MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
We will be in touch
If so, what are your thoughts about it. Getting a demo is not going to be easy and involve some driving so I'm keen to figure out whether they're as good as they are supposed to be and whether there's any build problems etc.
Also, I've got some Pike 454s currently, reckon they'll transfer okay to the covert?
i've got one and I sell them so I'm totally biased, however I'm biased for a reason they are ****in mint.
Totally transformed my riding, the bike climbs well, but on the descents its better than anything i've ridden (meta5 and 6, Zesty and Spicy, Genius, Yeti 575, 7 and a few more) and gives loads of confidence. Ive sold all the ones I can get my hands on and everyone has come back raving about it so I cant recommend it enough, If you are in Leeds then Ill let you try mine, but not for long as I like riding it too much. 🙂
One of my mates rides the older version, I've had the misfortune of riding it a few times. It weighs half a ton, climbs like a pig for me because it's a size too small, he seems to manage ok though and seems to think the weight is worth dragging up the hills for the benefits of its downhill ability.
Must admit it feels quite planted on the decents, probably more due to weight and the coil shock rather than the suspension design. It is a avery solid design frame. Persona: Iron Bru, made in Scotland from girders.
I've ridden loads of bikes that are better on the ups and loads of bikes that are better on the downs. I've even ridden bikes that decend better than the covert and climb loads better. It's definately a gravity orientated bike and not wholly convincing at that!
I wouldn't have one unless it was a cheap play bike but then again if I wanted a playbike, I'd buy an old DH frame.
Problems, the rear tyre hits the seattube when the suspension compresses, this might have been solved on the new version but the two old ones I've seen both had a nice rub mark on the back of the seat tube.
do a search, trimix bought one recently and has posted it about it in aframe recommendation type thread in the last week or two. I know h e bought it after comparing it with other bikes in test rides, and it sounds like good value for a niche US frame (£1300 is mid range santa cruz money).
Sancho - You have the tyre-seattube collision problem?
Im not sure why filthy would make a comparison about a bike that he hasnt ridden, the old covert is not the bike you are enquiring about so why comment on a different bike.
Anyhow back to the present, I have bottomed out the covert once or twice, as you would expect and the tyre hasen't touched the frame.
im running a 2.35 high roller on the back in case you wondered.
Oh and of the ones Ive sold, no-one has come back to me telling me of the problem.
also my frame is white so any marks would show up pretty easily.
I am biased, but then I totally rate this bike, and being a commencal, lapierre, yeti, cove, scott, kona, labyrinth dealer I can ride quite a range of bikes and its the Covert every time.
but it is just an opinion.
You work at Crosstrax by any chance?
Why do dealer insist on coming on this forum and bigging up thier bikes... I mean no dealer is going to come on and say it's a load of rubbish are they?
Like I said I've ridden the old version and the new one doesn't look like such a radically different model to the one it replaced.
atlaz I'd try and get some independant reviews if I were you, might be great for you, only a test ride will tell.
Yup, I have one of the new ones. Custom build: 2011 Talas 36's / Chris Kings all round / Thompson seat + stem / Hammerschmidt / Gravity 810 bars / Saint brakes with braided hoses etc.
Medium frame, custom paint job.
It feels very stable, quite a nice 'in' the bike feel. Climbs very well, best climbing bike Ive ever had (locked out or not locked out). On the flat it rolls fast and on the down hills its very quick. Almost too quick. Ive had it for about two weeks now and cant stop riding it. I took it to one of my most favorite singletracks. Very rooty and twisty - it made me a better rider.
No tyre clearence problems - even with fat tyres on, very good build quality. The welds look very nice. All the bushings etc look well sorted, nice touches with things like the internal rear cable routing.
I think it will continue to make me ride faster - Im still fiddling with the suspension settings front and rear but its quite an impresive ride.
If you like sprinting out of the saddle it works well, if you like spinning up hills it wont bob, if you like mucking about and getting air it wont let you down, if you like going DH fast enough to scare yourself its ace.
Mine comes in at just under 29lbs. Its not for XC racing type whippets, its really a great do it all bike though. I would have no problem riding up and down Snowdon on it, Cwn Carn DH, big all day XC rides, short sprints in the Chilterns, anything really. Are you local to Oxford ?
Oh, I fitted a 70mm stem, didnt like the original very short one.
Funnily enough I tested one today (Cyclopedia in Surbiton have a medium demo).
It's a good bike - in fact very good bike for the money. The angles seem spot-on, along with the bb height, meaning it is very confidence inspiring, and encourages some hooligan riding. When it gets steep, it's nice and slack encouraging you to keep weight over the front to rip through loose corners. It climbs well too. Suspension action is nice - plush enough over the small stuff but not saggy in the mid stroke. Jumps well with good confidence too.
