Submitted by
Mundi
a Cross Country Rider
from tauranga
Date Reviewed: January 10, 2003
Strengths: awesome frame, standard components are great.
Weaknesses: those Rst shocks are shocking, and the Rst Disk brakes dont brake.
Bottom Line:
awsome bike great standard setup , once you change the shocks and brakes then its a really good bike that will last you for ages and handles anything you throw at it,(within reason,3 foot drops are really pushing it)
Similar Products Used: Specialised rockhopper, Gt idrive 3.0
Bike Setup: deore groupo, magura hydro discs, judy01 xc shocks
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Submitted by
Robin Williams
a Weekend Warrior
from Perth, WA, Australia
Date Reviewed: March 11, 2002
Strengths: Strong Frame Running Components Disc Brakes are great
Weaknesses: Could be lighter, might be due to the heavy shocks. The Shocks bottom out all the time. I can see why the new model has a new set of shocks.
Bottom Line:
Good value for money. I couldn't find a bike which had similar components for the same low price.
Bike Setup: Standard I would like to replace the shocks on the front.
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Submitted by
Martin Dibb
a Cross Country Rider
from Canberra, ACT, Australia
Date Reviewed: September 4, 2001
Strengths: Great frame (strong, beautifully welded in NZ, great finish,though a little heavy),nice Deore gearset and hollow cranks, bargain Magura Julie hydraulic discs, easy adjustment of headstem height.
Weaknesses: Unbelievably crappy RST Gamma EL forks (constantly top out even on sealed road use,noisey, even with preload adjustment on full stiff I was getting 2" of bob when standing up),bars way too wide, headstem set-up too high from factory.
Bottom Line:
Great value bike if you tinker with the setup a bit. I wondered why the hell I had ditched my Sedona/MG 21 setup when I first got the Barra home and rode the RST shocks. So chuck the RST forks away and fit a good quality front shock BEFORE you leave the shop!
Similar Products Used: Previous bike was '96 Giant Sedona with Rock Shox MG 21's.
Bike Setup: Changed saddle to Surface RX, shaved 1.5" off bar width each side, dropped headset height to lowest adjustment, upgraded to Magura stainless steel braided lines ($150 US and worth every cent for the "harder" feel lever and line strength), Rock Shox SID 100 shocks ($500 US full air unit with adjustable rebound - best shock I have ever used and also worth every cent. Only 10mm bob when set on full slow rebound. 4" suspension travel available for off road!!).
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Submitted by
Andrew
a Weekend Warrior
from Adelaide Australia
Date Reviewed: September 3, 2001
Strengths: Great frame, excellent brakes, decent Deore groupset
Weaknesses: RST shockers are crap for this type of bike
Bottom Line:
This was the best value bike I could find. The frame and brakes are excellent and the Deore groupset is not bad. The only thing that is letting it down is the RST gamma EL forks. I changed mine to Rockshox Psylo's (quit an upgrade I know!) This has made it a much better bike. I would recommend this bike to anyone who wants a good bike for a weekend thrash but dosn't want to pay thousands.
Submitted by
Adrian Hudson
a Weekend Warrior
from Australia
Date Reviewed: August 12, 2001
Strengths: Nice stiff frame with a long wheel base which makes this bike fast and a good climber. The julie discs are damn good stoppers. The cockpit is very comfortable with a shorter stem (off the 2001 v brake). Full deore group set with the hollow tech cranks (stiff).
Weaknesses: The RST fork has no rebound dampening and is very soft. If you are going to jump this bike DON'T. I you learn to ride with the fork and not against it, it will still soak up the big bumps. The rims are also a little week as i managed to potato chip the back after 2 weeks of not very hard riding. The bike is also a little heavy but change forks and that would be solved.
Bottom Line:
If you want an affordable weekend riding bike go for it and with a fork upgrade it would be a machine to be reckoned with.
Weaknesses: comes with crappy rear hub, and brake levers are expensive to replace
Bottom Line:
i didnt show a price coz insurance paid for it (retail NZ$1899, i think). over all not a bad bike even if i did snap a frame, (avanti sent my a new one within a week no charge(big ups to avanti)), original hub was shocking, got it send away twice to get fixed, avanti ended up giving me a xt hub for NZ$85 (retail NZ$230), so now i havent had a problem with it. would recommend for cross country or light downhill.
