Viewing 26 posts - 1 through 26 (of 26 total)
  • Bird Aeris 120 owners
  • upshift
    Free Member

    I’m off to demo an Aeris 120 this weekend and am looking for any tips or observations from current owners on anything from the process of choosing a spec to how they ride. Insight on how people who are on the borderline of a particular size made a decision would be useful too.

    Oh, and any pics!!

    lycanthropefailed
    Free Member

    Mine is a ML GX with a Yari. At 5’11 1/2″ I could have gone for a L, but I have short legs and wanted the 170mm dropper so I chose the smaller frame. It is an excellent fit, and although the numbers make it seem long, it isn’t. A superb bike, in fact despite many demos of vastly more expensive steeds, the 120 is the best I have ever ridden. Get good brakes as it will bring out the hooligan in you.

    riklegge
    Full Member

    The guys at Bird know their stuff, I would listen to their recommendations on size (I thought M might be too big based on geo charts, bit as lycanthropefailed says, it isn’t as long as you think.

    Awesome bikes, I can’t wait to be able to get one!

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    idiotdogbrain
    Free Member

    Not a 120 but a 145 – listen to the guys at Bird ref. sizing; as has been said, they don’t ride as long as the geometry numbers suggest. Regarding choosing spec – spend the money on suspension and wheels at the expense of finishing kit and groupset; bars and stems make little difference to how a bike rides, and groupsets wear out and are easily replaced.

    BoardinBob
    Full Member

    5’11 on an ML with short legs long torso. Feels great. Don’t skimp on suspension. I bought frame only with the upgraded shock option. Originally stuck a set of sektors on but they lasted 3 rides before I bought a Yari. 100 times better

    Climbs brilliantly, so much grip when you point it down. Only really gets out of its depth on proper DH stuff but a better rider than me could probably make the most of it even in that scenario. Love mine.

    eyestwice
    Free Member

    6′ on an ML 145. Fits like a glove. I could have gone for a large but Ben advised otherwise.

    I’m a happy bunny.

    triassicbunter
    Free Member

    I had a demo ride on a ML Aeris 120 last week. I’m 5’10” and I wouldn’t have wanted it to feel any smaller. It was spot on for me with a 40mm stem and 760mm bars. You won’t be disappointed, it rides and pedals brilliantly. I thought it was going to feel long and be difficult in the tight stuff but it was quite the reverse.

    The tough decisions start now… What forks to go for and what groupset? I’d pretty much decided on GX but now they’ve gone and released GX Eagle. Not sure I can justify the extra money though.

    upshift
    Free Member

    See, I’m on the cusp of ML and L and have booked the ML, so it’ll be interesting to see how it feels.

    Appreciate the comments on suspension over groupset. I’m looking at the SLX build which comes with a Yari fork, or a Pike for £115 extra – is it worth the upgrade?

    What droppers are people running?

    mell
    Free Member

    5’10 on a ML aeris 120. Fits really well and rides amazingly. Corners like a dream and makes technical climbing nearly enjoyable

    leythervegas
    Free Member

    Im 6ft 2 and went for the Large. Fits perfectly. I have changed a the bars and stem as i wasnt keen on the 35mm bars so went for some more traditional 31.6 as i prefer a bit of flex. Also a bit wider (800mm) made it feel easier to control on the downs. I went for the gx spec with upgraded pikes (for £115 extra seemed well worth it) but others love the? yari’s too. I like having all Sram too, not sure why. Some have said its more reliable than shimano. I would have definitely gone for the new eagle 1×12 if i could have. Great upgrade for the price. Boost wheels and forks too as i thought it would maybe be more futureproof. Heres mine…

    superstu
    Free Member

    I’m on an “old” Aeris 1.5.
    I’m 6.2/3 and rode both the large and XL. For me the XL felt much better, more planted on jumps and when hitting things quickly. Personal preference of course. I like the fact that the standover is so low so you can size according to preference.

    If I was looking again I’d probably still take the 145 over the 120. 120 would suit my all round riding but there’s little penalty going for more travel and it’s useful when you need / want it.

    sofaman
    Full Member

    6’2, so correctly went for large – bang in the middle of the recommended range and a previous quick check confirmed.

    SLC with boat-anchor cassette and 32t chainring. Arrived the day the GX Eagle was announced, which I probably would have preferred – such is life.

