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Submitted by
James
a Weekend Warrior
from Telford Shropshire England
Date Reviewed: December 6, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | hills and lakes | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$1500.00 | | Purchased At: | England | | Strengths: | Good suspension | | Weaknesses: | batteries running out of power in the smart shock | | Similar Products Used: | proflex animal | | Bike Setup: | XT group set, front GT hub, crow bar handle bars, everything else came as standard | | Bottom Line: | good buy at the end of the day, its lasted me two years and I havnt had any problems, even after I landed full force, bottoming out the front forks and snapping the brake booster - its almost asa good as the first day I bought it! | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
R Lemke
a Weekend Warrior
from Albuquerque, NM
Date Reviewed: April 14, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Otero Canyon - any of 'em | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$1200.00 | | Purchased At: | Sportz Outdoors | | Strengths: | Takes hills great (up and down)! Gearing, weight proportion, traction, stiffness, etc combine for a great ride. I'm beating riding partners who spent twice as much for their bikes (Specialized, LiteSpeed). | | Weaknesses: | SHIFTER - not a reliable performer. None, one, two gears, never know which when trying to attack that hill. Techs have adjusted it nearly weekly, but goes back to its old tricks after another ride or two. They tell me it's a matter of the proper adjustment, my question is why so frequently?
SMART FORK - Battery seems to last only about 5-10 hours.
FYI - A friend and I bought our 3000's on the same day, but his has been trouble-free. | | Similar Products Used: | None really. My previous MB was a Gary Fisher Tassajara (hard tail ~$250). | | Bike Setup: | Factory, as far as I know. Came from Sportz Outdoors, Albuquerque, with the following setup: K2 Smartfork, Noleen rear shock/spring, LX/XT, clip in pedals, Avid Arch Rival 40 brakes, Sun Rims Sub IV, Panaracer Fire XCPro tires. Trashed the italian seat in my first month (busted off when the bike went down - rode it 5 miles with only the rack to sit on), put the cheapest seat I could find on it when they told me K2 doesn't cover these replacements. | | Bottom Line: | This is a good beginner/intermediate all purpose MB for varied terrain (don't insult it and keep it on asphalt). Bottom line is I'm a better rider on this bike than I was on my (cheap) hard tail. I have more confidence and the bike makes up for my (frequent) errors in judgement. Wish I had gone with the mid-size rather than the large frame because my balance in the air sucks (leaning too much to reach the handlebars). The brakes are fine for what I encounter around Albuquerque, but not for what I've tried around San Diego. I paid $1200 for it, but that included a life time service plan (made money on this). At the time, it seemed like a big investment, now I'm planning to upgrade after I get a decent RB. A big thanks to Dave, Matt and the crew at Sportz Outdoors! They were really patient as my friend and I made numerous stops in their store before taking the plunge on a four-figure MB. This bike has opened up a whole new FUN world of fitness and challenge. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Bill Jordan
a Cross Country Rider
from Charlotte, NC
Date Reviewed: August 8, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Catawba River Trail | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Overall design and feel. Solid components all around for a low price. | | Weaknesses: | Smart Fork, weight | | Similar Products Used: | Sugar 2, FSR | | Bike Setup: | Stock except SID XC fork and increased rear spring from a 500 to a 600. | | Bottom Line: | I was not able to get this bike at quite as good of a deal as some of the others that have reviewed it but I still bought it for under $1000. I took the savings and put a SID XC on it before I even left the shop and now the bike handles and feels great. I have a Smart Fork on my K2 Zed X (hardtail) that I have not been impressed with.
Overall I am a big K2 fan. I think they give you a lot of bike for your money. The 3000 is fast and handles the downhills like a champ. I weigh over 200lbs and have had no problems with bobbing even during tough climbs. I would recomend this bike to anyone wanting a bomb proof FS XC and DH bike | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Wizard
a
from Reseda, CA USA
Date Reviewed: June 18, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Bottom Line: | What a bike for the money! I bought the close-out and this is quite a bike for $799. I immediately swapped for a Sefas Exterminator series seat (which works like a magic for me), cut down the seat post and put Shimano dual pedals on.
The K2 rides nice for XC, however I wanted to achieve more of an upright position for trail rides so I have put on a shorter stem. I will have a rise bar installed later today or tomorrow.
It appears that the new 2000 EV0 3.0 is the exact same frame, with similar components (if memory serves me). I seem to remember that the crank set is different, as is the front shock, and they lowered the price -- however it's essentially the same bike. It is still basically LX/XT , Avid, with a Norleen 2 rear shock. I think K2 had problems selling the K2 3000 at the $1600 price point , hence the year end blow out. Everyone reviewing this bike bought the blowout, so that should tell us something! At $1299, the K2 3000 would have still been a great deal, and would have sold MUCH better originally. However, their mistake is our gain, and we all got to buy this bike at basically half price as a year-end clearance! I believe that K2 got smart and dropped the price on the new model. The EVO 3.0 at $1299 will still be a good bargain though.
