Bike Setup: FORKS- Rock Shox Phsylo's BARS- Race Face Evolve STEM- El Gallo Hubs- Novatech Rims- TBD SADDLE- Dirty's Own SEAT POST- DA Bomb Brake Set- AVID
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Submitted by
hardrocker77
a Downhiller
from Charlotte NC
Date Reviewed: February 25, 2009
Strengths: Boxed chain stays(VERY beefy), high BB, light, horizontal dropouts with sliding brake mount
Weaknesses: paint scratches easily, drop outs are hard to use chain tensioner with
Bottom Line:
I run both 26"s(for the trails) and 24"s(for street and jump) and this bike rocks, the drop outs are a pain because they are set into the frame and makes it nearly impossible to use a bmx style chain tensioner. Other then that I love it! For the price it cant be beat.
Bike Setup: Marzocchi DJ, Avid bb7, FSA V-drive, singlespeed
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Submitted by
xerxes_667
a Racer
from Romania (E'rn europe)
Date Reviewed: February 6, 2009
Strengths: lightweight yet strong. A good frame for a beginner, also for the 4x or dual races. FAST and easy to manouvre at high speed
Weaknesses: it does its job, but don't try to build a skill on this bike, 'cuz it defenetly doesn't help you! It's not some frame just like all others. It's longer, and this makes it a little harder to manouver at low speed, and in tricks.
Bottom Line:
it's a good 1'st frame, or one only for 4X and dual trails. Otherwise, it will be very hard to get the best out of it, and out of yourself. And that could lead to your disappointment.
Bike Setup: Marzhocchi Z1 freeride: 6 inch hayes mech disc brakes kona db bars: intense locking grips: world force stem: shimano hubs: ditch witch rims: tioga DH tires: SINGLE SPEED
Weaknesses: this piece of s**t...i cant believe i spent my money for something this crap...read the following
Bottom Line:
i cant believe i wasted my money the disc mount....the thing never can be tightened...i cant use any 4 pot calipers with it or else the thing will go loose and the mount scratches the paint off the frame when it moves....4 pot calipers are too good for this frame..so i m stuck with either hayes or avid mechs....oh...8 inch rotors...dun even think about it.... i was using hope enduro 4..i locked my rear wheel and the tire just starts rubbing the frame since the mount is loose and the wheel just shifted towards the left
oh second problem...the paint...i was scratching the frame to get dirt off....and...the paint came off as well..i mean wtf...why would i pay this kind of money for s**t like this
third problem...the ppl that da bomb finds the weld frames obviously are stupid....i need to hold the frame open so i can insert the rear rim....wtf...cheap labour..
conclusion : this frame isnt worth anything..i m selling it
ok there is a good point about this frame...the geometry is great...easy to manual/wheelie/bunnyhop...i m 5' 7 and riding a 16.5 inch frame..it's kinda big but...more stable i guess...da bomb's frames have awkward size....i tried the 14.5 but my toe hits the front tire when i ride
Bike Setup: xt with 8" rotors/dirt jump 3/d521 rim with front formula and rear ringle hubs/truvativ hussefelt cranks and bottom bracket/hutchison tires/funn stem and bar (the big fat one)
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Submitted by
Austin Groves
a Weekend Warrior
from WELLS, MAINE
Date Reviewed: September 19, 2003
Strengths: Intensly strong frame, great angle for dual slalom and DJing, I love that this bike is so beefy and at the same time so light.
Weaknesses: NONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Bottom Line:
All i got to say is with my setup or not this frame is insanly sic. This frame is SOOOO light but at the same time it is SOOOOO beffy, I have the red frame i kinda wished I had the white one but o well it doesnt make a difference so go out and buy a da bomb Sputnik of your own!!!
Bike Setup: Da bomb sputnik 16.5" frame, 5" of rock shox Psylo SL, Shimano cranks, Azonic Fusion pedals, XT rear duraller, salsa moto ace handle bars, a shorty stem(not azonic shorty), Tioga factory DH 2.3 rear tire, WTB motoraptor 2.4 front tire(of course with michellin DH tubes).
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Submitted by
John
a Cross Country Rider
from Freeport, NY, USA
Date Reviewed: August 6, 2003
Strengths: Sturdy, strong frame. Doesn't flex under my 200 pounds. Makes a nice jumping bike.
Bottom Line:
I love this frame, and the bike that it became! A very simple, very tough little jumper/XC/freeride/big boy BMX machine. Worth every penny. If you're looking for a good, stiff frame, buy it!
Similar Products Used: Kona Stuff (Still have it), GT outpost (killer frame, crappy parts)
Bike Setup: CR-18, 36 hole rims, 2.5 Weirwolf race in front, Tioga Fac. DH 2.3 rear, Raceface prodigy DH crank and Evlove FR BB, Ritchey Severe conditions bar, generic DH CNC stem, Pig DH headset, 2001 X-vert fork, Bulletproof BMX seat, Avid SD-5 brakes. Bike is set up as a 32-16 singlespeed.
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Submitted by
Senator
a Downhiller
from Janesville, Wi, USA
Date Reviewed: March 12, 2003
Strengths: All of the welds are beautiful, and the geometery is assume for all types of riding park/DS/DH/FR/XC.
Weaknesses: My biggest complaints about mine is the paint job and seatpost size. Very cheap job, there were blotches, and drip dries. I had to sand out the the derailure hanger so it could fit. Plus the Flames are just stickers, and cheap ones at that. Seatpost took me a week to find. I don't understand why they picked this weird size.
Bottom Line:
Haven't had a real chance to ride a trail since it is winter. But I have been tearing it up at the skatepark. Can't wait to take this bike out on my local trais for some XC/DJ. I will post how it goes.
