Weaknesses: Uncomforatable seat, narrow tires, soft read der. hangers, original pyslo fork flexs at 125mm setting (modified). BB height is a bit low for Colorado terrain.
Bottom Line:
5 hard years on this bike, includding Keystone black diamond runs, Moab, and lots of rough all mountain rides. I ride twice a week spring through fall, and it still functions great!! I do very well on group rides alongside much newer bikes. As components have broke, I've upgraded, but the frame, BB, cranks, and rear suspension have held up remarkably. Everything stock is nicked up or ground down, but nothing has broken. The 4-bar suspension is neutral in all situations and climbs like a goat. I considering replacements, but it is hard to justify when this bike is still working so well.
Bike Setup: Sherman Firefly 130mm(wonderful), Mavic UST ex823 and xm819, Hope XC hubs, Contential Vertical 2.3 Pro UST, SRAM X9 shifters, SRAM XO der., SDG saddle and seat post
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Submitted by
jim paolucci
a Downhiller
from burlington,vt,usa
Date Reviewed: August 25, 2004
Strengths: Coming from a hardtail-diehard, this bike rocks!! Soaks up everything but the BIG stuff. Great traction, smooth handling, and fun to ride. This bike will push your limits and not let you down! Just lookout for the 6'+ drops at speed.
Weaknesses: 1. The lower shock mount bolt is too small! Spec'd at 8mm, should be 10mm. Broke one, bent the next and waiting till it fails.
2.Psylo Fork: Blown 3 Carts. Moved to 20mm, blew that one too, much stiffer tho...
3. Rims are weak! Many flat spots later, moved to XT Disc's w/Rhynolite rims, no prob's since...
3. Sqeaky Shock pivots. Grease them a lot and then add lube.
Bottom Line:
This is the bike to have if your moving to the "suspencion" movement! It may weigh more than you hardtail, but it will ride smoother and faster in the rough.
Read the other reviews and see that they are right up there on getting this bike to rock the house. Did the same and happy ever since. Thanks!!
Similar Products Used: Tried them all at the shops in town.
Bike Setup: Xt Shifters/frt der. and Cranks, 01 Psylo XC 20mm, 8"frt disc, ODI, Thomson Post, Kenda Kinetics, 2.3r, 2.6f
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Submitted by
ryan elliott
a Weekend Warrior
from CA Orange County
Date Reviewed: May 6, 2003
Strengths: everything is very strong and light.
Weaknesses: seatpost slips
Bottom Line:
with it being my first bike i beat the crap out of it. doing jumps and dh runs at mamouth mountain. it held up great. all i replaced were the tires and tubes.
Strengths: Best suspension design ever. powerful brakes. lighter rims than old hardtail, so it accelerates and climbs better. I weigh 120 lbs. so this bike can handle six foot drops with a ton of air pressure in the shock. I can ride farther and faster and not be near as tired as on old specialized hardtail.
Weaknesses: Needs coil-over shock to hold up on big drops. Body geometry seats are the hardest, most unforgiving seats conceived by mankind. Specialized got ripped by some scam-artist "engineers" that supposedly spent "time" on "research and development" for these seats. You hafta replace it if your mama wants grandchildren. Coil in front and air in rear(not balanced as well as I would like
Bottom Line:
Most versatile bike I have ever ridden. You can race cross country one day, change the travel settings, and hit the slopes the next day. This is a trailbike with an attitude. It likes to play.
Similar Products Used: super V 500 Specialized rockhopper
Bike Setup: Changed Pyslo to five inch travel. This made the geometry slacker, more stable at speed.
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Submitted by
Brad
a Weekend Warrior
from Woy Woy, NSW, Australia
Date Reviewed: June 24, 2002
Strengths: It does what it is supposed to do and does it exceptionally well. The Psylos are fantastic, will be even better when I can get the cash together for the U-Turn upgrade.
Weaknesses: The middle chain wheel is crap - end of story. I have noticed a bit of flex in the cranks but nothing that really causes any concern (I only weigh 69kg (about 155lbs) and wouldn't consider myself all that powerfull). The seat pole has moved on me and because of the frame setup can't get it down low enough on steep decents but hopefully all this will be fixed with one of those new telescopic poles.
Bottom Line:
The Enduro was designed to be an all day epic bike, not as a big drop free ride bike. As far as a trail bike goes, all I can say is that this bike is sweet. I can't wait to get out and ride. It's good to look at too...
Strengths: this is a good bike if you do cross country but if you freeride then youll break it
Weaknesses: the bikes weaknesses are the rear triangle seeing as how i broke it two time and i bent the seat post
Bottom Line:
the bottom line this bike sucks for downhill or freerideing trust me i had to get it warrantyed about three time twice for the rear tri angle and once for breaking the hayes caliper. if you wanna freeride get the giant ac2 or straight 6.
