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Submitted by
Lee Crowell
a Cross Country Rider
from Bartonsville PA
Date Reviewed: October 22, 2002 | | Favorite Trail: | camelback mtn, PA | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$700.00 | | Purchased At: | Kalo Mtn Bikes, CA | | Strengths: | After 2 years+ I haven't seen another bike I like better than this one | | Weaknesses: | none really, only a little rust by the braze-ons, can easily be fixed if it becomes a problem | | Similar Products Used: | Trek chromoly hardtail, Specialized Stumpjumper hardtail | | Bike Setup: | see earlier reviews | | Bottom Line: | This is my 4th review of this bike. It's been over 2 years now, I've ridden it hard and often, and the bottom line is that there's no other bike I've seen that I like better than this one. If you do long (very long) rides, go with a steel frame hardtail for the added flex and comfort and avoid the nuisance of dual suspension. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
peter
a Cross Country Rider
from east coast
Date Reviewed: April 23, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$450.00 | | Purchased At: | Dean | | Strengths: | Solid as a bank vault, but no harshness
Stability in spades
| | Weaknesses: | Head tube needed reaming and facing | | Similar Products Used: | Many alu frames, only one other steel frame | | Bike Setup: | Budget stuff -- LX, leftover '98 X-Vert, Sun Sub IV, but also Conti Explorer Pros (five stars) | | Bottom Line: | THIS IS FOR THE 1999 PRIVATE
This is a follow up to my post in November, about a month after I got this frame as a leftover from www.deanbikes.com.
I've never had another Reynolds 853 or other high-end steel bike, so I can't make that comparison. But I've had several sweet alu hardtails, and ridden a couple mid-range steel rigs, and the Dean is my favorite of them all.
Nothing else has felt this strong or this stable -- or this damped. The tracking is very, very impressive, yet steering is quick on the twistys. It's confidence inspiring on descents, and climbs well too (though not with the kind of instant "ping" of acceleration I've had with a alu Klein and SC Chamelion). Acceleration on the flats is fast but oh so fluid -- not sharp like many alu bikes.
The Dean "squirts" forward, but in such a solid and controlled fashion that there's got to be a better word for it. Welds and alignment seem perfect. The frame is stiff for this 180-pounder, but again no harshness. A couple of incidents that probably would have dented an alu frame left no marks on the Dean, yet the frame feels pretty light -- probably about 3.8 lbs.
I did my first race the other day (DFL, of course) and the race geeks all had killer bikes with XTR, King hubs etc. But I don't think I'd trade frames with any of them. I'd like to drop the top tube one inch, and maybe shorten the chainstays a tad or relax the seat tube angle a smidgen, and I have to admit I've not tried a Ti frame yet. At one point or another I've sold literally every bike I've gotten. I toyed with the idea of selling this one, too, a few months ago. But now I can't imagine parting with this 853 frame. I'd like to add an FS-XC rig and an SS rig, but can't see losing this sweet steel.
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Lee Crowell
a Cross Country Rider
from Bartonsville PA
Date Reviewed: March 7, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | camelback mtn | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Purchased At: | Kalo Mtn Bikes on internet | | Strengths: | This is my 3rd and last review of this frame. An earlier problem with rear disc tab on frame (see my other review below)I fixed myself rather than deal with hassle of shipping back to Dean. Basically I had local bike shop realign rear triangle and straighten derailleur hanger, and I filed down the Hayes rear disc mounting bracket to achieve proper alignment with frame. All seems fine now, and I'm finally enjoying this dream bike. Can't say enough about the advantages of a lightweight steel hardtail vs. aluminum hardtail, or worse than that, a full suspension bike. The flex of steel gives me enough comfort for extremely long rides, Hayes discs give me 100% pure stopping power in any condition - which translates into increased downhill confidence, and the plush Marzocchi Z2 Xfly doesn't give you the flimsy feeling of a Rock Shox or Manitou. For $2800 bucks I have a bike I wouldn't make any changes to at all cause there's nothing to improve. | | Weaknesses: | Slight rust, but perhaps I'll get Dean to honor the lifetime warranty if it gets beyond the point of acceptability. | | Similar Products Used: | 97 Stumpjumper hardtail | | Bike Setup: | Easton carbon handlebar, Race Face stem - crank - chainrings and bottom bracket, Marzocchi Z2 Xfly fork, Ritchey OCR disc wheelset, Hayes disc brakes, XTR shifters, XTR front and rear derailleurs, XTR cassette, Thompson seatpost, Selle flite plain black leather saddle. | | Bottom Line: | For xcountry and ultra long xcountry, you couldn't want a better frame. If you match the above component specs, you couldn't want a better bike either. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
peter hartt
a Cross Country Rider
from east coast
Date Reviewed: November 20, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$450.00 | | Purchased At: | www.deanbikes.com | | Strengths: | 1999 MODEL PRIVATE
supple feel of high end steel
good power transfer
welds, alignment, paint, everything looks excellent
beautiful round tubes -- even the nice seatstays
all tubes 853 except columbus seat stays
got it straight from dean for $450, as a '99 leftover | | Weaknesses: | none so far | | Similar Products Used: | this is my first high-end steel. have had several alu hardtails and fs rigs | | Bike Setup: | just 00 lx, sub iv, '98 x-vert | | Bottom Line: | best feeling hardtail i've ever ridden, let alone owned.
853 can last a lifetime. steel is repairable. catastrophic failures very rare (unlike alu). and the weight is still comparable to a lot of nice alu and ti frames.
and then there's the supple, springy yet solid ride -- very nice.
