Commencal Reliability?

Heya,

I am thinking of getting a Commencal Meta AM 29 or a Yeti SB-95. I was just wondering what experience people have had of the Meta AM line’s reliability?

I know in the past they had a bit of a reputation, but the AM line is meant to have fixed that. Anyone had any problems? How do the bearings hold up? It seems they are fairly standard sizes when they need to be replaced? Anyone had to deal with Commencal themselves?

The Yeti SB series seems to have a rep of eating bearings, but from what I have heard, their customer service is top notch. Unfortunately I haven’t found that much info about Commencal and their “owner’s club” forum seems quite quiet!

Thanks!

I had a 2011 Meta 55 and zero problems for the 3 years I owned it. It was the pre-2010 models which I recall had a lot of issues with the swingarms. You should be good with the Commies now.

I know I’ve heard a lot of people have had issues with the SB66 with bearings and the swingarm in particular but not sure what the 95 is like

Not heard of any problems with any AM’s other than some issues with paint and damage from delivery etc which mainly all seem to have been sorted by Commencal reasonably okay (Jerome seems to be the person to deal with from Commencalownersclub comments)
Mine is definitely solid
18 months all bearings, pivots etc are fine
It’s a lot more bike in all respects than my old Meta 5 was

Yep forum is quiet these days, there is some debate how long it has left, Real Cycles no longer sell Commencal but Steve still owns the site and they need bandwidth for another project so it’s days are probably numbered

My Meta AM has been spot on, only had to replace worn out BB. Customer service good aswell, have bought spares from website ( rear hanger / shock guard /frame grommets) they even sorted me out with some touch up paint for the price of the postage. ( crash due to rider error )

+1 for Jerome @ commencal

I got my frame from Bikeactive who were also excellent. Rob was the guy I dealt with

Does the rear tyre touch the seat tube on the SB95 like it does the SB66?

Buy from here: http://www.commencal-store.co.uk/PBSCCatalog.asp?PBCATID=2167091&ExitMobile=1

Works out £2k or £1.4k.

Win.

you trolling b r?

I know the rear tyre can buzz the seat tube on the Commencal.

Thanks for the input guys. Sounds like the gremlins are a thing of the past 🙂

According to Max Commencal’s interview on Pinkbike, they’ve had no failures on the newer frames – they are a bit heavy, but certainly seem to be durable.

Definitely on the overbuilt side, but climb like a much lighter bike

you trolling b r?

No, a Pal’s 66 had this.

TBH the Commencals could actually withstand an atom bomb… they’re made of scaffold bars I think… heavy I admit… but solid.

If you’re near Berks mate, you’re welcome to test ride mine.

As mentioned no frame failures apparently and My new meta looks really over built but the frame set therefore is north of 8lbs but peddles fine.

I have a 2012 SX, no real issues, the internally routed headtube cables will cut your fork steerer in half though given enough time. SLip some heatshrink over your steerer between the upper and lower races.

I have a barge pole somewhere i need to cut up into tiny pieces to avoid the urge to touch commencal with it.

b r – Member

you trolling b r?

No, a Pal’s 66 had this.

What tyre’s was he using? I use HD’s, which are pretty big, and still have loads of clearance.

Other than the headset being made of cheese and as close to completely unsealed as makes no difference, I’ve had no issues with my 2013 Meta AM2. Frame bearings still doing what they ought to. As others have said, it’s not a light frame, but it doesn’t feel like a heavy frame when you’re riding. It climbs surprisingly well for a fairly slack 6″ travel bike that’s the wrong side of 30lb.

As someone posted above, buying a slightly older model direct from Commencal Outlet may well work out as cheap, if not cheaper, than buying from a UK supplier. Obviously this will vary with exchange rates. Don’t forget that you’ll need to factor in the delivery charge (55 euros iirc) and any bank changes you might incur. That said, delivery was quick – next day, I think.

Yes, I bought my frame direct -2013 at circa £1100. Wrong side of 33lbs once reverb, zee brakes, flows and lyriks added.