Viewing 27 posts - 1 through 27 (of 27 total)
  • Tell me show me: Marin Wolf Ridge /Quad Trail 140
  • HermanShake
    Free Member

    I’m very close to taking the plunge on what looks like a 2008 Quad Trail, anything to note about them? I gather they descend better than they climb and the linkages can be somewhat bulky. I don’t mind a little extra weight for a bike I can be a bit rough with.

    It’s the one with a ‘normal’ headtube, mostly XT, Hope/Mavic 719 wheels, RP23 & Pike in that orange.

    Mike
    Free Member

    They climb fine, all relevant what you’re used to I guess…very capable going down though 😉

    hairyscary
    Full Member

    They do climb well, but you have to spin the pedals. If you stamp on the pedals in granny ring the chain feels like an elastic band!
    It’s definitely good at descending. If you ride rocky trails you may find that the fork becomes overwhelmed. I’ve replaced the Pike with a Lyrik that I run at about 140/150.
    The linkage plates have never been an issue for clearance. If I wear knee pads they will touch occasionally.
    The warranty seems to be good……..I’ve just had the 15 month old bearings replaced free of charge.

    I’ve had mine for over a year now and have no intention of replacing it.

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    hairyscary
    Full Member

    Oh, and here’s a pic.


    IMAG0140 by jojoA1, on Flickr

    mildred
    Full Member

    The bigger the chain ring the better they pedal.

    Very underrated IMO.

    Northwind
    Full Member

    They are class. Weight always feels a wee bit far forward to me, which feels odd when I get on but doesn’t seem to matter once I’m actually riding. Really good fun

    Only acceptable in orange or white though.

    PJM1974
    Free Member

    They’re awesome…that praise doesn’t come lightly. I cut my teeth on a Spesh Enduro, but my Wolf Ridge took it a few levels further. Get the sizing right and by with confidence.

    dirtbiker100
    Free Member

    Spin the pedals, better for spd users than flat pedals. Found the shock on mine (possibly non standard as it had boost valve? frame was a warranty replacement for a quake frame) to be too hard on high compression, so when really flying it was a bit bumpy. If i’d have kept it then i’d have got the shock tuned better. It just wasn’t the bike for me at the time though.

    It can handle itself pretty well mind you (top 50m of cadair idris):

    davosaurusrex
    Full Member

    Great bikes, climb much better than the weight would suggest. Really stiff back end, awesome downhill. I’ve got a grey 08 frame for sale, only selling because it’s a large and I really need xl (hence the xl 5 spot I’ve bought to replace it)

    muddydwarf
    Free Member

    I’ve got the 09 6.8 version in Orange.
    Best bike I’ve owned so far. It is on the heavy side compared to its competition but not overly so. They do climb fairly well when you wind the fork down and flick the lever on the shock. As noted, they are not a bike for standing up and mashing on, much smoother when you sit and spin.
    The frame is very stiff and the forks and front wheel track very well, to the point of being ‘fire and forget’.
    Niggles? It will take a little while to find the sweet spot for the rear shock, and you may occasionally crack your knee on the linkages but you soon adjust, I don’t do it any more! The ride position is just right for me, relaxed enough to give silly amounts of confidence on the way down, but enough weight forward to get the front end leant over without fearing a washout. The original headset was terrible and I had to replace the front wheel bearings after a Spanish trip but apart from that its been far more capable than its rider. Definitely a smile bringer to ride.

    HermanShake
    Free Member

    A resounding thumbs up and an awesome photo, cheers folks!

    I can’t find any info about dicky welds, exploding swingarms or flex. The reviews tend towards a typical AM bike review: a good mid ground but not as good as a dedicated XC or DH bike for their respective uses.

    muddydwarf
    Free Member

    In fairness, the bike was never designed to be either of those things. It’s been likened to a ‘mini DH bike’ but i think thats hyperbole TBH.
    It is a competent, solidly built bike with a very well designed suspension system that can take a lot of thump whilst still pedalling well. Of course, that adds some weight so only you can decide if that trade-off is right for you. I would add that i’m 5’2″ and weigh just over 9 stone, the bike weighs 33lb so roughly a quarter of my bodyweight yet i don’t notice the weight when riding it as it rides so well. Unlike my older Mount Vision where you feel slightly perched ‘on top’ of the bike, the Wolf Ridge sits you more inside the bike and the centre of balance is therefore lower.
    One thing, i found the BB to be a bit lower than i’m used to so occasionally smack a pedal but nothing to be bothered about. There is a lot of snobbery about Marin bikes on here but the WR is a really good bike that i can happily do 30 milers or so on although if i were doing the 47 mile Mary Townelely Loop it wouldn’y be my first choice!

    csb
    Full Member

    2008 medium grey one here. Compared it to a mates Turner with similar travel the other day and the Marin suspension felt stodgier on the smooth flat, but far more rigid and reassuring on fast rocky stuff.

    No issues with it, but there is an ominous creak from somewhere in the suspension, maybe a dry rearward shock pivot.

    As someone above said, rides better in bigger rings, I rarely use the smallest one. Or the biggest one for that matter. Maybe a single 36t would be ideal?

    muddydwarf
    Free Member

    I have the standard SLX triple on the front at the moment, but i’m giving serious thought to going double and bash. Hardly use the big ring or the granny but living in where i do the granny is needed at some point (or several) on every ride so a single ring set-up wouldn’t work for me. Only really use the granny on very steep climbs though, so thats when the fork is wound down and the shock lever flipped (i have my RP23 set to position 3 for this) the rest of the time i spend going up and down the cassette in the middle ring, hmmm, wonder if i can find a 34-tooth middle ring…?