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Lee Crowell
a Cross Country Rider
from Bartonsville PA
Date Reviewed: October 1, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Camelback Mtn. in Poconos | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$600.00 | | Purchased At: | Kalo mountain bikes | | Strengths: | Steel has more flex than aluminum, translating to more comfort on long rides. Reasonably lightweight. | | Weaknesses: | Disc tab on rear seatstay was misaligned, causing major problem with rear wheel rubbing against frame. It's been a pain in the ass because I have to take the thing apart and ship frame back to Dean for repair. They were slow as hell delivering the first time so I'm expecting a long wait. I'm lucky that I can ride my old Stumpjumper in the meantime. Also, the interior of frame has excessive rust, and there's exterior rust by the bottle cage bolt holes. | | Similar Products Used: | Stumpjumper 97 hardtail. (great bike for the price) | | Bike Setup: | Marzocchi Z2 Xfly, Race face crankset and stem, Hayes discs, Ritchey OCR disc wheels, Cane Creek headset, Easton EA70 handlebar, Selle Flite saddle, Thompson seatpost, Time ATAC pedals, XTR derailleurs, shifters, cassette, chain, and I still love the setup except for the above mentioned frame problem. | | Bottom Line: | I originally reviewed this frame last June, but felt that this update was necessary. If you're going disc, I'm not sure that Dean has their act together with providing the rear tab. Maybe mine was a singular mistake, or maybe Dean doesn't have a good grasp of disc brake technology yet. I suspect that's the situation because when the frame delivery was originally delayed they said they were having trouble with the disc brake tab. Also, the rust I'm getting isn't excessive, but I wonder if maybe Dean should stick to only making titanium or aluminum frames. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Randy
a Racer
from Shelbyville, IN
Date Reviewed: September 21, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Nebo/Hickory | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Fit- not a custom built frame,but happens to fit me better than any bike I've owned,value,light,that oh so incredible ride of a quality steel frame | | Weaknesses: | Possibly facing of the headtube, was difficult getting headset cups flush against headtube. Decals look good, but were already damaged a little when it got to me - don't know how long they will last. | | Similar Products Used: | GT Avalanche, Mongoose SX Pro (Ritchey steel), Mongoose Ti, 2000 FSR Pro | | Bike Setup: | White Bros SC72UL,Dean Ti post and bar,8spd XTR shifters/levers/der,King headset/hubs,Race Face cranks/BB,Kore Elite stem,Avid SD25 brakes,etc... | | Bottom Line: | Had a Ritchey-tubed Mongoose a few years ago that I really liked. It broke around the seatpost clamp. Ended up with a Mongoose Ti through warranty, and also got an FSR early this year to give a squishy bike a try. But they just weren't as fun to ride as my old steel Mongoose, so the search began. I considered many brands, including customs, but it came down to getting the best value I could (read: the Dean or Ibis Mojo.) The medium Dean seemed to be what I was looking for in fit. The deal was clinched when my bid won on Dean's internet auction. I talked to John at Dean (who seemed very cool), chose my color, and it was on it's way. Took a few weeks to get to me, I built it up, and have ridden it several times since. And I have been very pleased. It's just what a good hardtail should be IMO. Stiff where it should be, resiliant where it should be, it just has that steel ride that is hard to put into words, but that fans of steel know exactly what I'm talking about. Handling is plenty quick, even with the tallish WB fork. This frame has the fit that I didn't even know I was looking for. The TT is about .25 inch shorter than I was used to, and I definitely like this better. (I'm 5'10" on a medium frame.) And the value is unmatched. There may be some overall better steel frames, and maybe some overall cheaper ones, but the level of quality at the price I paid I just wasn't able to find anywhere else. All the flamin' chilis I can give. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Lee Crowell
a Cross Country Rider
from Bartonsville PA
Date Reviewed: May 21, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Pocono Mountains PA | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Lightweight, beautiful craftmanship and paintjob | | Weaknesses: | none yet (except Dean was very slow with the order - 11 weeks) | | Similar Products Used: | Stumpjumper, Trek 850 | | Bike Setup: | I purchased through Bret at Kalo Mtn. bikes in California. Check out their website, they let you choose each component, and their prices are better than buying direct. My choices: Hayes discs, Marzocchi X fly2 fork, Race face: crank, bb, rings, stem, xtr: derailleurs, shifters, cassette, Ritchey OCR disc hubs and rims, Easton EA70 handlebar, Time ATAC pedals (heavy but nice), Thomson seatpost, Selle Transam saddle, Cane Creek headset | | Bottom Line: | Weigh in a little under 24 pounds - 18.5 inch frame, not bad considering this is a steel frame with disc brakes, Time pedals and Marzocchi fork. It's like a new love except I'm riding all the time instead of having sex, and the bike doesn't talk back. I never thought I'd leave my Stumpjumper, but I wanted a frame that could accept discs without the stupid adapter that Specialized offers, and the 853 steel instead of metal matrix is a comfort/contol upgrade. I ride 24 hr solo races, and I highly recommend this frame. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
KingSven
a Cross Country Rider
from NC
Date Reviewed: January 15, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Hot Marmalade | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | light weight
great paint job
climbing ability | | Weaknesses: | too many Dean decals | | Similar Products Used: | many other steel and aluminium hardtails | | Bike Setup: | Judy xc, Scram 9.0sl, xt brakes, Mavic 517's | | Bottom Line: | This is a great frame. The 853 is great for the hardcore recreational rider because of it's ability to smooth out the trai. This particular frame also has unbelievable climbing abilities. The rear tire seems glued to the trail when climbing. It also handles well at very low and medium speeds, but is a little squirrelling if riding real fast on the road. Overall it is a very good looking bike the paint is nice and the welds are almost invisible. I would recommend this frame to anyone on the market for a top of the line steel hardtail. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
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