Submitted by
dirtdawg21892
a Weekend Warrior
from Massachusetts
Date Reviewed: July 19, 2009
Strengths: incredible all around bike. extremely versatile. good bike for just about anything and it's absolutely bombproof (the suspension pivot is a bottom bracket and guaranteed for life)
Weaknesses: it isn't "great" at any one thing, it's too heavy to be a practical trail bike (almost 40 lbs) but not set up to be a downhiller. it's good at both of them, but not great at either
Bottom Line:
get this bike if you want to go freeriding on one day and then trail riding on the next on the same bike. this thing can climbs well and descends better. it can get heavy after a long trail ride. i'm not actualy a weekend warior, i ride everyday. i'd clasify myself as a freerider/agressive trail rider, but i'm not competitive, so i dont race i'm convinced this bike was made for me.
there are better bikes for freeriding (driver8), and there are better bikes for trail riding (nomad), but there is no better bike for both of them.
the nomad will be my next bike, it's lighter (by almost 10 pounds) and better for trails, but it just can't take a hit quite like the bullit can.
bottom line:
if you can't afford 2 bikes, get one
or maybe you can, and get it anyway.
ride on!
Bike Setup: domain fork, dhx 3.0 shock, nevigal 2.5
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Submitted by
ernie
a Cross Country Rider
from pasadena, california
Date Reviewed: August 7, 2006
Strengths: Big burly tubes, single pivot maintenance, 5th Element rear shock provides almost bob-free climbing, great handling.
Weaknesses: Sometimes too heavy for steep climbs and on group rides you are usually not ahead of everyone. Non-replaceable rear deraileur hanger.
Bottom Line:
This is my second Bullit. Someone stole my first one out of my garage (thank you, I hope you fkin burn in hell) I bought the frame in September 2005 as a frame and built it up whenever I had money to burn. No longer made, the Bullit is still a good ride. Get one on Ebay or wait til Santa Cruz starts making them again but this time in Taiwan. Its a rumor, but who knows, its still a good design and they make the Hecklers, Blur XC, Chameleon and Superlights in Taiwan so why not the Bullits? In fact why dont they move all Santa Cruz operations overseas (those cost-cutting mongoloids) and get it over with. (can you say Kona?) Regardless, the bike is fantastic and will eat bumps, ruts and drops for lunch. The 5th Element is hard to tune but when you get it right, just leave it alone.
Bike Setup: jr.t, race face forged, dh tires, hayse hydrualic 8" in disk, (light freeride set up)
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Submitted by
C.C. Henning
a Racer
from Springfield, MO
Date Reviewed: October 30, 2004
Strengths: very simple frame, 5th element shock is really pretty easy to set up after reading dirictons(funny how that works)
Weaknesses: whould like to see bulit sl (Heckler 7in.?)
Bottom Line:
This bike tops the scales at about 32lbs. With the 5in travel fork the effective geometery makes for a great trail bike. With little effort the 30lbs mark is easyly met. The local 12hr was really a blast with this bike and makes for the perfect allaround mt. bike. After riding for over one year had to replace pivot bearings. The good thing is that the bearings are very common and can be ordered from someone other than Santa Cruz. Those guys are just lucky they make such nice bikes because they are a pain to deal with.
Weaknesses: HAD TO WAIT SO LONG FOR MY FRAME.3.5 MONTHS
Bottom Line:
DO YOUR SELF A FAVOR AND BUY THIS FRAME NOW. YOU WILL WAIT A LONG TIME FOR THIS FRAME. BUILD THIS BIKE TO DO ALMOST ANY TYPE OF RIDING. THIS IS NOT A DOWNHILL BIKE REMEMBER. THIS IS THE ULTIMATE TRAIL MACHINE.I RAN THIS BIKE TO THE GROUND IN A YEAR AND A HALF. DOWN TO CHANGING THE PIVIOT BEARINGS. ITS WENT THROUGH A TACO ED RIM TO BROCKEN CABLES, TO SMASHED COMPUTER, TO 20 FLAT TIRES TO A BLOWEN 5TH ELEMENT REAR SHOCK. BIG TIP OF THE DAY DO NOT BUY THE 5TH ELEMENT BLEW UP 3 TIMES IN 18 MONTHS. SPEND YOUR MONEY ON A FOX RP3 THIS IS THE SHI_!!! LATER
Bike Setup: POLISHED FRAME, RACEFACE TURBINE W/ISIS FR BOTTOM BRACKET, SHERMAN FIREFLY, SINGLETRACK, DT SPOKES, HADLEY HUBS, KENDA 2.5 BLUGROOVE F, KENDA NEVEGAL STICK E RUBBER,THOMPSON STEM AND POST, EASTON CARBON DH BARS, HAYES MAG PLUS W/ 8" ROTERS, WTB LAZER V SADDLE, FOX RP3 REAR SHOCK
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Submitted by
Brian Tunic
a Weekend Warrior
from Edgewater, NJ 07020
Date Reviewed: August 25, 2004
Strengths: Best bike I've ever ridden
Weaknesses: False(?) sense of security
Bottom Line:
I've only been had this bike on a few trails (Ringwood, NJ, and some NYC urban) but its the best bike I've ever ridden. Another reviewer mentioned he had been afraid of all drops and this bike helped him grow a set. I was not afraid of all drops, but since riding this bike I actually look for them. The thing goes uphill like a hardtail, and downhill just about as well as a Kona Stab Primo with much more throwability. I saw people complain about the paint, but this is a freeride bike, if any paint job is holding up, you're not doing it right. I have the polished model, which is yet to show any signs of use besides a lot of dirt. And thanks to Cambria, I was able to fill in everything besides the frame and front shock for less than $500. Buy one, and if you can't afford it, steal one.
