travel v weight

[4WD]

Hi all, I ride an s-works stumpy fsr (xtr/hope) and am very pleased with it. I think it's only got 6" of travel or so, compared to some monsters with 10" now But it is so damn light I can hop things and steam uphills. A lot of our local riders have +8" norco's / demo's / intense but they really struggle uphill and end up pushing them! I feel my bike is a perfect balance of weight, strength and travel. Besides I can do all the jumps and drop in's the big tanks can do in danbury woods. I don't see much point to the monster bikes outside of wales or whistler mountain.

What's your opinion on super heavy mega travel full sus bikes?

[rico]

My Tomac 204 is a worldcup spec DH bike and weighs a huge amount... probs 50lbs+ It's got miles of travel so it rocks on a DH but is useless for anything level or uphill.

I think the industry is going towards 5-6in travel bikes that can do full on DHs but also pedal back uphills.

I personally run a lightweight XC hardtail for distance work and my Tomac for DH fun. Tempted to get an in-between bike but not sure

[jamesvw]

i ride a spesh bighit, it weighs about 40Lb with 8" travel, awesome on dh runs, but becausew im fairly fit, i can manage a 15-20 mile XC hack on it!
I've also got a 99 GT Tequesta XC bike for any lengthier rides,a nd thats only got 63mm travel front forks. For balance between weight and travel, best kind of bikes these days are things like the spesh enduro, santa cruz bullit, etc etc.

[4WD]

Hi james, I had a go on a demo recently. Of the big 'uns I preferred this to the norco team and intense as it was lighter. As much as I like the demo, I personally found it a bit too heavy. I presume your big hit weighs more? You sound super fit though! I think if ever I changed bike it would be to an enduro.

[Crippo]

Hi 4WD The FSR is currently 5". The older ones from 2 years ago are 4" so they will be a lot ligter than 6" bikes. Yes they'll certainly climb better. But pedal efficiency is also a big contributor to how well a bike goes uphill.

[4WD]

Ok, mine is 5" travel then. The local guys who manage the biggest air are all on hardtails, as the bike doesn't soak up any momentum off the ramps. My ride is halfway between that and the heavy brigade, who seem to roll out of jumps more than fly high off of them. The opinion round my area is a selection of bikes would be fun; a small hardtail for jumps, a light fsr for all mountain use, plus a heavy beast for full on DH madness. Obviously the space and money required to do that properly is a touch ott, hence why I chose the middle route: a balance of decent air & uphill, with enough strength and travel to soak up some rather hefty landings. I think to require more travel than I have would necessitate some seriously scary jumps, so requiring full protective stormtrooper gear! Something I'm not to keen on as I prefer just casual attire and a bell hat for comfort.

[rlk500]

I think the easiest way to settle your dilemma is to ask yourself when you get to the bottom of the next good descent, would it have been that much better on a bike with more travel. Pretty much the answer would be no......better skills maybe, but I can't ever thinking having got to the bottom of wild descents in the Rockies ...oh yeah if only I had 10 inches........

[Nevin]

rlk500 said:

if only I had 10 inches........

Chortle

[4WD]

On my local drop in's and jumps the team norco I tried made them feel less exhilerating. A bit like a 7 series verses an elise I guess. More comfortable, but less stimulating. It also felt like pushing a 7 series back up the hill!

[beyond rational]

Specialized FSR with a Betd linkage, best of both worlds, till it snapped!

[4WD]

What did you do to damage a solid lump of billet?!!

[beyond rational]

The Betd still lives on, the FSR, that was not so lucky (I think it'd be safe to say I'd probably be dead if I'd snapped the Betd )

Weight is only one thing though, I'd rather have an effiecent peddler that could take consistant abuse.

[4WD]

I've heard of people who have broken Intense and Demo frames! God know's how they managed that, as they are some of the strongest lumps of metal around. Perhaps dropping off an NCP roof?!

[4WD]

Do you reccommend the betd? I presume you need a higher pressure in th shock to compensate for the additional leverage? A touch of annodised blue would set my frame off a treat. The only other tiny dash of colour is a blue dial on my forks.

[beyond rational]

I can't recommend the one you'd want, mine was one of the oldest types on an '99 (or was it '98?) FSR Ground control with a coil Rock Shox something crappy deluxe. Linkage gave 5 or 6 inch travel (not bad back in the day! ) so I had a slightly firmer spring fitted if I was running more than the standard 4 inch travel. Build quality wise, it could not be faulted but it was a lot heavier than the standard item though, these newer ones do not seem to be so beefy. Its probably worth you trying one if your frame is out of warrenty, they are highly resellable if you do not get on with it.

Edited by beyond rational on Friday 27th October 19:18