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Oh. :roll: You need to head over to STW with comments like that Rick. 
If you were to buy a modern bike what would you choose?
- Thread starter Trebz
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brocklanders023":32k9laaq said:Oh. :roll: You need to head over to STW with comments like that Rick.
:shock: :shock: Are you saying STW love them?!
utahdog2003
Senior Retro Guru
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Picked up this 2013 Jamis Dragon 650B a month or so ago after demo'ing one at the Southeast Bike Expo in Conyers Georgia on the 1996 Olympic cross country course. Swapped out the SLX drivetrain, WTB saddle and Elixr 5 brakes for some bits more near and dear to my heart and haven't looked back. A modern twist on my WTB Phoenix (which is still an awesome bike.) The fact that it is 853 steel appeals to me. The fact that Jamis jumped in with both feet on 650B appeals to me. And thank god, Jamis still produces some of the most tastefully decal'ed and otherwise adorned bikes in the industry. The White Brothers Loop TCR fork is also a lot of fun. Two thumbs up.
I still have the 2012 Redline Monocog and the 2008 Turner 5Spot which also see a lot of work. Of the 13 bikes I own, six are built and three of those are modern. I've decided to not fire sale any of my vintage bikes, and while I still find the current trends in the industry toward carbon import 29's dripping with black painted components and flashy graphics to be ugly as dirt, with some creativity you can fashion a modern bike into something appealing to a vintage minded fella like me. The experience with the Loop fork has made me decide to send my Vanilla RLC from the Turner to Suspension Experts and have them rebuild it with 15QR lowers. Hate to say it, but the 9mm QR is dead. :cry:
Tiptoe around the edges of modern and stay away from the overpriced and overhyped crap from the Big Three and there's plenty to have fun with on the market today.
That is my secret.
I still have the 2012 Redline Monocog and the 2008 Turner 5Spot which also see a lot of work. Of the 13 bikes I own, six are built and three of those are modern. I've decided to not fire sale any of my vintage bikes, and while I still find the current trends in the industry toward carbon import 29's dripping with black painted components and flashy graphics to be ugly as dirt, with some creativity you can fashion a modern bike into something appealing to a vintage minded fella like me.
The experience with the Loop fork has made me decide to send my Vanilla RLC from the Turner to Suspension Experts and have them rebuild it with 15QR lowers. Hate to say it, but the 9mm QR is dead. :cry: Tiptoe around the edges of modern and stay away from the overpriced and overhyped crap from the Big Three and there's plenty to have fun with on the market today.
That is my secret.
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I bought an On One 29er built it up with xt 9sp drivetrain and a carbon fork, the result well it's good a the local club rides and I don't get quite such a ribbing.
But too buy now, I'm eyeing another far nicer steel 29er, preferably a singlespeed. just can't decide how much to spend, there's the Charge cooker ss, Genesis fortiute, Kona Unit, then I could build a Pace, a niner, singular swift, cotic etc
So far all I've decided, is one gear and steel with a steel fork.
But too buy now, I'm eyeing another far nicer steel 29er, preferably a singlespeed. just can't decide how much to spend, there's the Charge cooker ss, Genesis fortiute, Kona Unit, then I could build a Pace, a niner, singular swift, cotic etc
So far all I've decided, is one gear and steel with a steel fork.
surprised no one has mentioned one of the old faves, dave yates. i know he would be my first port of call for a steel framed xc/trail bike, specced with 9spd sram X0 running gear, hope pro 2's wrapped in conti travel contact's and a pair of sids, with ART's new line of finishing kit
Maxipedia
Retro Guru
I know I don't fit in the mould of the typical Retrobike user, being by default gravity-oriented, but here's my take.
If I was on a budget, I'd probably go with whatever Trek or Specialized have as a good value offer, except the Demo which is a sketchy bike and mostly hype. These two are so big that they pretty much can't afford making crap bikes, since it would hurt their reputation and subsequently the rest of their offering too much. Remember the Pitch? That's exactly my favourite take on a bike: all performance, no nonsense, it was a better bike than the more expensive Enduro, because it had simple RockShox suspension, not overkill "dedicated" items made by Fox and that actually only suit the garbage can. How do I know? I have a '08 Enduro with that awful fork and two of my friends have Pitches. Guess what rides better! Other excellent bikes for the buck: Session 8 (you can upgrade it as you use it), Scratch, Slash, Fuel EX, SX Trail. Oh, and of course, I'd always buy alloy, never carbon. Because the bikes have the same geometry and ride as good as the expensive models, cost way less and I don't care about a few extra grams
If money was no object, I'd probably spoil myself with something from Intense, Santa Cruz, Yeti or Orange, even though the first ones don't appeal to me as much as they used to. You know, carbon, Far East production, the usual chatter...
You might notice there are no hardtails on this list and the reason is simple: I have enough quality hardtails already and I can ride them anytime. A good full-suspension is a different story though. Bear in mind that I don't dislike newer hardtails, I'm just not in the market for them.
Form follows function!
Cheers good people!
Mx
If I was on a budget, I'd probably go with whatever Trek or Specialized have as a good value offer, except the Demo which is a sketchy bike and mostly hype. These two are so big that they pretty much can't afford making crap bikes, since it would hurt their reputation and subsequently the rest of their offering too much. Remember the Pitch? That's exactly my favourite take on a bike: all performance, no nonsense, it was a better bike than the more expensive Enduro, because it had simple RockShox suspension, not overkill "dedicated" items made by Fox and that actually only suit the garbage can. How do I know? I have a '08 Enduro with that awful fork and two of my friends have Pitches. Guess what rides better! Other excellent bikes for the buck: Session 8 (you can upgrade it as you use it), Scratch, Slash, Fuel EX, SX Trail. Oh, and of course, I'd always buy alloy, never carbon. Because the bikes have the same geometry and ride as good as the expensive models, cost way less and I don't care about a few extra grams
If money was no object, I'd probably spoil myself with something from Intense, Santa Cruz, Yeti or Orange, even though the first ones don't appeal to me as much as they used to. You know, carbon, Far East production, the usual chatter...
You might notice there are no hardtails on this list and the reason is simple: I have enough quality hardtails already and I can ride them anytime. A good full-suspension is a different story though. Bear in mind that I don't dislike newer hardtails, I'm just not in the market for them.
Form follows function!
Cheers good people!
Mx
Maxipedia":1tpc0vre said:
OT now but I have no idea why they went off the '05-07 Enduro chassis design for the 'Enduro SL' in '08-'09...X-Fusion made those dreadful 'futureshock' dual crown forks, enough said. The old bike just KILLED the new one for that couple of years, simple fox shock and fork, slack angles, low BB... Lucky the 2010 onwards Enduro chassis is BRILLIANT.
