Evening,

As title, thinking of getting back in the game after nearly a year without a mountain bike. Fancy a short travel full bouncer.

This looks good and appears to be well specced for the money, anybody got one or ridden one?

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/commencal-meta-sl-3-suspension-bike-2013/rp-prod83514

I’ve got a 2012 version and love it. The only thing is I wished I brought just a frame as i’ve swapped most of the things such as wheels and fork.

Spent a week in Spain on it and done most of the trail centres and local stuff and it nevers fails to put a smile on my face.

They do have a low bb height but I run a X-Fusion Slant mainly set at 130mm and have occasionaly used it on 150mm for rock descents. I know this voids any warranty but the bike seems to cope with it very well. The Fox 120mm RL that came with mine was shite.

Cheers mate, I’m not a fan of fox forks myself so that May get swapped out for an X Fusion velvet fork. Had one on my last bike and loved it.

Cheers for the reply.

How did u find the sizing?

I picked up a 2013 frame only direct from commencal for £850, really loving it so far.

It’s not a light weight xc bike, once you understand that it all makes sense.

120mm forks don’t do it justice imo. Stick some 140s up front, big brakes, 1×10, wide bars and some chunky tyres and it comes alive!

the geometry just feels really sorted for riding fast, I was surprised by just how stable it was at high speed and over rough terrain.

Couple of downsides… it needs bottle mounts, I’m going to see if I can get some drilled and fitted. The frame tubes can easily take a couple of holes. The shock blows through it’s travel too easily. This is a common complaint and can be fixed with a volume reducer spacer from mojo. £35. This sorted the issue completely. The frame is a little weighty but its all low down and if being ridden for its intended purpose it’s reassuringly sturdy, if you ride hard then you’ll appreciate it. Replacement bottom brackets need a minor mod with a hacksaw, very simple to do so don’t let this put you off. The shock is in the line of fire from the rear tyres, commencal do a neoprene guard that protects it well from the filth.

if you’re looking for something to pootle around on then this isn’t the bike for you. If your looking for a short travel bike to shred, then go ahead!

I’m 5’7″ and went for the medium after having ago on my mates medium 5.5meta and definitely made the right choice.

I’m 6 foot and went with a large. Running an inline reverb post, 70mm stem and 760mm wide bars. Felt slightly short compared to my old cannondale prophet but I’ve adjusted fine and find it comfortable.

I run a 70mm stem and inline post and came from a small Prophet 🙂

Yeah I ride fast but I’m not harsh on bikes, I tend to hop over things rather than ride through things.. If that makes sense..

It’s a nice looking bike aswell, I’m considering getting the SL4 now as I’d probably want to upgrade some of the parts..

I’m not much shorter than you then mate, I’m about 5ft 5/6.. How is the top tube clearance?

Hard to say beinbg full suss and a sloping top tube. If I stand across it a with the saddle in my back a couple of inches but move up slightly and the tube is rubbing me nuts. I’ve had several crashes and have not yet cracked my under-carriage.

120mm forks don’t do it justice imo. Stick some 140s up front, big brakes, 1×10, wide bars and some chunky tyres and it comes alive!

Or just buy a standard Meta AM?

I went to the product launch, loved that bike. As the commencal designer said, it is still focused on going down. It’s a short(er) travel bike that is designed to be fun going down. I thought it was great because of that. I ended up getting a 29 am to test but I had asked for the sl. Get what you are given! The 29er is way faster but I loved the sl’s on the edge, fun descending.

Iain, I’m sure the AM is great bike but I prefer a slightly shorter travel rear, I get to feel more of the trail beneath me.

Thanks for all the input guys, I was riding Cotic Soul’s for the last 2 or 3 years which I really liked. I’d have one again but just fancy a change, I had an Orange St4 which I liked so though I’d go down the short travel route again.. Better on the back aswell.

Always liked the look of them and they are at a more acceptable price now IMO.