Making the world rise to attention year after year, the Stiffee has earned a reputation as one of the best aluminum hard tail bikes in creation. Melding a balance of strength and performance, our original hard tail proves you don’t need any blue pills to get it on. Built to finesse the world’s abundance of natural gap jumps, deep descents and trails to the honeypatch, the Stiffee takes oversized tires, comes stock with international standard disc mounts, uses Easton RAD tubing, and can handle long travel front forks.
Submitted by
bikenboard
a Weekend Warrior
from Vancouver
Date Reviewed: November 30, 2009
Strengths: Solid frame, excellent all rounder, nice comfortable feel for most rides
Weaknesses: First frame the paint chipped easily, a little expensive compared to other similar style bikes, can be tricky to get ahold of.
Bottom Line:
I had this bike for a year and couldn't believe how smooth it felt compared to other hard tails I'd ridden, including my old Rocky Mountain Stratos. It seemed to swallow up roots, rocks and drops no problem. The more I rode it the more comfortable it got. I sold it to go travelling and bought a Santa Cruz Chameleon when I got back. I still had fun with the Chameleon, but seemed to think it didn't quite handle as well as the Stiffee. It seems funny to compare a hardtail to a full suss, but it is a pretty comfortable ride for a hardtail. The bottom line is that i just bought myself another Stiffee and it feels just as good as my first one, and feels like a smoother ride than my Chameleon. I'm sold. It'll only be Stiffees for me for a while now.
Bike Setup: Quad Rims, Deore Discs, LX front mech, XT back mech
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Submitted by
mike bomb
a Cross Country Rider
from east brunswick, nj, usa
Date Reviewed: November 10, 2008
Weaknesses: none (for me)
Bottom Line:
i set this bike up several years ago - ride mostly xc / have jumped a little - it has been an absolute joy since. have several bikes, this is hands down my favorite.
Submitted by
Michael
a Weekend Warrior
from Preston
Date Reviewed: June 1, 2007
Strengths: Geometry is amazing, you can do anything on this bike (jumps, drops, rocky downhill, berms and it even goes up the hills great)
the geometry is perfect mine is 17.5 inch size and it gives to confidence to go just a little faster and it just takes it all. Colour options are great too (mines bright orange)
Weaknesses: i can't really think of anything bad other than when the rocks get loose and large (head size) then the rear wheel bounces around a little but any hardtail would do that on loose rocks that size
Bottom Line:
this bike is amazing for any trail rider that wants to do anything from cross country to freeride and it can take a wide range of forks from about 110 upto 150 or maybe 160 depending on what riding you want to do and whatever you do with it it can handle it, its especcially great for flowing downhill through berms and jumps and with good tires it grips round corners at any speed and you just fly out of them. This bike is in my eyes the best all round all mountain / freeride hardtail that money can buy.
Bike Setup: Fox 36 talas (110 - 150mm travel, i always have them on 150) Raveface, Mavic 321 rims, hope pro2 hubs, shimano XT gears, maxxis high roller 2.35
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Submitted by
liam forster
a Weekend Warrior
from stoke on trent
Date Reviewed: May 25, 2007
Strengths: the arse end on the bike is awesome no matter wat u drop off that bike aint going nowhere
Weaknesses: stickers and paint is pants the paint is good colour though
Bottom Line:
this bike is ace it will do just about nething it realy does cut the mustard
Bike Setup: marzocchi bomber z1 drop off 2002 forks, xt front and back deralier, deore hydraulic rear disk, xtr v brake on front,mavic wheels, sram chainrings, middleburn crank arms with race face bash ring and blackspire downhill chainrings,
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Submitted by
Chris Burn
a Weekend Warrior
from Canterbury, Kent, UK
Date Reviewed: May 12, 2007
Strengths: Super strong; light; can do XC, jumping, anything!; looks fantastic (in grey with gold hope bits); rarity - random hoodies on BMX's always want to talk to me about it!
Weaknesses: Guess what...rubbish paint - used for three short blasts and it's got chips, scuffs, cable rub and half the stickers are falling off. No sh*t, the lacquer scratches just from washing it with wet cotton cloth.
Bottom Line:
I bought this frame in 19" after riding a mate's 17.5" and loving every minute. Even with budget forks I have ridden technical singletrack, jumped and tried north shore (crashing lots) and it is great at all of them. It goes uphill brilliantly and it is very stable in the air. If I can afford it, i'll be sticking to Cove frames for a long time. PS better to look on ebay, as it's too expensive new, and it's unlikely anyone will have been able to weaken the frame so it should be a safe bet secondhand - mine was!
