I can only find a brochure for the 2005 orange five which says that is great for all mountain and xc, however downhill it has a big red x and for freeride.

Is the 2006 the same as I thought the fives were capable of downhill. I know the patriot is fr downhill/freeride but I thought the five was too.

Are you looking use an ’06 5 for mainly downhill, then?

if you say DH capable on the ad how are you going to sell a DH bike. Also if you spend all every weekend taking a 5 on uplifts and ragging it hard it’s going to break more.

Having raced DH on a Hard Tail any bike (within reason) is capable in the right hands. However if it’s suitable is a different question.

Depends. Did the red X look like this

or this

In 05 the freehand style X meant it was brilliant at Freehilling, but they changed the font in May 06 to a bolder sans serif typeface which signified the bike was no longer capable of the this dangerous style of riding. The latter version of the X used more ink, so the bike price was increased to cover this cost.

I had a 06 five it’s a Xc / trail bike, though it could be used for the very occasional uplift day it’s not designed for it.

Maybe better suited with a patriot then, reading some reviews and they seem to cover the whole lot

A patriot would definatly be a better choice.

Or a Spec Big Hit if you’re on a budget – they were cracking value for money over their production run and would be a better dh choice i suspect.

iirc the 06 five has a 70 head angle and can take up to 150 mm forks. I think the ha is measured on 140mm forks so you may loose up to a degree with 150s fitted.
By modern standards it’s more of a trail bike – look for something more recent if you want a more dh suitable bike or look for a patriot/222/alpine etc

Had a 2006 Orange 5 with bolt through 150 heavy forks.
I’ve ridden the same routes as people on patriots with no problem.
The Manitou standard rear shock is dire and really restricts the bike.
The climbing ability was really poor because of the poor shock and the angles didn’t suit me.I would say the bike specced like this was more suitable to downhill than normal trail riding(who needs 5 to 6 inch for trail centres?).
Changed the 5 for a Reign and felt it was a much better bike overall with Fox 32’s,and would easily have been better with a stronger fork.

I am 6ft 1.5 and 33 inside leg, would an 18inch 06 orange five fit? I sat on the 2012 model in 18 yesterday and it fitted nice.

In 05 the freehand style X meant it was brilliant at Freehilling, but they changed the font in May 06 to a bolder sans serif typeface which signified the bike was no longer capable of the this dangerous style of riding. The latter version of the X used more ink, so the bike price was increased to cover this cost

Are you sure? I thought the freehand style x was all mountain/freeride lite and the latter was trail centre/aggressive xc jeyboy