    HermanShake
    Free Member

    Seeing as I’m coming from a Giant Trance, I need not worry about snobbery! I already have a beard and have been known to wear sandals 😆

    On my current bikes I simply stuck a bash where the 44 used to be on one bike and put single ring bolts on the other. I only ever used the big ring on the road and just accept I’m slower on the tarmac. 22, 32 & bash is nice and small for clearance and completely functional for off road. The Trance has a low BB too and it’s one less thing to think about over logs and such.

    HansRey
    Full Member

    i’ve got a marin quske, so the next model up or two. It’s certainly no featherweight and climbing can be an arduous process due to the long fork.

    However, it’s easy to manual, the suspension package allows the rear to keep contact when climbing or descending rough stuff and it is robust. The welding on mine is spot on.

    My major gripe is that the shock placement means that it is hard to make adjustments, unless you have spidery fingers like me. I’d also like to put a CCDB on it, but then making adjustments would be a PITA.

    If you are planning to go for rougher riding, make sure to go for the maxle rear end upgrade. I have QR and it feels noticably flexible at the around the dropouts.

    csb
    Full Member

    Rear maxle came as standard on all 3 of the 2008 140mm frames. The orange one is the Attack Trail.

    HermanShake
    Free Member

    With the easy to manual-ness of it, is it therefore quite poppy to jump or does the suspension need shoving for levitation?

    muddydwarf
    Free Member

    I wouldn’t know – even with this bike i can’t manual! 😳

    I do find that when i ride at Lee Quarry etc it doesn’t want to get airborne easily, the suspension just soaks up the hit if you will. Mind you, this probably (definitely) has more to do with my complete ineptitude towards jumping than it has to do with the bike!

    PJM1974
    Free Member

    Some interesting comments regarding the pedalling ability of the Wolf Ridge/Attack Trail bikes here – I have to add that I run mine with a 36/22 chainring setup and they really do pedal better with a bigger chainring.

    I took one to Wales a couple of years back and was astounded as to just how much fun it was. It’s really too big a bike for somewhere like the Marin Trail at Betwys, but on rocky descents it felt excellent. They do respond well to manualling, the suspension stiffens under pedalling so even a colossal numpty like me felt like I was actually getting somewhere skills-wise.

    Since then I’ve sized up and bought a large (I’m 5′ 11″ and a medium is just too short for me) and have passed the medium bike to the missus. I haven’t regretted it.

    Issues? Like Muddydwarf’s experiences, the bearings on Sun Ringle hubbed bikes are very weak and despite clocking a handful of miles the front hub is grumbling, but it’s on the missus’s bike and she never uses it. Also, I am baffled as to why Marin waited until 2010 to fit it with ISCG tabs (unless you buy one of the very rare Kermit Green Attack Trail bikes which also has a tapered headtube).

    Oh and they seem to really like 160mm forks too…while they feel good on Pikes, a set of Lyriks, 36s or similar is a sensible upgrade.

    mint5auce
    Free Member

    I have the 2009 6.8 (the Orange one). Great bike, very confidence inspiring going down and climbs better than you’d think. I do find it front end heavy, but should imagine that’s the steel steerer in those already heavy Pikes and the bar stem combo. Would be easy to change, but I’ve never felt the need.

    Having said that, hairyscary how do you find the Lyriks on your 6.9?

    I’ve replaced the Pike with a Lyrik that I run at about 140/150.

    hairyscary
    Full Member

    mint5auce…..

    Lyriks are definitely worth the upgrade but it has to be the u-turn version IMO, 160mm everywhere would make the bike very cumbersome on anything but the downs. The lyrik also has a better damping circuit which helps with my lack of ‘finesse’……. the Pike feels like it gives up on long rocky descents and you seem to get bounced around a lot.

    I ride in the NE of Scotland and tend to ride big long climbs followed by long descents and the u-turn lyric suits this perfectly.

    Mugboo
    Full Member

    Just for balance.

    I have owned a couple of Marins inc the previous model of Wolf Ridge.

    I then defected to a Cotic Hemlock for 3yrs.

    Whinstanleys were seeling the orange ones off at £1300. I tried to like it but it was bloody awful. It was okay, if a little dead feeling downhill but it climbed really badly.
    Felt heavy and the crank arms were square.

    I really, really disliked it 😥

    The odd thing is that the old Hemlock, the Marin and the Mega that has replaced it are not a million miles apart on paper and they were all built up with the same old kit.

    The Marin spoilt every ride, the Mega makes me smile like the Hemlock did 😀

    Is it possible I just had a duff RP23…

    robhughes
    Free Member

    Gone now but really miss it 😥

    but not that much as it morphed into this 😀

    HermanShake
    Free Member

    robhughes, is that 4 chainstay protectors!? I thought my mate Hugh was weird with 2, you have raised the game. Regarding the bike, c’est bon!

    It’s happened, I’ve wired the cash to the chap and hopefully Tuesday will see some enthusiastic postings about it. Can’t flippin’ wait 😀

    I may look out for some Lyriks once I’ve gotten to know it a little more.

    robhughes
    Free Member

    A few £,s or a rubbed rear end. oo er… 🙂

    Mugboo
    Full Member

    I have a brand new black, maxle, spare gear hanger for sale for your new bike 🙂

Viewing 27 posts - 1 through 27 (of 27 total)

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