Whyte G150 or Orange 5?

Another short ride today but with a riding buddy so much faster! T-130 felt great very poppy and lively on real issues was I was expecting it to be less agile due to the slack angles so I was trying to steer to much. The bike just shot down my favourite local singletrack and on a short bumpy descent it was fast and fun!

Very happy with it! 🙂

So quick, no great quality as taken on a mobile, photo of the T-130 on the trail, buddys 2014 901 also in shot.

IMG_0576 by osxyboy[/url], on Flickr

Decided on the T130 works over the G150s. After sleeping on it for a couple of nights, I think it’s definitely the right decision. Should be a superb and fun all-rounder.

Not an easy decision, especially with the T130 works being delayed until November ‘sometime’. But LBS just telephoned me to say…it’s now been brought FORWARD to the end of next week!! I am literally so excited.

Told my work colleagues that I’d be dropping £3k on a push bike. They think I’m crazy. But the £700 price hike over the S version certainly seems worth it: Pike fork, 1×11 drivetrain, SRAM Guide brakes (which are absolutely superb by the way), a lighter & stiffer wheelset, and ½ Kg lighter.

Cannot wait.

I tried out a G150 Works on Saturday and had a great time. Unfortunately budget does not stretch to that, so I put my money down for an S (although it’ll be getting a few Hope bits from my current ride).

I’m not much of a ‘poppy’ rider, I much prefer to keep both wheels on the ground (within reason obviously), so I’m glad to read the reviews here. I’m after something stable and fast, but that doesn’t just feel like a tank heading down the trail.

Obviously this is all just me justifying spending a few thousand pounds to myself. Find out when it’ll arrive on Tuesday hopefully… 🙂

Just to inform everybody, The T130 Works are coming through now.
Mines here ..YESSSS!
I think Lefty’s Roam wheel deliveries were the clue!..
BTW.. Thanks for the Photo’s Lefty.. I’ve been drooling- lovely

ooooh might give my LBS a shout tomorrow then and see if my Roams are in yet and soundninja I think you made the right decision, my mates (and wife) thought I was also loopy to throw 3 large at a bike lol aaahhh what do they know lol

Yeah you’re right, I think it’s those roam wheels coming into stock which is key here. Couldn’t believe it when LBS told me end of next week, thought I’d be bike-less for another couple of months.

Lefty- glad you’re loving it.

Sound ninja- I’d say your requirements in a bike perfectly fit the g150. I thought it was incredible when I rode it the other day, even in relatively flat trails. Just felt the t130 was more suited to my style.

Can any other T-130S owners do me a favour?

My forks went back as they were constantly showing 10% of sag & not the full amount of travel, they’ve come back & at the weekend I noticed the sag once again sitting at about 5%, measured the amount of stanchion showing & it’s 125mm…

Phoned up the shop I bought them from & they’ve got one in stock, the fork is at 5% & the stanchion is at 126mm…

Can you please have a measure & let me know how long your fork stanchions are?

@ princejohn.. the revs on my 130s had that sag to start with but once id ridden the forks and they had bedded in the sag has gone ,it feels like there topping out now though. there going in to get checked out this week,plus the reverbs got play already. Still think its one of the best allround bikes iv ever ridden.

Oh and mine sit at about 125ish travel def not 130,see what there like after they have been looked at.

Any of you t130 owners ever found yourself wishing for more travel? Is it confident in rougher, faster terrain or a bit nervois? Only tested it on tame trail and loved it, but do have my concerns still.

@dvowles82,
As far as I know; The bigger the wheel diameter, the less suspension travel you need; and vis versa.
My experience with suspension pressure is to read carefully the handbook. Different makes-different shakes!
Take what the LBS staff say with a pinch of salt, with all due respect!
As far as fork stroke suitability…I’ll leave for others to comment-

Did another short ride tonight, my knee needs to treated carefully, and part of the route is down a bridleway we call root alley. The T-130 took it all in it’s stride and made line choices I’d normally avoid on my hard tail seem smooth.