Price. You can get a great used frame for very little.
Good customer service.
5th works very well and is super tunable. You can really dial this shock in to use the bike in a wide variety of riding conditions. Progressive has great customer service.
Weaknesses: None yet. We'll see how the nonreplaceable derailure hanger holds up. It looks tough and I suspect the derailure would break before the hanger.
Bottom Line:
Great bike!!!
I don't think there is another bike out there that can handle so much so well. This well executed single pivot allows for a tough, durable, easily serviced frame that is still reasonably light for the amount of travel it provides. Built up with a lighter wheelset and fork and it will blow away a xc or all mountian frame on any real trail (By real trail I mean not your typical xc grass sidewalk.). Built up as a DH bike it's more than capable on the slopes. Super FR frame.
Similar Products Used: Gemini. Also a nice bike but has poor cable routing. Many other "non-similar" bikes as I've been riding since '92.
Bike Setup: 2 setups:
All Purpose: Z1 qr20 with Mavic 519s w/ a Vert and Surviaval. On any real trail this bike will hang, if not beat, any xc or "all mtn" bike going.
DH/FR: Swap the fork out to a DC and put on a DH wheelset and the Bullit is ready to go big.
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Submitted by
Gardhafi
a Weekend Warrior
from SINGAPORE
Date Reviewed: June 9, 2004
Strengths: very good at handling the hits especially when its equipped with a 5th element
Weaknesses: the rear end flex alil...the bolts on the pivot point could easily loosen up(but its managable)
Bottom Line:
the BULLIT does serve the purpose in the bighit arena..Its a damn cool bike..all the bad pedalling bobs are all set aside by the 5th ELEMENT...the BULLIT is good for those who can't afford a true hucking breed its bigger bro the V10 or the new VP-FREE
Similar Products Used: its ma 1st full susser have been on ma DMR hardtail for a long time..
Bike Setup: small size bullit(find its easy to tweak arnd with small size), '00 MonsterT,hayes brakes(currently running only the rear cuz the front f*8ked up) Mr.DIRT gizmo guides,5thelement,sun double wide rims,point racing bars,MAXXIS TIRES etc
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Submitted by
Colby
a Cross Country Rider
from Burlington, Vermont
Date Reviewed: June 5, 2004
Strengths: Great design, you will not know you are riding a bike that has this much travel, and weighs as much as it does. Fantastic selection of parts, LBS and Santa Cruz were great to deal with when I hadd the bike built.
Weaknesses: NONE! If I read one more complaint about the paint I'm gonna lose it! The paint is fine, as a matter of fact, this is the best I've seen, and I've owned a load of bikes over the years. I bought the trans Red with a Black swingarm. It's had a full year of abuse, including a Vermont winter in the snow and salted roads, and still looks great.....'nuf said about paint.
Bottom Line:
When I bought this bike I had three others in the garage.....Giant NRS XTC 1, Specialized S-Works M-4, and a Specialized P.3......I've sold them all and kept the Bullit. That pretty much says it all. The bike seems to do everything/anything well.......I found myself riding it more than anything else. Hands down my all time favorite, and still is after a year and a ton of miles!
Strengths: 5th element, frame is very solid. FOr what it is it climbs very very well.
Weaknesses: 5th requires frequent maintenance with a single pivot frame.
