The Leadfoot is constructed from Columbus Zona tubing. Drivetrain options are derailleur based, single speed, or Rohloff. Canti studs are standard, and Hayes disc brake mounts are available for $50.
Submitted by
Mike
a Racer
from Santa Rosa, CA Date Reviewed: November 29, 2004
Favorite Trail:
Anywhere up at Annadel
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Price Paid:
$1000.00
Purchased At:
LBS
Strengths:
lightweight frame materail + geometry
Weaknesses:
N/A
Similar Products Used:
Moots YBB, Stumpjumper Pro, S-works epic
Bike Setup:
XTR brakes/levers/cranks/pedals, F80X, Chris King headset + hubs, Mavic 517, Thomson post, Monkeylite bar, WTB saddle
Bottom Line:
I'll put it this way....before I built up the SS over a year ago, I was riding/racing a geared Moots YBB. After I built it, I only mounted the geared bike a handfull of times and sold that frame many months ago. I have an S-works epic that just gathers dust. I absolutely love the ride on this bike. The Leadfoot frame matched with an F80X fork is the best combination. This bike tracks like it's on rails. Climbs like a mountain goat and has an uncanny abiltity of finding the best lines down technical descents. nuff said!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Jon
a Cross Country Rider
from Mill Valley, CA, USA Date Reviewed: June 25, 2004
Favorite Trail:
Sshhh... don't tell
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Strengths:
Light. Fast. Great geometry for climbing. Smooth ride. Amazing fit. My other mountain bikes (geared hardtail, geared full sus) live in the storage unit now - the Leadfoot is all I ever ride!
Weaknesses:
None so far. It took me a while to get the EBB dialed in, (I've got the 2001 model with smaller ebb) but since then it's been flawless. I've heard complaints about customer service, but that's not my experience. I met Josh at a 24 hr race & later stopped by his shop with questions on the ebb. He took a full 90 minutes late on a Friday afternoon helping me sort out the EBB! I couldn't ask for more!
Similar Products Used:
Santa Cruz Superlight, Voodoo Bizango singlespeed conversion
Bike Setup:
Leadfoot frame, RS Psylo Race fork, Paul hubs, mavic x819 rims, Hayes discs, XTR cranks...
Bottom Line:
Love it. My favorite bike by far.
They may be hard to get a hold of - but they're more than worth the effort!
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Submitted by
Jed Peters
a Racer
from Sacramento, CA Date Reviewed: May 2, 2003
Favorite Trail:
Rockstacker, Moab/Ribbon, Grand Junction
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Price Paid:
$1300.00
Purchased At:
www.natomasbikeshop.com
Strengths:
Geometry, handling, weight, actual durability of the frame, paint job.
Weaknesses:
Possibility of long lead times, Expensive (but worth it!).
Similar Products Used:
Seven Steel, IF Deluxe, Sycip, Steelman, Soulcraft.
Bottom line? Best bicycle I have EVER thrown a leg over. No joke. I love my Jericho more and more every time I ride it. It's the most fun machine I've ever had. I recently rode my bike back to back on the same trail with another big name steel bike, and was shocked at the comfort level that my bike had over that one....it was phenomenal.
I have since gotten rid of all my other bikes, and only ride my geared Leadfoot now. I can recommend this one or the Payback for lighter riders...they really are that sweet, but Josh, the owner of Jericho, recommended the Leadfoot for my size (200 lbs.).This is what it comes down to...I was once a serious skeptic when I was first talked into this bike. Now I'm a believer. Jericho bikes are REALLY that good.
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Submitted by
Grover
a Weekend Warrior
from San Diego,CA USA Date Reviewed: September 16, 2002
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$950.00
Purchased At:
Direct
Strengths:
Very nice ride/handling. Great looks. The welds LOOK great
Weaknesses:
Horrible product support; long waits, lots of excuses. (At least they are friendly about it.)
Similar Products Used:
Santa Cruz Chameleon, Bianchi BOSS
Bike Setup:
Single speed: Zoke Z2 Atom Race, Truvative Stylo cranks, thomson post/stem, Monkey lites, Avid Discs, Paul/mustang wheelset.