@dvowles82 So far I’d say the 130mm travel is just about right although I won’t be throwing down anything really challenging for a while due my recent knee operation.

@princejohn I’ve not measured the stanchions on my Pikes but I set the sag and tweaked the rebound and it’s plenty of travel for me so I’m not to worried by the odd 5mm

Can confirm that the Works are coming in to stores, mine came in today ready for pick up Friday.

All my mates who ride are telling me I’m making a mistake getting the t130 and should go for the g150 for the riding we do. Bike park Wales, afan, cymcarn, forest of Dean, llandegla, saying that 130mm travel is a bit restrictive on the descents, whereas the g150 would be more fun and confidence inspiring. Anyone taken the t130 down fast, rough ish descents yet? Worried I’m making a very expensive mistake.

Garburn pass rough enough [kentmere side]? rode it with ease.. the slacker head angle makes such a difference,just lean back and hang on.iv ridden my 130s 2-3 times a week for the last 6 weeks round the lakes and not found any problems with it desending.

Can any other T-130S owners do me a favour?

My forks went back as they were constantly showing 10% of sag & not the full amount of travel, they’ve come back & at the weekend I noticed the sag once again sitting at about 5%, measured the amount of stanchion showing & it’s 125mm…

Phoned up the shop I bought them from & they’ve got one in stock, the fork is at 5% & the stanchion is at 126mm…

Can you please have a measure & let me know how long your fork stanchions are?

Rockshox Solo Air forks can do this when the negative pressure becomes greater then the positive pressure (through playing with the setup) sucking them down in the travel. You need to either extend the forks manually to rebalance the chambers (if you can’t just pull them apart try maxing out the pressure then pulling again). If that fails, unscrew the bolt in the bottom of the air spring leg (with the forks horizontal) and this will reveal a valve for the negative air chamber (basically like dual air forks had). Let some pressure out and you will get full travel back. It is a 2 min job.

The positive and negative chambers can only self equalise when the fork is topped out, so remember this when adjusting pressure and let it out slowly and a bit at a time, and keep pulling apart if they get sucked down.

@dvowles82. I would say it depends on where you think your riding skills are. I’ve had bikes from long to short travel, when I was younger then sure longer travel bike was great for smashing down things feeling invincible and it makes you realise what your capable of and are a hell of a lot of fun. Then me (like most people) tend to downsize to less travel and do the same stuff as it allows you to finesse and feel the trail more. But I still think its almost a right of passage to have a longer travel mini DH type bike at some point in your riding. Be aware thou I’ve not ridden a 130 or 150 but lots of similar bikes

130mm travel is a bit restrictive on the descents, whereas the g150 would be more fun and confidence inspiring. Anyone taken the t130 down fast, rough ish descents yet?

I’ve ridden my T130 at the Forest of Dean – just on the blue, not the downhill trails, I caught some people on bigger bikes on the final descent…

The final descent was the only part of the trail where a longer travel bike might’ve been nice, but I don’t think I’d’ve gone much quicker…

Ok cheers guys, I guess the t130 should be sufficient. Just a bit blinded by all these rave reviews of modern, slack, enduro type bikes. I appreciate it might partly be a fashion, but bikes released now, which 2 years ago were considered cutting edge and very capable, are now slated. For example, WMB reviewed the trek remedy 27.5 this month. It has similar angles to the t130, even a 67.5 head angle…yet was criticised for unadventurous angles and nervousness on descents. Meanwhile, the bird aeris, with its looong wheelbase is raved about, even referred to as poppy and enthusiastic!

So yeah, I guess I’m concerned that the t130 may be (relative to the current trend) nervous on descents.

As a side point, presumably the Pike fork will make the t130 works markedly more composed on descents than the S version?

And to think I was sitting here thinking I was over biking myself by going for the G150. I guess it’s always natural to doubt such a large purchase, and I’m sure we’d both be absolutely fine with either. And let’s be honest, if there’s anything that’s going to be holding me back on the trails it’s not going to be the bike!

