I have the feeling this has been done before but what other options are there

My key reasoning behind a Five,

Reliable
Simple
Climbs well
Descends well

I have always had hardtail but have test ridden a Blur, five and a pitch

Didn’t really get on with the blur, pitch was great but didnt feel as good going down as the orange and much worse going up.

I want something to chuck around Wharncliffe occasionally but that can also cope with 8hrs in the peaks.

What else is out there STWers

Zesty ? I’ve been pleased with my Trance now it’s sorted to suit me, but my mate’s LaPierre is truly superb, both up and down. Maybe worth a look ? Maybe a Spicy if you need more travel.

Yeah they just don’t quite look up to it, I tend to ride my bikes into the ground literally and they just seem like they would take a winter in the peaks or a badly landed drop to many.

Heckler or five

Zestys are supposed to be good

575

As I was testing a 2011 5 around Nidderdale I remember shouting out loud, ‘Iv’e gotta have me one of these!’ (& I was on my own) So I got one.
Didn’t even bother trying owt else, no point, & I still dribble when I ride it.

Save yourself £500 and get a heckler

Turner Five spot, Santa cruz nickal and butcher.

Can’t fault a 5. If you are on a budget and don’t want to descend quite as quickly the Heckler is a good simple option.

Alpine 160s worth a look too.

Try a Santa Cruz Nickel.

just about to sell my ellsworth epiphany best 5.25″ all mountain bike there is according to lots of reviews full bike weight under 25lbs with 2.25 tyres on 😉

Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
🙂

If the SC Heckler rides anything like the Bullit (but obviously shorter travel and easier to pedal uphill) then it’s worth a go if you can test-ride one. I think they look better than 5s (which are ugly as sin, by the way) and the geometry, whilst “on paper” seems a bit high and steep, makes it such a fun bike to flick around and beast it downhill, and doesn’t feel out of its depth.

Well at least with a 5 you won’t look out of place I suppose.

If you’re going from a hardtail to full-suss, I can highly recommend a Fuel EX. Less travel at 120 front/rear, but will cope with most things especially if your used to a hardtail…

Canyon are pretty hard to ignore on a value for money basis. Rides really really well as well. Saying that, I wanted a 5 for years then didn’t like it when I finally rode one, so it may not be to your taste..

dirty boy ,5 dunno how you could ask about any other type.

I just bought a 2009 Wolf Ridge from Whinstanleys.

They only have size small but at £1300 it’s a snip.

Nukeroof Mega. Had a Five for four years and decided I wanted something a bit different. The Mega climbs better than the Five and descends like a downhill bike. It’ll be right at home in Wharncliffe!

well i love my kona dawg its the dawgs danglies, climbing and descending, and bombproof

the equivalent would be a tanuki- crc have the 2011 supreme for 1750 with a very good spec

Heckler does ride well. Run mine with offset bushings and a 150mm float. Lower and slacker than before.

Ragley G6

Wharncliffe on a 5…The perfect combination http://www.vimeo.com/28328560

Blur lt 2 with lyrics up front

End of thread

trek ex8- may have one available 😉

Well i know theres no way ur getting anything but a five as u seem set on it but id point you towards a dw link, turner if ur a heffer, ibis/ pivot if ur not.

OK, I have a Heckler and love it but my brother has a five and I love it more 🙁 Maybe I could make a cross of them both and call it the feckler

trance is amezzin, but its pretty Jey, and there are a million pivot bearings, which will want replacing in a couple of years.

i would be inclined to get an alpine 5 myself, for a slightly less jey angleset.

Can’t fault a 5

You can, they look sh1t !

a similar dilemna
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZVjKlBCvhg[/video]

Its close between a zesty and a Five, but consider customer service (If they go wrong),additional options and one is french, the other is fine Yorkshire craftsmanship.guess which I have? ecky thump!

lol thats my favourite eddie izzard clip ! ‘cake or death’…’nahhh you said death first’

get a five !!!!! you know you want to…. what do people have aginst them ? many people say they look fuggly n all that but the ride well…. climb superb too… 😉

Covert? Cheaper, better looking, better backup.

5 for me too rides well, bearing chnge DIY £10 but do it yearly (alternatively strip grease and re fit. Also have Trek Fuel ex 9.9 bearing change £110 and still back for a warranty re-bonding of the bearing sleeves. Rides well but its my good weather bike.

PS I live south of Sheffield and am just over 6′ if you want to try both out PM me.

Heckler does ride well. Run mine with offset bushings and a 150mm float. Lower and slacker than before.

rides well now you’ve fixed it? 😀

i have a 5 but i have no input on the other frames you mention so shall refrain from further comment.

Covert?

One year warranty according to their website….mmmm

don’t want to descend quite as quickly the Heckler is a good simple option.

This is Simon we’re talking about, he ride’s a 222 on XC rides and takes (borrowed) 18″ (he’s small) singlespeed XC bikes off 5ft drops. He spends half the time complaining about the shortcomings of the bike he’s on and the other half making you feel woefully inadequate about your riding!

pitch was great but didnt feel as good going down as the orange and much worse going up.

No, that’s just because you were comparing my 35lb pitch to my 25lb singlespeed, whoever was on the singlespeed always won the climb!

Yeah they just don’t quite look up to it, I tend to ride my bikes into the ground literally and they just seem like they would take a winter in the peaks or a badly landed drop to many.

The zesty is a good ride, but yea, you need replaceable bits and the zesty isn’t a normal BB so your middleburns would be redundant.

Covert?

Good shout, but he’s tight

well i love my kona dawg, its the dawgs danglies

Actualy, having ridden one and an old coiler I reckon they’d both be up his street.

Two year warranty for 2011+ frames and lifetime crash replacement for the Covert.

Covert better looking? Blimey. Transition are one of few manufacturers who make Orange’s look well finished.