Downsides? Well it's not especially light - the demo was built up with SLX, Lyrics, and an i900 seatpost, and weighed 32lbs. Throwing some money at it would get it below 30lbs with obvious benefits. It's also a single-pivot, and whilst there's no bob with some platform dialled in, brake jack is evident.
I also swapped the standard RP23 out for a CCDB and it definitely improved the overall control of the bike, but couldn't get rid of the brake-jack.
Would I get one? If I wasn't bothered by the brake jack then yes - the angles are spot-on, and it looks good too.
Actually Ive not noticed the brake jack, Im using the Fox RP23. My build cost me about £5,500. So thats not cheap, but I did buy the best bits and stuff I liked. I really like the Hammerschmidt, but that adds about £600 to the price plus Ive got the 2011 Talas and they are about £900. You could go cheaper and still get a 30lb bike.
Depends on what sort of riding you want to do really.
Brake jack probably only becomes noticeable back to back with another design. Running the same trail on the Covert vs two DW-link bikes it becomes noticeable.
In fairness, most folk don't ride a couple of DW link bikes, then take their own one out.
the old one is quite a lot different to the new one half an inch less travel and the back end has been re-designed to get rid of tyre clearance issues. plus new cable routing which is weird but neat and does away with a lot of cable rub. think the paint has been improved too.
I do work at Crosstrax, like I said I'm totally biased, but I have a pretty impressive array of bikes that I could have as my own and Ive been a Yetifan for years, still love the 575, I think the Zesty is the best all-rounder there is, but for me its the covert, which is why I own one.
But I'm on here bigging up my personal bike just like any other member does.
brake jack - not really a problem on the Transition as it only really affects Lawwill designed bikes, maybe hei hei is confusing it with brake squat which affects all bikes, including DW designs but to a lesser extent, but then as DW himself agrees brake squat is a good thing as when you hit the back brake the bike balances itself a little by sitting into its travel and stabilising the bike.
Still its my opinion that's all.
maybe hei hei is confusing it with brake squat which affects all bikes
Don't think so - heading into a section of reasonably steep downhill trail and braking into a corner over roots and ruts, the Covert had noticeably less grip than the Mojo HD I was also demoing, as well as my own DW 5-Spot.
In fairness, most folk don't ride a couple of DW link bikes, then take their own one out.
Agreed, but the whole point of someone asking for advice is for people to point out pros and cons of a particualr bike vs others on the market.
most pointless, Ill informed post of the day?
Like I said I've ridden the old version and the new one doesn't look like such a radically different model to the one it replaced.
and just because you read about "brake jack" doesn't mean you have a clue what it is.
Take a look at the world cup downhill bikes, quite a few different suspension designs eh? see many of them suffering with brake jack?
Think it makes a difference to you on your trail bike?
pseudo science half wits on stw shocker
Trimix - Not a million miles from Oxford no. Got friends in Bicester who I visit from time to time too.
heihei - Cyclopedia... hmm... have they stopped being total cocks to people who visit the shop then? I lived in Surbiton and went out of my way to avoid that place after a couple of bad experiences.
most pointless, Ill informed post of the day?Like I said I've ridden the old version and the new one doesn't look like such a radically different model to the one it replaced.
Not really!, apart from the hydroformed tubes they share a lot of features, single pivot linkage driven shock, same geometry, similar weight, it's not going to ride radically differently is it? Ok there maybe a subtle difference but it's not going to be like getting off a single pivot and going to a vpp or dw link!
Or have I missed something?
heihei - Cyclopedia... hmm... have they stopped being total cocks to people who visit the shop then? I lived in Surbiton and went out of my way to avoid that place after a couple of bad experiences.
Seemed ok to me - good response to emails, offered to help set up the shocks, charged £30 for 2 days' of demo (rebate if buying a frame), and no high-pressure sales pitch when I returned it.
I'm a dealer and I big up the stuff I choose when I get it right. I don't mention the stuff I screwed up too frequently!
We love the Covert here and the customers who have bought them swear by them. Sold our demo bike but getting a Large Covert in red to replace it this week...
old one head angle is listed as 68.5 vs. new one of 67 so don't see how geometry is the same
like saying the old 5 is the same as the new one.
bleh
I got a demo from Trail Junkies - in the Chilterns.
It does seem to be a do-it-all bike, so most people will like it. Unless you want something very specific.
I only have one bike, so for me I need something that will cover all my riding - from tow path to trail centre. Unlike some of my mates who have 2-4+ bikes, they can choose a bike for whatever bit of the country they are riding in.