire. The Phantom will have more overlap with your hardtail but doesn't give anything up to the Spitfire IMO unless you need the extra travel to absorb a drop. Both bikes share the same tubeset so there are no issues over strength differences. The Phantom will do exactly the same trails just as well as the spitfire, but it sounds like you don't believe that the Phantom will do it so you won't have that confidence!
And in fairness I wasn't sure either. I knew I liked the suspension of the spitfire but didn't like the front wheel handling. I knew I liked 29er wheels and wanted a more engaging ride than the spitfire and have an active riding style from riding rigid bikes over winter for the past few years. I also wanted one bike that would do big mountains and rocky mess yet still give me fun in woody singletrack. From that point of view the Phantom made more sense to me.
Really it comes down to your mindset: If you want something that will plow through chunk, have a safety net and be very different from your hardtail get the spitfire and just accept that it is less of a do everything bike. If you like placing and working your bike through terrain with precision and want to feel engaged all the time get the Phantom.
Man, I go on a bit sometimes..........
Ha thank you. Now I'm still going round in circles at an even faster rate!
Were you happy with it in the Alps or ditd you find yourself nursing your arms dreaming of 150mm pikes? I'm at least a month away from buying so plenty of pondering to do before I pull the trigger.
Shackleton, have you tried the different dropout positions on your Phantom yet?
I've been riding my Spitfire for a year odd and it's built up pretty burly (160mm fork, 27.5 wheels, CCDBA). For months I kept it in the neutral setting. Then tried it slack/low and found that made it a proper downhill bomber (at the expense of some climbing finesse), so kept that for uplift days and enduro races. Recently I've been riding it in the steep/high setting and I love how that behaves on my tight and twisty local trails - much more nimble, much more pedal clearance (our natural trails have a lot of pedal catching roots/stumps/foliage).
The difference in character between the slack and steep settings is surprisingly large - 1 deg of head/seat-tube angle and 12mm of BB height combine to make a big difference. From enduro bike to trail bike (or just leave it in the halfway house).
[b]mark88[/b] - No problems whatsoever in the alps, although it wasn't bike park stuff I was riding. I use 130mm MRP Stages, only 4mm longer a-c than a 120mm pike. If you are able to ride a hardtail over most terrain but want a bit more encouragement/confidence then the riding style of the Phantom would probably suit. If you always flat the back on a hardtail then maybe the Spitfire is the way forward for its rock plough ability. Whichever one you get will be great, just remember - get the CCDBinline. The monarch just isn't worth it! (also <50mm stem and wiiidde bars, particularly if you go for the phantom 🙂 )
FWIW the spitfire and phantom are more similar to each other in riding style than ether is to the prime (big dull monster truck when I tried one around Innerleithen, you would have to be riding some truly epic nastiness for the prime to feel like it was stretching it's legs).
[b]chiefgrooveguru[/b] - I tried the steep but not the slack as it would be generally too low for my lumpy trails. The steep was good but didn't change things dramatically in terms of handling compared to medium. It did make clearance better but it felt a bit less stable. All as you would guess I suppose but not as big a difference as I expected. I'm sure I read on MTBR that someone with a spitfire and phantom said there was a more noticeable effect on handling with the spitfire. Wheel size effects? Who knows. I'm tempted to try the slack around some trail centre stuff and the local DH track, I just think for natural stuff that I usually ride it will be too low. Thinking about it now I'm rather keen......would probably be a monster!
I'd fully agree with the Spitfires rock plough ability. I got nervous about tails of rim dinger at BPW but the Spitfire just saw it off. Im not the most graceful rider.
Kob, you have mail...
Given the knowledge on this thread I thought I'd resurrect it rather than start a new one.
I want to get a Spitfire frame but don't have the money for a new set of 650b wheels and forks so want to run it old skool with my existing 26 inch stuff. In theory this should be a doddle, in practice not quite so as I can't find any 26 dropouts. Which leads to a couple of questions:
1) Has anyone just put 26 inch wheels in the 650b dropouts? If so what is it like and what are the preferred positions for the flip chip things?
2) Has anyone got a set of 26 inch dropouts they no longer need and are prepared to sell on?
hi, im surprised to hear there are no 26 dropouts available. Have you tried Blazing Bikes in Shropshire?
or perhaps contact Ison distribution directly.
I don't think running 26 wheels in 27.5 dropouts would be too much of a big deal but no first hand experience of it (im still running 26 wheels in 26 dropouts on my spitty)
Ison have them in 135 and 150mm, not 142 though.
here: http://www.ison-distribution.com/english/product.php?part=FMBESASK
Thanks intention was 142 and is proving problematic but I suppose if needs must the hub (Hope Pro2) could go to one of the others. Still be interested in other answers the questions.
.
