Bronson vs Nomad?

I’d always assumed the Bronson would be the ideal super bike for UK woodsy/ trail centre/bike park riding, but on paper the new Nomad looks as good/better…

I’ve test rides on both booked for the end of July to compare for myself, but interested in thoughts from anyone who’s tried both bikes.

both probably overkill for the UK 🙂

Nomad looks like a proper mountain killer though, just need enough 4-5km descents to keep it happy

Maybe 😉

only a shade heavier than a Bronson (obvs depends how you build it) but with better angles for descending?

People are reporting that the Newmad climbs pretty well.
I’d be slightly worried by a 65-degree head angle, but it seems others really like it.
If you can cope with 1x as the only option and were thinking about the carbon Bronson anyway, it sounds ok to me.

As you’ve got a test ride coming up you will be able to let us all know 🙂

both probably overkill for the UK trail centers

Nomad looks like a proper mountain killer though, just need enough 4-5km descents to ride it in North Wales, The Lakes or Scotland to keep it happy

as a former Lakes rider I still reckon it’s overkill 🙂 I’d have one but mt descents are not long enough, the reviews of the Bronson are great and the Solo is backing the whole lot up so not sure if the Nomad is that big mad holiday bike or not.

They’re both great bikes – just canvassing views 🙂

I went for a newmad (quite like that name!) and a solo, but if I could only have one, it’d be the bronson.

We have had a bunch of Bronson’s and also the new Nomad ou here recently. What I really like about the Nomad is that finally SC have seen for to get rid of that linkage that hung below the bottom bracket. Such a huge step forward! Seems like a nice bike, the colours are great. The Rallon I’m ridig is 65.5deg head angle, doesn’t seem to be a problem and it climbs great. It’s a fraction lower than the Bronson and I’m glad it comes with 170mm cranks as standard, maybe something to consider.

I was about to buy a Bronson but then saw the release of the Nomad.

If I’d have purchased the Bronson just before the Nomad release I would have kicked myself.

I absolutely love the Nomad, it climbs really well and goes down even better.
I smashed all my strava times on the first ride as this included lots of uphill sections.
The best thing about that was I didn’t even try to get good times, I just rode with normal effort, I was just quicker on the ups without realising.

If you are going 1X I can’t see any reason why you’d buy a Bronson over a Nomad. It’s a no brainier in my opinion.

Atm I’ve got a MK11 nomad as my one do it all bike and it just about covers most bases. (Trail centres are a bit meh on it though) my lottery dream shed would have a solo (5010) for trail centre thrashing and a newmad for those epic days in the lakes, heaven 🙂

The only thing I can find not to like on the Nomad is the 1x only constraint.
Everything else looks spot on.
Guess I’ll have to try a one-up dinnerplate on current bike and see if I survive that before I start thinking about the next bike.

I’m quite taken with the Nomad’s geometry & very light weight. More do-it-all than the do-it-all Bronson? I’m thinking of 1x whatever the bike (haven’t used a front mech for years!) so interested to read your points tinytimbo.

I tried a Bronson a few times, never liked it, I think it was just a combination of all things I didn’t like in a bike. That said, maybe an XL with a -2 angleset would have made it more what I wanted. Obviously everyone is different though.

Then that’s near enough a Nomad, but a frame size smaller, as they have in erased the reach accordingly.

I would say the Bronson was a noticeably better climber, and most other bikes around a similar level of travel are too, I think that’s more to do with the leverage curve and the shock not having enough platform on it. A revolved shock that wasn’t so soggy in its initial stroke would improve that IMO.

I really like the Nomads geometry, and I love how they have moved the lower link higher so it doesn’t sit lower the the BB.

I was running 1x before I got the Nomad so this wasn’t an issue for me. Plus I’m running a 36 ring up front on a standard cassette. 11-36, so only managing a gear ratio of 1:1 for my easiest gear.

There is nothing I haven’t been able to get up yet. Personally I have no need for a dinner plate sized rear sprocket.

Out of my riding mates we have a Bronson C, a MK2 Nomad Alloy and my Nomad C.

I have had a go on the Bronson and yes it’s a really nice bike but glad I have the Nomad.
As for the MK2 Nomad my mate has the same soze as me, large, however ha feels so cramped compared to mine even though his has a 19″ seat tube and mine has a 18″

The new geo including longer effective top tube feel so much better on the new Nomad.

My only complaint is the low BB, I’m hitting the pedals quite a lot. I guess the low BB is why it rides so well though and hopefully I’ll get used to it.

The Bronson is also pretty low but I believe it’s 0.2 inch higher than the Nomad so about 5mm?

Makes me laugh – “I have a xxx and I’m glad I got that one”. I’d struggle to admit to myself, if I’d spent £5k plus on one of two bikes, that the one I didn’t buy was better too.

I have a Bronson C by the way 🙂

Makes me laugh – “I have a xxx and I’m glad I got that one”. I’d struggle to admit to myself, if I’d spent £5k plus on one of two bikes, that the one I didn’t buy was better too.
I have a Bronson C by the way

I’ve never understood the philosophy of not admitting to yourself you don’t like something you have just bought if you really don’t like it. I’m not saying the Nomad is an amazing bike and I’m glad I chose it over the Bronson because I have one.