Another (probably stupid) reason for going for the G150 is that I’m coming from a P7 with 140mm of travel on the front, and it just seems odd to go ‘backwards’ (even though it’s apples and oranges really).

Another (probably stupid) reason for going for the G150 is that I’m coming from a P7 with 140mm of travel on the front, and it just seems odd to go ‘backwards’ (even though it’s apples and oranges really).

I had 140mm forks on my Specialized Camber (which are now on my PA) – however the T130 feels like it has more travel, so much stiffer & direct.

“As a side point, presumably the Pike fork will make the t130 works markedly more composed on descents than the S version? “

The Revelations on the S are excellent forks, I doubt they would make much of a difference over the Pikes. I may retract that statement when I’ve ridden my Works on Saturday

The Works is a good value but its still a premium over the S and more expensive to replace when things bust (especially SramX1). £700 buys new riding gear, winter tyres, trip away

Silly isn’t it, I’m worrying about being under biked on the t130 and over biked on the g150. I guess main concern with the former is the more compact top tube length. Medium seemed fine the other day at 5’10”, but on paper, those dimensions would probably get criticised in the mags as being too short.

Sorry, sounded overly harsh about the revelations, I appreciate they’re brilliant forks.

@dvowles82 I’m 5′ 10″ and the medium is just right for me, I’m a fairly average shape with a 32″ inside leg if that helps.

I rode some more challenging trails tonight, not anything particularly hardcore but fairly fast and the difference between my HT with 120mm of travel and the T-130 was really noticeable. The T-130 feels like it has way more travel than 130mm it feels like 150mm but most importantly it feels really stable. I carried noticeably more speed on all the downs and felt I ‘flowed’ better on my local singletrack.

Pikes are fantastic BTW much better than my 2012 Rebas and they are good!

HTH

@dvowles82

I don’t think you’d feel underbiked on a T130 or overbiked on t150, in last 2 years shocks and linkage design have refined a lot, where you’d once need 150mm 130mm today is fine, combine this with bigger wheels (and 29ers and the T129 is prime example) and you need less travel that you might imagine. The benefits are a less spongy more connected ride. That said having lots of travel is fun and flattering as it allows you to hit and get away with things that allows you to build your confidence, if you tune a 150mm bike right you can set it so it won’t use the last couple of cm until you really need it. Conversely you could run a 130mm bike and for the days out at Bike Park or DH you stick some big 2.35 tires on which give you more cushion and make a marked difference to how composed the bike will feel.

As for top tube lengths, don’t get to hung up on it as bike is subtle combination of many angles and lengths (Santa Cruz for example don’t always conform to the latest on trend numbers but consistently review very well). Just to confuse you further why not wait for a Bird Aeris if your keen to get most on trend geometry

Thanks for your comments, I’m sure it’ll be fine. Also, if I made it down red runs at bike park Wales on a steep angled, 100mm hardtail, I’m sure the t130 will feel great!

Leftyboy- I think your tyres are on the wrong way. The ardent race is designed to go at the rear. Faster rolling, less aggressive tread.

Hmm good spot the spec on the Whyte website says Ardent Race on rear so my LBS have fitted them wrong!

@dvowles82 Checked and you’re right the tyres are on the wrong ends! When I rode on Tuesday night the back did have loads of grip but to be fair, in dry conditions, the front (with the race on) still had more grip than my hardtail I guess that’s the slacker angles.

Popping into the LBS this morning to see if they can fit in swapping them round today, they set them up tubeless so a bit of a faff to do but as it’s starting to look like the damp weather is on it’s way it needs doing!

LBS swapping round tyres today, could have done it myself but had no spare sealent in case it got spilt. Manager of LBS checked the Hope wheels they’d set up for me and they’d done the same on them!

Took it well 🙂

Lefty- that’s good they have sorted it, must have been a bit of a hassle!

Arbie, you got your t130 works yet? How is it?