If you get a chance to get the clearance deal on this bike -- TAKE IT! It is a really solid performer. If not, grind your local bike shop down on the EVO 3.0... | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Ghetto Ridah
a Weekend Warrior
from Glendale
Date Reviewed: May 28, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Just plain fun to ride. Components package: XT rear derailleur, LX front derailleur, LX BB, LX shifters, LX cranks, LX cassette, LX hubs, Sun SubIV rims, Avid AR40 brakes, Fire XC Pro tires, Titec bar/stem/ends, 85mm Smart Fork , 4.7" Noleen rear shock(both adjustable for preload and rebound), 7005 aluminum frame..., AND it doesn't bob when mashing at the pedals, AND it weighs ~28 lbs... all for $799 (closeout price). | | Weaknesses: | Seat is a torture device. The frame fits my inseam with 3" of standover, but the seat tube is too long to adjust down for hairy descents. I had to trim 2.5 inches off to make it more versatile/adjustable for both XC high and quasi-DH low (true DH probably requires at least 6 inches cut off). The color: yellow?! I'm confused: 4.7 inches of rear travel, ~28 lbs., but outfitted with a flat bar, long stem, and bar ends as if it was a XC race bike? | | Bike Setup: | Stock | | Bottom Line: | Seeing a really rutted fireroad, I can't suppress the ear-to-ear grin that I get. Instead of avoiding bumps, roots, rocks, and ruts, I intentionally look for them to run over. Wow, that 2ft. drop was fun; let's do it again!
CONTROL = FUN.
This thing forces me to push my limits. Descending down a rutted fireroad, I look down at the bike computer that reads 25 mph. Then I think... I can go faster than this Try to have this much fun on any other bike costing $799.
A little note about the weight: You might cringe at the weight of ~28 lbs. (some others on this site claim 27 lbs.), but find me a full suspension bike at this price that weighs under 29 lbs. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Dale
a Weekend Warrior
from Leander,TX
Date Reviewed: May 25, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | City Park in Austin | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | Plush rear suspension, balanced feel, confidence inspiring.
Nice component package on a sturdy frame at a reasonable price. It always does what my 200 lbs tells it to. | | Weaknesses: | Smart Fork seems a little sticky, but always works well when
rolling, haven't bottomed it yet. Lack of fork boots doesn't make sense on a dirt bike. | | Similar Products Used: | Marin B-17 (5 Chili's!!!!!) | | Bike Setup: | Added Hell-Bent Riser, Odyssey Triple Trap pedals, Berserker DH Saddle, Kujo DH 2.25 Tires. Everything else is just fine the way it is. | | Bottom Line: | A great bike with some questionable parts choices. It is obviously designed as a freerider, so why a flat h-bar w/ends and the very flat-prone Fire XC Pro tires? All these things are cheap and easy to replace (and a matter of personal preference) so it is not a problem. Really like the simple but effective rear suspension design. It is a fine handling bike that must be recommended.
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
LP
a Cross Country Rider
from Roseville, CA, USA
Date Reviewed: May 19, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Dyke 8 (Folsom, CA) | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Plush ride, very responsive, climbs great, goes down even better! | | Weaknesses: | It came set up with Avid Arch Rival brakes, they have no stopping power! That should be your first upgrade. | | Similar Products Used: | To many to mention, I tested just about every full-suspension bike I could get my hands on. | | Bike Setup: | K2 3000 w/Smart Fork, Noleen NR-2 rear, Race Face crankset, STX/ST components. | | Bottom Line: | This is a great all around bike. I have been a hard tail purest/holdout until I rode this bike! I was always concerned with how well a full-suspension bike would climb and how much it would weight. This K2 is a great climber and it weights in at 27lbs. I know that is not the lightest bike on the market but it suits me just fine. In addition it feels as if the rear shock forces the back tire to stay on the ground on those grinding technical climbs. To make this bike even better I bought at www.bikesale.com for half the retail price (you have to like that).
I know I have only been riding this bike for a month, however I have been riding MTB for about 10 years. As soon as I pulled this bike out of the box and put it together along with some of the components of my hard tail I knew it was a quality bike.
In closing I would like to give special thanks to the guys at www.bikesale.com and www.webcyclery.com if you need bike or parts forget your LBS hit the net and you will find all you need and save a bundle. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Christopher Caldwell
a Cross Country Rider
from Memphis, TN
Date Reviewed: April 24, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Herb Parsons | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Excellent frame with a very active ride. The frame is not too heavy and the components are all Shimano XT/LX, which provide good reliability. The smart fork is quite different and takes some getting use to, but the noleen rear shock is AwEsOmE! | | Weaknesses: | One very small problem I have found is in the hair trigger rapid fire Deore gears, on the downhill they tend to be set off by the slightest touch, however, this can be adjusted and proves to be only annoying at times. No Biggie! | | Similar Products Used: | Specialized FSR | | Bike Setup: | K2 Smart Fork, Noleen rear shock, XT/LX components, Titec handlebar w/ends, Sun rims. | | Bottom Line: | This bike has improved my riding skills hands down! The ride is very active and the bike responds well, no question that it is very well built and will be around for a long time, upgrades will be made in the future, but none in the near. Phil and the guys at bikesale.com kick !#$! I recommend anyone in the field for a full-suspension bike to give these guys a call and check out what they can do for you!
