Submitted by
Phil May
a Weekend Warrior
from England
Date Reviewed: February 12, 2006
Strengths: Amazingly strong, will not break, quite a good lookin' frame, no paint to scratch, reflective stickers (!), low top tube.
Bottom Line:
The most hardcore hardtail ive riden, I had a .243 racing frame for a while, and that was also an amazing frame. My recomendation if you like steel get the .243, if you like Alu get the LeToy. The new version looks even better!!
Similar Products Used: DMR Sidekick (borrowed for a couple of weeks, .243 Racing
Bike Setup: HFX 9 DH (6" rotor) rear brake, SUN Double Track Rims (24"), Deore Disc Hubs, DMR Moto R/T tyres,FSA Smackdaddy Cranks, Royal Racing limited edition chain ring, Gusset Singlespeed kit, DMR/FUNN/Hope Finishing kit, no rear brake!!
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Submitted by
Lee Marlowe
a
from Smithers, BC Canada
Date Reviewed: April 12, 2005
Strengths: This thing is the God of Hardtails!!! I always watched Wayne Goss ride his before he won UFC, and drooled over what he could do. Like, 25+ drops, manuals forever, and the sickest DJ! It took it all, and now I've got one. Boys, this thing makes a joke out of any other bike, EVER.
Weaknesses: Pfff, there is no weakness in this thing.
Bottom Line:
This bike will never let you down! Forget Banchee, they are defenitly NOT as strong as this, and the scratch is a joke at 12pds for the frame. This frame is getting buried with me!
Bike Setup: 2005 Flick Plus QR20, AtomLab Trailpimp on surly mammoth (singlespeeded) & Hadley front QR, Diablous X type cranks and BB, Azonic DH bars, PIG headset, Avid 8" mechs (less trouble for urban), 2.5 Hookworms Stick-E, Funn DJ saddle, ODI Ruffian lock ons, Raceface Deus 50mm Stem.
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Submitted by
Scott R
a Weekend Warrior
from Deep River
Date Reviewed: April 8, 2005
Strengths: Marzocchi MZ-Comp 100 mm travel fork ? Truvativ Hussefelt DH crank with ISIS spline BB with Truvativ Box Guide ? Shimano 8 speed rapid fire gearing ? Wide 36H MTB rims ? Kenda 26 x 2.30 K-Rad tires
Weaknesses: Rust Red , RETAIL: $1,010 Cdn.
Bottom Line:
Hardtail Geometry
S Seat Tube TTT Theoretical Top Tube Length TT Top Tube Length Centre to Centre FC Front Centre WB Wheelbase HA Head Tube Angle SA Seat Tube Angle BB BB Height SA Seat Tube Angle HT Head Tube Length FL Fork Length RWT Rear Wheel Travel
Similar Products Used: I used the Norco 4Hun for about a year but i hit a 20 foot drop and messed the bike up a lot.
Bike Setup: Alloy thick wall low stand over frame with added gussets ? Chainstay Yoke ? Slotted rear dropout ? Dual V brake mounts ? Re 6? Mechanical disc brake ? BMX stem with lowrise chromoly MTB bar
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Submitted by
Dave
a Downhiller
from Sydney Australia
Date Reviewed: May 4, 2004
Strengths: crazy geometry. stupidly overbuilt, yet light not mass produced dropout setup
Weaknesses: none.
Bottom Line:
Wow!!! Amazing geometry, makes this bike insane!
I can actually manual on this, and it bunnyhops pretty high, skills which i didn't have before! It basically jumps itself.
The bike has actaully broadened my riding within about 2 weeks already. I feel a lot more confident on the jumps, which makes me more relaxed. The bike makes jumping feel natural.
The drop out design is spot on- horizontal yet the qr axle stays in the same spot because of the bolts. The bmx bb shell is a bit of a problem in that it limits the chice in chainguides, but that said i intend on keeping it as a single speed, although the option would be nice.
Apart from eventually changing the forks to some Sherman DJs r Fireflys, the only perceivable upgrade would be to some profile BMX cranks, which would make this bike pretty much invincable.
the best thing i can say is that when one of my friends had a ride both him and me felt at home straightaway, so the geomerty is fairly well dialled. Tristan has made a work of art in this frame, it's just a pity that the le Toy 4 just doesn't look as good. This has to be one of (if not the) best hadtails on the market for Jumping, huckinh, freeriding and urban. Maybe too stiff for dh, but a hardtail will never be the best dh bike.
Similar Products Used: Chameleon, my bullit, norco ryde, gt ruckus, giant acid
Bike Setup: Le Toy 3 frame, Fox Vanilla R fork*, King headset, 321 rims on XT hubs, RF DH isis cranks, singlespeed, azonic bar, stem and pedals, hayes mags.
* will upgrade to sherman firefly spv in the next 6 months
Strengths: Where to start? I mainly use this thing for BMX influenced riding (mostly skatepark and urban), and the Geometry is great for that type of riding. It has many wheel options and is constucted like a 26"/24" BMX ride (BMX BB and single speed options). It is amazingly strong but doesn't seem to stiff. The tubes are so burely.
Weaknesses: The only weeknesses are the Geometry isn't great for DJing and is is pretty pricey normally.
Bottom Line:
If your looking for an Urban Gangsta then I would say this is your best bet. I do about 70% urban/skatepark (by urban I don't mean the freeride part, I'm not to into that scene) and 30% DJing. I am really enjoying this frame it hasn't let me down yet.
