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4 inch vs 5 inch
Hi,
I have recently moved to Sydney with my schwinn hardtail. after one ride, I am convinced of the need to buy a dually.
Have shopped/reviewed around - and have come down to the following choices:
- giant trance 1 vs giant trance x1
- stumpy vs fsr xc
I will be riding mainly on firetrails (cascades, and kuringai national park)
The main difference (other than derailleurs and brakes) is the difference in shock travel. Why would I need 4inch as opposed to 5inch
Any help/advice would be great
staffie
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IMO 5 inch will be more versatile, without loosing too much of a xc leaning, but still taking on jumps and rock gardens better.
I believe
3 - 4 inch xc
5-6 all mtn, trail
7-8 dh/ freeride
What he said.
A Reign/Enduro SL/Ramson. Still good for XC (recreational) and fantastic if you build up your confidence and want to start doing silly things on it.
I also started with a HardTail and then moved into the Enduro SL which I LOVE! Good pedal efficiency and awesome going down hill.
If you are into XC competition etc, then, stick to lower travel.
Depends on your build as well. I was in the same siuation.I weigh around 100 kg and the Trance X1 was recommended to me as a result.
The weight difference is not much between them about 300 grames from memor, the only real difference is Head tube angle think the trance x1 is 79.5 where as the trance is a little more agressive.
I use mine for everything mainly XC and enduros but general trail riding and even a little light downhill, i love it
Gday Staffie,
Mate have worked my way up over the years on giant bikes
Am a burly 100kg 5'10" ex-footy player, but have always ridden
Started out on xtc 1, then nrs 1, vt2 ,06 reign1 and finally onto 08 trance X1
Apart from a real value for money package, i just think their geometry 'fits' me best
i found i wanted to ride more on the 5 inch travel bikes, lighter, faster, more fun
obviously the downhills were better on a 6 inch machine, but not all trails use all the travel
There is minimal weight difference between the 4 and 5 inch giants
The specialized enduro sl is an unreal bike if you can afford it
have ridden a few mates ones, and there worth the $$$
I work on the rule for every dollar i spent i'd ride that in kilometres to get my moneys worth
before selling on or upgrading
Hope this helps mate
pieboy
Giant doesn't make the trance anymore so you'd be looking at the Anthem X (4") or Trance X (5")
I think you'd have more fun with a 5" on more technical singletracks (can't stick to trails all the time!) and the odd drops.
Tom
All good
Come for a test ride at one of the social rides. There are 3 or 4 Enduros amongst this mob - what size are you? There are some medium's (Gazza, Georgie?) and Iguanabartola (large?) etc.
Social rides: e.g. http://nobmob.com/node/6698
__________________
There are two paths you can go by but in the long run........
My one is a Medium as well and yeah, happy to let anyone test ride it!!! I've re-laced new rims on it (stronger ones).
Check it out!
http://gallery.mtbr.com/showphoto.php/photo/2024...
I don't know if I might be able to join tomorrow but will try!!! I live in Maroubra so might not make it on time!!!!
How did you find going from the 06 Reign to the 08 Trance?
what was your experiance as I have an 06 Reign? not to light? did or do you still do 5 foot drops on the trance?
Thanks
Greg
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Salad is what food eats
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Gday Pikey,
Found the Trance X1 alot lighter,wanted to ride it more, esp on the local trails
Easier to access and clean around the shock area and put some wide bars on it
Handles similar to the Reign, still hit all the trails i used to ride
Wasn't shy of hitting the odd 5 footer on the reign
Dont hit so many big drops on the Trance X1 as riding mostly xc type trails now
but it's taken all the punishment i can give it
Reign still a mint bike and suits it purpose
Trance X1 easier to climb on the ups and still hits the downs
Trance feels good and fits for everything i need it to do
When I went from a Scott hard tail, I debated the trance and stumpy myself and ended up buying a Yeti 575. it is a great ride and the quality is noticeably better. I strongly recommend riding all the bike you are considering. if it feels right, then you can't go wrong. hope that helps.
I also like these conversations and I often get asked this. I've been meaning to get in on this so here are my thoughts.
