If you had the choice between the

Rose Uncle Jimbo 1 – http://tinyurl.com/ncc5oks

and

Sunn Charger S2 – http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/sunn-charger-s2-suspension-bike/rp-prod115615

Which would you go for? Jimbo seems to have better drive (xt) and brakes with a monarch rt3 and domain rc

Sunn seems to have worse drive and Avid Elixir 1 which Im not a fan of but a lyric R and monarch + r shock.

Trade offs in both I know but what would you go for and why? Will be mostly downhill enduro type stuff (cyprus and france) and some degree of getting slightly airborne with drops and light jumps.

Thanks guys.

Two big heavy bikes, and without a geometry guide nor chance to demo – I’d avoid them.

Buy something from the classifieds and get yourself a good bike with a much higher spec/lighter.

Some good advice there,you will do well in the classifieds on here.

Already ordered the Jimbo and not going second hand. Have a xc bike as my main uk ride (anthem advanced 27.5) but this is for doing more stupid stuff on occasion and weight is not really a factor I care about on this one. So again asking for opinions between the 2 what would one go for and why?

Head angle on the Jimbo is 67, Seat – 74,

66/74 for the charger

Why just those 2? If it was my brass, I’d buy neither.

New 160mm+ travel under 1500 cant find anything else like that, suggestions welcome but not used please.

Try the canyon outlet store…

cheers but been watching canyon for a month or so and nothing going.

Gun to the head out the charger and jimbo?

I know both brands didnt get much traction here but sunn were big in france and the charger was quite hotly anticipated although the s1 and elite versions are obviously better is shares the same dual material frame tech on the s2. Real shame a brand with such history went under, but seem to be covered by chain reaction now.

As for the Jimbo and Rose the germans love them (my GF is german funnily enough) plus it is highly customisable. I actually have already ordered a custom jimbo 1 but with a fork delay I have the option to cancel until its built. That date is now fast approching so just checking theres nowt better going.

I got the Standard spec in the link XT/Deore/Shadow plus, Domain RC, Monarch RT3, Stans Tubeless wheels but I also added some custom option in the way of the following:

xt brakes
Easton EA70 seatpost
Selle Italia XCR saddle
Spank spike 777 bars
Raceface turbine 60mm stemm
Shimano saint pedals

Also they threw in a rather fetching 😉 pair of Rose team bib shorts for the road bike under an offer

As well as ill get about 35 euro’s worth in the way of points.

All in for 1350

Also its the all matte black version I ordered heres the pic after fitting the parts through their bike builder.

So this or the charger which is a little cheaper with worse drive but better? suspension?

Rose isn’t a bad bike but its not that much of a looker, good spec and price. I prefer it to the Sunn.

This is more what I’d be gong for though canyon torque

That canyons gorgeous but over budget and overkill for something that still needs to do some climbing.
Did think about the Kona entourage but decided i still need to do some slow climbing to the top 😉

TBH the big problem here is the missus having signed me up for King of the mountain and Ride the North. Zapped over 1000 off what I could have thrown into a second MTB which im now a bit gutted about…..but apparently we never do anything together and she wasnt buying into the romance or hitting red and orange runs 😀

I’ve got a rose Granite Chief (150mm) – bought it 4 years ago (?) and have been really happy with it.

As a do-it-all bike it’s been great – as burly as f*ck, but damn light too. It was the “2” so came with a full X9 drivetrain, Revs, RP23, DT swiss wheels (inc star-ratchet hubs), Elixir CRs and nobby nics at both ends. All for about 1,500 quid.

Their UK rep (Fin) met me and a couple of mates at Swinley so I could demo it. Really nice chap – came riding with us for a couple of hours and was able to make sure I got the best size, and gave me some tips re: spec (that you can play with on the configurator). I’ve added a reverb and swapped the stem/bars, but otherwise its running stock.

The Canyon nerve hadn’t really “landed” at that point – but my friend bought the nerve AM a few weeks later. Both bikes are great, but the rose is noticeably better put together I think. The roses are assembled in Germany (there is a vid online somewhere) and it showed – everything was dialled-in straight out of the box, whereas the Canyon was mis-shifting, brakes needed bleeding etc etc within a few rides. Dunno if that’s a concern for you – depends if you are a tinkerer or not.

Also: At the point I bought the rose, I had broken an Iron Horse and a Tomac frame – so I was on the lookout for something with a decent warranty. The rose comes with a 10 year warranty against the frame breaking.

Downsides: It took ages to arrive (5 weeks?), and the press-fit bottom bracket is annoying, but otherwise, that’s it.

Since I bought it, the specs have changed a couple of times – magura and race-face bits and pieces are appearing, and the monarch seems to come on the lower end models now. If I was buying again I would be looking at the YTs and the Canyons also

Sorry, ^ quite a lot of waffle!

