Here’s mine. It got a bit of a slagging the other day, but I love it.

The Soul is the only bike that I’ve regretted selling and that was due a dream frame appearing on Classifieds! A real workhorse, inspired confidence and the 120mm Fox forks were perfect. Geometry fantastic for me too.

Love my Simple, again same geometry.

Really like that build, mboy(and Northwind). Would love a little play bike like that.

It was fun, but ultimately I didn’t really do it any justice. My current hardtail is about 8lb lighter, and even my full sus is about 4lb lighter.

Tyre clearance is not great on the older Souls or BFe. Limit was about 2.25/2.3 on a Flow rim. The BFe was really direct (or harsh, depending on your POV)

I thought the tyre clearance on my BFe was enormous! How many other hardtails can you get a 2.5″ Maxxis in happily?

With you on the very direct/harsh thing though… For my old Mk1 at least.

prezet – Member
Not seen an xs in this thread I think… but I ride a small frame at 5’11”.

Right there on page 1. XS BFe with silly long seatpost. Suits me just fine.

slainte 😀 rob

There are some lovely looking bikes on this thread.

* why cotic – Not sure. I trashed my 1997 Orange P7 in a crash. I wasn’t happy with a replacement Inbred, my own fault, got a 14″ and it was too small for me. Saw some pictures of the Soul and thought they looked nice. Read some reviews and sounded nice. Saw some more pictures and decided to give them a go.

* why that model – It’s a pretty much do-all-I-want-it-to bike. I’ve commuted to work, gone to the shops, ridden my local trails, got around the xc route at Aston Hill (which is as gnarr as I’ll ever get). I’ve even used it to escape from a horse that wanted my bag of blackberrys in Ashridge.

* set up – Hope BB and headset. Thomson stem and post. Easton bars. Pretty much everything else is XT. Rebas at 100mm. Only thing I want to change are the tyres (Bonty XR4 tubeless). They grip well, but there is not much clearance on the forks.

* opinions – I love my bike. As I am short in the leg, a 15″ would have been better for standover (I notice the new one comes in 14.5) but length wise it is fine. I don’t feel the need to change it, not even for a Rocket!

I’ll try again

pic

It’s a large, yet it looks in the pic as if it’s still too small for me. All those spacers, that long stem – do you lot with smaller stems have and trouble climbing with long-travel forks? Front bobbing up etc?

ta

timnwild – Member

I’ll try again

pic

It’s a large, yet it looks in the pic as if it’s still too small for me. All those spacers, that long stem – do you lot with smaller stems have and trouble climbing with long-travel forks? Front bobbing up etc?

ta

Tim,

How tall are you?

I am 6′ 3” and ride a L with a layback post 70mm stem and 762mm bars.

I have to say I was skeptical moving from a 90mm stem and 685mm bars but it works. I dropped the spacers from under the stem – coupled with the 762mm bar being flat has had a really positive affect on handling and comfort.

Just a thought I suppose.

M

All glory to Talentspotter . . .

@tim that setup does look like the frame is too small for you. Cotic suggest stem size ranges on their site, if you can’t fit happily somewhere in that range that probably backs that up.

Handling wise I want from 690mm/90mm to 725mm/70mm and it transformed (positively) the bike (on a small, I’m 5’8″).

timnwild

I would say that you probably worry about the front coming up because the bars are way too high.

Mine is a medium and I am bang on 6ft, yes for longer rides a large would be better for me but a large wouldn’t be as good around the BMX track or down the jumps. Anyhow, my front end doesn’t lift at 140mm and a 65mm stem because I have the stem on the headset and my bars are low rise. This keeps the front much lower than your setup and my weight further forward. Ok a lot of my weight is on my hands which again isnt great for all day comfort but the bike is fun and thats the main thing I want out of a bike.

why a cotic soul? Is it the colour, the ride, the feel? who knows, ……it just makes me smile:-)

soul in the church yard by Whatnametochoose, on Flickr[/img]

* why cotic ??
Best customer service I’ve ever had with a bike/frame purchase. The frames are good value, well made and look good.

