I am considering buying a Whyte E120XT, any whyte owners (or ex owners) want to enlighten me? how flexy is it, whats it like on the flat (how much bob, etc), how plush is it? I seem to be doing more longer rides over harsher terrain (NY moors, cleveland way, etc) lately and I reckon a carbon full suss will kick the ass out of my carbon scale as its just a hard old boneshaking bastard on some of the tracks.

Very stiff, very lght, very very plush, very little bob due to ‘magic carpet’ rear tiangle and propedal. try and demo one you will not want to give it back!

Don’t know about the ride but the one I saw a couple of times yesterday on the Dyfi creaked like a bed on wedding night. Do they all sound like that?

Had mine for a year or so now. They are amazing to ride in whatever terrain you want, with propedal, front lock and 5″ of travel you have most things covered. A couple of things to note

1 The creak, mentioned above, is from the Big Gripper not being greased and adjusted correctly (can be a bit of a faff to get spot on). Bl**dy annoying and you think it is more serious than that. Reminded me of the old Golf ad where the guy ends up oiling the girls earing, but I digress.

2 There is shed loads of mud space, but if it gets really claggy (wheels weighed about 10kg before all of the mud was cleared) stop and walk and clear the mud from the rear end. Do not, under any circumstances, ride for 1 minute with mud grinding the beautiful carbon swing arm away like this numpty did. Whyte and my LBS were superb, bearing in mind it was totally my fault that there was a 2mm groove in one side of the swingarm. It only cost £150 for a fitted replacement which on a £1500 frame is pretty good. It now wears a thin ally plate to give me an early warning.

Other than that I pick this bike up before my Turner Flux, and hardtail Kona for everything. I have used it for racing, trail center riding, night rides, even commuting. Definitely a fan.

I have had my 120 Trail for a little over a year. The bike as others have said is plush and pedals well, my riding is mainly in the Lakes.
I have had a few problems with mine;
A quad link cracked on my first frame after a month. Complete frame replaced within a week as a precaution so no complaints there.
My current frame is waiting to be replaced due to a superficial crack in the filler near the head tube, seems drastic but I’m not complaining. This was spotted by the mechanic whilst tracking a serious creaking which I thought was the third bottom bracket on it’s way out but turned out to be a bearing housing cracked in the quad link which has been replaced again.
I have worn and broken most things hanging off the frame including the forks, hub, rear wheel, bottom bracket etc so I think it would be fair to say mine is well used.

Whilst the bike was in limbo regarding the latest frame I was lent a Trek carbon fuel EX9 for a few weeks by the LBS (Wheelbase at Staveley) and it has to be said I was very impressed with it and recommend you add one to your short list and demo if you can. I wouldn’t of been disappointed to of kept the Trek although long term ownership might be different.

Cheers, I’m gonna start looking at my options and testing some bikes pretty shortly, the list so far includes the Whyte, SWorks, Scott Spark, EX9, and (although my wallet will need some persuading) santa cruz carbon bikes. I want to keep the weight as low as possible while adding some all day trail comfort, something with a lockout front and rear would be great as I often find myself locking the front out to ‘honk’ big road climbs..

re creaky Dyfi rider…sure it wasnt me on my E5….new flite saddle causing the noise…nowt up with the bike, just had shock bush replaced, guys in shop did the bearings as well under warranty “just in case” not bad for a 2 yr old bike…love it!

PhilChap- my Whyte has a smaal crack in the filler same place as yours, currently waiting for a replacement. apparently the 2010 frames will be designed slightly different in that area, think they have had a ‘few’ occourances in this area. Cant fault their warranty/customer service though.

Don’t get a Spark! Not if you like riding your bike anyway. I had one for 6 months and went through 4 shocks and 2 sets of bearings. I was doing the kind of riding you describe on it.. Race bike YES, reliable and comfortable mile muncher NO. The suspension action is also poor and the bike suffers from serious bob in the ‘open’ mode, even in big ring. I don’t really have anything redeeming to say about it. It’s party trick is that it is very light but once you look beyond that there isn’t anything else good about it. Now there are more and more frames/bikes available approaching the same weight so its not that impressive in that department anymore either.

Since ditching the Spark I have been on a Trek Fuel EX9 and I can’t really express how much better it is. I’ve had it a year so far, including a 2 week holiday with 40 hrs riding in the Alps, and had not one single issue with it. No worn bearings, bushes or anything else. The suspension action is much more fluid while also a lot more stable under pedalling. I can’t recommend it enough. Yes it is heavier, but if you get an alloy one it is a hell of a bargain in comparison with the Spark and a whole world better. Can’t speak about the Whyte though.