Bike Setup: full deore, xt rear hub, some cool stem by bike mechanic put on for nothing, big strong square thing, 2001 barracuda frame coz i snapped the old one
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Submitted by
Daryl Clark
a Weekend Warrior
from Brisbane
Date Reviewed: July 7, 2001
Strengths: frame can be bashed around, i've done 5 footers and landed flat, the frame didn't flench at all. the components on it last a while but need up gradeing after a while
Weaknesses: the front suspension (rockshox jett) is bad, it hits my front tyre after doing a drop. the cranks are a &^%$# and a half, i banged it on a rock and the whole crankarm bent. the rims suck major!!! i've buckled them over 400000 times and they just keep buckleing, well maybe it because the rims are CRAP ! the front end is a bit heavy i find it hard to wheelie and do wheelie drops
Bottom Line:
if u need some bike that u can thrash, and don't have a lot of money at all, this is the bike. it takes anything besides 1000000000 foot drops and crazy stuff that crazy people do.
Submitted by
Roger Cleland
a Weekend Warrior
from Auckland
Date Reviewed: May 21, 2001
Strengths: Refer below reveiw - they only fault at time of purchase was the RST brakes ..... Well Avanti have upgraded the Barracuda to Hydaulic Disks 2001 models on, so my LBS (PINS Manukau)& Avanti have come to the party and supplied Magura Hydralic "JULIE" disks for a reduced cost.(Thanx) So with the JULIE on the bike, I have no compliants - The Barracuda is great.... recommend to all
Weaknesses: Now the RST brakes are gone - the only downfall is the RST Fork.... see the common denominator "RST" - but the Fork does the business just
Bottom Line:
Worth it now - With the Barracuda sporting the Magura disks this bike is a great package for the price. This bike is definetly worth a look if you are looking for a new bike.
Favorite Trail: Still 'Hunua' - but going to Rotorua soon
Duration Product Used: 1 Year
Price Paid:
$800.00
Purchased At: PINS cycles
Bike Setup: Standard
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Submitted by
Roger
a Weekend Warrior
from Auckland, New Zealand
Date Reviewed: December 15, 2000
Strengths: Great looking Bike - quite light - good Componentry - Deore
Weaknesses: Crappy Disc RST Brakes
Bottom Line:
Good Bike with some nice/solid components on it - would have been nice to see it with a decent front Fork and maybe different Disk Brakes as they dont perform as well as they could - otherwise a great bike handles pretty much anything you can through at it and not a price that kills ya.
Submitted by
Eddie
a Weekend Warrior
from QLD, Australia
Date Reviewed: October 20, 2000
Strengths: Lightweight, Deore Componentry
Weaknesses: RST Gamma EL forks (they suck big time), RST DX-1 disc brakes
Bottom Line:
I basically looked for a bike that was below $1500 (Australian)and the Avanti Barracuda (disc) was the best option (so I thought). When I first tried it (for about 5 min) I thought this was the bike. After riding it to work and going off road on the weekends it became apparent that discs were not working properly. I took it back to the shop and they set it up 'properly' but I now know that it's the discs that are crappy. The RST Gamma EL fork is of poor quality as well. MY SUGGESTION IS TO STAY AWAY FROM RST.
I am now looking for another bike, something with manitou or rock shox forks
Similar Products Used: Specialized Hardrock & Rockhopper, Giant Atx 870
Bike Setup: Standard
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Submitted by
Darren Hoops
a Cross Country Rider
from Whyalla
Date Reviewed: August 10, 2000
Strengths: Looks, Weight, balance, forks.
Weaknesses: Rims
Bottom Line:
I have been very happy since switching from my GT Palomar to my Avanti. My only complaint is that I had a huge while on a wicked Downhill section which resulted in why fromnt Araya rim bending in half. I have since then also buckled my rear rim. Previous a had never seriously buckled a rim. This bike would be an excellent step up for a beginner/novices first bike.