@dvowles82.
Short answer is took 35secs off my PB on a 1mi Strava DH first ride out

long answer
Picked it up on Friday, only managed a few laps round the houses due to rain and stuff but allowed me to set the pressures and convert to tubeless. I also switched to a 45mm stem (as I’m short and felt a little to stretched out on the stock 70mm.

I did tubeless conversion, a bit of fiddle on and had to seat the bead with inner tube, but went up with very little sealant and have stayed up. Even at 25psi, seem to roll very silently and fast. Grip wise, weren’t’ really tested but don’t look like have very deep tread profile so on gloop thing they will struggle to bite. But great 3 season tyres I reckon.

Noticed the stiffness, suspect its combination of all the parts, and also makes me realize that the previous bikes Giant Reign was flexing and pinging its way down the trail. Can feel it just riding up a hill, wasn’t sure how it would translate to going down, the best way can describe the bike overall going down was it seemed to slow things down, I was able to place it very precisely and pilot it, the 650 b isn’t massively noticeable but I did notice that don’t drop in to hollows as much and better float over the mud and soft stuff.

Suspension action isn’t as fluid in the saddle over rough ground but then its not a full floating system so it would never match the Giant Maestro, but where it matters DH, very little discernible difference, maybe not quite as smashable as 150mm gives you, Shocks been really easy to set up, Pike and Monarch definitely give more mid platform support.

X0 just works no problem, hope it lasts as ££££

Bars feel a little on wide side but will hold off cutting down just yet

Switched stem to 45mm, feels nicer as was to stretched on 70mm, suspect it will take a 35mm but may feel overly twitchy, its very direct with 45mm.

Descending, I didn’t have anything really steep to go down but it coped better than my regin generally, I think mainly due to bigger wheels and longer wheelbase. Will try and test more on Thu on some EWS sections in the Tweed valley

Just arrived… :p

Can’t wait to get out on it! 🙂

LBS is saying the 15th for my G150S. Quite looking forward to it.

Arbie- sounds very encouraging. Can I assume that you’re loving it?!

Mboy- how exciting, hope you enjoy it. My t130 works has been pushed back to “next week sometime”. I’m not holding my breath, but still really excited.

@mboy, one thing I didn’t mention, when you build it up take some care around the sram clear spoke protector that sits behind the cassette, it doesn’t hold very tight on the flat blade spokes of the Roam wheels, mines come loose a couple of times on very very rough descents, when it does it fouls the cassette, stops it freewheeling and brings the chain off. potentially dangerous so I would advise beefing up by zip tying it at the 3 connection points. hope that makes sense

Has anyone take the rear outer air can off yet and checked if their are volume reducers in their ? just to save me the job as it currently feels like their are as the shock ramped up a little quick for my liking

Mboy- how exciting, hope you enjoy it. My t130 works has been pushed back to “next week sometime”. I’m not holding my breath, but still really excited.

You might be lucky. I wasn’t expecting this to arrive for another couple of weeks yet! Won’t be using it tonight though, as the rear brake needs a bleed (here we go again, seriously! Why can’t they just be like Shimano!?!?) and I’m waiting for a pukka SRAM Bleed kit to arrive, as I’m fed up trying to bodge bleeding Avid brakes unsuccessfully.

@mboy, one thing I didn’t mention, when you build it up take some care around the sram clear spoke protector that sits behind the cassette, it doesn’t hold very tight on the flat blade spokes of the Roam wheels, mines come loose a couple of times on very very rough descents, when it does it fouls the cassette, stops it freewheeling and brings the chain off. potentially dangerous so I would advise beefing up by zip tying it at the 3 connection points. hope that makes sense

Mine didn’t come with one fitted to be fair!

Guys.
2015 bike owners; Did you get the proper 2015 service manual with
Your new bike.
Btw, I didn’t !
So no reference to sag on my model!?
Bit of a bummer. Pike has no scaling on the tele tubes.
How do you set the sag…?
BTW.. I resolved the prob by phoning Whyte directly and obtaining
Correct manual.
Anybody else caught?

yeah I have a 2015 g150 and I got the 2014 manual.
will give them a call too