Hi Folks

Hope you can help. My trusty 2005 5Spot has died and I can't afford to trade in for another one. So decided to buy a steel hardtail to keep me going till I have enougn money.

Currently undecided between an Orange P7 and a Cove HandJob.

I have heard mixed reports about the dropouts on the P7 and also Orange customer support being a little unreliable.

I'm fairly tall at 6' 3" so there are few frames to cater for my long legs.

Any suggestions are gratefully accepted, cheers.

Handjob owner here…..get one, they're great fun.

I don't really have that much previous experience of hardtails other than my first year riding. Bought a Handjob off a mate and absolutly love it. Also have a Zesty and love switching between the two.

Handjob has a surprisingly (for me!) forgiving ride and is light too.

I have no experience of a P7 but i think the Handjob looks better!

Have to be careful what I say here, but I am prefering a HandJob, purely as its a cleaner looking frame without paying £100 extra for a different colour and no adjustable drop outs. However, my LBS is an Orange dealer, which makes test riding easier.

What sort of riding?

What kit are you carrying over?

Are you a weight weenie?

Where do you ride?

Hi hora

I do a mixture or trail riding, enduros, the odd trip to Wales, nothing too hardcore. Got standard XT transmission, Fox Vanilla 130mm forks, Thomspon seatpost and stem, CK hubs with 719 rims. I'm not a weight weenie. Usually ride around Epping Forest, Thetford, sometimes Surrey.

What do you reckon?

cheers

The Orange P7 is quite pricey for what it is – £459 for a Reynolds 631 frame. Compare that to the Cotic BFe which is mostly 631 but has an 853 downtube to save weight and increase strength for £370. The P7 weighs 2.77kg while the BFe weighs 2.45kg.
The Handjob looks competitive though.

[Answer]Sanderson Life.[/Answer] 8)

http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/sanderson-life

Your looking at £500 steel frames, cant you just get another 5 spot for that dosh?

The budget option is the Inbred of course, but rekon a Scandal would suit the kit you have quite nicely either are good buys.

Horas sanderson idea is good.

Any particlar reason you want your hardtail to weigh as much as you outgoing 5 spot?

If it's just an in-between frame that you want until you save up enough money for a new full-sus, would you not be better off going for something like an Inbred or a 456 for £150 and stick the saving between that and the more pricey frames you mention towards the new full sus frame? Assuming they come in a large enough size…..

+1 456, if you just need a frame

+2 for a 456. best value/ride frame out there.

Only argument I have against a 456 other than not having ridden one, is he has 130mm forks, OK so thats the 5 bit of a 456 but the Scandal takes that fork well with a lot less weight to lug about..

Have you talked to Turner USA direct? They'll almost certainly have some kind of an answer in terms of spare parts for minimal or no cost.

Failing that – Cotic 😉

what about a cotic soul? or a chromag sakura? or an evil sovereign? or a whyte 19 631?

wot Jonedwards said – I always thought Turner were v supportive aftersales service

What's the deal with On One now claiming "MAX 100mm" forks for Inbreds and Scandals? On the old site you could look at three different pages and hear anything from 80mm to 120mm. I guess it's good that they've got some consitency now, but does this affect warrenties (I happily run my Inbred at 120)?

I like my (16") 456. I liked my Sanderson Life alot- I just dont like long top tubes (which could be spot on for you OP) 🙂

The Sanderson feels more compliant than the 456- less rigid. Its noticeable without being noodley like one of those Ti456's. Some of the suggestions are hardcore IMO whereas the Sanderson is sublime and all-day friendly.

I have noticed the prices of Sandersons have gone up though. Over £100. Why?!

What's the deal with On One now claiming "MAX 100mm" forks for Inbreds and Scandals? On the old site you could look at three different pages and hear anything from 80mm to 120mm. I guess it's good that they've got some consitency now, but does this affect warrenties (I happily run my Inbred at 120)?

Do they?? Takes out the **** huge overlap to the 456 I guess.. has the geometry actually changed?

Scandal at 125mm,,, the bumf said they could at the time..

