quite fancy one of these; anyone got one? the angles look great, heard they might be a bit pedal feedbacky? also see that they run on bushings, do they have grease ports?

if you've got any pics would be great!

cheers

Looks a good ride to me!

Except that that's not a Mythic/Banshespitfire. Call James at Freeborn and talk to him about the Spitfire. He knows it very well and can give you a good appraisal. 01403 251 252.

i'm very pleased with mine.
the pedal feedback is only a problem if you intend to use a standard size granny ring. i've heard people using 26 or 28t granny ring don't have much trouble. i've set mine up 1×9 with a chainguide.
to service the bushes you need a grease gun with a long nose extension. it takes a few minutes.

thanks guys – i'll give the freeborn chap a call.

sounds like a 1x 10 or a 28/38 front with a 11-34/36 rear could be a good set up…

any other experince out there?

one more thing, if running a single chainring, make sure you have at least a med cage mech. a short cage can't handle the chain growth.

I've got one with Talas 32s on the front, its a great wee bike. There have been a few threads about them now so I figured I would reply.

The gripes you will read about are pedal feedback, low BB, and bushings. Pedal feedback is only an issue when you're standing up in the granny ring, it seems to be a bit of a trade-off because it pedals great in the 36, when you're more likely to be standing anyway. The low BB takes some getting used to but its key to the whole design of the bike, I haven't used the taller setting at all. Bushings, apparently these can be a problem if they're not maintained, mine seem fine so far and they are cheap to replace, full instructions and a spare set come with the frame.

I have had the bike since May, it has done the Ae Enduro, some big rides in Chamonix, and I am doing Kielder on it. It climbs and pedals great but the best thing about it is the descending, its really low and slack, light enough to pick up and pedal, and stiff in the rear end. It feels a wee bit like the Blue Pig with a bit of give in the rear end, which is exactly what I wanted.

The tapered head tube means there are loads of ways to build them up. I went for 140mm 32s because I wanted to keep the weight down and balance it with the 127mm in the back. You need to keep an eye on the stack height and A2C, if you put too much effort into lowering the front end you will lose head angle and drop the BB even further – the seat angle is nice and steep anyway. I think mine is probably around 29lbs with SLX, Crests, 203/180 rotors, Sunline V1, Wellgo Mags. The Crests seem to be holding up fine, touch wood.

Try this thread for a few pics and comments. They're brilliant bikes if you understand what they're for… probably not for everyone, though. I absolutely love mine to bits.

Mine's changed a wee bit since that thread. It now has XT brakes in place of the original V2s, a Fox Float 150 instead of the Magura Thor, lighter tyres and a Joplin 4. It weighs just over 29 lbs all up, and I can't really see where I'd cut any weight out now without compromising what it's for.

Any questions, feel free to ask.

The other thing to bear in mind is the sizing options. I am 6'3" and I have loads of room on a Large with a 50mm stem, the XL would be a great option for a very tall person.

thats great thanks for the info guys. I've run a blur 4x in the past and currently ride a 456 summer season so totally get the long, low and slack thing. Also currently run a specialized pitch for more all-mountainy stuff and holidays, but thinking i'd like to combine the two as its a hassle trying to keep two bikes running sweet, and I often find myself thinking "maybe the other bike would've been better.."

Was thinking i'd set it up with some float/talas 150's, some wide bars and a dropper post – should be sweet for ragging around the place 🙂

Size-wise; being 5'10" and currently riding a 16" on-one and a small pitch (i like wee bikes), both with 50mm stems I was thinking a Medium Spitfire would prob be a good size to shoot for…?

i'm 5'9" and ride a medium with a 50mm stem. the supplied seat post is only 350mm but i'm an inch or so off the minimum insert mark.

I'm 5'9" / 5'10" (long – boring – story…) and ride a medium on a 70mm stem, which I find spot on. I like a bit of stretch though (I also run a Joplin to get a bit of layback). I'd say you'd be on the money with a medium.

If you're thinking of a Talas or other adjustable fork – don't. Save your pennies and a bit of weight and go for a fixed travel option. These bikes climb really, really well, and nearly all of the comments I've picked up suggest that people running adjustable travel forks virtually never use the feature. You won't drop it down for the twisty stuff either, as it starts to run too low in the bb.

I couldn't use the supplied (350mm) seatpost, so purchased a 410 Thomson, which I now never use as I'm rather addicted to my Joplin!

I'm 5'9" *and three quarters* and the medium is perfect for me with a 70mm stem.

Definitely no need for adjustable forks – it climbs great on 150s.

Buy one immediately! (White is best 😉 )

Second the adjustable forks, I only use the Talas to take the edge off when I know I'm going to be doing a long ride and loads of steady climbing.

Good stuff – thanks again for the advice all. Floats it is…or maybe revs…off to try to sort a vist to freeborn to see some in the metal – 🙂