Bottom Line:
I had similar experience to the poster below. There were lots of delays (which was OK, I was willing to wait, and they kicked in a shirt) Once I got it, on the Fri before a 3 day weekend, it looked great but they forgot to provide the instructions for the eccentric BB. Once it was built up I got a few rides in, and loved the frame, untill the rear disc tab broke off at the weld. They did their tests, determined that it was a bad weld and promised a new frame. After several excuses (out of town, painter is slow etc.)and about six weeks, I had a new frame. (only had time to ride once.)So far, so good with that. But they promised me a new disc rotor to replace the one that bent when the mount failed, as well as some schwag for my time and patience. None of that has happened yet (the rotor is "backordered from their supplier"?) Bottom line is: It is a great frame. (even with the disc tab mishap, which I write off to a fluke.) But the service, when buying AND returning for warranty, negates all of that, and keeps me from being able to recommend buying from Jericho. There are several other companies that build custom Single Speed frames. If I had it to do again I'd buy from someone else. At least untill they get their act together.
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Submitted by
Pete
a Racer
from Ann Arbor, Mi Date Reviewed: May 10, 2002
Favorite Trail:
The Rim@Porcupine
Duration Product Used:
Tested or demo'ed only
Price Paid:
$1100.00
Purchased At:
LBS
Strengths:
Steel technology Beatiful paint
Weaknesses:
Service is non-existent
Similar Products Used:
yoooooEddy
Bottom Line:
Had a chance to check a Jericho Leadfoot out at a 24hr Adrenaline event at Hurkey Creek. There was some single speed riders there and one of them had a disc specific Leadfoot. I tried it out and I knew that I needed one...Great point and shoot geometry and it looked extremely well made. The dude who owned it was quite happy with it. After talking with Jericho, I placed an order for a frame with my LBS in October of 01 and was told that it would be completed in about 8 weeks. Well that didnt happen. So I called in the middle of December and talked to Josh and he read back my order verbatim and he told me that it was "on the board" and that it would be shipped in the first week in January. I said that it was no problem and that I didnt mind the wait. Well that didnt happen either... BUT, towards the end of february they did call my LBS and said they were ready to ship...with a frame....that I didnt order... So its March now and no frame but the one that I ordered can be built in about 6 weeks! So I said okay and Josh thanked me for my patience and left me his personal email. And its April and a few emails to Josh\Jericho and no response. Sooo I had my LBS cancel the order. Cut my losses and moved on. The long and short of it is this....I didnt mind the wait for the frame. My contention with Jericho was the lack of communication. They promised me everything and delivered on nothing. If they had contacted me once and let me know what was going on I would not have cancelled the order. When your willing to spend $$$ on a custom frame service should be part of the story... 5 chilis for the quality frame and 1 chili for the outlandish service...
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Submitted by
david yakaitis
a Cross Country Rider
from oakland Date Reviewed: April 30, 2002
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$1500.00
Strengths:
light weight, short wheel base (extremely nimble and responsive) absorbs bumps well for hardtail
Weaknesses:
none
Similar Products Used:
bontrager ti hardtail
Bike Setup:
chris king wheel and headset and hubs, shimano xtr cranks, hayes disc brakes, marzocchi marathon shock, wtb rims, tires (2.5 front, 2.4 rear) seat and pedals, koski handle bars
Bottom Line:
after being intoduced to single speed riding and jericho by forrest i just had to own one. there isn't a better way to enjoy the fast rolling, windy single tracks of santa cruz, marin and the oakland hills. the leadfoot is light and quick on the uphills and easy to maneuver on the downhills. i recommend the bigger tires which improve the handling immensely. i think the leadfoot is for the experienced and fit cross country rider that wants to add a new dimension to their riding. i like riding this thing so much i am staring to race it!
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Submitted by
bones
a Cross Country Rider
from North America Date Reviewed: January 15, 2002
Favorite Trail:
Magic Carpet
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Strengths:
Beautiful framework, very nice welds, excellent paint, very responsive ride, great singletrack geometry.