I’ve had my e120 for 3 weeks now and love it. It’s been raced twice and performed well on both occasions, little bob, nice and plush, and fast on the climbs. I had a bit of trouble with the rear axle creaking but some marine grease took care of it. I’ve just come off a sc nomad so i can notice a bit of rear end flex but apart from that it seems spot on.

The EX9 was a second choice and a great ride but the E120 just felt faster and more nimble on the climbs. Also tempted by the stumpy s’works but it seemed overpriced and the brain shock is a bit pointless when you can get a shock setup as efficient as the quad system.

In short, go for it!

I’ve recently got an E-120 – kitted it out with some trick parts and its the best bike I’ve ever had. Very light, very stiff and feels so much faster than me. No creaks at all from mine, but it was assembled with great care.
I do mixed riding, from the Peaks to trail centers to fast flat riding and the E-120 excels at all of them – i am sure its faster than a hardtail in most conditions – you can keep pedaling all the time.
I love it – and would recommend one without question.

I’m completely convinced by my Spark. I’ve had it 2 years and its done everything, XC races of course, short and enduro, I’ve XC/AM guided it plenty in Whistler as well as raced it up the bike park and back down again (trails like crank it up [hitting transition], karate monkey, b-line, heart or darkness etc
Its on the same bearings, same shock and still makes me smile when I ride it.
Bob in the big ring in open mode… I’m having a hard time imagining a trail condition where you’d use that.
Mine is rarely out of TC (2″) tbh and only see’s open mode for the steepest descents.
The new bikes run 120mm forks so slackens the steering a tad.. that would be a good improvement for me as it takes me a while to get into the steering (steep, narrow flat bars, long stem) when coming off my ransom.
Great bike.. but ride everything on your shortlist before deciding!

Bob in the big ring in open mode… I’m having a hard time imagining a trail condition where you’d use that.

Eh? Was it not designed originally as a ‘race bike’? My point was that it bobs even in big ring, as well as middle and granny. The suspension action seemed basic at best in comparison to other bikes I have ridden. It relies upon you changing setting with the TC lever, locking it down on climbs or anywhere you need to pedal it seems, which in my opinion is entirely pointless if you can get a bike with a sorted shock and suspension action negating the need for that. Ultimately it is only my opinion but I had more grief and was more dissapointed than with any other bike I have owned or been given. On each shock that I had the eyelet, not the bushing, wore out rendering the shock loose all the time unless replaced. The lifespan was a joke. Admittedly I had the bike from Jan 08 – June 08 which was pretty wet and it was subjected to some muddy rides but still it was ridiculous.

I now have an Anthem X and Fuel EX, both are remarkedly better than the Spark. The bike before that was a Blur XC which was also a hell of a lot better.

I’ve had my E-120 for a few months now – warranty replacement for an E-5.

I’m totally happy with it so far. I descends fantastically well, feels rigid and light with very little power lost from the pedals. The rear end is amazing – several times I’ve got up stupidly steep rocky climbs I’d though I’d have a go at for a laugh.

The only problems I’ve had have been with the components swapped from the old E-5 – the Maverick forks and Mono Minis are/were a bit out of their league on this!

Don’t test ride one if you don’t want to buy one – that’s the mistake I keep making 🙂

I’ve had my E-120 for about 8 months – once I test rode one I had to have it. Looks fantastic and rides like nothing else (and i test rode a lot of bikes before committing to this one).
Very light, feels bombproof and pedals very well – In my mind its the best “one bike for everything” I’ve tried.

Really excels on steep climbs, level racy sections (especially bumpy ones), and singletrack but can still handle decents pretty good. Just feels so fast everywhere.

have you ever noticed how just about everyone thinks their new bike is better than all others…

[have you ever noticed how just about everyone thinks their new bike is better than all others…]

Normally it is (being newer with new design making some impact), but on this occasion I have had a Flux and this is still better IMO. Anyway who cares. All the bikes mentioned above are very good and we are just nit picking. I think we are all just lucky to have tried them. Off out now to do more bike comparison miles…..:D

I’ve had an E-5 Works since they first came out a few years ago and until now I’ve avoided riding an E120, today I got the chance to spend a day riding an E120 XT on the Quantocks. It was better than my E-5, up, down and on the flat (generally more plush) but slightly noisier, the only thing I’d change would be the tyres, I don’t think Mountain Kings are a good choice for the Quantocks.