* why that model
BFe, hard as nails I won’t break it, good geo. It’s a do it all bike. I always wanted a soul but then I started doing more dirt jump and the BFe was better suited. 

* set up
SLX, Sektors, DMR V12’s, hope gold bits and hubs and a trusty titanium spoon saddle I’ve had for years.

* opinions !!
My BFe is the best bike I have owned, it fits me perfectly and is inspiring to ride. For me the service I have had from Cotic has been spot on, Paul is always helpful and emails back. If I could afford it I’d buy a soul too.

Pics to be added when I get home

New fork arrived this morning! 😀

FWIW, I’m 6′ or 6’2″ depending which doctor is measuring. 😕

Mine is large, 70mm stem, 745 bars inline post with saddle back on the rails. I have maybe 25mm spacers under the stem which was fine with the old 130mm fork, will experiment a bit now I’m running 120mm.

Hmm – way too many spacers on mine I think, and a shorter stem/wider bars perhaps in order.

Thanks for the help folks. This is the sort of thing that leads people to fiercely debate bike geometry, I suppose. I”m beginning to understand.

ta

For the record on stems and bars.
Simple has a 70mm stem with 685mm bars.
Hemlock and Bfe have a 50mm stem with 685mm bars.

All are smalls and I’m 5’10”

Will probably get a bit wider bar next time and lose some skin off my knuckles locally.

Bit late to the party 😉

* why cotic ??
I knew Cy and got a good deal on an ex-test frame 🙂

* why that model
Hemlock – seemed to be designed to be flexible and ridden in the real world.

* set up
120mmm rear and run with adjustable 120-160 forks (Marz 55ATA and Magura Wotans) and fixed 140mm forks. Build burly in places (Spank bar and stem) and light in others (American Classic hub). It’s all about striking a balance!

* opinions !!
I enjoy riding it a lot. Started with the old rear end and loved the feel (and the mud clearance). Then got a new rear end to try and loved the stiffness (but missed the mud clearance!). With 160 forks it feels quite capable enough on steep stuff… happy now with the balance/compromise that 140mm forks offer for majority of riding, although 36s might be nicer than 32s (balance/compromises again).

It’s fun to play on and it’s fun to ride long distances. It feels very capable, but isn’t too heavy to shoulder for a long carry. I can’t think of how I’d justify replacing it unless I break it 😉

Original build:

Most recent front end:

Most recent blinging:

Oh – 50mm stem and 710mm bars – but I want wider, sod my knuckles 😉

Here’s mine in the fastest colour cotic ever made 😀
Spec:-
Slx double and bash mechs and shifters
Deore brakes
Hope evo pro2 hubs flows rims Ardents back and front
Gusset stem 50mm nukeproof warhead bars
Bright red rs Pikes

Untitled by Rockape46, on Flickr

Untitled by Rockape46, on Flickr

Untitled by Rockape46, on Flickr
Bought mine because I’d read loads about them so decided to build one. Cy is a really helpful bloke to deal with. Its a British design built with a passion to see it through to the last detail. I think mine is brilliant to ride. I do long days trail centres Dales and Lakes I just love it.

And another latecomer…….

Picked my frame up 2nd hand earlier this year….the final part of a long upgrade path from a stock standard rockhopper obtained 4 years earlier that signalled a long overdue return to riding after a 15 year time out. Just a beautiful looking and performing bit of kit! A revelation after Alu HT frames to date, and a bike that just makes you want to get out and ride as often as possible…..

Spec:
XT group set (with an opportunist XTR shadow plus rear mech upgrade following the XT’s demise at the hands of some rather large Peak District rocks!) Flow Rims on Hope II pro evo’s run tubeless, Reba Ti 120mm with DT Swiss RWS bolt thru’s 9mm front & 10mm rear, Chris King Headset, XT 785 brakes, Thompson X4 elite stem with sunline V1 711’s, Thompson seat post with Fizik gobi XM. Must get round to shortening cables at some point!

