Submitted by
James Teel
a Weekend Warrior
from Sunland, CA
Date Reviewed: January 25, 2004
Strengths: Price, most of the components, look
Weaknesses: no LBS has any knowledge of the bike so recommendations are few. The Rock Shox BAR has too much bob.
Bottom Line:
I replaced the seat, the riser, and the pedals. I am looking at a different rear shock. Overall, the bike performs very well. After these changes I think it will be just right for me. I love the Shimano XT components and the Hayes Hydraulic Discs. WOW what a difference from an old Diamondback hardtail.
Submitted by
Mike C.
a Cross Country Rider
from Indiana, USA
Date Reviewed: June 15, 2003
Strengths: Price No unkonwn quality house brand parts Fit and finish Small company with great customer service
Weaknesses: All of the weaknesses associated with buying from a direct retailer: No local service or support. You don't build rapport with your LBS or the local cycling community. Sizing is a guessing game. Other than that, there are a few budget class parts that most people will replace anyway: seat and pedals to be specific. Apparently, availability is not 100%. There can be substantial waiting periods for bikes that are not in stock.
Bottom Line:
Ibex is a class act. They are a small company with excellent customer service and if you call them, there is a good chance you will end up speaking with Jack, the president of the company. He will willingly tell you everything you ever wanted to know about the bikes, like why they chose a particular component, or whatever. Ibex delivers exactly what they advertise, and that is enthusiast quality bikes comparable to other high quality production bikes like you see at your local bike shop.
As for my buying experience, it has been very positive, although there was one snag. The RockShox Duke XC that came stock was a factory defect. It had a bad damper assembly that caused it to top out with a solid thud over every bump. I dealt with RockShox for a while, who were very accommodating, but because of some miscommunication the whole thing started to drag out too long. I called Ibex to see what they could do and I worked out a cool deal with Jack where I booted him some money to trade up my ailing Duke XC to a much nicer Duke SL U-turn. Now that this is worked out, the bike is almost too cool. I now have what I wanted when I set out looking for a bike this spring: a good quality full suspension bike that works without spending the equivalent of a down payment on a house.
Of course the main selling point is the price/performance ratio. Try as you might, you will be hard pressed to find a new bike comparable to the Ibex for a similar price. Believe me, I tried. I pre-ordered my Apogee XT and got a $150 discount over the already low price, but the tradeoff was that I had to wait a month to get it. There are some online retailers who occasionally advertise some things that sound almost as good, but read the fine print and you will likely find that they are last year's model, available only in a California store, they don't have any in your size, or all of the above. Most of the bikes I have seen for substantial discounts at bike dealers were Frankenstein rigs where they cherry picked parts and replaced them with something else.
Having said that, I think Ibex is best suited for independent DIY people who don't want or need the support of the LBS. I have never taken a bicycle to a shop mechanic in over 30 years of bicycling, so the support that a LBS would give me would be useless anyway. But if you aren't ready to do your own wrenching, then maybe you should balance the benefits of an Ibex over paying more at the LBS. You can certainly pay the LBS to tweak your Ibex, but they won't love you for leapfrogging them and ordering direct.
Similar Products Used: My old GT full rigid, BMX and road bikes before mountain bikes came into style.
Bike Setup: The Apogee XT is a full suspension bike with an almost complete set of Shimano XT components, RockShox Duke XC fork, RockShox Bar rear shock, Hayes HFX-9 disc brakes, and Ritchey Pro bar, stem and seatpost. The saddle is a WTB Speed V Sport, rims are by Alex and the pedals are Wellgo single sided clipless platform combo units. I traded out the saddle for a WTB Rocket V Laser, the pedals for Ringlé Mag Octanes, and the tires for Michelin Wildgripper Rocks.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Darrin
a Cross Country Rider
from Pittsburgh
Date Reviewed: May 25, 2003
Strengths: Price. After a lot of research and trips to the local bike shops, it seems that Ibex bikes have better components for the money.
Weaknesses: Sizing. With Ibex only selling direct from their website, there is no way to ensure which size of frame is the best for your body size and geometry.
Bottom Line:
Since no one else has posted a review, I guess I better make this one long...
I love this bike! If I had purchased through the local bike shop, I would have had to settle for LX components and mechanical disc breaks at the same price point. Since I do all of my own service and since the LBS wasn't so nice to me anyway, I figured, order the Apogee off the internet.