Strengths: I have the DaBomb Sputnik Vertical which means the angles are better and Vertical Dropouts which are better for deraileur, the geometry is awsome for dropping off stuff and pedaling with the seat up for XC, the top and down tubes are sooo strong they are gusseted together for like 1/8 of the bike.
Weaknesses: the disk mount is weird to get set up right(might just be me) seat tube size(solved with shims or I am running a 30.9 seat post .5mm diff so no biggie
Bottom Line:
Buy this bike, if you want a good DS, Dh and XC bike that can hang on the jumps and North shore stuff. I got mine on sale but its worth any price.
Similar Products Used: SC Chameleon sweet bike but disk set up sucks
Bike Setup: Sickst set up possible, profiles, onyx hubs, king HS, Z1 FR, Hayes hydro, thompson post.. list goes on...
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Submitted by
Doug Brummett
a Weekend Warrior
from Santa Cruz, CA
Date Reviewed: December 24, 2002
Strengths: Thick dropouts, nice looking welds, gusseted and ovalized tubes, nice graphics, horizontal dropouts, replaceable derailleur hanger and disk mount, adjustable disk mount to work with horizontal dropouts, long top tube.
Weaknesses: Poor cable routing on rear derailleur. I find my heel catching on the cable every few minutes. Personal fix will be to run solid housing down the seatstay from the top tube. Odd size seat post. At 31.4mm only a couple of brands make post for this one. I had to special order a Kalloy.
Bottom Line:
My initial impression of the Sputnik is very high. The short chainstays make for a very easy to manuever rig. It manuals and wheelies very well. The long top tube is very accomodating for larger riders. Even though their biggest frame is a 16.5" I am comfortable at 6'3" riding it.
I personally think it would be a chopper with a 5" fork, but YMMV. At 4" it handles very well and still has a bit of the dh chopper feel to it. I am currently running a dho, but think I am going to throw my Marzocchi dirt jumpers on it once I get a 4" adapter kit. Wheelbase is good, no tagging the wheel with your toes.
The ride is very stiff. I thought my Chameleon was stiff. Well, the machined out chainstay yoke and extra bracing on the seatstays put Santa Cruz to shame. I have found the rear end to be very responsive and even inspiring bmx style sprints, out of the saddle with the front wheel off or barely touching the ground. The frame just screams to be accelerated. Another possitive for the frame is that it is wide. Even with my wheel a bit out of dish there is no clearance issues with my 2.25" tire.
On a side note, this wide frame will require a long bottom bracket and spindle. I swapped my profiles off of an old bmx to find that by the time I had the cranks out far enough to get clearance for the mrp that the spindle was only about 1/3-1/2 way into the crank arms. I think I need to get at least a 6" spindle. With my profiles on I find the cable routing less of an issue. Guess when I ran my xtr cranks with no guide they were far closer to the frame. I am running an MRP Mini-me, which has a 34t max. If you decide to run a slalom guide I would recommend getting an ultraspeed 2 design with a stationary inner ring. Otherwise you will have to run the cranks even wider to accomodate the 40t ring gaurds. Thus far I have found the 34-11 high gear to be enough for all but screaming fireroads.
In the air and ripping the frame down a tight singletrack it is right at home. We have had too much rain for the local jumps to be dry. At this point I have been doing some trials, muddy trail rides, and some urban assualt. It has a good feel in the air, very stable. On the ground it is right at home carving tight berms and shooting singletrack.
I have only been riding the frame for about a week, so most of this is preliminary impressions and notes on how my build came together. YMMV on some of this from frame to frame. These are cheep since they are made in China, hence the high value rating. But they suffer no major flaws and appear to be a well thought out design. It is a fun bike to ride and looks sick so my overall is high as well.
One last note. Bombshell is a US distributor and not the manufacturer of Da Bomb bicycles. Personally I think that the reviews should be placed under the correct brand name of Da Bomb. Especially since Bombshell doesn't sound too stoked on them right now. Sounds like it is pretty hard to get parts since they are foreign.
Similar Products Used: I used to run a SC Chameleon dual slalom.
Bike Setup: Dual slalom setup: 4" forks, thru axle, mrp mini-me with race face bash gaurd for external ring, profile cranks, Atom labs wheels/stem, steel crowbar, xt rear der.
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Submitted by
Dinesh Rajan
a Downhiller
from Selangor, Malaysia
Date Reviewed: December 21, 2002
Strengths: Angles are just right. Dropouts are pretty much indestructable. Sizing are perfect for me. (I'm 5'8" and the 14.5" frame is just right) Very strong built.
Weaknesses: The weight of the bike, but not really a big probelm. The limited colours (lightning, flame) might look attractive, but they are only stickers. Should have been painted.
Bottom Line:
This frame is very worth the money. You get all the requirements like beefy chainstays, weldings, drop-outs, tubing in a very affortable price. Anyone who wants a hardcore freeride hardtail instead of a boring-old full suspension bike should take notice of DA BOMB instead of other leading brands like Azonic, Kona.
Strengths: Beautiful Construction Only 4.5 lbs Nice Paint Job (I have camoflauge) Adjustable wheelbase via horizontal dropouts Replacable hangar Beefy dropouts, tons of tire clearance, box section curved seat and chain stays Nice CNC detailing on seat stay yoke Main tubes double butted and trumpeted (round to rectangular @ headtube juncture) Can easily accept 8" rotor removable disc brake mount Top tube is a good length, despite the small frame sizes (I am 5'9" and the 14.5 is plenty long for me)
Weaknesses: only 2 sizes available 14.5" and 16.5" Welding detail on seat stay yoke is not first rate, all other welds are good and fat
Bottom Line:
Excellent frame, I am currently using it for trials and urban, light enough to bunnyhop , tough enough for big drops to flat (concrete landing). I plan to post another review after a season of abuse.