Strengths: geometry is perfect for all around everything! drops, jumps, manuals, bunnyhops, half pipe, and trials riding of any sort. what more could a hucker ask for in a hardtail?
Weaknesses: its not butterfly light, but what do you expect from a strong frame? i can still bunnyhop waist high
Bottom Line:
the best non suspended street bike ever!! mine is a le toy 2 but the only difference is the front gusset is 1" shorter, no chain guide mount, and the drive side dropout isnt as big. same geometry though and i choose it over my s.c. bullit any day! truly the best frame i have ever bought, and it will be with me untill i die!!
Strengths: Were to start. The 2003 Le Toy III is even beefier then the 2002. The TT & DT is closer together with some serious welding to increse the strenght at the headtube. Stiff! (I like 'em stiff, so for me that's a strength) Can ride alot of diffrent wheel combos, this frame takes anything up to 3.0 (and if there were bigger tires, possible more) To sum things up: Awesome.
Weaknesses: Yet I havn't found any, and possible I won't either. Of course, if your a crosscountry rider or the cruiser type, this isn't the bike for you.
Bottom Line:
If your a urban/dirt rider, then this is possible one of the best frames for you. Yes they are others in the same class like the Tank/Punkass, Evil Imperial, Norco one50/two50/4hun etc but here in Sweden, all other non european brands is atleast 3-400$ more expensive, and frankly, 990$ för a Imperial frame is just silly. Best bang for buck if your into these kind of bikes and lives in the Nordics.
Strengths: Stif!! exelant ajustibility, stranth!!! And i well never have to buy a nother freeride frame agine! Its a tank!!!
Weaknesses: WTF??? NONE (its a little heavy)
Bottom Line:
im 90 pounds and i can bunny hop! its not that heavy. sweet bike. Exalant free ride bike!!! Grate for doing drops. if you bike and you dont care about a little extra weight, buy it!!!
Bike Setup: le toy III frame, race face fr bb, tru vative firex crank, azonic shorty stem, magrera jule disc brakes, marazochi dj III fork, deore deraler, deore cags, sun ringle rino light wheels, ritchy comp seat post, koshi handal bars (bad company cool bars), lx shifter, maxxis mofo front tire, Nokian Gazzolodi rear tire.
Strengths: Very strong, gussets, looks, ajustability
Weaknesses: Possibly weight, don't notice it. Slightly pricy
Bottom Line:
Haven't had the frame long, but very very impressed, it's very chuckable, fully adjustable, very stiff ride and the acceleration is amazing, bike feels very stable when jumping and is superb for urban riding.
Similar Products Used: Various other jumps frames Planet X etc
Bike Setup: Le Toy III (raw) with 03Dirt Jumper II, 24" wheels, Hope C2 brakes, cheiftan 3 pice cranks, mrp, wondercups
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Submitted by
Jason F
a Weekend Warrior
from Coquitlam, BC, Canada
Date Reviewed: February 7, 2003
Strengths: -Bulletproof - duh!! -Looks amazing -Gussets are well thought out, work perfectly -Great company, good service (like you'd need it!) -Versatile geometry (a bit heavy but does everything well!) -Stable as a tank
Weaknesses: -It's heavier than most of us need. But with Alum, flex will cause weakening, and this guy don't flex! -Head tube is a bit slack for street or tech riding (and DJ)
Bottom Line:
The perfect frame for someone who wants an all-around extreme use hardtail. It's more than most of us need, but you can rest assured your frame isn't gonna break. Also, if I crank the seat up, it's a comfortable climber! A bit lazy yes, but comfortable nonetheless.
Strengths: everything, gussets everywhere you need one, and theyre all beef, the tubing is huge, and it refuses to wear down. this bike is built to last, and i dont see anything that can stop it. not too heavy, not too weak, couldnt be better. i got hit full on the side by a car last weekend and the only thing that happened was it bent my rims and knocked me on the ground, NO damage to the frame. pure beef.
Weaknesses: um...i dont have the frame stickers....is that a weakness?
Strengths: like the whole thing? u cant brake this ay the guy i bought it off says if i snap it he'l buy me a new one so ive bin riding off n e thing and ive broken more than the bike
Weaknesses: bit heavey wen i first started i could hardly bunny hop but u get stronger after riding sumtin heavey now u should c me bunny hop my echo?! woa
Bottom Line:
F**king awsome u will brake b4 u brake this bike gives u heaps on confidance and makes u a betta rider
Similar Products Used: kona stuff, raceline extreme street, heaps of trial bikes nuttin really compares
Bike Setup: magura quake forks, mammoth rims (destroyed!) soon to have - avro zum eliminator rims, kore strictly D bars, azonic shorty stem, magura hydrolic rim brakes - soon to b changed to sum good disc, xtr components, raceface cranks, troy lee graphics all over
Similar Products Used: none! the bike is awesome!!!
Bike Setup: 24 FRAME Z4 FORK XTR PROFILE ALEX RIMS. UPGRAGES SOON DORADO, DOUBLEWIDES 24INCH REAR 26 UP FRONT HOPE BIG UN HUBS AND HOPE BRAKES MAYBE A CHAINGUIDE
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Submitted by
James Stevens
a Weekend Warrior
from Victoria