Similar Products Used: azonic dh, dh s works,ac 2,
Bike Setup: race face cranks, 8 inch travel kit, nokians race face bar and dh stem
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Submitted by
Joe
a Weekend Warrior
from Newington, CT
Date Reviewed: May 8, 2002
Strengths: FS is nice, rides nice, climbs well, mud guards work but look dorky
Weaknesses: rear tire tread sliced off when i hit a rock, bent front middle chainring because chain got bound up in it, rear brake lines rub on rear tire during hard bumps, causing the rubber coating on brake line to wear off. fox floatR seems weak for my size (235 lbs)
Let's get the gripes out of the way right up front: the seatpost slips, the bars are too wide, the cranks are flexy and the chainrings are soft and cheap. I'm also slightly annoyed at the choice of tires that came with the bike, and the Deore shifter pods, but I've grown used to the BG seat and don't mind it so much anymore. So what's great about this bike? Everything else, from what I can tell. I've put about 200 miles on mine with very few problem, mostly New England technical singletrack and some jumps and drops. The suspension soaks up everything and I can climb better (it seems) than my old hardtail, especially on rocky ascents. This thing goes where I point it, much more so without the stock rubber, and it has inspired a huge amount of confidence. Can you do better for the money? You can probably come close if you try, but you could certainly do a lot worse. An XT crankset, Thomspon bars and seatpost, and the new tires will push me past the $2k mark, but I still think it's a great value. Oh, and the Psylo? I was (still am) a huge Marzocchi fan, but I am happier than I though I could be with this fork.
If you love watching your buddies drive away while you sit on the trailside fixing your bike, then this one's for you!
Rear wheel won't stay in place no matter how much you tighten the rear quick release. Hit anything bigger than a golf ball sized bump and the wheel is completely knocked out of place, followed by the lovely sound of your rear disc jamming in the brake pads and the sound of your rear derailleur chewing away. I spend more time carrying than riding.
Rims are ultrasoft, be prepared to spend lots of time on them (by the way, I'm only 5'11" and 175 lb so I'm not exactly exceeding this bikes "supposed" limit)
Seat hurts like hell, get rid of it ASAP!
Handlebars are about 2" too wide, cut them immediately or you'll end up taking lots of bark home as souvenirs.
I'm glad I didn't pay the full $3200 CDN for this bike, I ended up getting it for about half, which is still too much given the problems I've been having. I have a 7 year old Rocky Mountain Fusion with original Rock Shock's on it that is more reliable than this. Save your money, head to Canadian Tire and buy a $300 CCM special, you'll get about the same riding experience.
Similar Products Used: Nothing comes close to how crappy this bike is, so why compare?
Bike Setup: 2001 FSR Enduro Expert Stock
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Submitted by
MIKE LAVOIE
a Weekend Warrior
from MONTREAL
Date Reviewed: March 25, 2002
Strengths: CLIMBES SUPRISINGLY WELL, PSYLO XC FORK HAYES BRAKES ARE BOTH GREAT!TAKES SMALL TO LARGE BUMPS VERY WELL, GREAT HANDLING AND IS A POINT AND SHOOT BIKE.
Weaknesses: TRY TO EXCHANGE THE SEAT POST AND CHAINRINGS RIGHT AWAY, BECAUSE IN ABOUT A MONTH YOU WILL HAVE TO ANYWAYS. I HAD A PROBLEM WITH THE BRAKES(CABLE DAMAGE OR AIR LEAK)A GOOD TWIST OF THE HADLE BARS SCREWED UP MY BRAKES.I'LL SEE WHAT MY LBS WILL HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THE HAYES.CHAINRIGS BENT GOING UP A STEEP HILL!!!
Bottom Line:
THERE IS NO BETTER BY FOR MY MONEY THEN THE ENDURO EXPERT! AT THE PRICE I PAID ($2300 CAN) I AM VERY HAPPY WITH WHAT I GOT. THIS BIKE HANDLES EVERYTHING FROM SMALL HUMPS TO THE STEEPEST CLIFF YOU CAN FIND.THE ONLY REASON I DIDN'T GIVE IT A 5 CHILI RATING IS THE SEAT POST AND THE CHAINRINGS, BESIDE THAT THIS RIDE IS WICKED!FROM WEEKENDER TO MR.10 FOOT DROP THIS BIKE IS FOR YOU.
Bike Setup: STOCK ENDURO EXPERT:PSYLO XC, HAYES DISK, M515 PEDALS, FOX FLOAT RC, XTR REAR, ETC...
