Hi,
Sorry to make another Rocket thread.
I’m giving up my FR rig in favor of a do it all bike that I can use for Enduro, DH and Trail.
I’ve kind of got my heart set on a Cotic Rocket, which I’ll be using with 160mm Floats. The problem is, my build budget is around £1500, so I’ll have to buy the frame second hand.
The only frame I have found is 17.5″ (medium) and I’m 6’2″. Cotic’s website recommends medium for up to 6′ – so would my exra 2 inches make much of a difference riding wise?

If it makes any difference, my last bike was a 14″ – and although it was OK doing DH, pedalling was horrible and I felt very hunched up.

I was also previously looking at an Orange Blood. The Bloods’ “large” was 17″, and had a smaller toptube then the Cotic in medium.

I also live too far away for a demo day unfortunately.

Does anyone have any experience – how would a slightly smaller bike effect my riding? Is it going to be a really stupid idea to get a medium?

Sorry for the essay.

Thanks!

BUMP

If you want it primarily as a play bike a medium will prob be ok, if trail riding is high up your priority list then the large will be more comfortable for longer rides. You’ll need a decent amount of seatpost showing for proper pedalling height so make sure you get a decent length post, also if you were thinking of a dropper post in the future you’d have to see if it’s going to be long enough and in safety in the frame. Think the rocket is a decent length in the top tube so you won’t be overly cramped on a medium – especially when compared to a 14″ jump bike!

Thanks Steve.
Yeah I mainly ride DH trails at the FoD at the moment, but I’d like to get into some Enduro races.

Damn! I’ve just bought a 250mm Thomson post – looks like that’ll be up for swaps in a few days.

I think I’m gonna go for the medium – not that I have much choice!

I’m 5ft11 with a long body and short legs. Medium was spot on for me, Large was too, er, large 😉 You’re probably right about that post… reckon M might be okay for what you want to do. Drop Cy an email maybe?

Cotic aren’t one of those companies where the frames are all sized up for mincers and everyone else wants a size down, tbh… Speak to Cy, you will get top class advice but I suspect you’ll regret getting a medium (I’m 5’10 and pretty averagely dimensioned, and all my Cotics are medium and absolutely bang on. I had a small BFe and it was good for some things, but definately small)

Yeah I was thinking about asking him, but thought it might be a bit cheeky seeing as I won’t be buying the frame from Cotic :/

I’ll let you in on a little secret… I’ve had 5 Cotics, and I only bought one new, but even so I’ve had better backup and advice from Cotic than I’ve had from any other bike company. And better warranty support despite a) not having a warranty as I bought used and b) it being out of warranty anyway and c) Breaking it on the world cup downhill course at fort william. So, un-warranty support I guess 😉 They are just that good, they can’t help it.

I’ve emailed Cotic – hopefully it’ll be Cy that reads it – thanks for the help

Cotic’s sizing advice is pretty on the button, so I’d say you need a large. Especially as 6’2″ isn’t just slightly over the boundary…

I’m 6′ and on a medium for cotic’s. I’d say it was pretty much just big enough. The problem with getting too small a frame is that you end up with the saddle rammed as far back as you can (and the front wheel gets wandery as a result) and you stick a ‘long’ stem on it which ‘slows’ it down. This is how my Soul started out. I’ve subsequently learned to live with saddle a bit further forward and a shorter stem (with wider bars), being 2″ taller I’d say you’d find the rocket a bit cramped… esp if you fancy doing enduros.

Don’t worry if it’s not Cy who gets the email, Paul knows his onions too.

And they are shut until the 3rd, don’t be surprised if you don’t get a reply until then.

I’m afraid you really need the large if you want to ride around on it for any period of time. Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings

Hi
6 ft here and got a Large.
Demoed one first and it is spot on.
Did a quick ride around a car park on a medium and nowhere near as comfortable (I know that’s not a real test but the Large just felt right straight away)
Cheers
Steve

Damn, guess I’ll have to wait for a large to come along then 🙁

Unless you’re a lucky so n so, it’s likely to be a huge wait…

I’d plump with the medium whilst its available; remember that the more seatpost you have showing, the longer the top tube gets anyhow; if you’re still cramped, you could pop a layback post on there which would redress the balance

Generally, by the time the front wheel is popping up on climbs, you’re having to hover over the saddle to dynamically adjust your weight anyhow and less than an inch isn’t going to make that much real world difference.

I might be talking guff, but I’m 6’1″ and the only time I’ve had a bike that supposedly fits (18″), I found it hugely restrictive when the time came to drop the saddle and lay down some flatties, whereas the 16″ I have now gives me all of the benefits of the larger bike (along with being a tad more comfortable at pedalling height due to additional seatpost flex) with the added bonus of chuckability when I wanna get rad and to be fair, it sounds like you prefer getting rad 8)

I’m happy to take full responsibility if you don’t love it to bits and even happier to take responsibility if you do (though Cy is probably the man for that)

remember that the more seatpost you have showing, the longer the top tube gets anyhow

With a 66.5deg head angle and a 73deg seat angle the reverse is true – assuming bars and stem stay at the same relative height. 6’2″ on a medium is pretty crazy for any bike I’d say.

With a 66.5deg head angle and a 73deg seat angle the reverse is true – assuming bars and stem stay at the same relative height

Damn, the old relative/absolute conundrum… I was of course using a fixed bar position as a datum

Proud owner of a Rocket here. You need a large. Get one.
I spent a glorious day at Antur stiniog. The Rocket was awesome! I was crap however and broke my wrist. Cant wait to get back and stick it to the black run again though!

