So i’m in the market for a 160mm travel bike. I want to be able to pedal it all day, but be able to take it on uplift days and to the alps etc. As attractive as a cheap DH bike is I don’t want 2 bikes. I also want to buy it on finance.

Naturally I’ve looked at; Trek Slash 9, Lapierre Spicy 516/916, Nukeproof Mega Pro, Alpine 160, Specialized Enduro, Canyon Strive

I loved the Trek; It looks amazing and rides great but perhaps the rear suspension is not up to the task. TBH I probably would have bought one anyway but I just missed the last one for sale from Trek. The 2013 stuff isn’t going to be available for months, perhaps not until early next year. The colours (IMO) aren’t as good and they’ve cheapened the fork (Fox 36 -> 34) but kept the same RRP.. Hurmm. At £4750 is as expensive a bike as I could justify. The remedy looks nice, but just too similar to my Fuel EX.

Lapierre Spicy. The 516 looks reasonable value at £2800. With a few upgrades it could be a great bike. The 916 is fantastic and i’d just change the bar and stem- at 5k though it’s expensive… But neither of these bikes are available anywhere- hotlines has totally sold out. The 2013 bikes again wont be in until later in the year.. again they’ve modified the spec, personally I wouldn’t say it’s much of an improvement and surprise surprise gone to a fox 34 from the 36. The worst thing is the 516 is now over £3k and the 916 £5500!! That is pushing the boundary of what pretty much anyone would consider acceptable.
Also I can’t see many people wanting to buy into their EI shock system- it has the appearance of a decidedly version 1 product with batteries, wires and displays all over the place. I’m sure it works but not something I’d want on a bike designed to be ridden hard and no doubt the 2014 version will be significantly tidyer making your five thousand five hundred pound investment look rather bobbins.

Specialized Enduro- Don’t get me started on Specialized!! I’ve never really considered the big S before, so i’m not familar with their way of naming bikes until I started looking at the enduro… HOW COMPLICATED? So there’s the expert and the comp. Then there is the EVO pack which in 2012 adds a coil sprung rear but in 2013 has a totally different amount of travel. Then there is the S-works version which is somehow more race orientated, then you’ve got to choose between alu or carbon… But it’s ok, you don’t actually have to worry about any of that because Specialized only sell 2 models in the UK. The comp looks pretty good value at ~£2500 until you get into the spec; X-fusion shock and fork? I’d buy a frame and build it up like a chap I met at Swinley last friday; DH Lyrics, decent wheels, X0 1×10 transmission, shimano brakes.. but of course they don’t sell a frame. This is surely a bike of the moment and specialized seem to be doing a half hearted job of selling it in this country? Why?
The 2013 Enduro comp actually looks quite good, but again they’ve chosen the Fox 34.

Nukeproof Mega Pro; this looks like cracking value at £2280. I think I’d need a large frame and I’m kinda hesitant about it still despite all the good reviews and forum banter. As much as I want to believe a little UK company can come on the scene and make a great bike for pennies (At £2200 you’re almost getting the frame and shock for free) part of me wonders if it’s going to be as good as the larger bike companies. Getting a ride on one might change my mind but i’ve never found anywhere with a demo bike 🙁 Could I drop £2280 on a bike i’ve never ridden? Arrgh!

Canyon Stive; cracking value, Dirt mag loved it, but could I trust the brand to stay around.. i’d worry about support buying direct from another country too.

Alpine 160; is it too much to pedal around all day? Is the single pivot as refined as the other bikes? Certainly expensive to build one up with a decent spec.

Basically what i’m saying is I’ve got a decent chunk of cash to spend on a quality 160mm bike but what can I actually buy? I’m pissed at the bike industry for selling out of 2012 stuff, not having any 2013 stock and annoyed the 2013 stuff is more expensive for less spec! Where are the options to buy frames or mix and match components, why do they run out of stock from one year before getting in their new stock?