I bought it because its an amazing bike and I preferred that over the Bronson, see the difference?

If I buy something and i don’t like I sell it and buy something else.

I’ve done it with several bikes and cars in the past. Once bought I’ve not been quite happy with then so I’ve got rid and bought something else I was happy with.

I think you secretly wish you had a Nomad over a Bronson 🙂
I’ve ridden both so in a good position to comment, have you?

Potentially also a little bit of most bikes being awesome and unless you ride a lot of bikes back to back week in week out you wouldn’t notice too much between bikes of similar genres. Also, lets be honest, the vast majority of people would be over-biked on either in the UK so it becomes difficult to quantify exactly how much more over-biked you are than over-biked

as a former Lakes rider I still reckon it’s overkill

Maybe for you but most of the Lakes riders I know would love a light 160mm bike with that geometry. Then again maybe you are s**t hot and ride everything on a rigid single speed!

Anyway the latest Nomad has almost the same geometry and travel as my Nicolai but is probably 3-4lbs lighter. To me that’s very tempting but I would want to see what the long term durability is like first as my Nicolai never breaks.

The Nomad will also appeal to people who have a downhill bike and an all day bike as with this you could probably ditch the DH machine and just have 1 for everything.

It’s great that manufacturers are giving us the bikes we have wanted for years but finally they are light and climb well. Going to be a very interesting next few years.

If you want to limp on the ups and along the flat in order to enjoy maybe 5% of the riding in the UK, go nomad.

If you want to limp on the ups and along the flat in order to enjoy maybe 30% of the riding in the UK, go bronson.

If you want to have fun at every oppurtunity, fly on the ups, turn the flats into a “*DH*, enjoying 95% of what the UK has to offer, go 5010. You will have to accept you won’t be flying down a national standard dh race at race pace though.

* everyone seems to forget the flat/slight up/slight down is actually the same as the DH if you can generate and maintain the speed, work the terrain, hop here, hop there, bigger bikes are simply too much hard work in terms of pedaling and pumping to achieve with.

All i know is that id much rather have a bike suitable for the majority of the riding i actually do, not some some romantic idea that i’ll be smashing steep rough day in, day out, though if i were, id be using a dh bike.

If you want to limp on the ups and along the flat in order to enjoy maybe 5% of the riding in the UK, go nomad

I can confirm, from experience, that this is bollocks. I guarantee I am not alone

If you want to limp on the ups and along the flat in order to enjoy maybe 5% of the riding in the UK I do, go nomad

FTFY

If you want to limp on the ups and along the flat in order to enjoy maybe 5% of the riding in the UK, go nomad.

If you want to limp on the ups and along the flat in order to enjoy maybe 30% of the riding in the UK, go bronson.

If you want to have fun at every oppurtunity, fly on the ups, turn the flats into a “*DH*, enjoying 95% of what the UK has to offer, go 5010. You will have to accept you won’t be flying down a national standard dh race at race pace though.

* everyone seems to forget the flat/slight up/slight down is actually the same as the DH if you can generate and maintain the speed, work the terrain, hop here, hop there, bigger bikes are simply too much hard work in terms of pedaling and pumping to achieve with.

All i know is that id much rather have a bike suitable for the majority of the riding i actually do, not some some romantic idea that i’ll be smashing steep rough day in, day out, though if i were, id be using a dh bike

That’s a very simple view to have, although maybe relevant to you, certainly not for me.

I ride with 5 people who have Nomad MK11s as their main ‘do-everything’ bike.
They all enjoy a good climb as much as the descents.

[quoteIf you want to limp on the ups and along the flat in order to enjoy maybe 5% of the riding in the UK, go nomad.

If you want to limp on the ups and along the flat in order to enjoy maybe 30% of the riding in the UK, go bronson.

If you want to have fun at every oppurtunity, fly on the ups, turn the flats into a “*DH*, enjoying 95% of what the UK has to offer, go 5010. You will have to accept you won’t be flying down a national standard dh race at race pace though.[/quote]

83.56% of statistics are made up on the spot!

But I see your point and I thought the same would be true until i bought a nomad (cos I liked the colours, the adverts and that if I’m honest) and then proceeded to be faster up, across and down on it than i was on my old nomad. If I had two bikes though it would be a 5010 and a knackered old DH bike for the boring UK uplifts and yearly trip to the alps

Not ridden either but looking at the Geometry the nomad would be the one for me the Bronson has the shorter reach and longer stays That adds up to a poorer handling less fun bike and if the headangle on the nomad is too slack you could always fit an Angleset backwards
Personally I’d be looking at something longer up front and shorter out back than either bike

The geo on the Nomad does look more like the thing I’m looking for – good bb drop, longish front centre, short chainstays, slack HA. I’m currently riding a Meta SX which is fabness, so I have a good yardstick to compare climbing & descending with.