As much as that would be my dream bike, I simply cannot afford the frame.
Looks like it’ll be a Titus El Guapo for me then 🙁

As much as that would be my dream bike, I simply cannot afford the frame.
Looks like it’ll be a Titus El Guapo for me then 🙁

You’d definitely need a large. I tried a large and I’m 6’2″, wasn’t far off minimum insertion on a 350mm post, did feel nice and roomy in regards to TT length though. I absolutely loved it, just wish I had the funds to buy one. In orange, clearly.

Damned money!

Last chance to try and save you… what is your current bike?

Seems to me all this talk of a large relates to saddle up pedalling for all out XC… in my experience, the most fun is had on a bike when the saddle is down 😉

For the riding you describe, presumably in order of priority (Enduro, DH, Trail), a more chuckable bike is the order of the day~ you can upsize a smaller bike with a longer layback post and wider/higher rise bars, but you can’t downsize a bigger bike (except with a hacksaw).

But anyway, back to my question, what is your current bike?

My “current” bike was sold and sent last week 🙁 It was an Orange Patriot 66, 14″ if you’re interested.

To be honest, although the Titus El Guapo won’t have the wow factor, it does seem like a very nice frame – and sooooooooo cheap.

Maybe I’ll get a rocket when I’m at uni.

jivehoneyjive – Member

Seems to me all this talk of a large relates to saddle up pedalling for all out XC…

Nah, you can always fit a long seatpost but there’s no way to deal with a frame that’s too short for you without screwing it up in other ways.

Medium’ll be fine I would have thought.

Just bear in mind that Titus were once very much considered a Boutique brand, with the El Guapo frame selling at about £1500 originally. Most folk who’ve ridden pre & post On One taking over reckon the ride quality has improved with Brant’s input.

I had a Titus SuperMoto that was one of the most fun ‘big’ trail bikes that I’ve ridden. I’m a bit of a Nicolai Fanboi, but if the El Guapo came with a 135x12mm bolt through rear, I reckon I’d be pressing the buy button.

😮 When you said 14″, I imagined a jump bike that had a longish top tube!!

I can assure you that you’d be fine with a medium rocket and it would be countless worlds better than your previous tiddler!!

Also, a new El Guapo will only lose value, whereas if you get the 2nd hand rocket, the value will stay the same and you can swap it when a large comes along. Trust me, I’m the angel on your shoulder, not the devil (I would say that though (mwahahaha))

Nah, you can always fit a long seatpost but there’s no way to deal with a frame that’s too short for you without screwing it up in other ways.

Beyond a certain point that’s very true, but all told, worst case scenario we have an inch to gain, which a layback post will easily accommodate without any loss in handling.

Or maybe I’m just a midget lover (frames that is)

jivehoneyjive – Member

which a layback post will easily accommodate without any loss in handling.

Does absolutely nothing if you’re not sitting down, and impairs handling when you are 😕

Depends how you;re going to spend most of your time using it.

I used to have a medium cotic (albeit a bfe) it was better for jumps and downhill than the large I replaced it with.

The large is obviously much better for actually going on bike rides on though.

If the majority of your riding is downhill, get the medium.

More food for thought, Robbie Rickman used to ride a small cotic and he’s also 6’2″ (i think)

Ahhhhhhh, I am now more confused then when I started the thread.
The El Guapo does look really nice with the CCDB, and I’m wondering if it wouldn’t be more ideal for what I’ll be using it for.
But it also sounds as though medium Rocket might be Okay, especially on the downs – however it is a lot of money, so I don’t want to regret anything.

I think the prices will be similar between a 2nd hand rocked and a new El Guapo with CCDB air.

hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, I’ll probably sleep (or not) on it.

Jive – that is exactly how it felt to pedal the Patriot sat down!

Speak to Cy, as suggested earlier. Anyone know when the next batch of orange ones are due?.

Not sure if you saw, but Cy joined the thread halfway through – he seemed to think it would be a bad idea to go medium.

Also if I’m starting Enduro (which I confess I have never done before) won’t the uphill pedaling be pretty important, and therefor a medium might really not be ideal.

Sorry, never seen that!. Slight hijack then, Cy, when are you getting large orange rockets in?!.

All the enduro’s I’ve done, uphill pedalling is at your leisure and non technical (its the DH bits that are timed :wink:)~ its only on the steep climbs that having a very slightly shorter bike (honestly, it’s 1/2 an inch we’re dealing with here, REACH being the important dimension) might require a small adjustment to technique, but you won’t come to a grinding halt, or loose any tangible time.

Unless you have flamingo legs, a giraffe neck or orangutan arms, you will thank me for my dogged pursuit of trying to improve your life… I had a quick shot on my friends medium rocket and it was bang on (I’m 6’1″)… obviously, that is personal preference, as is all bike sizing to some degree, but coming from such a tiny bike (about 2.5″ difference in reach) going to a large may be too much of a shock to the system!!

haha, you really want to make me a rocket rider don’t you?

Both bikes seem so nice. But I think I’m going to get a Titus, because I can buy it new, it will come with a CCDBair and it will be Large.
Sorry to disappoint you Jive.

Damn, that means the temptation for me to buy the rocket remains!!

Jive, I’ve had the temptation for 6 months now. It’ll get you eventually!.