Exile was a huge hit in 2010, as more riders discovered the benefits of 29-inch wheels, and the dialed-in feel of our tweaked-and-tuned geometry. It takes more than giant hoops to make a great trail bike, and we've got it down to a science with perfect weight distribution for railing descents, awesome climbing traction, and perfect cockpit dimensions that let you muscle your way over trail obstacles with finesse. This year's Exile line gets expanded upmarket with our new Exile 3—top-tier parts like the Rock Shox Recon Silver Solo Air fork, Avid's bomber Elixir brakeset and SRAM's new X9 2x10 drivetrain gives you all the trail capability you could want. All Exiles feature the same incredible chassis, a Jamis-designed frame with an extremely low-slung main triangle for lots of standover, gobs of torsional rigidity that enhances handling and power transfer, expertly welded from double-butted Kinesis 6061 tubing for incredible trail feel.
Submitted by
ImaFred
a Cross Country Rider
from Las Vegas
Date Reviewed: January 30, 2012
Strengths: Predictable handling, nice looking, fairly light for price point
Weaknesses: 2 cracked frames in less than 14 months, I ride technical xc and cracked it, so if you ride AM trails a lot I would stay away from this frame.
Bottom Line:
Fun bike, predictable handling, good components for the price.
I've really enjoyed this bike even though I've been cracking them, first one was at seat post tube/seatstays junction and behind bottom bracket, second was again at the seat tube/ top tube. However I'm a big guy at 6'4" 220#s so my expierence with the frames may not be an issue for others.