PACKAGING + ASSEMBLY It came packaged in one box (~5 x .5 x 3") that was fairly roughed up by UPS ground. However, the bike was in perfect shape and it was ready to ride in about a half hour. The front tire was zip-corded to the frame and nearly all painted surfaces were wrapped in a layer of thin, non-corrugated cardboard. First I attached the front tire by removing the protective plastic axle skewer from the front fork and cardboard spacer from the front break assembly. Next I attached the handlebars via four bolts on the Cane Creek neck. The tires were obviously under inflated. Probably just inflated enough that the tubes and tires were properly seated. I also pointed the brake levers and shifter a bit more toward the ground. All assembly is possible with the included multi-tool.
BRAKES So far, the best thing about this bike have been the hydraulic brakes, but they also require a bit of adjustment. Since this is my first bike with non-caliper breaks, I'm still working on eliminating a bit of drag. Or... at this rate, a couple more rides and the pads will be slightly worn enough to be perfect. With these brakes I can go down slippery hills that I avoided before. The control is so good that I no longer skid on 45 degree inclines at 3 miles an hour while steering around trees and stumps.
SUSPENSION With little experience on full-suspension bikes I can't tell you how this bike compares to others. Yet I can say that so far bob hasn't been a problem. The only problem has been that the rear derailer cable goes in between the shock and rocker arm. This seems to pinch it a bit on large drops so I'll need to shorten the protectant sleeve and cable in order to reposition it properly. Or... if I get lazy, a zip cord would suffice. Combined with the superb hayes brakes, I can roll down steep hills and over washed out roots while sticking to the ground with such precision it almost isn't fair to my hard-tail companions. Shocks are probably the weakest part of the Apogee but seem well matched and suitable for the price point.
FRAME The frame looks better in person than on the Ibex website. The bottom tube is oval shaped and has room for a cage and extra long water bottle. There is a mounting bracket and rubber clip holding the rear hydraulic line in place nicely. There are only disc break mounts in the rear and these are more than rock solid. The rear half of the frame is painted silver and has quite little clearance between the tire. The tight tolerance gives the bike a luxury/precision machine look and it supposably fits 2.4 inchers. The logos are painted; no decals. At this price point, most other bikes are about 3 to 7 pounds heavier so I'm quite pleased.
SIZING On a final note. Ordering a bike off the internet can be scary. Who knows what you'll get or how it will fit. The component list was spot on and the sizing chart seems accurate. However, after having ridden on enough rides to become comfortable on the bike, I'm starting to think I would prefer the 20 inch model to the 18 inch one I bought. I'm 6 ft tall with average body proportions. Its borderline, I've always fallen somewhere between these two sizes from most manufacturers. With the seat post extended all the way, it fits. Yet for non-technical, flat rides, I would prefer to have a larger frame. Ibex has a 30 day money back guarantee policy but I'd feel a bit guilty sending back a frame that I've ridden this hard. Its currently sitting in my hallway completely covered in mud. The guy I talked to while ordering my bike and checking delivery status was exceedingly helpful so its likely they would allow a complete exchange on this abused machine. However, I'm going to ask if they will sell me the 20" frame separately with the plan that I return the 18" one that came with the complete bike package. With a slight restocking fee, I think this would be good fair for both me and the Ibex company... I'll post another review if I do decide to attempt an exchange for the larger size.
In summary. This bike is so much fun, I think I strained a jaw muscle smiling so hard on the downhills. I would recommend the Apogee to anyone who is looking to save a few bucks but still get XT components, a light frame, and hydro-disc brakes. All similar bikes seem to cost about $500-$1000 more.
Similar Products Used: GT Ricochet. (An aluminum hardtail with suntour components and a 7005 aluminum frame.
Bike Setup: Medium (18.5") frame. All Shimano XT everything except for hayes HFX-9 XC hydraulic 6" discs and the chain (forgot what it is). Duke Mountain XC front fork and BAR adjustable rear shock.
Those that bought an Apogee - did you get the appropriate pump adapter for the Marzocchi fork? There were two packed with my bike, but they were identical, and appeared to have no Read More »
Hi, just thought I'd pass along a link that would certainly help lighter riders of Apogee XTs. My wife rides this bike, and she had some problems with getting full travel out of t Read More »
Have you made any changes to the factory cable routing? There are a couple of areas I plan to change today, and I was wondering if anyone else had done this and had some success.
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