Forum menu
Hope all you guys recommending Souls are right. Mine arrived last weekend and it's built but I've not had a chance to ride it yet. Going to have to wait till Friday for a trip to Aviemore now 🙂
FOG - MemberI bought a 456 last year and it has been o.k. but that's it, o.k.
IT was a very good price but I too wish I had saved for a soul. I had a ride on a soul after I bought the 456 and it was very superior in the sort of general trail riding I do. The 456 is too unsubtle and to be honest doesn't like climbing with 140 forks even though somebody on this thread was using 150. I have been riding it a lot lately because I have had problems with my FS but it doesn't make me feel any better about it.
I too got a 456 earlier in the year (the SS version) and now that i've tweaked the build to suit my needs*, it's great. I'm sure the Soul and other names mentioned in this thread are more betterer, but if you can't do what you want on a 456, then it's not the fault of the frame.
* it's a go anywhere - do everything bike.
They all have Betamax wheels.
Wasn't Betamax technically better and yet market pressure from big players killed it off..?
Anyway, on the CEN point. It's a generalisation to say post CEN frames are heavier / harsher etc, not all, some maybe a few oz here and there, maybe not; as an example the post-EN Genesis 853 rides comfier / springier overall than the pre-CEN frame, is also tougher up front and a bit stiffer against bar twist. Seeing how frames flex on a CEN test jig may help add some flex in the right places and not others, new tube profiles came out of it all etc. Many variables.
On the 'which frame' q, tricky decision as there's a good range of them out there, sounds like an XC/trail-biased 100-120mm job will suit you more than a slacker bomber.
The original question does seem a bit strange and I'm not so convinced about the steel is real adage... There are plenty of alloy and carbon frames out there worth consideration too. However, if I were in your shoes I'd be examining the 29er options too.
Aye, agree with RRD. My Carbon 456 is the best hardtail I've had since my Soul, and it rides far more like the mythical "real steel feel" than a steel 456 does.