I've got a HJ and ride similar places to you. It's a good fun bike. Very confident descending and good for trail centre sort of riding.

Short top tube means it's not the most efficient position for pedalling – I didn't enjoy racing on it and found it a bit of a pain on steep sustained climbs like in the Dales.

If I wanted a steel HT now I'd look at the Genesis Altitude as well.

Hope that helps.

Hi

Great feedback, thank you. I emailed Turner a week ago and have just had a token email say thay have my email. You're right their customer support has been legendary in the past, but feel a little fobbed off.

Just looking at options as I read a thread on here a week or so ago which said Turner had no 2005 frame parts left. Plus their frames only have a two year warranty on them now and they offer a $500 trade-in, not a massive amount.

Hence why I'm looking at something more affordable as an interim until I have some money.

I will certainly look at the alternatives you have suggested, just hope they come up in my size. I looked at Cotic but they don't do x-large.

Didn't realise that steel frames were so heavy either, learing lots on here today, cheers.

cheers chakaping, good suggestion, however the Genesis frames aren't big enough either 🙁

Do they?? Takes out the **** huge overlap to the 456 I guess.. has the geometry actually changed?

Yep, here. But if you look at the geo. page it seems the same as the old one. I know what you mean about the overlap, it took some deciding for me to settle on a regular Inbred (and the canti-bosses cos I was strapped for cash and had three sets of V's in the cupboard).

I'd guess it's just to make the buyer's decision simpler from their point of view. Then they ask on here and get some good old-fashioned mixed messages 😀

Same geometry anyway, just a bigger top tube and (rellative to the head tube) steeper seat tube on the 456?

Got a 456 and a sanderson life and (most of) the bits to build them waiting in the shed, its going to be a good summer 😀

I hope this isnt an omen. I have a 2004 5 spot and the amount of broken frames on here from around then is starting to alarm me. 😥

It always used to be that the MTB press would state that aluminium frames will eventually fail as they have a finite elasticity life (or something like that. I think it's back to Young's modulus again); either way, whereas steel can flex an infinite amount of time within it's elasticity pointy thingyum, aluminium can't and will eventually fail, hence why airframes on planes have a finite life and need to be monitored very closely.

So I guess that Turner's tend to have a five year life span? I think what's impressive is that so many people have Turner's that are that old and have owned them from new. There's clearly something very right about them. It would be interesting to know who long people tend to hold and use regularly other brands of frame. I certainly don't seem many 2004 Spesh Enduros these days even though four years ago every third bike seemed to be one.

Get a 29er scandal
Or save and get a ti one
J

I've had my 5 spot since late 2004 and ride it almost religiously twice a week.

I already miss my 5 spot!!!

The P7 is pricey and not light. There's a frame roundup in a recent issue of MBR.

I'd personally go for a Bluepig or a 456. Both are a lot cheaper, and the 456 has very similar geometry to the P7.

I think the round up was in MBUK

My 2005 5spot is still going strong. I guess I should be on the lookout for cracks and suspicious noises about now then.
😐

FWIW I've been riding a 456 for the last year – A great fun bike that required little adaptation from the 5spot, except for the need to get fitter because I was running it SS.

It always used to be that the MTB press would state that aluminium frames will eventually fail as they have a finite elasticity life

yeah I remember that, but no-one has told my old handsome dog ali frame which was very second hand when I bought it 5 years ago and has done 10,000 miles since then and crashed hard on a number of occasions.

I think the round up was in MBUK

I think you're right. Read far too many comics lately. I might actually have it scanned.

I love by P7, great fun to ride, would work well with the kit you have, but…if it is just a "stop-gap" frame I would go for a 456. It is cheaper, well known and will do you a fine job.

Link to full size files on Flickr

The head tube on the 456 is only 120mm which is quite low when you're tall as I'm used to a 150mm, otherwise it looks a fantastic bargain. Shame

The head tube on the 456 is only 120mm which is quite low when you're tall as I'm used to a 150mm, otherwise it looks a fantastic bargain. Shame

I really like my P7. If it's just a stopgap, see what's in the classifieds.

Riser bars?