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Chris
a Weekend Warrior
from california
Date Reviewed: April 11, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | smooth shifting, shocks are smooth, great climbing and decending, very responsive, value($900 at bikesale.com) | | Weaknesses: | none yet | | Similar Products Used: | fsr | | Bike Setup: | stock | | Bottom Line: | quality bike, good all-around bike, fun to ride, shocks are fine and frame is good, good investment, not necessary to upgrade immediately and great for most riders, weight isn't a problem(28.1 lbs) | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Joe Barrett
a Cross Country Rider
from Garden Grove, CA, USA
Date Reviewed: April 6, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Rock It (Aliso Woods); The Luge (Modjeska Canyon); Marshall Canyon | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Smooth, plush, easy to maintain suspension. | | Weaknesses: | A little on the heavy side. | | Similar Products Used: | GT RTS and LTS, Specialized FSR-XC. | | Bike Setup: | Full XTR with 97 Rockshox Judy w/ Englund Total Air Cartridges. | | Bottom Line: | This bike gives you major bang for your buck. I picked it up for $799 at Supergo. I rode it a couple of times with the stock LX/XT setup with no problems. It rode crisp and smooth straight out of the shop. Upgraded the parts with XTR from my other rig. Rebuilt my Judy with Englund TA cartridges and put them on the K2, which created a much more balanced feel to the suspension. I did not like the K2 smart shock. Too gimmicky and too stiff. I love this bike. The suspension is smooth as butter and there's plenty of it. I would recommend this frame to anyone. I am 210 pounds and it's proven a solid ride. I've only had it for a month, but have logged over a hundred miles in this short time. The aluminum swingarm is a must, at least for someone of my build. I've heard negative things about the carbon fiber swingarms, including stories of them cracking in parking lot test rides. You'll notice a lot of shops blowing them out, for that very reason I suspect. The 3000 is a great free ride, and depending on your climbing abilities, a great x-country rig. My only complaint is the weight. Fairly hefty at 28lbs stock. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Grant
a Weekend Warrior
from Pacific Palisades, CA
Date Reviewed: April 6, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | None yet, but I'm looking | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Great price - under $800. Excellent geometry, smooth ride yet very responsive. Good suspension bike for large riders. great brakes for price range. | | Weaknesses: | Not the lightest bike around. | | Similar Products Used: | none | | Bike Setup: | stock | | Bottom Line: | Good overall value - fun off the shelf bomber | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Clint
a Weekend Warrior
from Santa Monica, CA
Date Reviewed: January 6, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: |
Any in the Santa Barbara Mtns. | | Duration Product Used: |
less than 1 month | | Strengths: |
Great downhiller, good hillclimbing, very responsive bike. | | Weaknesses: |
Have not seen any, so far. | | Similar Products Used: |
This is my first full suspension bike. | | Bike Setup: |
Stock set-up. | | Bottom Line: | I did a lot of research on FS bikes. This bike comes with a good component package, excellent response and feel, and a great price. $799.00 from Supergo Bike Shop in Santa Monica. Thanks, Marcelo. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Josh
a Racer
from Goffstown NH
Date Reviewed: December 30, 1999 | | Duration Product Used: |
2 Years | | Strengths: |
light weight
responsive
fast | | Weaknesses: |
nr2 blew up after about 500 miles
stxrc | | Similar Products Used: |
K2 4000
specialized fsr
raleigh m80
trek(all of them)
gary fisher joshua
etc. | | Bike Setup: |
K2 3000
stock set up
except head set...chris king
frog pedals
race day seat
xt crank | | Bottom Line: | Its a great bike. I wasnt happy when my nr2 blew up, but since i got a new one ive had no problems. The nr2 has or had a defect where it unscrews it self while riding. The bike is fast and comfortable. Ive put a lot of miles on it since ive owned it and its been holding up great. Just routine maintance needed...chain, lube, adjustments, etc..
5 cacas for this great bike | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Shawn D
a Weekend Warrior
from Scottsdale, AZ
Date Reviewed: October 2, 1999 | | Favorite Trail: |
Javelina DH | | Duration Product Used: |
6 months | | Strengths: |
Stiff, reasonable weight, well built, easy to maintain (I think) | | Weaknesses: |
none (yet) | | Similar Products Used: |
'97 DBR V-Link 3.0 | | Bike Setup: |
K2 3000 frame and rear shock, 'Zoke Z1 | | Bottom Line: | I built this bike up myself with my own parts, so I can't say anything about K2's spec parts. I have noticed that this frame is noticably stiffer than my previous DBR. The rear suspension also works much better than my DBR. I have noticed almost no pedal induced bobbing and the rear suspension is really supple. My V-Link was a nitemare to maintain. If the pivots were not taken apart, cleaned and lubed very frequently, it was a stiction machine. I think that with only one pivot on the K2, this shouldn't be as much as a problem. I haven't been able to put a lot of miles on the bike yet (about 150), so this is just my initial opinion but I would recommend this bike to anyone. SuperGo has smokin' deals on framesets right now.
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