Have decided to change my 20″ steel 456 frame for something more comfortable. Thought a scandal would suit me a bit better. I’m not as hardcore as I thought I was! Went on the site hardly a frame in stock in any size. Whats going on? Maybe have to look at another make. I find the 456 a great bike for descending and the rough stuff but it’s a bit to harsh for me now and I find the head angle a bit slack. Would a Piglet be a better choice. Is it more comfortable. I’m a bit of an ape long in the body so a longer frame is beneficial. Thinking of a Soul as an alternative and also the P7. Opinions most welcome.

I salute your stream of thought. What size of fork do you use in it? Shorter means less slack… tried a bigger rear tyre to tame the stiffness of it a little?

P7 is very much like the 456, just more expensive and less adaptable. I’d rule that out personally. Soul might be what you’re after but the handling character is pretty similiar to the 456. Ride feel is pretty different though and you might find the comfort does what you need. Comparing the 2, the Soul is really a lot like a 456 with all the little shortcomings and failures fixed, but not everone would agree with that.

Carbon 456 should be on your list I reckon. Still getting a handle on mine but it’s very good. Some oddness in the handling but I think I’ll get used to it. Weirdly it reminds me more of my old Soul than it does a steel 456.

I have a marzocchi MX Pro 120 ETA & TAS. This fork is about 25mm longer than other forks so at 120 its more like a 140. This makes the 456 super slack for me. Can wind it back to 100mm but it sort of defeats the object of having the longer fork. I love this fork, it’s super reliable, soaks everything up, the ETA works great on the climbs. To be honest I think I’ve just bought a frame with too slack a head angle. My old giant XTC was like a rocket compared to this. A bit twitchy on the descents but so fast on anything else. Bl**dy uncomfortable though. I’m thinking 70′ head angle with this fork would be spot on crossed with a forgiving steel frame. Maybe more XC than aggressive trail.

Inbred456

I own both a 456 and a Simple (s/s soul) and yes the back end of the 456 is harsh compared to the cotic but have you tried a carbon post I fitted one to my 456 and it seems alot smoother / more forgiving

mind you tbh if at the time I could of afforded a Soul I would of bought one infact I still would if I had the money

EMail them and ask but I thought they were expecting a container in at the end of this month, at least that what they told me about the uncle john

Dare I suggest a std Inbred ?
Having owned one, & a Soul, I’d say its only failing is the extra lb in weight. With a 120mm fork they really are a hell of a lot more capable than you’d think.

That fork’s going to be too long for a Bred (or a Scandal), 140mm-equivalent.

A lot of people have commented that the Scandal is as comfortable as the 456. Why bother going for steel when the ali one is as comfortable and also a lot lighter. I have thought about the std Inbred and think that it would suit the fork better but its just that harsh back end. I think as life gets more hectic I prefer to ride for longer when I can get out rather than lots of short epic trips hence the need for comfort over technical ability. Also I need to get this right this time or my missus is going to go mad. Does the Cotic have more flex / give in the rear. the fork would probably suit the Cotic at 120mm. The Genesis latitude is another frame I have been pondering over.

My old Scandal was quite a bit more comfortable than the 456 or Inbred… Surprised me, if you’d done me a blindfold test I’d have sworn the Scandal was steel. But that was an old scandium one, not sure that the new ones are the same. Soul is much, much more pliant at the rear than any of the On One steel frames (some people complain about it in fact, I loved it, miss it)

But it didn’t ride that nicely at 130mm (so effectively 10mm less fork than yours). Magic at 100mm. When money allows I’d like another, or a whippet.

Heh. You could get a C456 and a Works Components head angle reducer headset, then fit the headset back to front to tighten up the angles 🙂

Anybody running a Soul at 140mm.