Are Orange 5 Pros Worth The Money?

[996 sps]

I'm seriously thinking of purchasing one, but its a lot of dollar, are they as good as the reviews say? Would they do the job for the odd 6, 12 and 24 hour race?

[missing the VR6]

Having had a very good test ride on one a few weeks ago around Whites Level on a 5 Pro it was good enough to convince me to part with a large chunk of my house deposit savings to buy one today! So I'd say well worth it especially in Neon Pink!!!

[Gooby]

All '5's are superb. But beware they are a marmite bike and you will find a few that don't get it. The way they ride depends on the spec. I have an SE and it feels very different to a pro. More nimble and racey.

There are a few things you must spec, don't bother without Talas forks. 5's climb without fuss but if you simply drop the forks and it climbs really well.

You will find yourself bombing into terrain that would startle most Dh bikes. Maxle rear end helps and don't scrimp on the brakes, go get the hope and love them.

[anonymous-user]

996 sps said:

I'm seriously thinking of purchasing one, but its a lot of dollar, are they as good as the reviews say? Would they do the job for the odd 6, 12 and 24 hour race?

maybe if you converted the price to Sterling it wouldn't seem so high or are you a gangsta from South Central LA....

[996 sps]

I'm looking the Black and Gold Limited Edition model hasn't the Hope brakes but Avid 5s, has Maxel rear swingarm though. Have rang up to book a demo 5 pro which is £40 for the weekend.

[Fluffsri]

Ive ran hopes for years but my spesh came with 5s. Was going to replace them soon as but they are really upto the job so you wont be disapointed

[missing the VR6]

996 sps said:

I'm looking the Black and Gold Limited Edition model hasn't the Hope brakes but Avid 5s, has Maxel rear swingarm though. Have rang up to book a demo 5 pro which is £40 for the weekend.

Very nearly bought the Black & Gold but there are a few compromises in spec so negotiated on a 5 Pro instead, ended up a higher spec bike for £100 more than the Black Gold. I ended up saving about £560 on the bike so might be worth shopping around, I can throughly recommend Biketart in Kent if you're local.
Having the bike shop fit a Reverb, upgraded wider bars, shorter stem and DMR Vaults, as the standard bars are too narrow and the frame is too big as a 20 so need a shorter stem 60mm for me and the pedals just because.

[craig_s]

I always used to think they were a bit of a Mondeo of the bike world. Perfectly capable but rather unimaginative and just not something you'd aspire to own. But after seeing just how many of them are ridden at any trail centre on any day of the year I decided to take one out for a demo.

I'm now waiting on my 5 frame which should be with me next week.

They're popular bikes but there's a reason for that. I still think they resemble a skip though!

I'd echo what is said above, the Maxel swingarm seems to be the way to go. Not surprising that a single pivot would allow a bit of flex but the Maxel tightens everything up nicely.

[996 sps]

missing the VR6 said:

Very nearly bought the Black & Gold but there are a few compromises in spec so negotiated on a 5 Pro instead, ended up a higher spec bike for £100 more than the Black Gold. I ended up saving about £560 on the bike so might be worth shopping around, I can throughly recommend Biketart in Kent if you're local.
Having the bike shop fit a Reverb, upgraded wider bars, shorter stem and DMR Vaults, as the standard bars are too narrow and the frame is too big as a 20 so need a shorter stem 60mm for me and the pedals just because.

Thing is if I buy one I wouldn't be upgrading nothing due to monies, so top of the range forks/shock and Maxel swingarm seem to make sense to me?

[missing the VR6]

996 sps said:

missing the VR6 said:

Very nearly bought the Black & Gold but there are a few compromises in spec so negotiated on a 5 Pro instead, ended up a higher spec bike for £100 more than the Black Gold. I ended up saving about £560 on the bike so might be worth shopping around, I can throughly recommend Biketart in Kent if you're local.
Having the bike shop fit a Reverb, upgraded wider bars, shorter stem and DMR Vaults, as the standard bars are too narrow and the frame is too big as a 20 so need a shorter stem 60mm for me and the pedals just because.

Thing is if I buy one I wouldn't be upgrading nothing due to monies, so top of the range forks/shock and Maxel swingarm seem to make sense to me?

Exactly my situation but I got a 5 Pro with Maxle, Kashima 140's, Kashima RP23, Hope Headset, Hope X2 Pro brakes, UST wheels and tyres and Neon Pink custom paint for £2899. So only £100 more than the Black Gold I think, and a higher spec.

I have got carried away and spunked a load more on the other bits, Reverb etc but there's no real need I'm just a dick!

[Minnsy]

Yup....

Most definately.

I bought the basic 's' model at a giveaway price a year or so ago, and have been upgrading ever since..

Had I had the cash, I would have bought the Pro with all the trimmimgs!

The only other bike I would look at (as I have ridden a colleagues a fair amount) is the Zesty 714/914.