I guess my only course of action is to wait for something decent to come up second hand, but thats a nightmare; no warranty on a bike that is probably still going to cost £2k – 3k, no idea what the previous owner has done with the bike- probably a whole bunch of ‘upgrades’ that need to be sorted out and a fork and shock wanting an expensive service.

..one more thing while i’m ranting; tyres on built bikes. You’d think bike manufacturers would test their bikes with tyres to get something that provides good performance and durability. Tyres have got to be one of the most important components on a bike. What actually seems to happen is they get a tyre OEM to make them a tyre that looks exactly like a good one you can buy in the shops but with a rubber compound more suited to the engine mounts of a 747 than a tyre such is the low level of grip on offer. It’s almost an accepted fact that you fork out a huge money on a shiny new bike and then change the tyres straight away. What’s that about? If you sold a car that was otherwise excellent but as soon as you bought it you needed to go out and get new tyres everyone would be up in arms!

If they want to save cash they should supply the bike without tyres like they do with pedals.

ArggghhhhhH!

go buy and build a mojo HD and be done with it?

Can’t see it’s much more complicated than buying a car, tbh?

What about the new Orange 6?

Sorted:

Oh dear. Too much money, too few bikes.

Not that bad a problem to have.

If you want to try a mega ask on here, lots of owners use the site.

Or just get an Alpine, never met un unhappy owner.

Picky I know but the top tube cable routing on the mojo does my head in. It shouts ‘afterthought’. Look at the routing on the Spicy 916 for how it should be done. Also, 67deg HA ?

That is a lot of cash that you don’t seem to be able to spend. I am struggling to find any sympathy. Have you tried ringing the importers of what you want – i would have thought they would be inclined to help you out?

LT wicked,

[joking, not available for many months :D]

My Cube GTC Agree came fitted with Ultremo ZX. They don’t get much better than that.

titusrider – Member
go buy and build a mojo HD and be done with it?

Never a truer word was uttered on this or any other forum ever in the history of the internet.

Go one get a MOJO, you know you want one.

Talk to Bike Active, was in there a month or so ago and had a 916 for sale that was 3K something, it was the bike dirt used for their spicy v’s zesty feature, might still be for sale?

Just a thought.

What an El Guapo or YT Indutries or Rose bikes? I wouldn’t have anymore worries about Canyon disappearing than I would have with Orange or NukeProof.

why do they run out of stock from one year before getting in their new stock?

I would guess they make what they can sell because unsold inventory is expensive to have hanging around, and also discounts cut into next year’s margins.

It’s a business. If they don’t make money they’re gone.

So you’re moaning about what exactly? That YOU can’t make up your mind on how to spend your money?
Im sorry, but your post comes across like a whining spoilt brat.

Oh dear. Too much money, too few bikes.

Yeah I guess that’s how it comes across.. but my point is more that the bike industry seems to be trying to extract more and more cash out of us yet not getting the basics right; Availability, sensible component choice(Tyres you change out of the box), honest warranties (The lifetime warranty that actually lasts 5 years when you have a problem).

Where’s the value for money on new bikes? Having 3 to 4k to spend on a bike should get you something that is top-tier quality, backed by a decent manufacturer and warranty and isn’t going to be totally outdated in a year.

Maybe I’m just asking too much and forgetting that these bikes are really luxury items.. I’m not expecting a real answer to this post.. it’s just a rant 🙂

My bike’s blue and I wanted a green one…..

I’m not expecting a real answer to this post.

In that case, I recommend that you inflate your aardvark with a sponge.

Proper spoilt little madam.

I’m not reading all that. Summary?

Sunny and showers but a bit cold.

Summary?

bikes are too expensive, there’s too many different models and year on year changes and they don’t come in the right colours.

The new Nicolai ION 16 looks awesome and should do what you want.

It’s only a bike, get one you like the colour of and ride it a lot. It might be fun.