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Submitted by
Robert
a Weekend Warrior
from Vancouver
Date Reviewed: November 19, 2001
Strengths: Frame, 4 bar linkage, Hayes Discs,
Weaknesses: stock seatpost, stock seat, Fox float r (2 warranty claims on it in 10 months)
Bottom Line:
I had the honor of being the first to review this bike @ 1 year ago, and had very high praises for it. In the past year I have taken a few components off of it to put on my hardtail and replaced them with misc. upgrades.
The Psylo was a fantastic fork, however by adding a Marzocchi Z1 I now have 5" of the smoothest, plushest travel available (I picked up the fork at a price I could not refuse, that was the main reason for upgrading)
I have had the Float R fail on me twice now (not an agressive rider, weigh 165lbs) and picked up a Vanilla R that has been doing the job.
The hayes are phenominal. Still on the original set of pads!
The bike has allowed me to ride so much better than before, and even with the extra weight it still climbs like a dream. I am one very happy FSR owner, and would recommend the design to anyone.
Similar Products Used: RM Slayer, Giant AC, GF sugars
Bike Setup: For the first 6 months I ran the bike stock except for the seatpost, seat and stem.
now running Marzocchi Z1, Shimano LX cranks, Fox vanilla r
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Submitted by
Heath Huffman
a Cross Country Rider
from Andover, MA
Date Reviewed: October 29, 2001
Strengths: Components rock; Hayes, XTR, Mavic.
Weaknesses: SEATPOST is TRASH!!!! Seat is hard
Bottom Line:
OK, the strengths have already been said many times already and I absolutely aree with all of them except I do not see many gripes about the Ritchey seatpost. This is the biggest piece of dung I have ver experienced on a bike. I weigh only 190 lbs and am fairly strong but even after I crank that seat to post bolt down as hard as possible it still gets knocked out every ride. I ended up replacing it immediately, but other than the switch from Rapid Fire to Sram in the rear this bike needs no immediate upgrades.
Bike Setup: Stock other than Race Face stem and seatpost, SRAM Rocket rear shifter (how could anyone use rapidfire, it's CRAP?!)
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Submitted by
Don Olson
a Weekend Warrior
from Irwin, Pa. USA #1
Date Reviewed: October 24, 2001
Strengths: Great Suspension technology, love da Hayes! Great customer service (Cudo's to Gatto Cycles and Specialized)Love the Psylo (customized by me!)
Weaknesses: My ding dong damn seat mast/tube cracked in the clamp area where they remove material so you can clamp the seatpost in place. 2 stress fractures. I've blown the rear shock numerous times or had "slow" leaks (finally seems to be fixed)Psylo needs damper replaced. I replaced the cranks, handlebar, seatpost, tires, pedals, chainrings and am going to replace the stem...Other than that it's perfect!
Bottom Line:
This has been a really great bike despite some meltdowns. I've owned it now for 10 months and I just discoverd the cracked frame. Gatto Cycles is getting me the new 02 model which should be stronger. My riding ability has really improved since I bought this bike. I now do things that I shied away from before. Overall I really like the suspension at both ends and the Hayes rule other than the occasional singing, but that is my fault. I can't wait to see my new frame and get it up to Laurel Mountain and beat it on the rocks up there. If you want a bike that really makes riding a joy and mocks rocks this is the one buy. There are more expensive copies out there but for the $$ this is tough to beat.
Similar Products Used: My dear old FSR Comp that finally gave up da ghost! Broke the seat tube/mast weld area (hmmmmmm a trend maybe?????)
Bike Setup: STOCK off da floor except for: Time Pedals, Race Face cranks, rings. Profile riser bar, Different seat. Custom srping kit on the Psylo
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Submitted by
Adam Buck
a Weekend Warrior
from Minnesota
Date Reviewed: October 22, 2001
Strengths: great all around bike. love the disc brakes. suspension way better than my fsr sport
Weaknesses: rear seat stay broke after one month of riding, seat
Bottom Line:
this is a great bike and i would recommend it to any body but the drive train isn't the best for how much i paid. I would love to see a xtr front derailler and a new seat. But that is an easy fix. also i rode the bike for one month and broke the rear seat stay. specialized said it was because of a bad weld by the disc brake mount. Come on specialized you are a good bike company mistakes like this on a higher end bike shouldn't happen. it took them a month and a half to get the right bearings and frame parts to LBS. the bike shop has had the bike as long as i have. all in all i still have to give it five flammin turds all around. great bike, i ride it hard and it likes it. graet for the epic and freeride bunch too.
