Viewing 16 posts - 1 through 16 (of 16 total)
  • On One Summer Season
  • Gotama
    Free Member

    I’ve got a 20″ 456 which i like but is a little too big for what i want so looking to change it and there seems to be a couple of the Summer Seasons around in 18″. Reviews seems to be good but just looking at the geometry and the head angle seems very slack. What are the downsides of it being so slack apart from slower steering and being a bit more rubbish on climbs. Going to run it singlespeed as a second bike for use around the surrey hills.

    Ta very much

    BoardinBob
    Full Member

    Honestly can’t find a single downside to my summer season. I run it with a 120mm Reba and it’s just perfect.

    thepurist
    Full Member

    The first ones were a bit heavier than the 456 as IIRC they used plain gauge tubing – not sure if that’s been changed tho.

    I didn’t really notice any barge-like tendencies with the handling (115mm Reba).

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    votchy
    Free Member

    Front end gets slightly light on steep stuff, running 140mm revs

    Euro
    Free Member

    Had my first proper run on my new 20″ SS yesterday. Came fitted with 150mm revs which are possibly a bit much. I found it fine on smoothish climbs but the front went a wandering on technical ones. One particularly steep, slippy, off-camber root-fest was so bad I had to walk it. Saying that, that same piece of trail is only just ridable when dry, so I can’t blame the bike.

    The handling is predictably a little odd at snails pace, but turn up the wick and it comes into it’s own. Very stable in the air too and manuals almost as easily as my jump bike.

    Gotama
    Free Member

    Thanks for the replies. Euro – how tall are you out of interest?

    I_Ache
    Free Member

    I was told by Brant when they first came out that they would be spot on with 130mm recons. Apparently they were designed so you could run shorter forks and still have a nice slack HA, as people were sticking silly long forks on bikes just to slacken the HA.

    Euro
    Free Member

    6′ 5″ Gotama. I was wary of getting a 20″ frame as i was used to smaller (18″) frames and like to throw my bikes about. With the seat down I can still do that with the added bonus that it fits me better for longer rides.

    B.A.Nana
    Free Member

    I’ve got one of the original RAW ones bought just after they first came out. As said above, the original concept was a slack HA for shorter forks. I run Fox 125mm and that is perfect IMO.

    WackoAK
    Free Member

    I run mine with a coil u-turn lyrik at 130mm and it’s spot on.

    I asked similar questions before ordering mine – thread here

    Gotama
    Free Member

    Cheers Euro, always dithering on what frame is ‘right’ from a size point of view. I’m 6ft 3 and my five is an 18″; sometimes it feels perfect and other occasions it feels like i’m perched on top of a bike that’s too small.

    Thanks ache – going to put a set of uturn pikes on there so can wind them down a touch.

    Gotama
    Free Member

    Cheers Wacko

    debaser
    Full Member

    Not sure if this helps you with sizing at all, but I’m 6ft, the frame is 18″ with 130mm Magura Laurins and a IIRC 60mm stem. I like it a lot, think it’s just about perfect.

    I use run a 350mm seatpost close to its minimum insertion mark, so you might need a 400mm if you did go for the 18″

    Gotama
    Free Member

    Thanks. Interested that everyone seems to run their forks around the 130mm mark as a max. I presumed that people would be sticking 36s or equivalent on them.

    BoardinBob
    Full Member

    I presumed that people would be sticking 36s or equivalent on them.

    Nah, it’s way slack enough. HA is 65.5 degrees with a 120mm fork versus 67.5 for the same fork on a normal 456

    mtbtomo
    Free Member

    I found the summer season a bit wandery up hill even with 130mm forks on. To me the normal 456 seemed better round switcbacks and tight corners, the summer season better on slow speed narrow technical stuff (probably more stable).

    The 456 struck a better balance for me (and it is the carbon one, so if I’m honest thats probably why too ;-).

Viewing 16 posts - 1 through 16 (of 16 total)

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