Just a quick follow up review. This will be my 5th year on this frame and it's still going strong. From the Shore two to three days a week and 4 or 5 days at Whistler a year, the frame is still perfect. If it ever fails, I'll just get another. The geo is great (67.5 head angle and 13.25 inch bb height) and perfect for steep shore riding. All my buddies ride fullies and I have no problem keeping up. Great product!
Weaknesses: Have found none yet, can't comment on the paint I had a custom paint job done when I bought it.
Bottom Line:
Replaced my Intense 4" XC bike with the Stiffee after leaving the hardtail market since 2000 (rode a hardtail between 90-00). I got the Frame + Pike forks for £500 second hand.
I forgot how much fun you can have on a hardtail, but I do believe this is down to the Stiffee and not just all hardtails. Apart from no more mister bob when climbing it can make even flat trails fun because you can feel what’s going on with the back end. First day out I took it jumping and it's actually harder to keep it low than go high, very stable in the air. I have also had it out for long XC hacks and as much as it isn't as good a dedicated XC frame for this I would still give it 8/10 for this task (a big part of this is the short stem etc, I would normally have an 18" XC frame mine is 17.5")
However as soon as it points downhill it's un-stoppable, it loves the technical stuff it just eats it up and asks for more. I have also taken this on downhill tracks and it has held it's own. It has also reminded me my DH bike has 8.5" travel, what I mean by this is when you ride DH tracks on a big bike you forget how much work the suspension is doing for you, especially when going flat out. The Stiffee reminds you that you can have more fun riding your bike properly going slower!
Bottom line for me is this frame can do it all. Can't see myself getting a full sus XC/trail bike ever again.
Strengths: Super strong, Can handle almost any fork you want to put on it between 110 and about 150 or 160. The Colours the frame is available in are awsome compared to any other bike manafactuer. It is a great frame for doning anything like Jumps, Climbing, Downhill, freeride pretty much anything u want it to do
Weaknesses: The paint quality isent the best as it can somtimes chip slightally where the seat clamp tightens round the frame but the colours are awsome ( mine is Orange ) but other than that its a GREAT frame.
Bottom Line:
This bike is GREAT for doing pretty much anything you want to do and can handle Smaller or Big forks - This frame is Great for anyone looking for a hardcore hardtail that can do anything.
Similar Products Used: All sorts of Hardtails (the Cove Stiffee is the best i have ever had)
Bike Setup: Marzocchi 66rc (150mm) all Hope accesories (in gold), Shimano XT, Raceface etc
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Submitted by
James Rai
a Weekend Warrior
from Bristol, U.K.
Date Reviewed: July 20, 2006
Strengths: This for the 69er limited edt in the U.K. Great angles, all rounder, great handling, lazer etched dics with 69er etched on them, do anything HT.
They were just getting a big name and I managed to snap one up (Cheers Alex & Tom).
Good enough for xc to free ride and have seen riders jump with them.
If you get this, get a decent fork! Had a fox talas rlc and it handled a dream and saved my neck...
Handbuilt quality hardtail. Maybe getting old due to full sussers?
Weaknesses: Crazy high price for frames considering they have been around for a few years, probably sell loads at £300-400.
Getting common and other manufacturers have caught on and copied it to death and even made a better version.
Other bike shops selling the old model as the new version? Then again how different is the new version except shoddy paint.
New revamp has shoddy colours, I'd have to blast and repaint the frame.
Did I mention the new colours or colors for yanks ;)
Bottom Line:
Great all rounder, with a decent kit can be light and tough, do it all hardtail. Sweet handling.
If you're on a budget don't bother.
Get this frame for a decent hardyail, get a decent finshing kit xt, big brakes and a dam good fork and yoiu won't regret it unless you're married haha!
Best hardtail I have rode.
if you're 6ft don't get the 17", go for the 19", too many people get the smaller size unless you plan to jump or 4x.
Similar Products Used: Std cove stiffee, Gt Zaskar(faster but not as sweet at freeride or as comfortable and forgiving handling).
Giant Trance 2, Spec Stumpy and some BMW bike which was naff.
Leary colours or basic? just sell me a primed frame, I'll do the rest...
Bike Setup: Well before I sold it (it was short for me), raceface kit, xt shifters and rear mech, deore front mech. Fox Talas RLC, Hope minis with 69'er discs and different saddle as the old one needed a cut out. Lurveeleeeeeeeeey!
Similar Products Used: Various other mainstream...