I was thinking of the Bronson as a rally car – taut, responsive, stiff, good to drift whilst the Nomad as a desert racer – awesome in a straight line. Or something like that 😉

Bronson c here great bike. Not owned a Nomad so won’t speculate. Why not demo both for say a weekend. Worked for me then I was sure it was the right bike for me.

Cheers Pawsey_Bear – have them booked for a weekend demo, just interested in feedback from those who’ve tried both/either 🙂

Cough banshee rune cough 🙂

Test rode both and didn’t really get on with the Bronson, the nomad was a completely different matter!

If you want to limp on the ups and along the flat in order to enjoy maybe 5% of the riding in the UK, go nomad.

I can think of several riders I know that would strip an XC racer of their self respect on a long Lake District climb or a Scottish mountain and all on a 160mm beast.

Quite a few people live right next to that 5% you are talking about and spend all their free time riding it! Smashing rough stuff day in day out is exactly what a lot of riders do and most normal people probably get the most out of the downhills in MTB.

All im trying to say generally riding is about having as much fun as possible, this generally means going fast, dealing with stuff coming at you, dirt, rocks, roots, jumps, turns, camber etc, etc. The more travel you’ve got the bigger the rock/roots/steeper the terrain needs to be to get that same buzz. By going for the more travel, you are limiting the amount of stuff you have to ride to get that buzz, ie limiting the amount of fun you’re gonna have.

Then you have on the ups where longer travel will be harder work/more horrific, hence less fun, you’ll get more tired too, meaning less climbing, in turn less descending. Then there’s the stuff on the flat which will be left out on a longer bike which would be fun on a shorter bike.

Also, shorter travel jumps better and helps to make more jumps along the way, jumps are fun, right?

A shorter travel bike will be more fun more of the time, isn’t fun the goal? Obviously everyones tolerance to what climbs ok and versions of fun are going to be different.

All i know is that im really really enjoying having a trail bike after having an am beast, im having more fun more of the time, fitting more climbs hence descents, and riding just as technical stuff (dh tracks) and jumps.

You raise some good points deanfbm – I guess this is at the heart of my question (and answered by some of the responses above) – is the Nomad as much fun on the woodsy stuff as it is on the balls out dh/big mountain stuff. Compare and contrast to Bronson on the same. I guess harking back to my analogy of rally car/desert racer.

Deanfmb you’re kind of right a hard tail will always be faster than a bouncer on smooth dull climbs

But the good thing is that these bikes are light responsive and with good shocks efficient pedalers too theres hardly any trade off on modern fs bikes especially the ‘new’ Geo style with steep sa slack ha, long reach and short chainstays all of which adds up to a very fun (more rally car ?) bike. Which is why I’d go with a nomad as its the more modern Geo (though still not quite up there with some other manufacturers)

OP be interesting to hear your thoughts after the test ride

I’ll certainly feed back – this thread is idle speculation as i have to wait a month before the demos 🙂

Being a geek, the one element of the Nomad that counts against it being “fun” (I know this means different things to different folks riding in different parts of the world) is the wheelbase.
Nomad wheelbase for a L is 1195mm vs 1165 on the L Bronson. My current Meta SX (L) has a WB of 1172 and although it makes it a point and shoot blast on the DH there comes a trade off against agility in the nadgery tech and pumpy swoopy.

shorter chainstays help with manouverability, how do they compare with the Meta?, I think the nomad is about as short as you could get a vpp chainstay?

Meta’s chainstays are 430mm vs 433 for Nomad and 439 for Bronson. Not so much as to make a difference taking into account other geo and shock/ride factors I reckon.

Edit – told you I was a geek 😉

deanfbm – whereabouts is your local riding?

I think people are over thinking this a bit too much

its like the lapierrre zesty vs spicy

zesty is 150mm and spicy 160mm

people actually claim the spicy climbs just as well, but is more of a hoot to descend on, the 10-15mm travel isnt a great deal of difference climb wise

the huge difference is usually the weight of the bike for the slogs up from 140mm to 160mm, but these days the 160mm nomad/spicy team etc weigh less/equal as the bronsons/zestys etc so carting them around isnt a big deal anymore

yes you may notice a slight difference climb wise due to the angles, but lets be honest a 160mm bike weighing 28lbs, is lighter than most/all orange fives out there at 140mm

it is a bit of a no brainer if you live somewhere rough (peaks/lakes/wales)

id be heading towards a nomad personally now over a bronson, as i genuinely dont think it would affect the climbing in a noticeable way at all (maybe slight at worse)

Oscillate Wildly – you’re totally right, the Spicy/Zesty comparison is a good one. I’m quite used to hauling a 160mm slack-angled bike around all day – and it’s a blast. I know it’s not “too much bike” for my riding – for me the weight/stiffness is the draw. The Nomad @ c.28lb-ish is 6lbs lighter than the Meta and will feel very different accordingly.

I guess the interesting thing about the Spicy is that it’s 150mm this year (same as the Bronson) – optimum travel/geo/fun?