Weaknesses:
The eccentric bb adjustment, the eccentric bb, constantly peeling stickers.
Similar Products Used:
Voodoo Nzumbi ss, homebuilt marin ss.
Bike Setup:
Jericho Leadfoot eccentric, Phil Wood/Mavic 317 disc wheels, Hayes hydraulic front/rear, King h/s, Thomson stem/ seatpost, WTB rocket V saddle, WTB mutanoraptor (2.4) rear, Weirwolf (2.5) front, raceface cranks, raceface bb.
Bottom Line:
When the opportunity to purchase a Jericho singlespeed came up I couldn't resist. After meeting the frame-guru, Josh Ogle, at a 24hours of adrenalin race and chatting with him, it was obvious that his bikes are some of the best and definitely most progressive on the market.
After a thorough flogging of the leadfoot frame including a 24hour race, and a southwestern US mountain bike tour, my Jericho is easily the best bike I've owned. Even the National trail in Phoenix was cake to descend on this bike. The geometry is really fun in singletrack and it climbs very well. The paint has stayed very nice, finally a strong powdercoat! It's definitely a head-turner and generates quite a bit of trailside bike-lust.
The problems I have had with the bike have been worthwhile. But they are worth mentioning:
First of all, the frame I own now is the second version. The first ridden for a month or so before I noticed that the rear triangle was way off. A series of miswelds and inequalities in the triangle, explained why the bike just never felt right to me and that no matter what size of wheel I put on there the paint on one side of the chainstays was worn through. Josh did the right thing by building a new frame for me. Both frames were supposed to be belt-drive compatible also, but both versions came without that option. Secondly, the eccentric bb has cracked. Jericho has promised me a new one that is hard anodized but it's a month overdue and I haven't heard from them yet.
Jericho is definitely on the leading edge of bicycle building, a trip to their shop will convince you that they are comitted to making the best of everything. The technology that they are developing for all types of bikes is ahead of the times but still in the refinement stages. That said, I love my Jericho and wouldn't trade it for anything and I would recommend anyone wanting a cutting edge bike to take a serious look at these bikes. Keep calling though as they're customer service is great but you have to keep reminding them about your request.
5 chilis for alot of frame and talent for the cost that is a couple hundred less than comparible frames. 4 chilis for overall due to the problems experienced.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Forrest Arakawa
a Downhiller
from Pleasant Hill Ca Date Reviewed: June 27, 2001
Favorite Trail:
Redwood Peak Trail
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$1000.00
Strengths:
Great for descending technical terrain. Handles well in fast rocky sections. Not having a cross support on the chainstays gives you the feeling that there is a shock back there! Very lightweight. Sucks up small and large hits like they aren't there. Perfect geometry for tight single track.
Weaknesses:
None
Similar Products Used:
Phil Wood Kiss off. Voodoo. IF. Bianchi.
Bike Setup:
WTB Laserbeam wheels and hubs. WTB Mutanoraptor 2.4 in the front and 2.1 Nano in the rear. Hayes. Koski bar, Thompson stem. Marzocchi X fly 100. King headset. WTB pedals. XTR cranks. Jericho chanring. Rohloff chain. WTB Laserbeam saddle.
Bottom Line:
I'm not one to ride hardtails, in fact I've always ridden suspension bikes, but.... My buddy Mark talked me into doing a single speed race in Marin. I didn't have a bike so his friend Josh lent me one. It was a Jericho with Discs. At first I was really skeptical as to the descending prowess of this bike. But during the race I realized that you don't need a DH rig to descend. I was able to fly through and over sections where a DH bike may have been the norm. This bike was more enjoyable to ride than any of my longtravel bikes due to the low amount of chatter. My DH rigs make so much noise on cross country rides that I actually start freaking out! Now, since buying one of these, I'm the silent guy! It really is cool not having to deal with derailleurs all the time. Don't get me wrong, I'm still a firm believer in suspension bikes but... I'll be riding my single speed on at least once a week from now on....
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
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