10mm less travel than you’re after but Megavalanche winning bike:

Commencal AM1

http://www.fetishbikecompany.com/mountain/mountain-bikes/nukeproof-mega-comp

A mega for £1600 that sounds cheap to me.

Is the picture of the OP earlier today?

Summary = He has cash and wants to get over biked with bling and shinny and warranties and 36mm not 34mm and nice tyres and stuff but no one has anything in stock so what’s the point.

😆

Fox 34s – the nerve!

theroadwarrior – Member

..one more thing while i’m ranting; tyres on built bikes. You’d think bike manufacturers would test their bikes with tyres to get something that provides good performance and durability.

Tyres are a personal choice, loads of people change them regardless. And also, they wear out. Not that I totally disagree but it’s not a bad place to cut a corner.

It cuts both ways though- loads of people dislike Kenda, because they’ve been “lucky” enough to get a bike with an OEM-spec Kenda tyre on. These are all gash, and not at all the same as the proper ones. So why sabotage your own rep with tyres that look the same but aren’t?

How big are you? Bikescene have an XL Specialized Enduro Expert Evo frame… TBH full build specializeds often cost the same as rival’s frames so.

34s aren’t a spec cut from 36s, it’s just a slightly different direction, and one that’ll make a ton of sense to many people.

Canyon Stive; cracking value, Dirt mag loved it, but could I trust the brand to stay around.. i’d worry about support buying direct from another country too.

Canyon isn’t just some new company starting out, they have been around for a good few years, its only recently that they have made there stuff available to the UK market. They also have a UK support center

There are a ton of bikes around.
Pivot Firebird?

You sound like you want a 2012 Trek Slash 9.
If so, get on the phone to all the stockists and find one. They’ll likely accept an offer as they don’t want to be stuck with it.

Start with the large chainstores and work down. One shop that doesn’t come up on google shopping searches is Leisure Lakes. But there are loads of others (although the Slash is admittedly niche).

Alternatively, as you said yourself, the Nukeproof is well under budget. You could go for it for this year and then replace in a year with something different without losing much (if any) money.

Ha! Agree on the tyre thing

New bikes always come with plastic tyres.

Either sell the bike without tyres or if you are going to but some on, make them decent.

Since if they are crap I’ll be binning them and buying new ones anyway (can’t sell maxxis OEM 102a super hard compound tyres either). It’s not like we have seasons in the UK so stick some high rollers on and everybody will be happy.

Same thing goes for pedals, the pedals that come with bikes are mostly crap too.

As for naming models, use numbers! Can’t go wrong with numbers. Do I want a kona stinky or a cove handjob, no. But a Orange P7, Ofcourse!

I mean look how successful the Orange 5 is, that’s not because it’s a good bike, but because it has a number on it 😛

as a matter of interest why do you “need” 160mm travel? ive just spent a very enjoyable week blasting round some of the gnarliest trails scotland has to offer on a five ….and i cant see you would need it as theyre was 2 ladies in my group who were in their fifties and did it on hardtails….my 2p worth.

Thanks for all the comedy replies! Cheering me up no end.

In all seriousness I am really considering a mega- the value proposition is hard to ignore.

I want to do either the mega avalanche or some uk gravity enduro races next year so whatever I choose needs to be suitable. (and yes I know someone did the mega on a rigid-singlespeed-29er with a bell and toe clips but that doesn’t make it the ideal choice)

If a Nuke Proof mega is a free frame buy one. If its breaks or you hate it buy a different frame and swao the bits over. You’ll hardly loose out…

I think the mega pro is fantastic value for money. I walked into lbs to buy one a couple of weeks ago but came out with a transition covert 🙂
I did test ride both and thought the mega came up a bit on the small size compared to other bikes so check size chart if you do go for one and can’t get a demo.

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/fs-santacruz-nomad-carbon

/thread.

(I dont know the seller, just noticed it and remembered this thread)

as a matter of interest why do you “need” 160mm travel?

He’s must ride in Swinley, daaaarhling!