Submitted by
cj whitehill
a Weekend Warrior
from hawaii
Date Reviewed: April 15, 2005
Strengths: solid plush reliable travel. american craftmanship.
Weaknesses: rear tire clearance
Bottom Line:
Excellent bicycle. All around heavy duty trail bike. with bike travel increasing and stunts getting bigger. its good to have a bike that will continue to take the abuse that the sport dishes out. I think the travel is as plush as a person could ever want. I like my bike it inspires me to ride. worth the dough to seek out the people. visit www.psycle-werks.com and get one today. They are the best thing to happen to trails since dirt. !!!
Bike Setup: sherman, mag 30's, sram, hayes 8" w/ galfer rotors
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
chad peterson
a Downhiller
from marin, ca, usa
Date Reviewed: May 26, 2002
Strengths: Strong, slalom influenced front end, seems virtually industructable relativeley light rig. Plush rear, the rear end moves smooth with no brake jack. This is a true free-rider, perfect for the west-coast. it has the ability to do anything, downhill, jumps, drops, slalom, even some xc as it is not much heavier than the Hare.
Weaknesses: psycle werks had a batch of bad aluminum bolts, they are replacing them with stronger steel ones. P.W is a small co. warrany issues do take some serious time.
Bottom Line:
So far I like this frame alot more than the wild hare, I had the hare for 6 months and though I liked it alot, in the back of my head I wished I had a little more travel, with the demon I feel more confident on drops and on downhill obstacles on the hare I would go up slow and come down fast, on the demon I go up slower and come down faster. With the demon I just throw on my headphones, clip the helmet to the camel back, maybe take a puff and slug my way up the hill with an eager grin on my face in anticipation for the trail to point down or drop off alltogether. The hare was more agile, and zippy but the demon hammers harder thereby making up for its harder handling, the longer top tube makes the climb better but its a little harder to maneuver through tight spots. The demon has a tendencey to pave its own course. Obstacles that used to keep me on a straight line are becoming less and less relevent. I try not to damage trails, which can sometimes be a challenge in itself with a beast like this. I live in Marin and most savage trails have been closed, so its also nice to have a bike that can handle all the paved urban drops starbucks and lucasfilm built. I also like that I can ride it like a trail bike or take it shuttling up into the sticks, or even to Northstar (ski spot) and really let this sucker fly, this bike feels ready for anything. I am thinking about getting a jr. T, or some other dual crown fork any other suggestons would be welcome, maybe a 2003 sherman. It's nice to have this option and the demon really doesn't ride that much worse on the climbs than the hare, maybe a little slower and harder on the legs, but its great training for xc, my legs are hurting as I right this review 5 hours after a ride. In conclusion this bike rocks! the extra inch compared to the hare makes a huge difference, it really sucks up the drops, things I was scared to do on the hare seem basic now. It is perfect for someone who wants a true go anywhere bike I don't know that I would really take a 10 foot drop on this bike, but for california free-riding its perfect, its also realistic for my riding style, I am not Bender and I never will be so 5.5 inches is just fine for me, its not great for mild singletrack, but as soon as the trail goes down the demon rules. One small problem; I would like more rear tire clearance a 2.4 barely fits.
Similar Products Used: psycle werks wild hare for 6 months, some damge was done to the rear triangle from the bad bolts mentioned above. P.W let me upgrade to the screamin demon for an extra 400 bucks, I like it much better.
Bike Setup: Marzochi Z1 5inch fork, KUJO tubeless tires on mavic ust rims, thomson short stem, white bros ti-bar, king h. set, hayes hydro brakes, odi grips, laser V, xt, xtr, drive train dx downhill pedals,=36 pounds
