Solid, well planted piece of metal. Beautiful design and that Radar Green paint job....I hate mending bikes or having no bike so my Orange's have kept on going through year round mud, rock, crashes, water and abuse. Great reliability/ great dealer backup

Overall weight a tad high, climbing geometry not perfect.

I ride mainly mountain terrain in UK Lakes, usually a couple of hours, little bit of single track, but mud and boulders are what this bikes eats. In the current spec this is a great all-mountain/ freeride bike. Like to spend time in the air! But its solidly planted on anything you point it at and feels confident at speed on downhills. Give a great feeling of security and completely bombproof. Uphill...ok thats a different story, but better than most. OK, everything's a compromise, bikes are no exception.

Similar Products Used:

Orange Sub 5, Patriot XCEL

Light yet strong frame, Swinger coil shock, rear travel.

Forks! They are too heavy and make this bike DH only. Orange class the 66 as all mountain but thats all mountain if there is lift access! The fork weighs over 7lb and upsets the balance of the bike.

This bike is great - at going down hill! Ok it's not so bad on the flat but I'm not sure why Orange have specced this fork, it must be something to do with the price point of this model. I think it would be better suited with a 150mm SC fork like a Sherman or even a RS Pike. This would save 2.5lbs or so in weight and make the bike truly more all mountain. Having said all that if DH and Freeride is your thing and you plan some Alpine trips or have regular access to uplifts then the bike is fantastic for the money. If you plan to do some epics then think abot a fork upgrade or consider the Excel version. For that reason alone I'm gonna give 4 stars for value as you may need to spend some cash to get the bike as you want it. Peformance wise - it's a 5!

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Mainly ridden XC prior to owning this bike

Excellent styling looks like it means business and it can deliver. Eats rocks boulders jumps drop offs, it just loves anything gnarly you can throw at it. Can ride uphill (if you must).

Basically whatever you encounter the bike will not be the limiting factor.

Pretty heavy, its ok to ride uphill but does take it out of you. The Manitou anti bob thing works really well if you are seated (just dont stand up). This bike is pretty big so make sure you sit on one as Orange's size guide doesnt quite seem right to me.

Also the grips suck and constantly moved/slipped until I got fed up and relpaced them.

This bike is great if you like riding fast over difficult terrain, you can take it on xc and downhill courses. However I feel its forte is going very fast over rough terrain and jumping...oh how it loves being in the air.

Similar Products Used:

Marin, Specialized, Giant, Trek etc..