Still thinking about changing my frame / forks, but need to do some more saving first. Before demoing any bikes I’m making a shortlist to consider and whittle down. So:

Transition Patrol – looks great

Orange Alpine 6 – not sure I like the look of the single pivot

Whyte G160 – reports I’ve read suggest it’s pretty hard work uphill / heavy

Trek Slash – know nothing about it – other than I saw one in mud dock today and it looked fantastic.

Any other suggestions?

Would prefer non-boost spacing so I don’t have to change wheels – although I’ll be getting new forks as well – pretty much set on 160 Pikes – 650b wheels. Hoping to use as much off my current bike as possible.

Bike should be playful to jump off stuff, still pedal uphill ok (I don’t expect miracles), be great downhill and not too heavy.

Just to make this more difficult I don’t like the idea of a carbon frame so would prefer alloy. I’ve thrown my bike down a couple of times in the last year and seen a few damaged carbon frames from crashes. I know alloy isn’t a wonder material in crashes but at least you can tell when it’s damaged.

Kona Process 153?

My mate has a Process 134 and for some reason I’m not a fan. Maybe the longer travel one would be better. His process is a few years old now – 2×10 mostly SLX I think with rockshox Revelations.

Kona Process 153!

Orbea Rallon?

Whyte G160 – reports I’ve read suggest it’s pretty hard work uphill / heavy

If you buy the base model without any compression/lockout on the shock, and the more budget components, then to a degree yes.

G-160RS or works with better shock, and lighter build are great bikes. Climb well, descend very well, VFM is great (just over £3k gets you Lyriks, SRAM Eagle, carbon cranks etc.) and the geometry is bang on.

If you want to build yourself and pick and choose the spec, Transition Patrol is certainly a worthy contender though.

Forgot to say my riding will be a mixture of uplift days with some Welsh trail centre riding as well. Maybe Swinley once a year too if I meet a mate from London there. I’ve got no interest in getting up hills quickly under my own power – it’s just surviving the ups to have fun on the downs.

Will have to look up the Orbea – thanks for the suggestion.

Was planning to use as much as possible from my current bike and just swap out the frame and forks – possibly at different times to spread the cost so it doesn’t feel as extravagant a purchase! I do like the idea of Eagle and Lyriks though. Wife will go spare if I spend £3k on a bike though so need to be (relatively) sensible.

of those the slash by a mile.

Alloy Trek fuel instead of slash? 29er though and boost although I used a boostinator spacer kit. Just test ridden mine up and down the road, feels like it turns fast

Not a fan of 29ers I have to admit. That also throws out upgrading some bits gradually – I could get pikes now that would fit my current bike and my new bike with decent planning. Not sure oid I could get boost adapters for my current hubs or not – I suspect not as they aren’t the blingest things on the world. No idea what Huns I’ve actually got.

Did you realise the Slash is a 29er? Although I imagine you could run it 27.5 same as the Fuel although I wouldn’t

Cotic Rocket

Bird Aeris

Airborne Edit

Banshee Spitfire

Winstanleys have great discounts on kona processes at the minute.

Spesh Enduro. I’ve a 29er and love it. She’s a keeper!

Airdrop Edit. It’s a fantastic bike and Ed is a top bloke.

What you got at the moment, and what about it makes you want to change it?

And bikewise, carbon 29er is the answer – recommend what you ride 🙂

Furious has a good list.

I found a Slash 27.5 I’m sure of it – although there is also a 29er version.

Someone else suggested the Banshee spitfire but being really sad I don’t like the look of it.

Will look up the Cotic / Airdrop. It’s only a small amount more but I liked the idea of 155/160mm of rear travel. Think the Aeris is 145 – but really I know the geometry and how plush the suspension is, is more important than an extra cm of travel.

At the moment I have a Boardman Pro Fs. I’d like something that handles rock gardens better and is a touch more playful on the downs. Maybe a bit more ‘bling’ as well.

AirDrop edit looks ace and good value. V1 on offer – tempting. V2 with pike package seems really good (although pike RC rather than rct3).

Giant Reign? Only problem with mine was the curved seat tube meaning a couldnt a decent length dropper. Handled everything though.

Assume that Slash you’ve found is last years as this year is definitely 29er only

Devinci Spartan or Troy for Enduro lite

By all accounts the Aeris 145 rides like it has more travel, and takes 150-160mm forks as will the Rocket and Airdrop.