    Pike RC, DT350/M502 wheels, Reverb 150.

    makes technical climbing nearly enjoyable

    +1

    mark90
    Free Member

    I’m 5’7″ and having ridden both the M and ML in the new Aeris I’d be torn choosing between the sizes. Either fit me fine, would run slightly different stem lengths. Depends on where to choose the balance of compromises: longer more stable wheelbase on the ML, shorter more nimble wheelbase on the M (not that the ML felt long to turn in), more dropper room on the M, more room to move weight around on the ML. As I’m sticking with my M mk1.5 Aeris I don’t have to make the difficult decision.

    kraken2345
    Free Member

    Not to hijack the thread but I was wondering if anyone has any photos of the Tungsten Grey frame as a complete? I’ve seen photos of both other colours but none of grey ones owned by anyone on the forum, hard to gauge an opinion from the website

    patriotpro
    Free Member

    The cable routing on the downtube looks pretty poor imo

    BoardinBob
    Full Member

    In what way? Visually or practically?

    It works perfectly in my experience and is really cleverly done to avoid cable rub compared to every other bike I’ve ever owned

    upshift
    Free Member

    Like Kraken said if anyone has pics of the Tungsten Grey frames it’d be good to see them.

    Is there anything maintenance-wise to keep on top of? My current bike is a v-braked hardtail so hydro discs, tubeless and many bearings are new to me!

    eb2429
    Free Member

    I really like the 120 and 145, but can’t get past the cables for some reason

    Tungsten grey google search found these two hits straight away, looks pretty good

    more here
    https://stealthriders.com/2017/01/20/bird-aeris-one20-review/

    upshift
    Free Member

    Thanks eb – the grey looks great.

    Properly excited for Saturday now!

    timbob78
    Free Member

    Grey looks good if a little understated but surely the bright orange is at least 0.2mph faster on the descents 😆

    Nice looking bike either way

    upshift
    Free Member

    Just to round this off:

    Test ride yesterday was on one of Bird’s original prototype Aeris 120s, which looked immensely cool unpainted.

    Really enjoyed taking it round Swinley blue and red and it definitely inspired confidence. The best way I can describe it is feeling like an XC bike at the back and trail bike at the front – it pedals and climbs like a hardtail, even with the shock open, but loves to carve round berms with the slacker head angle.

    So, order is placed. Great service from Ben – it’s almost like visiting a tailor. We spent 20mins talking through just the tyre choices, and the bike will come with a few pieces of 2018 kit, some of which aren’t publicly available yet.

    Can’t wait for it to arrive!

    superstu
    Free Member

    Glad you liked it, now the horrid wait!

    joemmo
    Free Member

    recent 120 owner here – love the bike, especially coming from something over 10 years old and pretty ‘old-skool’. Feels both bombproof and agile at the same time and I like the fact that it has nearly all the new things (boost, metric, 1x etc.) so should be relatively obsolescence proof + sensible old things like threaded BB and external cabling.

    I didn’t get to test ride but got some great phone support from Ben, Dave & Dan on sizing and spec choice. In the end I went for GX spec + Yari + 150mm Reverb and the DT Swiss m502 wheels. Only spec regret was choosing the entry level DB5 brakes but I sold these and replaced them with Guide RE immediately – great brakes by the way and some good deals available from well known German retailers…

    The SRAM transmission seems super crisp after riding Shimano for years and the 11 spd range is pretty good but I bought a 30T chainring to swap in for days with a lot of climbing – the X-sync steel rings are an absolute bargain so it’s worth getting one to keep in reserve. Had the Eagle option been available at the time I probably would have gone for it but it wasn’t so no big deal.

    Size wise – I’m 5’10 with 33″ inside leg and went for ML and I think its spot on. Probably could have squeezed the 170 dropper in as I generally like a higher saddle position but the 150 is fine. Here ’tis:

    upshift
    Free Member

    I’ve gone full XT (32t + 11-46 cassette) with a Revelation up front and a RaceFace Aefect dropper. I’ll post thoughts when it arrives in 2 weeks!

    mark90
    Free Member

    I do like that blue colour

    joemmo
    Free Member

    Yeah the blue is nice – it really pops. If they did the 120 in the tangerine orange like the 145 then that would have been no contest but the sparkly orange didn’t quite do it for me.

    @eb2429 – I know where your coming re: the cabling/hosing but actually the routing is well thought out and tidy as it can be. I’ve faffed about with internal cabling before and would gladly never touch it again. What’s difficult to see in most pics is that the gear cable, the brake hose and the dropper hose cross over and swap sides near the top of the downtube so they have a clean loop to the levers.

    It came down to a choice between Bird and Canyon and the cabling and lack of PF BB helped swing it in Bird’s favour. Nice to put your cash into a UK company as well

Viewing 26 posts - 1 through 26 (of 26 total)

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