Bottom Line:
A very solid and mature single pivot frame design. With a properly tuned 5th it is awesome. I weigh 200lbs. and have done 6' drops with no problems. I have dirt jumped it too but the 5th makes it hard to launch because it is so efficient at soaking up bumps, even big jumps too. The shock is better for DH racing.
The bike is a blast to ride and I plan to keep this frame for as long as it is functional. I will be upgrading to 04 Super T forks soon but other than that it is a very sold ride. I love it.
Bike Setup: 2003 SC Bullit frame with 5th element, Truvative cranks (w/bashguard) Tioga DH wheeels, 2002 Marzocchi Jr. T forks, 8" Hayes HFX-9 HD,Weyless DH 70mm stem, Titec Hell Bent Bars, XT f and r derailers, LX shifters and XT cassette.
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Submitted by
Fermin Baez
a Downhiller
from Puerto Rico
Date Reviewed: March 17, 2004
Strengths: - Tough as nails! - Simple & efficient suspension setup - Light for a freeride/DH frame - Good looking
Weaknesses: - No clear coat over decals (but on a freeride/DH bike prone to get a new scratch every week, we all know paint is not a big issue)
Bottom Line:
I built this bike originally for freeride. However I've moved to DH after feeling an urge for more speed. Only change from original setup was making it single speed up front and adding a chainguide. I also installed tires with greater volume (2.7" front, 2.5" rear). The result: Discovering that the Bullit can tackle any DH trail with the same ease as a dedicated downhill bike. Even though I have no base for comparison as this is my first DH rig, I can tell you that the rear 7" suspension does an amazing job keeping me hooked to the ground. I fly over rock gardens and drops and I hardly feel anything. Of course I went through the usual process of finding the correct 5th Element setup for my weight and riding style, something that can take some time but is to be expected. And let me tell you, I've lived throught quite a few nasty crashes, and I look at this bike afterwards, and I can't believe how strong the mf is!!! I just wait for the dust to settle, make sure I didn't break any bones (thank God for body armor!), pick the bike up and keep riding. Nothing gets loose or broken on this frame. You set the limits, not the bike. It can take anything you throw at it... and keep asking for more...
Bike Setup: Hayes Mag Hydro 8" hydraulic disc brakes, Race Face riser bar, ODI lock ring grips, Shimano XT shifter (rear derrailleur only), Truvativ Hollzfeller Crank, MRP world cup chainguide, Mavic Deemax wheels, Boxxer Race fork setup for 7" travel, Chris King steel head set, Race Face BB, Shimano XT rear derrailleur, Kenda stick-e DH tires(2.7" front, 2.5" rear) and Kore platform pedals.
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Submitted by
Corbin Dallas
a Downhiller
from Kings Be-ach
Date Reviewed: February 24, 2004
Strengths: The frame is burly, lots of travel. Chicks dig it. Can be set up as a lighter freeride bike or downhill rig.
Weaknesses: None.
Bottom Line:
Just sold a light xc bike for something more aggressive. I will plan on doing just as much climbing, even though mine weighs about 40 pounds. It will only make me stronger and the downhill better. My bike is set up as a downhill rig but I put 2 rings up front so I can climb it- my main concern is that I didn't want to have to rely on a shuttle ride or chairlift everytime I want to ride. If you are considering getting a Bullit, do it. The bike can be easily customized for your riding habits and its a proven frame design.
Similar Products Used: None that compare. I used to have a Trek Fuel.
Bike Setup: 2 rings up front, 9" Hanebrink fork, Fox Vanilla rear shock, Hayes 8" Hydrolic, Azonic bars & stem, Trutativ Cranks and doublewide rims w/ 2.7 tires.
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Submitted by
Todd Bagley
a Weekend Warrior
from Colorado Springs, CO USA
Date Reviewed: February 17, 2004
Strengths: Stiffness of frame. 5th element hasn't been an issue. Dealing with Greg from CyclePaths made it all easy. Bike is just an incredible deal for the money considering the upside. Making the rider that much more confident.
Weaknesses: None, and I don't forsee any.
Bottom Line:
I rode the 29-30lb GT up until I got the Bullit. I could definately feel the weight difference that first ride(about 10lbs diff.). But amazingly that became only a memory on the way down the hill. The fork is awesome and has bailed me out on some pretty sketchy terrain. The bike is just an inspiration and makes all other bikes mere mortals. The Bullit dwarfs my buddy's Blur. I would reccomend this bike to anyone who is looking to upgrade in any way. This is an all around bike that is soooo versatile. Talked to a guy who spec'd his with a lot of XC stuff and had it close to 30lbs. