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Average Rating
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4.64/5
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# of Reviews
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39
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Description:-Construction \\ 6061 Aluminum CNC machined by “Intense Cycles” construction, Proprietary Easton Bi Oval tubes designed for Intense Cycles, Custom Monocoque top tube construction.
-Shock \\ Fox Shox DHX 5.0 Air
-Recommended fork length \\ 145mm to 170mm
-Other \\ Custom Max Type sealed bearings, Disc brake only, Replaceable derailleur hanger
-Optional shocks \\ TBD
-Weight \\ 7.25 to 7.4lbs
-Rider \\ This rider wants an “all mountain enduro bike, go anywhere, ride anything machine,” a Freeride bike without the weight penalty. Not a hucker jumper to flat landing bike.
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Submitted by
Jamus
a Downhiller
from Golden, CO
Date Reviewed: April 17, 2008 | | Favorite Trail: | Porcupine Rim, Downieville Classic | | Duration Product Used: | Tested or demo'ed only | | Purchased At: | Demo'ed from Golden Bike Shop | | Strengths: | Pedal efficiency, efficient travel, good looks, relatively light weight for almost 7" of travel. It didn't squat even when I hammered on the pedal, and felt very plush through rock gardens and landing some moderate airs (<6 feet to slight tranny). | | Weaknesses: | I was having some issues with the drive train - very typical of a ragged-out demo bike though. | | Similar Products Used: | Ellsworth Moment, SC Bullit | | Bike Setup: | Pike 426, Sram, avid juicy, 2.5 continentals | | Bottom Line: | I smoked LPS to Porcupine Rim on this rig last weekend - pedaled right up over and through nasty terrain, took some buttery 5 footers, and blew the doors off the guys I was riding with on the uphills and downhills. I think the shifting/chain suck issues I experienced on tech climbs under power in the middle ring (i.e. riding up 1 foot rock ledges) were due to poor maintenance of a hard ridden bike. I'd like to ride a shiny new one to find out. Pike 426 was alright but I'd prefer a Van36 any day. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Ed
a Cross Country Rider
from Denver
Date Reviewed: January 9, 2008 | | Favorite Trail: | mountian lion | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$4000.00 | | Purchased At: | Collins Bicycles | | Strengths: | Nice, handcrafted bike, made in CA. 6" trail bike with steeper angles and a high BB is perfect for aggressive XC-super D. Suspension pedals quietly. Have yet to see another one on the trail. | | Weaknesses: | I guess the steep head angle can make the steering a little squirlly through fast, rough sections. | | Similar Products Used: | Tried the Blur Lt, Nomad, and 5.5 | | Bike Setup: | XT, new 08 Talus 36RC, Formula K24 200/180mm, speedball r | | Bottom Line: | Great all around bike that lets me push my limits and gives me alot of room for error. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jerry
a Weekend Warrior
from Spring, Texas
Date Reviewed: January 7, 2008 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$4300.00 | | Purchased At: | rbikes.com | | Strengths: | 6.6 is truly an all mountain bike
this bike is definately and should be made to handle just about any thing you throw its way, downhill and technical trails are a plus,if you buy this bike you better have some money. i certaily didnt but i wanted to splurge on a real good ridding bike and if you ride trail alot or cross country without andy technicallity to it, i suggest not geting this bike..if you buy it you need to use it for whats its worth and thats going over root and rocks and going down roots and rocks and solid terrain with nice drops thats enough to scare you but not stop you because you know this bike can do it
| | Weaknesses: | weight other than that it has made me a bit stronger when i ride | | Similar Products Used: | i looked at the SantaCruz Nomad but did not get to ride it | | Bike Setup: | rp23 rear and 36 vanila rc2 kenda small block 8 2.35
i like to ride it kind of stiff because it has enough inches on the cush | | Bottom Line: | i would recomend this bike to anyone especially the Raw finnish..this bike simply kicks you know what. when you get on it
i get lots of looks on this bike,
probably where im at
there is alot of specialized and treks, we just dont have enough hills here in texas or at least on my side of town
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Andrew
a Racer
from Austin, Texas, US
Date Reviewed: December 22, 2007 | | Favorite Trail: | Emma Long | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$3000.00 | | Purchased At: | mtbr.com | | Strengths: | Suspension action is fantastic, climbs great for a 33lb bike, and feels great on ruff tight terrain. oh, and looks so good. | | Weaknesses: | The cockpit is a little tight. I’m 6ft2in and the largest they make is a large. The cable routing around the linkage is silly, and the swingarm is flexy as all get out. | | Similar Products Used: | Kona stab primo, specialized epic, sinister DNA, spooky metalhead, rigid singlespeed, Santa Cruz superlight | | Bike Setup: | New XT all around, Juicy 7s, Marzocchi All Mountain 1SL, Maverick speedball R, Manitou evolver 4 | | Bottom Line: | This is a super fun bike to ride. Like the guy below me said, its good at everything but not great at any one thing. I don’t mind the steep headtube angle as I mainly ride tight gnarly singletrack. Feels great bombing the downhills, and isn’t too bad on the climbs. The pedaling efficiency of this bike is fantastic. You do get a little suspensions feedback in the small ring but its no big deal. The suspension is fully active but without any noticeable bobbing. I’m happy with the bike and cant think of another bike I’d rather have for this application. The flex in the back end is ridiculous. My XC bike doesn’t have this much flex. Unless your taking 30mph turns around the bend you wont notice it enough to piss you off. I’d recommend it to anyone who isn’t in a hurry to get to the top of the hill but wants to smoke your buddies on the way down. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Gravityfreak
a
from Sydney, NSW, Australia
Date Reviewed: December 9, 2007 | | Favorite Trail: | Hardcore trails, DH (for fun not racing) and light FR | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Strengths: | Pedals very well when set up right (LOTS of trial and error), very good suspension action. Handles wide variety of terrain very very well and looks great. You really CAN ride this bike up a very steep and technical DH trail and rip it on the way down. It does up and down VERY well. Strength to weight ratio is very good. | | Weaknesses: | Pivot bearings had to be replaced after six months (normal use - no pressure washing)which is not good enough. This is in part due to lower pivot bearing being inboard the frame and therefore close together. This means they are subjected to very high (damaging) latteral loads. Santa Crus has them outboard and therefore further apart which is far better.
Cable routing is poorly thought out.
Rear swingarm not perfectly aligned with main frame (quality controll not good enough - this is an INTENSE!!)
Read shock came low on damper oil and performed terribly at first due to cavitation and was impossible to set up right. Only after a year when I had it serviced did i realise how bad it really was compared to how it should be. (The pro-pedal didn't work at all)
BB somewhat too high (though if it were lower you'd hit cranks too much so can't be helped).
Head angle slightly too steep (.5 or 1 degree slacker would be better)Very flexy rear end. High BB and steep head angle mean not the best cornering bike unless corner is bermed or very grippy dirt. | | Similar Products Used: | Santa Cruz, Kona, Giant etc | | Bike Setup: | Fox 36RCs, Mavic DH wheels, Avid brakes, Thompson everything, Easten everything else... (light free ride 32 lb build) | | Bottom Line: | Jack of all trades master of none.
Combination of high BB and steep head angle means bike climbs very well but is a little twitch on gnarly descents. Still, suspension action is very good. If you ride HARD (i.e. used to be a downhiller but now mostly trail ride, rip the odd DH etc - this a brilliant do it all (read compromise) bike. You will win no races but you will have a LOT of fun riding it which is the only reason to buy this bike because like I said - you wont win races on it.
However, for an Intense - there are too many flaws (isn't this the Ferarri of MTB's that we all dream of owning?). Flexy rear and bearing failing is unacceptable on a bike that costs this much. The cable routing is just poorly considered and the quality controll process that let my bike ship with a faulty rear shock is not good enough.
That being said - none of these things have spoilt my overall enjoyment and love of this bike - though I was very annoyed by them. Over all I would not swap it for anything currently available. This bike cannot be brilliant at one thing BECAUSE it is very very good at everything ...and that's the bottom line.
Low chili rating due to issues above which are due to poor quality control rather than design. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
John
a
from Melbourne Australia
Date Reviewed: December 2, 2007 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$1300.00 | | Purchased At: | second hand | | Strengths: | lightish, steep seat angle, climbs very well, solid and capable all rounder | | Weaknesses: | too small for me .......... 6.4 and 230pounds. Dont really rate the DHX Air for my wieght. | | Similar Products Used: | Yeti 575, Titus Motolite, Spec Enduro, | | Bike Setup: | lge with Fox 36 Talas, Sram X9, XT, Mavic XLs, Thomson, Juicy 7s, Maxis USTs etc | | Bottom Line: | Intense make a lge but l need XL, oh well gave it a try. I dont freeride crazy stuff and enjoy longer rides. The 6.6 was never likely to forfill the All Mountain tag for me but it was worth a try. For shorter folks it is a wicked rig. It seriously out climbs most bikes whilst seated and handles all l wished to throw at it. It aint a DH rig so build it up light and AM it ass. Perhaps a different rear shock too. 150 on the front is perfect for all round. You will love it. Expensive new | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jase K
a Weekend Warrior
from England
Date Reviewed: November 16, 2007 | | Favorite Trail: | Chicksands, UK | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$2000.00 | | Purchased At: | ebay | | Strengths: | Well built and beautifully detailed frame, rides nice up and down hill, can be "one bike" for most people I'm sure. Plenty of bling factor too. Pretty tough unless hucked big time - I've done 10 foot vertical drops, 30 - 40 ft in length with no bike problems, just me problems from the landing force. Pedals well, but see below.... | | Weaknesses: | ...back end does wag like a dog. VPP stops bob but at the expense of small bump senitivity versus Horst link. Geo is a bit strange with high bottom bracket, so not as planted as some bikes in the bends(i.e Spec Enduro). Cable run, but can be sorted. High leverage ratio (?) results in short shock for travel so will obviously be more sensitive to set up. Fork crown hits underside of frame, high front end! | | Similar Products Used: | Spec Enduro, Spec Stump Jumper, Whyte 46, Marin Wolf Ridge | | Bike Setup: | Small 2007 6.6 with swinger 4 way, Marz 66SL, SRAM stuff (X9), E-13 SRS, Mavic XL wheel set, XTR brakes | | Bottom Line: | Didn't want to sound too negative as it is a great bike....but I think there are a few flaws that might be exadurated by the tall 66SL fork - I can't run the fork lower as it already hits the frame, so this results in a high front end and high BB too. May be some Fox 36's would sort as they are shorter (and reduced crown width).
That said, done everything from Dirt jumping to cross country, downhill to even some 4X races (which I won!!), but are probably better all-mountain/light freeride bikes (Spec Enduro, Giant Reign X0, etc). | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jerry
a Weekend Warrior
from houston, texas
Date Reviewed: November 13, 2007 | | Favorite Trail: | huntsville and double lakes | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$4399.00 | | Purchased At: | rbikes.com | | Strengths: | Intense 6.6 is a rock solid bike, trully a dream bike that hjandles just about anything you thrown in its path.
| | Weaknesses: | have not had it long enough to test but on the weekend i took it for a ride and i was just popping over roots and bumps and little uphill thrown in was nice | | Similar Products Used: | i wish i got to test the santa cruz nomad. but this bike looks and feels like a tank. although the weight factor is there..this thing will roll over a rock garden | | Bike Setup: | for 36 vanilla and rp23 ..its like riding a cadillac | | Bottom Line: | once i get this bike on an all out purpose ride in colorado. i will let you know.. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Dave
a Weekend Warrior
from Leicester, England
Date Reviewed: September 28, 2007 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$3200.00 | | Purchased At: | Pedal Power, Loughborough. | | Strengths: | Does exactly what its says on the packet!!!
By far the best bike I have owned, once you have set up the suspension you can go anywhere and do anything. To say it has around 6" of travel front and rear it climbes better than any other bike I have had, it also the best cycle I have had for rapid decents it just soaks up the hits without any problem at all and goes where you point it. | | Weaknesses: | You are joking!!!!!
OK if I must moan the price for the frame £1600 Ouch, plus the cables are a bit of a pain to set up. | | Similar Products Used: | Cannondale M600, Proflex Beast, GT Zascar, Specialized Enduro,Voodoo Ogun. | | Bike Setup: | XT Mechs/Chainset, XT brakes XTR calipers (203mm front / 185mm rear), Sram chain and cassett.
Mavic 819 XM rims (ust) with Da Bomb rear hub and Funn front hub, Kenda tyres.
e13 bashguard.
Raceface finishing kit
Marzocchi AM2 (140 to 160mm)
| | Bottom Line: | This is a do it all bike that goes up as well as down.
The bike can also handle the drops, I have landed some 6 to 8' drops without any problems at all.
Intense state it can be used for light freeride (can anyone tell me what light freeride is these days, with people like the 'Claw' doing insane drops / stunts on a very simualr bike)
ALL IN ALL THE BEST BIKE YOU CAN OWN ,AND IF YOU ARE LIKE ME AND HAVE A WIFE WHO SAYS ONE BIKE IS ENOUGH THEN THIS IS THE ONE TO DO/TAKE EVERYTHING YOU CAN THROW AT IT.
BUY ONE YOU WILL NOT BE DISSAPOINTED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Andrew
a Downhiller
from Albuquerque NM USA
Date Reviewed: August 29, 2007 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$2000.00 | | Purchased At: | colorado cyclist | | Strengths: | nice 1.5 head tube | | Weaknesses: | very poor cable routing options. Short top tube. The bike is not designed for people over 6 feet tall. Even with propedal the VPP sucks out any climbing momentum over uphill bumps. | | Similar Products Used: | Orange Patriot 7+ , Ellsworth Moment, KHS hardtail, Santacruz V10 | | Bike Setup: | Fox 36 RC2, Fox DHX Air, Hope brakes, Hadley hubs, XT Shadow | | Bottom Line: | The frame had a serious problem from the factory. The top shock mount tabs were a millimeter and a half off from each other. This placed the rear of the shock a full centimeter off to one side causing the shock to stick badly and break the seals. I sent it back to Intense and they tweaked the mount tabs on the top tube and sent it back saying it was fine. It wasn't fixed at all and I ended up having to elongate one of the holes to allow the shock to sit centered in the rear mount.
As far as the ride the 6.6 climbs poorly but decends excelently. A big problem is that they do not recomend it for light freeriding duty, drops, jumps, etc. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Yu Kion Chai
a Weekend Warrior
from Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia
Date Reviewed: August 20, 2007 | | Favorite Trail: | Indian Tample & KBH runs | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$1857.00 | | Purchased At: | KSH bicycles | | Strengths: | Best bike i've ever ridden, the geometry are just right,it climb easily, plush suspention but the pro pedal really works on this bike. | | Weaknesses: | My 's'size frame has too small downtube-fork crown clearence with my Fox36 talas rc2; even i used a 14mm lower stake hight head set, the travel adjuster knob will scratch the downtube. A 2mm spacer or higher stack hight headset will solve the problem or switch to Fox36van rc2 with no travel adjuster. Flex on the rear end(not a big problem since notting harm when it flex) friends will lought at you riding 'a dog that sway it's tail' | | Similar Products Used: | 05 Kona Stinky | | Bike Setup: | Fox36talas rc2,
Token reducer headset,
Thomson stalk,
Truvativ DH bars,
X0 shifters/derailers,
hayers9 8"disk,
Sun rims,
WTB saddle
FSA seat post,
FSA dual speed chaingard (previously e-13 dual ring security)
GAB krankset
Time Z paddle
The bike weight about 16.5kg | | Bottom Line: | Good if not the best 'Do it all bike' that suit my riding needs:- training on weekday evenings, Xc style Bike Hash run every forthnightly & some entry level downhill, dirt jump & free ride every other weekends.& i can only have 1 MTB at a time!(an agreement with my wife :<
The only frame i consider to change is the Intense 6.6ss which they clammed to have beefer rear end and lower BB hight, if they bent the downtube a little bit to produce more clearence for the fork crown will produce the best frame i ever wanted. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Will
a Cross Country Rider
from Aspen
Date Reviewed: July 31, 2007 | | Favorite Trail: | depends on my mood or b.a.c. | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$4800.00 | | Purchased At: | Ute City Cycles - Carbondale, CO | | Strengths: | Rigid, moto geometry, light, climbs very well, makes you look/feel pro on descents. | | Weaknesses: | Expensive than a maphucka! | | Similar Products Used: | Foes FXR - The only bike that's truly in the same category. | | Bike Setup: | Big FOX suspension all round and some other trick shyt.... | | Bottom Line: | Best bike I've ridden to date. It's fun to blast by fat dudes on downhill bikes then pedal uphill while they watch from the lifts. For real though, this bike is a seriously engineered hunk of aluminum that will push you to the limits. I built mine up with some nice goods and kept it right at 30 lbs with pedals. Not bad for a 6" plus travel bike (front and back) with a 1.5 steer tube. This thing scares me. The only draw back is the greens you're gonna have to spend to get one. Don't dress this rig in crap components. If you're gonna spend the coin, pimp it proper. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
e-dawg
a
from AJ,AZ,usa
Date Reviewed: May 21, 2007 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | pedals and jumps (very well!), goes up and down (very fast and with aplomb), doesn't break | | Weaknesses: | swingarm wag in corners | | Similar Products Used: | enduro, i-drive | | Bike Setup: | put a small 1 or 2mm shim under the drive side bb cup to push hte cranks away from the swingarm gusset (for front drealer clearance), then put a mathcing shim under the cassete to keep chain in line. got a 10mm thru axle for 135mm hadley/intense rear hub to increase rear end stifffness as munch as possible. | | Bottom Line: | broke a bunch of frame pieces on my specialized, and got sik of having to warranty stuff that shouldn't have broken and rebuilding my bike every 4-6 months. got this one for more travel, more confidence, and more durability. so far nothing has broken and the folks at the company have been most hlepful resource for setting the baby up as mentioned in setup.
coming off hte enduro on this is another world. I have gotten stronger riding this one as it's built burly at 32 lbs and the speshlized is 27. the flip side wis worth the waet thouggh. I goes down the mountain WAAAAAY better and likes to jump over stuff more betterr than the nduro evver did. i'm pestering the folks over at INTense for a heveir duty reear end to help eleimingate the tail wag in ccorners and to get a whole replacable drpout on both sides. also worth gettign the unpainted frame to keep ugly scufffs from beeing ttooo notticable specially when you live where the big nasty reoxk and cactusses will bite anything neerby. i love my intense and would get it all over again. maybe the next on will bethe new 4x ht on their website. :) happy rideon!
PS:-} get 6.6 if ya want to go and jump/p.lay hard on a brly bike. DONT GET THIS ONE IF YA WANT LONG LEGS LITE WEAIT XC: SHES TOO MUCH FOR YA AND YA CNT HANGLE IT!!!
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Adam Wheelwright
a Weekend Warrior
from Bad Soden, Hessen, Frankfurt
Date Reviewed: May 18, 2007 | | Favorite Trail: | Chatel Bike Park - France | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | www1.hibike.com | | Strengths: | - agility and balance
- inspires a point and shoot approach on all trails
- with lighter weight tires works well for >4 hour trail riding
- also works great for local DH / freeriding / Bike park stuff | | Weaknesses: | - there is some pedal induced feedback in the small ring
- VPP is very sensitive to getting the right sag level set each time you ride
- cable routing isn't the best
- got some chain / front mech rub with the Schwalbe 2.4" tire on the rear | | Similar Products Used: | as below | | Bike Setup: | As my review below but for past 3 months (when I've been trying to build up my fitness) have removed the Truvativ Shiftguide; run Shimano SPD pedals; changed the stem to a Thomson 70 mm; changed tires to IRC Mibro 2.35"
For summer 2007 am planning to spend a lot of time ion the portes Du Soleil so will revert to a more freeride spec: E13 DRS; Race Face diabolous cranks (can't get the DRS to work with Atlas); back to a 50 mm stem and flat pedals; and will change tires to a Black Betty in front and an Intense EX DC 2.35" on the rear + move up to 36/24 chainrings | | Bottom Line: | This is a follow up to my earlier, initial impressions, review.
As you can probably tell, I was massively impressed and happy with the 6.6 after the first few days of riding. It somehow seemed to blend the agility of an out and out trail bike with the confidence inspiring ride of a freeride bike.
Since then I've use the bike regularly (2-3 days per week) for the last 9 months in all conditions (snow, rain, sun, hot and cold) and remain really happy and impressed.
What's been great is the ability to swap a few parts (tires, tubes, stem generally) around to get a really different feel to the bike that allows it to be used on anything from 6 hour all day trail riding epics through to hitting the local DH / Freeride stuff without any problems at all.
Climbing remains relatively easy on the bike - I really like the slightly 'upright' seated position as it gives you great balance and prevents the front wheel from wandering on steeper stuff. VPP works amazingly well for climbing - when seated hardly moves at all until it needs to and the traction is amazing. Only issue I've found is that out of the saddle climbing can sometimes result in a lot of bobbing - i think this is down to the body weight shift moving the suspension away from the SAG sweet spot. Adding extra pro-pedal helps tame this tendency though.
Descending - amazing - total point and shoot confidence; the 6.6 sinks into its travel really well giving you loads of traction and grip. This also means that the supposedly 'sky high' bottom bracket height hasn't been a problem for me at all - in fact I've found that I've clipped the 170mm Atlas cranks a few time so went with 165 mm Diaboolous for when I've got the bike in full on freerdie mode. Rock gardens and roots are obliterated; drops are handled without any fuss; corners whether bermed or not are railed. I run the bottom out resistance at max with c. 180 psi - which helps prevent bottoming out without comprising the travel in the early part of the shock stroke
Singletrack - 6.6 IMO is a real singletrack ripper; easy to pump, manual over whatever gets in the way, manoeuvre through the trees and bounce of trail debris.
Jumps - feels totally sorted on jumps and in the air - a bit like my dedicated hardtail jumpbike but with benefit of suspension to compensate for my all too often sketchy landings.
Maintenance - have just re-greased the pivot bearings for 1st time; a 30 minute job to remove the shock and rear triangle, prise off the bearing covers, degrease and clean, and then pump them full of new grease, job done. Apart from that no issues with the frame.
Conclusion - very, very happy with my 6.6. Love riding it - makes me feel like a better rider each and every time and gives me the confidence to keep progressing my riding. Think the fox 36 up front really helps and suits the bike - I would not recommend going for anything with a shorter axel-to-crown length if you want to maintain the downhill / freeride capabilities and feel.
Overall IMO 6.6. the Intense 6.6 continues to exceed all expectations as a one bike fits all rig!
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
christian
a Weekend Warrior
from Kittery, ME, USA
Date Reviewed: May 17, 2007 | | Favorite Trail: | Ft Rock- Exeter NH, Red Tail- N. Conway NH, Kingdon Trails- VT | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$3700.00 | | Purchased At: | rbikes.com | | Strengths: | Quality, Geometry, Suspension | | Weaknesses: | hmmm... | | Similar Products Used: | Specialized Enduro, Rocky Mountain Switch, Yeti ASX, Santa Cruz Blur | | Bike Setup: | Mostly XT, Avid Juicy 7s, Fox 36 Talas R, Manitou Evolver ISX-6 | | Bottom Line: | Super fun bike... could not be happier... turns well, climbs amazing and downhill is amazing... rbikes did a great job working with me picking out the components after starting with one of their cheaper build kits... the juicy 7s work great though I might switch to larger rotors for lift access riding throughout New England and Canada.. this bike absolutely soaks up the big hits.. forget about turning on downhills- just point it over everything... the SPV design is great- better then the old 4 bar on my Enduro.. climbing is surprising great for a bike with so much travel- of course a bit more play than a hard core XC bike, but the downhills, oh the downhills.. and stunts.. the riding position is quite high- takes some getting used to, but I find it is just so comfortable and ready for any movement- left, right, drops- it is just perfect for pushing yourself to new levels.. alot of twisty stuff in NE but since you can plow over anything it actually seems like less effort than bikes where you try to aboid all the rocks and roots- on the flats, uphills and obvioulsy the downhills... great all round ONE bike for a mix of technical XC, stunts, downhill, climbs and smiles... | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
DAVE
a Weekend Warrior
from MAUI
Date Reviewed: February 15, 2007 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Purchased At: | WEST MAUI CYCLES | | Strengths: | RIDE, FIT, QUALITY, FINISH, LOOKS | | Weaknesses: | SET UP LOOKS COMPLICATED, LET THE SHOP DO IT AND THEY DIALED IN PERFECTLY | | Similar Products Used: | FOES, ELLSWORTH, TITUS, SANTA CRUZ | | Bike Setup: | ALL-MOUNTAIN SETUP; 7'S, NIXON PLATINUM, SRAM, MAVIC,... | | Bottom Line: | FITS LIKE A DREAM, INCREDIBLY BALANCED AT ULTRA-LOW SPEEDS, STEEP GEOMETRY ALLOWS FOR QUICK DECISION CHANGES, ENDLESS SUSPENSION SUCKS UP THE REST. DHX 5.0 AIR IS UNREAL. DON'T KNOW ABOUT OTHERS, BUT MINE SET UP EASY AND IS INFINITELY ADJUSTABLE. VPP IS THE REAL DEAL. BELIEVE IT!FEELS TALL, BUT SAG ALLOWS YOU TO SINK INTO IT. IT CORNERS ON RAILS AND IS VERY EASY TO MANUAL. NOT FOR HUCKING BIG! MAKES ME WANT TO RIDE LONGER AND MORE FREQUENTLY. I USED TO LOOK FOR EXCUSES NOT TO RIDE. NOW I MAKE EXCUSES TO RIDE. AFTER I SAW AND RODE IT FOR THE FIRST TIME, THE STEEP PRICE SEEMED LIKE A BARGAIN! DON'T HESITATE, SPRING'S COMING!
THANKS AGAIN WEST MAUI CYCLES FOR HOOKING ME UP IN RECORD TIME AND DIALING IT ALL IN FOR NO-BRAIN RIDING! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Brian
a Weekend Warrior
from Cold Lake, AB, Canada
Date Reviewed: January 20, 2007 | | Favorite Trail: | Toss up between any trail at Doumont (Nanaimo BC) or Snowden Forest (Campbell River BC) | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$1800.00 | | Purchased At: | River Valley Cycles (Edmonton, AB) | | Strengths: | Geometry, Handling, Weight | | Weaknesses: | Cable routing, rear drop/derailleur hangar | | Similar Products Used: | Norco VPS, Kona Stinky (last bike owned), Test rode Santa Cruz Nomad, Rocky Mountain Slayer, Giant Reign | | Bike Setup: | Marzocchi 66 SL, Saint cranks, XTR drive train, Avid Mechanical disks (203mm), Big Earl wheels, Kenda Nevegals 2.35s | | Bottom Line: | Purchase: Lucky break, saved $600, everything in the shop was on sale, and they had one frame my size on the wall. As for the other parts, used some from my old bike, but the wheels and the fork were also good timing, saved another $400. I guess buying after the snow is on the ground can be advantageous, until you want to ride….
Build Up: Installed a FSA Orbit Extreme reducer headset, as recommended by Intense. It pressed into the frame, but was very tight, more effort than usual or expected.
Almost everything else went together very easily. Complete bike is approx 31 lbs with air shock, a couple of pounds heavier with coil spring.
Two notable issues. First the rear derailleur hangar seems to be slightly off. It shifts well, but the nut of the Q/R skewer must be removed completely to get the rear wheel off, never had this issue on any other bikes.
Second, cable routing. The cables and housing are run under the top tube and it is pretty busy there with cable, cable stops, shock mount, rear shock, etc. The cable stops are well-made and thought out, with provision for a full-length housing or hose to the rear brake and slots for zip ties. Where to run the rear derailleur housing is tricky and how long to make the housing section from the swing arm to the frame is a pain. I looked at all the pictures of built 6.6s I could find on the internet and finally settled on running the rear brake and derailleur housings through the swing-link. This worked very well for the full-length brake cable housing, but the short section from the frame to the swing arm cable stops required repeated installation, removal and resizing. It would be too long, then remove 2-4mm and then be too short. Frustrating.
Finally the set-up looked good and escaped the snow for a couple of weeks of riding. This section of housing was flexing as the suspension cycled and rubbed the paint off the seat tube and even started to rub a groove into the aluminium. Duct tape over the scuff and continued to try resizing the housing. It is better and duct tape shows me if there is any contact with the tube before any more damage is done. I will switch to full length housing once I can find some hose-to-cable stop adaptors. No problems at all on the other side with the full length housing for the rear brake.
Intense, I recommend getting rid of the cable stops and have another “mount” like for the rear brake cable/hose, forcing the use of full-length housing.
Ride: Breaking in the new parts and trying to find the best rear shock pressure took a couple of rides, but a good guess for the stem length and the fit was ideal. The ride is amazing!!! Even in very wet, slippery, rooty conditions couldn’t get the rear wheel to slip/spin out with the air shock. Switching to a coil shock changed the feel of the bike a lot.
Now you’re asking switch to a coil? Yes, the Fox RP3 blew after 3 rides. Luckily a terrific bike shop in Nanaimo, BC – Pacific Rim Bicycles hooked me up with a loner shock. A used Fox Vanilla R while the air shock is getting new seals. The loner was the correct fitment for the bike and allowed me to keep riding on my X-Mas, see the outlaws (really a bike) vacation.
I just can’t say enough good things about Pacific Rim Bicycle. Thanks!!!
The geometry and handling are remarkable. The steep seat tube makes long climbs more pleasant and efficient (only 1 degree less than my road bike). The slack head tube makes for forgiving handling. The overall fit of the frame is as close to ideal as I’ve ever tried. Felt very comfortable on the bike and my riding improved immediately, giving me more confidence on steep, gnarly sections of trail.
VPP rear suspension:
General - The rear suspension is very rider position sensitive. Push your weight back a bit and the rear suspension compresses, making manuals a breeze. This also meant a surprising amount of travel was used when climbing on steep inclines, but this may have contributed to the amazing traction. The RP3 felt over damped and was slow to extend after hits. I ran the rebound completely off and still the suspension seemed slow to extend. With the coil spring the rear was much quicker to extend after hits, but was also easier to make it loose traction.-
The Good - climbed very efficiently and gave awesome traction. It did not seem to stiffen when braking either. Rear suspension was very active at all times, much more so that 4 bar or linkage bikes.
The Other – Recommended air pressure for the shock is body weight, this still produced too much sag, ended up running about 110-115% of body weight to get the right sag. Even still rear end seemed to go through a lot of travel on little bumps. Noticed this a lot on the first couple of rides and then didn’t notice it. Could have been due to a reduction in this sensation with the coil spring and/or just getting used to the bike.
Overall: So far I’ve had a couple of boring rides and 2+ weeks of excellent terrain to ride the bike on (BC – Vancouver Island and the North Shore). Intense is definitely onto something here. When I rode the Nomad I felt instantly comfortable on it, but the reach to the bars was way too short. The 6.6 has the same instant comfortable and relaxed feel but with a better reach.
The Marzocchi 66 SL fork has adjustable travel 150-170mm. In the short setting the bike was very quick and agile on tight twisty singletrack and climbed superb. In the 170mm mode the front end was light feeling and wandered when climbing, but high speed and steep down hill sections were an absolute blast. Great control and easy to stay relaxed and focus on the trail.
Final Thoughts - This is the best riding MTB I’ve ever been on. Allows you to climb anything your fitness will allow and descend/play however and wherever you want. Cable routing and shock problems aside, I highly recommend this bike. Now if the snow at home would just melt so I can get out and ride it more…….. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
AS
a
from NYC
Date Reviewed: January 16, 2007 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$1850.00 | | Strengths: | -read review | | Weaknesses: | -read review | | Bottom Line: | I remember how psyched I was to ride this bike. That changed once I actually threw a leg over it. I tried to give the 6.6 the benefit of the doubt for a good six months when I started having problems but, in the end, I decided it was not for me. It’s an excellent bike, just not for rocky East Coast trails, with short and steep climbs. I don’t know how or where you ride but, do yourself a favor and test-ride the Intense 6.6 before you drop coin on one.
The following review is for anyone who plans to do a lot of XC/All-mountain style riding with the 6.6.
First off, this bike will feel like it rides very high. Only when it sinks into its recommended sag are you sitting IN the bike and not ON TOP of it. Too much air pressure in the rear shock causes this but you also get that feeling when you hop on and off the bike during inadvertent dismounts. Make sure you test ride one if you have shorter legs because this could be a real issue.
Plan on grinding up long, rocky climbs in the middle or big ring because doing so in the granny gear will produce some annoying chain pull and pedal feedback. Forget about standing and trying to crest any hills. And even though you're supposed to stay seated and pedaling smoothly, that's easier said than done on a 35lb bike with 6+ inches of travel. You better have strong legs and be able to stay out of the granny in order to fully enjoy this ride.
Cable routing is difficult and tricky. The rear hydraulic brake line wants to bend outward, along the chainstay, making contact with your heel on the pedal stroke. Zip-ties cure the problem (temporarily) until they end up breaking from the pressure of constant suspension compression. Who wants to carry zip-ties on every ride? Another annoyance was the constant loosening of all 4 linkage bolts. I tried blue locktite twice but finally had to use red in order to keep them in place. An easy fix but the fact they kept coming loose tells me something isn’t right.
Jeff Steber once stated that the 6.6 was not a “freeride” bike but a long travel “All-Mountain” bike… huh? Is that why he made the headangle fairly steep? That’s too bad because downhill performance was very good. Shuttlers and lift assisted freeriders will enjoy the ride of the Intense 6.6 – even with its small amount of brake jack. Only thing is, if that’s how you’re planning on using your bike, you’ll want the SoCom or VPX instead.
In the end, the pedaling efficiency of the VPP did not out-weigh all the negative traits of this bike. But that is just my opinion. My advice would be to seriously test ride one (on actual dirt trails) before you buy. Good luck.
Send me an e-mail if you are interested in buying my frame:
Medium / baby blue / great condition
savemtncreek@yahoo.com
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
iain adams
a
from WHYTELEAFE
Date Reviewed: January 5, 2007 | | Favorite Trail: | afan argoed | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$4500.00 | | Purchased At: | bromley bikes | | Strengths: | Awesome bit of kit. No bob on climbing, handles inspires a confidence beyond ability and downhills like a dedicated DH race bike | | Weaknesses: | none | | Similar Products Used: | Turner 5 spot, Ellsworth Moment, s works enduro, | | Bike Setup: | Tune fastfoot cranks, DT 5.1 Rims on Hope Pro 2 hubs, Thomson stem, post, Easton monkeylite dh bars, 2007 XTR gears and shifters. Bel air saddle, top notch finishing kit etc etc | | Bottom Line: | This is the finest MTB that money can buy. dont f*ck about with anything else. Ride the 6.6, you WILL love it and if you have the dough BUY IT. Bikes just dont come any better than this, it does it all ....better than anything else comparable. I was after an Ellsworth Moment but the UK importer was a complete a-hole and treated me like an inconvenience. I did eventually get to try one out and I loved it- great bike. Then I tried the 6.6 , forget it Ellsworth, no competition. This bike IS JUST THAT GOOD!!! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Rural
a Weekend Warrior
from Autralia and USA
Date Reviewed: December 2, 2006 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | rbikes.com | | Strengths: | So much fun to ride, see bottom line... | | Weaknesses: | None so far | | Bike Setup: | XT Cranks, SRAM X9 Shifters, X0 Rear Der, FOX DHX Air Shock, Fox Van 36 RC2 Fork, Truvati Team stem/post, Truvati Holzfeller bar, Mavic Crossmax XL Wheels, Shimano 959 pedals, Avid Juicy 7 brakes (203 frnt, 165 rear) - Total Weight 32lbs | | Bottom Line: | Ok – I’ve waited for 6 months after getting this bike to get over the initial euphoria of the first rides so that I could put in a fair review.
Really happy with all the component listed above, at this point I wouldn’t change a thing.
I started with the Cane Creek Double XC headset and changed it out to a FSA 1.5R flush mount. This changed the geometry of the bike slightly and made it a little less free ride and faster on the single track. If you were using the 06 (or earlier) Manitou fork that has a shorter axle to crown height, you could get away with the larger headset. The reduction in height after installing the flush headset was noticeable and made fast single track with tight uphill turns noticeably easier and I think the bike is better for it – so if you are going with a fork that has a long axle to crown height and do a lot of single track – I’d recommend using a flush headset.
I am amazed at the bikes ability to climb. I live at the bottom of a mountain and climbing was high on my requirement/concerns list. This is my first VPP bike so I have no idea how much of this is down to Intense or just the VPP design – but the climb concerns were put to rest on my very first ride. Also, I can stop for an extra long breather on the top of the hill as it’s like a rocket downhill and I can easily catch up with my buddies on the downhill. It has the ability to be far quicker than I’ve had the nerve to push it. If you get off line on the downhill, it really doesn’t matter, the bike just takes the hits when you take the worst possible drops instead of the correct line. You soon find yourself purposely taking the line that includes the bigger drops just for the fun of it.
Once you get a bit of speed under the bike it takes on a really subtle and responsive personality, this just makes you want to go faster.
At slow speed the balance is great. Sitting at a standstill this is the most well balanced bike I’ve ever ridden. As a whole, fast, slow, drops… the bike just gives you that added confidence and trust that makes the ride more fun.
This bike is like a serious addiction, I get up early, move work appointments around – anything just to squeeze another ride in.
I would strongly recommend this bike to anyone that can put the coin together to buy it – you cannot wipe the smile off my face when I hit the trails on this thing!
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Submitted by
Frank
a Weekend Warrior
from Chicago, IL, USA
Date Reviewed: November 21, 2006 | | Favorite Trail: | Swallow Cliff | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | rbikes.com | | Strengths: | Great handling, extremely efficient, light weight for a 6" travel bike, very durable. CNC machined. Beautiful finish. Everything and more than I expected out of the bike! | | Weaknesses: | After 6 months of riding, none that I've found so far. | | Similar Products Used: | Trek's, GT's, Ellsworth's, Foes, and others. | | Bike Setup: | Fox Vanilla 36 RC2, Hayes El Camino's 8"F, 8"R, Cane Creek Double XC headset, XT Shifters, XTR Rear Derailleur, Saint Cranks, top of the line Hadley Hubs w/ Ti Bolt on rear & 20mm front w/ Mavic 823 rims, Thomson stem & post, TruVativ Team bars, great build kit! | | Bottom Line: | I've owned quite a few bikes and I would have to say that the Intense 6.6 has been a pleasant surprise as far as durability, handling & efficiency. The bike does pedal much better than I assumed it would. With 6 inches of travel, this bike climbs exceptionally well. I chose the Manitou Swinger over the Fox and have been extremely happy with my choice. By far the best long travel bike that I've owned. The guys over at Richards really helped me pick the right parts for this bike. The combination of the Saint cranks, rear Ti bolt on axel and the front 20mm thru axel was by far the best advise that any shop had given me. The bike has absolutely no side to side flex and tracks/handles better than any bike I've owned.
I've talked to many shops, and these guys really cared about the purchase of my new bike. I would definitely recommend them if you're looking to buy a new bike.
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Submitted by
matthew loitz
a Downhiller
from new britain, ct usa
Date Reviewed: September 7, 2006 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$4300.00 | | Strengths: | "All mountain" literally | |
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