Submitted by
Michael Reeves
a Cross Country Rider
from Melbourne, Australia
Date Reviewed: November 30, 2004
Strengths: Light, and climbs well. A delight to ride
Weaknesses: The seat post tube sheared in half after 11 months, just below the weld for the Rear Shock Mount. Interesting that another rider on this page has broken a frame X 2
Bottom Line:
I loved riding this bike, and I am very disappoint that the frame failed. Seems like a design problem. The break appears to be a result of the seat tube flexing, failing under load just below the rear shock mount. The frame broke not as a result of a big hit, but normal cross country riding. I first noticed problems with gear changes, 10 minutes latter the frame went, looks like it cracked first then sheared in half. I am 88 KG so maybe the bike is not strong enough for bigger riders.
Similar Products Used: Kona Dawg Delux, Previously Kona hard tail - Caldera Frame.
Bike Setup: FSA Cranks, Tompson Head Stem/ Seat Post, King head Set, Discs, Sun Rhino Lite Rims with Areal Hubs. Fox Float AVA RLC rear and Fox Float RL Front Shock.
Strengths: Super light, great components, race ready
Weaknesses: Stock seat is pretty painful
Bottom Line:
Great bike overall and an awesome value given the components. Wasn't competely confident purchasing a lesser known brand but was pleasantly surprised with KHS. Would definitely recommend to adv. racers or folks looking for a top notch bike at a decent price.
Submitted by
Jeremy Neal
a Cross Country Rider
from Oxford, OH
Date Reviewed: July 2, 2003
Strengths: Lightweight, very fast, good components.
Weaknesses: Broke two frames already, 2 year warranty. Broke WTB pedals in less than a week. Expensive if you have to pay full price.
Bottom Line:
This was a great bike for the money I paid. Although, I broke 2 frames in less than 6 months, and I don't ride it that hard. I don't know that others are having this problem?? Warranty only covers 2 years, though KHS has been good about warranty replacements. I will likely move up to a tougher bike now like a Trek Liquid.
Swing arm bolts hit the frame if you bottom out the suspension, leaving two little dents. Fixed on the 2003 model though.
This is a great bike otherwise. Extremely fast and race ready. No pedal feedback. Climbs anything that can be climbed. Not meant for abusive riding though.
Purchased At: traded in as crash replacement frame
Similar Products Used: khs team st
Bike Setup: sid in the front, mavic 517s w/ xt hubs, wtb laser v, xtr rear, xt front, xt cassette, avid arch rival brakes, salsa shaft seatpost, raceface cranks and riser bar, time pedals
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Nonoy
a Weekend Warrior
from Philippines
Date Reviewed: December 28, 2002
Strengths: Lightweight, cool looks, super affordable!!!
Weaknesses: none so far!!
Bottom Line:
Got only the frame and built it up from scratch with the help from my dealer..Thanks to him!! using hydraulic discs was the way to go.. the frame handles so nimble on rough terrain, super light considering the cost i paid for it compared to other frames that are super expensive and still as light... overall, this bike rules!! and hope people see that even this bike will make you run fast without selling your house to get a super rig like this... super underrated!!!
Similar Products Used: GT i-drive, Cannondale Jekyll
Bike Setup: Duke forks, XT hydraulic brakes, UST rims w/ hutchinson scorpion tires
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
serge spinato
a Cross Country Rider
from lyon , France
Date Reviewed: June 28, 2002
Strengths: great geometry for both racers and trail riders
Weaknesses: not a free ride bike - 31,6mm seatpost sizing - 73mm bottom bracket shell
Bottom Line:
active suspension . no bob with rock shox recommended sid rear XC air tunings , slight bob with enduro air tunings . in very hard climbs , some tendency to wheelie if not seated on the nose of the saddle . very good descender . medium size,18" seat tube,23"top tube length,13"bottom bracket eight,17"chainstays,42.5"wheelbase,70°head angle,71°seat angle . purchased as frame only 762euros
Bike Setup: marzo xfly80 ,hutchinson python gold ,mavic cross max ,ritchey WCS 120mm 6° stem ,ti 560mm 3°flat bar ,30mm offset seatpost ,avid arch rival
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Submitted by
Paul Arlinghaus
a Racer
from Indianapolis,IN,USA
Date Reviewed: June 13, 2002
Strengths: Efficient Dual Suspension for race oriented performance
Weaknesses: None for the Cross country racer. This is not a Freeride bike.
Bottom Line:
I was a Hard Tail hold out, and finally decided to try Full Suspension. I was really surprised how much faster I can ride on this bike. The suspension is efficient on climbs, and loves technical climbing. In last weekend's race, I made up huge gaps on technical sections of the course.
You should buy this bike if you want a fast racing bike at a reasonable price. You should look elsewhere if you want massive travel or the latest, most expensive suspension gimmicks.
Similar Products Used: KHS Alite 4000, Litespeed Obed, Schwinn Homegrown
Bike Setup: RockShock Sid SL, Titec bars, Rockshox Sid SL, Thompson post and Stem, FSA Orbit Headset, Flite Saddle, XTR/Mavic Ceramic Wheels, XTR Drive Train / Brakes, and 959 pedals
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Christopher Salice
a Cross Country Rider
from Nottingham, MD
Date Reviewed: June 9, 2002
Strengths: super ride!, great geometry (for me), light weight, stiff, responsive, nice paint job!
Weaknesses: none
Bottom Line:
Bought this as frame only when I got tired of the trek geometry. This geometry is better for me - shorter top tube on the large. This is one fantastic ride! Super smooth suspension with little or no bob and doesn't feel like you're on a trampeline. The sid shock has a rebound adjuster which actually works. I put this bike through several races and some pretty hard riding and it performs beyond my expectations. This has got to be one of the best values in a full supension frame. Hats off to KHS!!
Similar Products Used: trek fuel 90, barracuda hardtail
Bike Setup: duke sl fork, answer bars and stem, xt drive, xtr r. der., avid Ti brakes and levers, flite saddle, thompson post, crank bros pedals, bontrager mustang wheels
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Jon
a Cross Country Rider
from Sacramento
Date Reviewed: May 18, 2002
Strengths: Value and performance. Excellent geometry.
Weaknesses: Not super, super light. About 5lbs. with shock. Very good fit and finish, but room for imporvement for lighter weight. Bottom bracket shell is not butted. Dropouts are thick and solid.
Bottom Line:
This bike is very impressive. A great value. KHS claims 3.25" travel. It felt like around 3" at first. Then I switched to the higher leverage setting on the swing arm/shock mount and it feels more like 4". An awsome value for an efficent horst link race bike. No bob. No extavigant price tag. Beautiful paint.
Strengths: Very Lightweight, no bobbing, very fast on single tracks, great on uphill
Weaknesses: Not found any weaknesses as of yet
Bottom Line:
Suprising full suspension bike - behaves like hard tail racer with rear suspension. Very easy to adjust the suspension for weight, speed and trail. The easiest move from years of KHS Hard tail racing to this new Full Suspension KHS Product
Bike Setup: Full XT, on Mavic X517, Manitou- Mars Elite 02, Rear Shock - Rockshox - Sid Race, Easton CT2 seat post, Easton stand, Race face bar, SLR saddle, Crank Bros pedals, tyre - corratec - semi slicks, XTR V Brakes