Opinion:
Doubted the hype but now yet another nausey convert……as an aside any other Kiwi soul riders out there?? I sense a niche within niche riders group coming on!

Love grazedknees pic, very nice build & location.

Sold this on to a lad from here.

I like my orange Soul, but some of these tasteful black builds are very slick too.

not enough rocket content…No denying dense but it just makes me think it should have some 36 coils instead ! 😆
lowered the stem too before it gets pointed out!

@mboy – my comment about the tyre clearance is probably based on a chunky 2.4, which scraped the inside of the chainstay. I think from memory it was. 2.4 Ardent I tried to fit, and ended up just running a smaller Fat Albert.

When I was looking to replace it, I checked with Cotic if they had increased tyre clearance, which they had not, but they had changed the seat post size from 30.9, so got a Pig.

not enough rocket content…

There would be more if some of us weren’t skint! 😥

@mboy – my comment about the tyre clearance is probably based on a chunky 2.4, which scraped the inside of the chainstay. I think from memory it was. 2.4 Ardent I tried to fit, and ended up just running a smaller Fat Albert.

The 2.4″ Maxxis Ardents and Advantages are HUGE! MUCH bigger than advertised. More like a 2.6″ tyre to be honest. Certainly bigger than a 2.5″ Minion or High Roller. Not surprised you couldn’t fit it, there’s not many hardtails you could get one of those on I expect.

not enough rocket content…

Listen to the Johnny-come-lately… some of us managed to turn up at page 2 y’know…

Tbh there doesn’t seem to be a great deal of them out there yet/atm.

Darn can’t get the URL link to my flickr image to work…

Lots of nice bikes. it’s like an official cotic owners club.

Here’s one of mine – the Eoadrat, just fitted with new, excessively-logoed Crest rims. The rim stickers will have to go, I think. As will the tyres – the rear one has separated from the bead, and is bulging really badly on the drive side. Hopefully replaced by something that’ll run tubeless without faff – so I don’t have to worry about punctures, and can do that old “take the long way home” trick.

Why: Bought the hype since Cotic arrived and have wanted one for years. Finally got this lovely frame last year 2nd hand from someone on here.

Spec: Shed and strip of the old bike build. Could do with being a bit burlier for my ambitions, bigger front rotor and bolt thru fork would be nice. Superstar wheels have been much better than i would expect for £180. XT throughout including pedals. Thomson stem, easton bars and KCNC seat post.

Opinions: Great fun downhill, springy ride and much nicer than my old xc full sus. Even with a light build for a soul i find it a bit of a chore uphill but then I’m more xc orientated than most and have another bike for races. This soul is my training and winter hack and I love it.

Pictured at Golspie in April

mboy – Member

The 2.4″ Maxxis Ardents and Advantages are HUGE! MUCH bigger than advertised. More like a 2.6″ tyre to be honest.

Mine (2.4 Advantage) was 2.34 inches corner to corner 😉

Ye olde Roadrat. Bought off eBay five years ago with quite nice finishing kit. Rack fitted for shopping duties as it’s been demoted somewhat thanks to recent arrival of a ‘proper’ road bike. Although i now find excuses to do a big loop of local farm shops rather than driving to the supermarket. Lovely, cOmfortable bike.

No longer this shiny but still very much loved….

Second contribution to thread but I finished building up this last night:

Post first ride by mr_stru, on Flickr

Bought from the fine and very helpful people at Cycleworld in Arbroath after testing, I think, the same bike as Metalheart and had most of the bits from the Soul moved over.

It’s very nice. And Orange.

the short but hilly ride by rOcKeTdOgUk, on Flickr

Bit late to the game but….

Swingbing what front gaurs is that? Looks cool

Cotic X the perfect cafe ride by rOcKeTdOgUk, on Flickr

catflees – Member
Swingbing what front gaurs is that? Looks cool

gaurs? gears? Spec is here; http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/cotic-rebuilt-another-old-soul

Mud guard! Not gaurs… Nice looking bike btw