Bike Setup: 36 Talas RC2, Race face finishing kit Race Face Atlas, E13, SRAM/XTR drivetrain ProII/MTX wheelset Magura Louise FR brakes
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Submitted by
Zac
a Weekend Warrior
from Tucson, AZ
Date Reviewed: May 19, 2006
Strengths: Stiff, strong, laid back geometry, all-around capabilities.
Weaknesses: Hard to keep front down when climbing (lockdown fork helps)
Bottom Line:
Great all around bike. I use it for everything from XC to hitting the ski lifts. Mine is on the heavy side (34lbs) due to beefy wheels/tires.
The 5" fork works well, but is a compromise: it steers a little slow for XC and is still a little steep for DH. I'd like to go to an adjustable travel fork. Between 4 and 6" would be ideal.
Strengths: can handle forks from 110mm up to 170mm. Super f***ing strong, great paint job, corners really well, handles great drops, hits the burms really well too.
Similar Products Used: santa cruz cameleon, kona hoss dee-lux (crap)
Bike Setup: two forks (pike race) and (boxxer ride) along with x0 kit, thomson front and rear, hope wheels, kenda tires, king headset, answer bar and other smoking kit.
Strengths: Great build quality (no problems with paint coming off on mine), very strong, great looking. Can take long travel fork.
Weaknesses: Not enough room for large disc rotor on rear, not much clearence for chain amd grannyring if 2.5 tyres fitted. Kids keep asking to take photos of it.:-)
Bottom Line:
I love this bike, i am 220 pounds but still take this bike off drops my mate on his full suss kona thinks twice about. I have also had quite a few spills and seen the bike bounce 15 yards down the trail ahead of me and not have a scratch or dent on it.I swap the tioga dh tyres for slicks during the week and ride this bike to and from work everyday. It is as fast and responsive off road as it is on the road.I originally bought this bike as an all rounder to build up my skill level on before swapping to a full suss, but now i am not going to bother changing. i am already looking for a 2nd stiffe frame for the right price on ebay should this frame ever fail (though i doubt it will.)
Bike Setup: xt shifters and derailers, hope discs, halo rims on diatech hubs, race face crankset, bars,stem etc. marzocchi z1 bomber forks but about to upgrade to fox talas rcl
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Submitted by
mickey mouse
a Weekend Warrior
from derby
Date Reviewed: September 4, 2005
Strengths: strong. very bloody strong. stiff. very bloody stiffe. Agile, very bloody agile. its a cove. up, down around , over , through , you name it it, it does it all superbly..
Weaknesses: crap stickers ( is that so bad ?) big you go big all the time ( is that so bad also ?)
Bottom Line:
after a 6 week break from biking im right back into it. This bike just rules. My friends own handjobs and hummers but when they ride a stiffee ( f'narr f'narr!) they want one ! Ive had this bike for two solid years of thrashing an bashing and it just ROCKS! I'm six foot one and i bought the 17'5 and thgought it would be a bit small. After 40 mile cross country rides it hurts a wee bit but fun bits i blasted dude ! I've looked around and tried all sortsa types of full susspension but after a stiffe all susspension bikes feel like they're broken and sh1t in comparison. i love this bike. it really is the bomb.
Weaknesses: I can't think of any... If you really want to be nit-picky, the stickers are annoying. I had mine custom painted, so I only have the down-tube stickers now.
Bottom Line:
I love this hardtail. It's by far the best hardtail I've ever ridden. I weigh 220 and this frame is awesome for not flexing. When I first built it and went out and rode it, it was like sitting in my favorite chair right away. I just felt at home. It's perfection. It rides great, handles great, and makes you feel good. If you're a gram-counter, don't buy it. If you want a very solid hardtail that will last, it's your frame.
These are the final two frames to decide from for my summer build. Both are exactly what Im looking for, a perfect mix of FR + XC. The only downside of the Siffee is there are no Read More »
Just bought the Cove Stiffee FR frame and in the process of building up the frame with some component from old bike. Current bike will be setted up with rim brake while waiting to Read More »
here it is. theres a picture of it when i first bought the frame and had all the parts from my aged XC bike on it. and then there are pictures of the build now, as of this morn Read More »
Hey everyone, Ive got a hodge podged bike, low end Kona components, and a cove stiffee frame(its 19" i believe). Its a single speed, however the main COG (is that the right term? s Read More »
I’m travelling from Australia to France in August and I will do a stopover in Ontario to visit family in the Toronto and London area.
I was wondering if it would be cheaper to b Read More »