Just had a look at that Sunn. Hmmm – I like the forks and shock, but the rest of it looks like its been built out of the parts bin. You would need to upgrade the brakes after the first corner. Also, a 1 year warranty? I know it’s a budget bike, but if it breaks after 13 months, getting told to jog-on is a bit of a p*ss take.

Edit: I know its a couple of hundred more, but what about this? Canyon AL+
For the extra 250 quid you get a significantly better spec, including a reverb. Well worth it IMO

Exactly what im thinking shocks and fork have the edge on the Jimbo but i dont know what is better to trade off on the drive train (xt/deore) of the jimbo or the shocks/forks of the sunn.

No kidding on the Elixirs would be first to go. I set a pair on fire up pitfiche in aberdeen at a medium speed. Thought I was going to die. probably change the out for shimano right away.

Thanks for the write up on the granite chief. Also still a very good looking bike. Actually I was dealing with Fin as well and to be honest the whole team have been more than helpful. Over in Germany at the weekend for a wedding and might try stop by their Biketown centre, it does look pretty bad ass. Also I got and initial wait time of 6 weeks but after talking to Fin swapped out the black fork for white and thats it down to 3 weeks.

My thinking with the Jimbo is its a solid base to update the Fork later (probably sell the road bike after the 2 events this year to loosen up funds)

It’s moot as you already made your choice, but given that you didn’t want second had and planned upgrades, really the question should have been ‘shall I buy a compromise now for the cash i have, or save longer for what I really want?’

Not criticising, I play a similar game but do it with a mix of new and second hand parts arriving months and many rides later with the bike I really wanted. Waiting for the bike is the sensible move, but is riding mountain bikes sensible?

I think the real issue was that new 160mm for that price is a big ask, and whatever bike was suggested would have something big or a lot of smaller something’s to upgrade later because they really let everything else down. As a full bike, I’d have taken a close look at that green 2010 Spicy doing the rounds personally. Might have chosen something else though. A lot more bike for your money, but not what you wanted….

That said, just taken another look at your Rose and I’ve seen plenty worse deals. Happy days! 🙂

You’ve already ordered the jimbo so asking which one is best is pointless isn’t it?

The Rose looks fine – I bet you’ll love it!
(although white forks will spoil it a bit 🙂 )

I hope they deliver on time for you.

You’ve already ordered the jimbo so asking which one is best is pointless isn’t it?

This

Didn’t Sunn go into administration last year? That would make me avoid the charger (unless the equipment was way, way better than the Rose)

Seems to not be a whole lotta reading going on 😉

You’ve already ordered the jimbo so asking which one is best is pointless isn’t it?

“I actually have already ordered a custom jimbo 1 but with a fork delay I have the option to cancel until its built.”

They were really good about this to be fair, actually all around they were excellent.

“but seem to be covered by chain reaction now”

Only 1 year which is for sure a bit pants.

The Rose looks fine – I bet you’ll love it!
(although white forks will spoil it a bit )

I hope they deliver on time for you.

Yeh no kidding with the white forks. Luckily I have access to a professional car spray company and am thinking either a subdued gentlemans burgundy….or an electric purple 😉

Suggestions for colour or maybe just a matte black plastidip?

Vincenup – Cheer mate I know its a trade off and I don’t really mind upgrading as I go and things break. Drivtrain looks sorted and when the road bike goes at the end of the year the rose can take some FOX stuff to get it where it needs to be. As this is going to be the least used of my 3 bikes I can live with the compromises right now.

maybe just a matte black plastidip?

mmmmm – that sounds nice.
Black gloss decals over the top.

Those cats must’ve been watching lol. Just got the shipping conformation 10 mins ago. Really looking forward to this now 🙂 Will get some pics up when it arrives and after the fork gets painted.

That should be an awesome bike for £1350!
Jealous.

There we go, can see it being a good base for upgrade, most likely going to replace a fat albert on the back with something a bit skinnier and at some point the monarch will go. Turns out the full drivetrain bar the crank is xt/plus with a shadow on the rear. Selling the selle italia slr saddle that came on it to bring the price down a touch more plus I like the charge.

Can’t wait heading to Pitfichie tomorrow to try her out.

So what was the total cost in the end?

1350 all in including delivery, the saint pedals, and upgraded xt stuff. I also got a free pair of rose pro bib shorts as a free gift (about £50 on the site and about £30 in rose points which will probably grab me a new set of gloves. I also ordered it with the seller saddle which was a free option (the most expensive one) and have already sold it for £50. Overall pretty happy so far couldn’t find anything that sort of spec anywhere near it, plus is look shmexy as all up close. 😀

Good call on the clutch rear derailleur and I like the pedals. Needs a dropper, too! 😉

I do prefer the black fork, though.

Do you really ride with the levers pointed straight down? 😯

What’s the BB height?

Lol not that photo was pretty much how it came out the box. Didn’t think I would but I’m liking the white fork now I have it 🙂 blacks on blondes edition ;p

As for bb height I neither know or care ;p if you go onto the rose site and open up uncle jumbo page you get the geometry.