It's not about the travel, it's about the geometry. So a bike which is short travel with slack geometry will be a better all purpose ride than a bike with much more travel and acute geometry.
Thankfully, bike makers and the marketing people that harass them are listening to what riders want. So what is it that we, the lions share of the riders who spend our money in the mid price bracket, want? Apparently we all wish to happily climb a hill without it being overly taxing and then bomb down said hill and have our suspension provide us with a plush ride and our bike being well built enough to live like this for many years, yet be light so we can return to the top of the aforementioned hill.
I'd agree with that.
In our modern times full suspension bikes pedal extraordinarily well. Having a lot of available travel doesn't automatically mean that you'll always require a shuttle.
Bikes such as Reign and Trance, Enduro and Stumpy, 575, Blur, Fuel EX and Mount Vision and Wolf Ridge are popular because they feel right to ride.
The 2008 Trance X is arguably the most popular bike around today. Ask someone why they like it and they describe how good it feels and how happy they are and get all glossy eyed. That's just emotion not a reason.
The reason is the geometry.
Some genius mathematician/engineer person figured out, through experimentation(i.e. past bikes),what feels best and then a bike is produced.
The Marin Wolf Ridge is an excellent example of this. It has a 67 degree head angle, an angle usually found on freeride bikes, and has 140mm of travel. Unfortunately, it's not sold here. Yet.
That Trance X has a 69.5 degree head angle which is a very good angle for a bit of everything. Need a little slacker? Fit a fatter front tyre than the rear. Even slacker without going nuts? Plug in a 130mm fork. It'll work nicely. The bike is promoted as being a 5 inch travel bike, which converts to 127mm. The stock fork on all models (aside the X0) is 120mm. The extra 10mm of travel and the slightly taller fork would give almost half a degree of reduction.
The XO provides a TALAS fork which goes to 140mm so Giant is already endorsing this modification so it shouldn't affect warranty. With common sense included that is.
Anyway, the magic number for inches of travel is 5 or 6. Go 6 if your body is large in size and if you ever think that maybe you'll want to go remotely big on a semi-regular basis. No matter what a rider can do or a 5 inch travel bike will do, a bike can only take so much. The finished bike will be somewhat affected by build choice and set up but geometry is the real key.
For 2009 I like the Reign, Enduro, Remedy and Nomad. If you think you'd be any quicker on your favourite loop by riding a Trance X, Stumpy, Fuel EX or Blur, then by all means, choose one.
There's eight bikes to choose from. Get your wallet out.
I'm hoping that some of the mag boys are checking out the site as your contributions are always pretty informative and easy to read. May be worth flicking a few over and seeing the response.
Thank you, I appreciate that.
While I'm here I'll recommend two more bikes.
1. The Santa Cruz Heckler. This bike is great for all sorts of reasons. Being a single pivot with one set of monstrous bearings to be concerned about, and a quality Kensis built frame, it'll last for ages. It is quite possibly the best direct drive single pivot around, is popular in the market and has something for everyone because it can be built into many types to address XC, general trail and leaping large obstacles in a single bound disciplines.
It has a nice 69 degree head angle when using a 140mm fork. The frame has 150mm of travel and there are different shock options. 160mm forks are approved which would slacken the geometry further.
Furthermore, if one was to buy it as a frame only with the view of transfering their favouite parts from their previous ride then the Heckler uses common parts and sizes such as 1 1/8" headset, 30.9mm seatpost and 34.9mm top swing front mech.
It may seem an expensive item in Australia but hey, it's a frame so take it on the chin and get that warranty, just in case.
It may very well be the last bike you ever buy, or the first Santa Cruz you ever buy...
2. Kona. Poor old Kona is getting forgotten out there in the mtb world which is unfortunate as they have great bikes. I'm a big fan of the Dawg and for 2009 this bike features the popular six inches of travel description. It has nice relaxed geometry and is tough because Kenesis build the frames.
The supension seems old hat these days but I promise you that with some careful set up and personalisation it will ride, climb and bomb around the place with the best of them. All models have a good parts pick at their price points and those price points are competetive with the other makers.
Please excuse me now. I'm going for a ride at Menai on my five year old Trek Liquid...