Mine rode nice too… hehehe
Really enjoyable day, bit noisey but i think thats just the carbon stuff!

lolz……say no more say no more..

Bit of Geeky info for E120 owners – The old E5 frame came with 100mm Titanium studs that run through the pivot bearings. The E120 is shipped with steel versions of the same studs. Changing from Steel to Ti studs saves 60 grams.

if you care ;o)

OK, been riding my new E120 frame for a couple of weeks now. replaces my old E5 frame. and wow, what a difference between the two. I used the love my E5, just loved it. but now I see where it was lacking. The main two things that are immediately obvious are that the E120 is painfuly good at climbing.. i.e. it's painful because it doesn't give up or spin out on tough steep climbs with roots and other obsticles that used to upset the E5 and interupt climbs. The E120 just grips and grips over all obsticles, just taking them in it's stride as if they weren't there. so the only reason you can have a rest if if you make the choice to stop peddling.

Down hill is again a significant improvement.. realy confidence inspiring.

I started the full suss journey in 2001 on a Giant NRS frame, and loved the way that climbed and decended (compared to late 1990's hardtails), then moved onto an Intense Tracer and that was an improvement in terms of decending, and as good climbing, then onto E5 and that was an improvement again for all reasons, and now with E120 I'm blown away. I guess there is alot of improvement made by the 200mm RP23 shock itself when compared to the 165mm RP3 on the E5 (btw my RP23 is 2010 boostvalve version with oversized air can and middle level of compression damping)

it's also noticeably solid when riding hard in any of the rings on tarmac, be that sat in the saddle our standing up… so the platform definitely works well, and I know the E5 used to feel squishy under power when out the saddle, especialy up v-steep climbs.. yet as soon as you ride over a bump etc. you'll notice the shock being active without feeling it.. so they have got the platform perfectly ballanced.

All along I've tried my mates bikes and never been tempted by their steeds, be they Turner Burner, Marin, Spec' Enduro mk 1 & 2, Spec Epic Mk 1 and 2, Spec Stumpy (2004, 2005, 2006) Santa Cruz Heckler or Superlight or Blur XC. Whilst they are all nice, and very good bikes, they just didn't suit me and my style of riding.

MisterT – I have to agree with everything you just said. I had the same route – E-5 to E-120 and I haven't looked back.

Now I've put some suitable forks (maxle'd rev's) and brakes (Elixirs) there' just no stopping it. The one BIG problem is I've now run out of excuses – it's all my fault now when I ride like a ****t 🙂

Enjoy it. Not sure where you ride but the bumpier & rockier the better – it really is wasted in trail centres 🙂

Just another Orange 5 rider throwing in his peice, but have you thought of the IBIS MOJO? It's probably the only bike i'd replace the 5 with if i wanted a carbon full bouncer and would think you could build one up fairly nicely with the sort of money it looks like your spending.

after reading this im glad i went back to hardtail and my lovley P7 😉

the E120 does look nice though

after reading this im glad i went back to hardtail and my lovley P7

Getting away from the thread slightly but i SS'd my P7 and now ride it more than the 5. Can ride it DH faster than my 5 too! That may be due to my poor FS skills but it's still faster than my mates on 5inch full bouncers 😈 😆

To be honest, when I went back to a HT last year it was great. Rides "felt" faster again & all of a sudden line choice became that bit more important.

Having had my Supernormal for a year now though, one of the best things about riding it is the fact it make me appreciate the suspension when I get back on the E-120 🙂

indeed it's always nice to take the HT out and contrast the riding with the FS.. my current HT is a Whyte 19 (the 2007 alloy one with carbon seat stays) with a Durin race 100mm fork. – another great bike, but I guess that's for another thread 😉

Hmm. this has got me thinking again about a frameset and a self build. Would my 36 talas fork work on this frame?

rickmeister – I guess so. assuming it's a single crown fox talas 36 that will adjust to the equivelant axel to crown height of a Fox 120 fork, then would be fine.

Dear All
Considering getting the 2010 XT. Read some of the comments about the cracks from 08/09. Also had a few doom sayers saying stones will fly thru the carbon fibre…
Any experiences to share?
Have test ridden the latest XT and it fair flew up the hills… Got Mountain Mayhem coming up and having just come back from 18 miles of mud on my Felt hardtail with rubbish clearance I'm feeling the need!
Found Formby Cycles doing a 3yr 0% deal with a 10% deposit.
Anyone done better than that?
Many thanks.