[996 sps]

missing the VR6 said:

Exactly my situation but I got a 5 Pro with Maxle, Kashima 140's, Kashima RP23, Hope Headset, Hope X2 Pro brakes, UST wheels and tyres and Neon Pink custom paint for £2899. So only £100 more than the Black Gold I think, and a higher spec.

I have got carried away and spunked a load more on the other bits, Reverb etc but there's no real need I'm just a dick!

I will give them a ring in the morning that sounds a stonking deal.

[budgie smuggler]

Suspension is outclassed by maestro/dw-link/horst. Front end geometry is long and slack which i don't like either.

Every time i upgrade my frame i try them out and buy something else. I want to like them but they just don't work for me.

[missing the VR6]

996 sps said:

I will give them a ring in the morning that sounds a stonking deal.

Was pretty happy with it! Ask for Adam.
Don't know if it'll help but you can say Aaron recommended them after ordering his pink one.

[theboymoon]

From a pure snob's point of view I'd really struggle to get my head around spending that kind of money on a single pivot with juicy 5s.

I ran juicy 7s for years in blissful ignorance. Now have one bike running a semi-bling Formula 'the one' set up and the other bog standard 2011 spec XTs. Both are million miles better in terms of modulation and power than the avids. I would not go back!

/tart

(have been passed by many boys on 5's while racing mind, many!)

[missing the VR6]

theboymoon said:

From a pure snob's point of view I'd really struggle to get my head around spending that kind of money on a single pivot with juicy 5s.

I ran juicy 7s for years in blissful ignorance. Now have one bike running a semi-bling Formula 'the one' set up and the other bog standard 2011 spec XTs. Both are million miles better in terms of modulation and power than the avids. I would not go back!

/tart

(have been passed by many boys on 5's while racing mind, many!)

Been running 5's on my XC bike for 18 months now and very impressed, don't do any Dh though just trail centres and Surry Hills really.
I did upgrade to Hope's on my new 5 purely for the floating rotors as they look pretty!!!

[ratbane]

I tested many bikes when I was looking for a new FS. I personally didn't like the Orange 5, and ended up chosing a Cannondale Rize over it.

[Gooby]

budgie smuggler said:

Suspension is outclassed by maestro/dw-link/horst. Front end geometry is long and slack which i don't like either.

Every time i upgrade my frame i try them out and buy something else. I want to like them but they just don't work for me.

I wouldnt argue with that even if a huge '5 fan. When interviewing bikes I tried Trek, Turner, Santa Cruz, Nicolai, Ibis, yeti, gary fisher etc etc. Many did have very impressive suspension. But the small percentage that they outclassed the 5 in plushness of suspension was by far out classed by the fun that 5 is and always is. The Turner was the biggest example of this. It was so plush it made the ride feel like it was a road ride on a magic carpet. It was however soooo boring after 2 days I simply wanted to throw it in a bush and finish the ride by walking back home.

Single pivots do sometimes bob, single pivots do sometimes have brake jack on highspeed corners, and sometimes they are outclassed by more complex designs.

In that 5% of the time they are outclassed, cant make up for the 95% of the ride when they are just more fun, more lively and smile inducing. They are without a doubt also far more robust and FAR more reliable. Rear suspension has a total of 2 bearings. To replace them is a 30 min job and £10. It is simple and more reliable, less rides will be cancelled and less cost for maintenance.

I do wonder why many of my friends have a hard tail for the winter, most say so they dont have expensive maintenance on multi-link suspension. pah! its a '5. It is bomb proof.

[-C-]

Gooby said:

In that 5% of the time they are outclassed, cant make up for the 95% of the ride when they are just more fun, more lively and smile inducing. They are without a doubt also far more robust and FAR more reliable. Rear suspension has a total of 2 bearings. To replace them is a 30 min job and £10. It is simple and more reliable, less rides will be cancelled and less cost for maintenance.

I do wonder why many of my friends have a hard tail for the winter, most say so they dont have expensive maintenance on multi-link suspension. pah! its a '5. It is bomb proof.

I don't think the linkage has any bearing on the fun factor of how a bike rides. Coming from someone who has had a 5 & now a multi link bike, it's no less fun.

I don't agree about the robustness either. There are plenty of people out there who have cracked 5's and Orange are notoriously stingy when it comes to warranty or goodwill.

As for buying a bike because it's got a few less bearings - really? If you're spunking the best part of 3 grand on a bike, i'm sure 30 quid once or twice a year on a set of bearings isn't too much of a hardship that people can't budget for.

I had a 2011 5, which I quite liked (better than the Zesty before it). My big issue was I was inbetween sizes. The 18" was a bit tight & the 20" was like a 5 bar gate. Even with the Maxle back end, it had a noticable amount of rear end flex, and it was somewhat portly for a 140mm frame.

I sold it mainly for the sizing issue, and partly because I was offered a deal I couldn't refuse on a Nomad Carbon. The inner tart in me won that battle.