Thinking of swapping my Tracer2 and Saint groupset, for a Carbon nomad with XTR.

Wondering peoples opinions who’ve had one?
Thanks!

I’ve had one for 16 months and I love it! I’m a pretty new rider but ride quite hard and over some ok distances and mix up some DH and trail centres and mine is built with 180mm fox36’s and xtr/xt and weighs in at 31lb including pedals.

What sold it for me was how well it climbed up hill and how stiff it feels. Unless something amazing comes out over the next couple of years I’ve no need to even think of getting shot of it.

Not the most technical review but it makes me smile, I trust its quality as a build and it’s not let me down yet 🙂

Hi mate – I’ve done a few test rides on the Carbon Nomad and it is absolutely fantastic. The standout think you notice most of all is how incredibly stiff it is and this translates to incredible tracking and accuracy on the trail. You point it goes; you stomp it goes. It’s fantastic.

Yes it’s also very light; like for like you’re going to lose between 500g and 700g off of something similar. I’m not sure how much the Tracer weighs, but honestly the biggest gain is the stiffness.

The only issue with it is the sizing. The medium comes up very short in the cockpit compared to other bikes (23″) and the large is bigger than I wanted so in the end I didn’t buy one. Test ride first; there are a few places you can.

Carbon Nomad

Very good Kayak – took me a while to work it out 😀

Thanks for the responses.

Gary – It’s reviews like that which normally help the most, 31 lb sounds super light considering the 180s.

gee – I’ve heard a lot about the effectiveness of the stiffness. The Tracer2 frame is around 7.7lbs but I’m running a CCDB so that’ll be higher.

I don’t want to sacrifice the downs, but I think the carbon will really benefit riding up.

My old one in the picture below.

I try and look back and say I liked it, but I kind of felt non plussed by it 😐

It was ok, did most things reasonably, but there was a few things that annoyed me.

Check on the sizing, because they are a bit odd. The large is about the same TT length as most current mediums, and is pretty short. Coupled with a high BB & a relatively (by current standards) steep HA, they can feel a bit twitchy. I tried a set of offset bushes, but they didn’t work really so the only option is some sort of angleset.

In the end I got annoyed with it, it gave me backache as it was too short in the TT, and I wished it was a bit longer in the wheelbase by being slacker & lower, but then it’s geo is based on a bike that’s nearly 5 years old now. Lots of talk about them releasing an updated model shortly, which I think will address a lot of the above.

If you do get one, I would say cover it in helitape too, as the paint is sh*t.

Personally, I think there are better bikes out there now. The difference in weight is no where near significant enough to make a noticeable difference going up hills (went to a frame heavier than your Tracer & i’m no slower).

I had to google, clever 😉

Ok I’m currently looking at places to test ride or at least sit on. I bought the Tracer2 without testing but that’s perfect as a medium, at 5’10 I seem to be an ideal height for most mediums.

Hob nob: Thanks for the honest review! I actually just saw your bike and that picture posted on the mtbr forum lightweight thread.

How tall are you if you don;t mind me asking, and what frame size? I might check up the TT and BB height compared to the Tracer2, that way I guess I could figure out if the sizing will bother me?

In regards to remedying the geo, they’ve just released the 2013 spec colours so presuming until sea otter in October time would be the release?

I think the stiffness and lightness improve the downs as much, maybe even more, than the ups. It’s only 1lb lighter so it will be a noticeable weight saving, but not mind blowing.

If weight is you primary objective, you could probably save over 1lb off the Tracer if you haven’t already done the obvious like 1×10 drive train, light bars, pedals, wheels etc.

Hob Nob’s review is something I would agree with as well. The BB is high, on paper at least, and while it doesn’t feel as high on the trail (because it sits into it’s travel) it is still higher than I wanted as well.

I’m 6’1″. Really I needed the TT of the XL, just not the gate seatpost of it. I imagine you will need to be on a large (if you are ok with an 18.5″ seat tube).

Mine was a large.

Santa Cruz don’t do model years, it’s just a rolling upgrade, such as the 142 rear they put on it recently.

just not the gate seatpost of it.

I know what you mean about that Hob Nob; it’s one of the things I love about Nicolais; even without going for a full custom spec (which I have now done anyway) you can still order say a large or XL and have the seat tube cut down so it doesn’t look like a gate.

gee – I have done a bit, running 1 x 10 but like i said full New Saint, 203 rotors, Thomson, CCDB. So instead of just saving a pound here or there, I thought why not go fully for it 🙂

Hob – Oh ok I wasn’t aware of that, 142 means I can use my current set.

Oh decisions.

5’10” on a size large with a 65mm stem.
running 2×10, 42/30T, 36/11 cassette.
Weighs in at 30lbs