You can run 26 wheels in the 27.5 dropouts or 27.5 wheels (apart from the very biggest tyres) in the 26 dropouts - the 27.5 ones just increase the chainstay length by 10mm, no other changes. So that gives you 427/429/431mm chainstays or 437/439/441mm chainstays, depending on whether you're in high/neutral/low positions.
I've ordered some 26" 142 ones just to see how the different length feels - think it might be nice next summer on my twisty local trails. When it's more slippery or I'm on faster trails I think the longer ones will be better. LBS are waiting for Ison to get them back in stock - I imagine it's due to the model year changeover (a few subtle changes for the 2016 version).
Thanks Chief, does it not also affect the BB height?
It would be good if the distributor could give a straight answer to the question about 142 availability, but they seem reluctant to do so.
Too easy to get caught up in the numbers and facts, but if you just run the 26" wheels the difference is going to be 7-8mm on BB and a couple other areas. In practice, I doubt you'd notice, and of course there's no physical problem with doing so.
I'd buy it, build it, run it then worry about all that never.
I'm inclined to agree GD ref the numbers game. What I was trying to avoid was doing as you suggest but finding the thing was rubbish no solution to the problem. I'm getting a feeling that would not be the case.
No change to BB height with the different dropouts - but whichever you use you can then change the BB height by +/-6mm and the angles by +/-0.5 deg by changing the flipchip position.
Bullroar, i have a set of 26 dropouts on my spitfire that i wod be happy to swap for 27.5.
I am changing some kit out bit by bit before a probable frame change next year so if you want them drop me a line.
Cheers
Funny that this thread has popped up, I'm demoing one this weekend and rather looking forward to it 😀
I only ran 650b dropouts with both size wheels, loved it most of the time but the back end did feel long on those corners where you want to keep a tight or high line. Now I'm on a bike with shorter chainstays I seem to be hitting inside lines much more often which gives the confidence to push harder.
I run 26" dropouts with 650b wheels.
Tried both and found it more nimble with the 26.
Have some 650b dropouts for sale.
Be careful of the stupid little bolt on the axle. Just Snapped mine.
Hopefully it's not needed. 😉
Anyone ordered a new axle and know the cost?
SOAP, standard Rockshox Maxles will fit too. That little end bolt only needs to be just past finger tight - 3Nm.
Just getting ready to go out for a ride and saw this...:(
[img] 
[/img]
Warranty time?
I know of quite a few people who have ended up with that bolt snapping. Myself included.
Is that a mk2 frame? Gutted. Hope it all works out.
Oh dear 🙁
I cracked two Mk2 spitfires on the weld on the other end of that gusset.
Both were warranty jobs, 2 week turnaround time on both.
Yeah its a 2015 spitty. Absolutely gutted tbh but it happens. Dropped it off at local banshee dealer (skyline) today. Just sucks not being able to ride.
One of the benefits of a raw frame finish.
Yep, hard to not notice that crack. Loved the raw finish too, not to keen on the new colours.
Now I wish I'd checked this thread 2 weeks ago...I also have 26" 142mm dropouts. Would swap for or buy 650b drops.
Unlucky Volotilemike, hope it gets sorted soonest! I'm away to the garage to check my 2015 Raw frame :-/
My dropouts are sorted thanks to Geoff, if anyone wants to buy my 26" ones then email me.
Good time to check the frame over since it will be 2 years old soon. Also i've always fancied taking off the front mech cable stops for tidiness which I may do once it's out of warranty. As far as I know the new XT mechs can be run without frame stops if I ever change my mind - am I wrong?
Awesome service from Skyline and Ison. Got my bike back today all built up with shiny new frame 🙂 crap picture but you know, wanted to ride!
[img] 
[/img]
Ace news, thats the kind of customer service that you remember for a long time.
I like that colour
Yeah thought Id go a bit different than the new gun metal, and this looks awesome!
Is that the new updated angles frame? Does it feel very different to the previous one?
Will just leave this here too.
[url= https://farm1.staticflickr.com/345/19084503142_74f947bdb9_c.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm1.staticflickr.com/345/19084503142_74f947bdb9_c.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/v5r4TC ]Banshee Spitfire[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/le_grande_momo/ ]Matt Cotterill[/url], on Flickr
Only had it for 3 months, took a few rides to adapt to having only ridden my HT for 9 months, but really loving it. Currently has the 150mm pikes from my BFe on after a weekend down on the Quantocks where I thought 2lbs less on the front would come in handy.
Is the new 'Gun metal' 2016 colour just the same as the Raw? Or is it a painted finish?
Yeah this has the new angles. I think the lower stand-over is noticeable, but I cant tell the difference of anything else.
Sorry I still haven't got any good photos of it!
[img] 
[/img]
This bike seems the only way I can upgrade (and get 27.5 potential) without selling all of my 26" kit
I think I preferred the ride of it with 26" wheels, might go back to them to be honest. Easier uphill anyway.
will just accept that there will be more pedal smashes.
here with 26" wheels
[img] 
[/img]