Anybody got any thoughts or experiences on the above frame? I’m looking for something with longevity, that i can use for everything as it’ll be my only mtb.

I was looking at a Spesh Enduro or Trek Slash but no frame only options in the UK.

Thanks in advance.

Might be worth a look on here http://forums.mtbr.com/nicolai/nicolai-helius-am-setup-database-438582.html
I’ve just bought a Helius CC and I’m chuffed with the bike and the way it rides.

I love my Helius.

Strong like bull, pedals and climbs very well, can descend much faster than I, has adjustable rear travel, weighs 30ish lbs. Current ones have a slacker head angle to mine, but mine was happy on light DTSwiss 150 forks until I upped the travel to 160 coil Lyriks and it’s now very happy.

It’s most definitely a one-bike-to-do-it-all.

If you’re ever in the Peak give me a shout and you can have a go; mail in profile. It’s a large by the way, 605 effective top tube.

MTBR is a good resource, and there are many older threads on this very subject on here. Like this one…

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/nicolai-helius-am-4

Do an advanced search for Helius looking back a year – seach for user messiah or geetee1972 as we usually have a lot to say 🙄

Oh… and I love mine 8)

Has anyone ridden both a Helius AM and a Orange Alpine 160, how do they compare for a ride characteristic point of view?

Says the Trek Slash is available as a frame on the Trek UK website.

http://www.trekbikes.com/uk/en/bikes/mountain/technical_trail/slash/models#

I was looking at the Trek, but Trek UK say definitely no framesets for sale outside the USA.

Oooh, the 2012 Slash looks really interesting. I did look at the Scratch last year but the geometry was hopeless (IMHO).

I’ve ridden a couple of Alpine’s and I like them fine enough although I found the med too short and large to… er… long. When I bought my Helius AM the Alpine still had a 27.2 post which instantly removed it from my list. I also have a friend who has broken his Alpine twice; Orange honoured the first failure at 6 months but since he has an early Alpine with a one year warranty when it failed again at 14 months they said no… which is fair enough if a little grrrrr… so it’s currently sporting some rather professional looking welding done by a local welder (and I do mean professional – think helicopter standard welding!!!).

I’ve still got 3-1/2 years of my transferable warranty left to run – which I know does not cover damage caused by lack of bushing maintenance! My AM was also not quite how I ordered it so be carefull with the ordering process… but the pudding is in the proof and I really love it.