I’m barely mediocre skilled and I ride the same things you’re suggesting, Welsh trail centers, FOD DH, BPW uplift (some blacks) plus natural stuff like Quantocks on a 140/150mm Aeris. The bike is more than capable of that riding, more capable than me.

What I’m saying is don’t get too hung up on having 160mm travel. Try a few bikes and see what you like.

My riding buddy has a Patrol – we ride BPW, Antur and a lot of DH stuff, the Transition Patrol is very very good. Is at the top of my list.

So are you buying the complete bike or frame only as I’m unclear. The Whyte’s dont come as a frame only option so a full build is the only option. Rode the Whyte 160 at the weekend because my friend was considering getting one so I took one out at the same time. Friend went with a trek remedy in the end as he agreed with me that the front end was just a smidge too long and heavy/dull feeling. I think bikes are a purely personal thing though so don’t take my word for it! Uplift days it would be perfect for but the trail centres I think you’ll find it a compromise.

Alu Bronson?
In terms of ruling things out don’t discount carbon or 29,in the right bike both are awesome. I’ve seen way more alu fail in an unpredictable way than carbon and many more good carbon repairs that alu.
The current crop of bike are all fairly awesome, best to get one that fits properly first.

Banshee spitfire

Orbea rallon

Frame and fork separately was my plan. Maybe that knocks the Whyte on the head. If the Slashcwill only be 29er this year / going forward then that’s out the window too.

So favourites could be so far:

Transition Patrol
AirDrop Edit
Bird Aeris 145

And look at a Giant Reign.

mark90 – Member
Furious has a good list.

+1

Mondraker Dune. Love mine.

Will swapping parts across from the Boardman actually work well? The brakes may not get on well with uplift days on a bigger bike and the wheels are unlikely to be tough enough, stiff enough or wide enough. And then there’s all the different standards for headsets, bottom brackets, seat tube sizes, etc.

I love my Banshee Spitfire but right now it’s hard to see past the Bird Aeris 145 as a top choice if you’re on a budget. Don’t worry about having a bit less than 160mm travel at the back – my 150F/140R Spitfire is at its best in the deep rough. Quality of suspension trumps quantity and angles matter possibly more!

Commencal Meta
Canyon Strive or Spectral
Liteville (maybe not the cheapest)
Giant Reign
YT Capra AL

Ignore everyone and make sure you get to sit on / have a ride and pick what feels best rather than buy blind. Everyone’s body is so different in leg, arm, upper body length and joint position. The latest long slack bla bla on trend may feel rubbish if you don’t have the same body frame as the reviewer. I saw a bad review from a lanky reviewer for a Norco Range complaining about all the things that I was looking for. Tracked one down for a ride and it suits my frame perfectly for enduro despite not being bang on trend in terms of geom. That said – the Devinci’s mentioned in this thread do look awesome 🙂

Will swapping parts across from the Boardman actually work well? The brakes may not get on well with uplift days on a bigger bike and the wheels are unlikely to be tough enough, stiff enough or wide enough. And then there’s all the different standards for headsets, bottom brackets, seat tube sizes, etc.

+1

Exactly my thoughts once you said what you’re riding.

Demo a load and then buy what works best for rides you do, sell the Boardman – or keep for just riding.

In terms of bits from the Boardman the wheels probably aren’t the strongest – but even hitting rock gardens at a fair pace at BPW and quite a few drops they are still straight. That said I haven’t really got onto jumping doubles yet which is next on my list of things to crack.

Brake wise I’ve got Sram Guide RS which should be man enough being decent 4 pots. Running sintered pads and 160mm discs I’ve never faded them.

Boardman has a dropper, full new 1×10, 780mm handlebar and shorter 50mm stem and done reasonable flat pedals. Also ditched the Nobby Nics some time ago.

All that’s left of the original bike is forks (extended to 150mm from 130mm), frame, wheels and brakes I think.

When I wanted to transfer the parts from my old Cotic Soul onto a Bird Zero AM it worked out cheapest to buy the whole bike and then remove and sell all the new parts I didn’t need (wheels, drivetrain, brakes).

Have a look at Bikescene. They have some Stumpjumper frames on at a bargain price. Non boost and 150mm travel. Will take a 160mm fork with no problems. Quite capable as an all day bike and throwing down the trails in the Alps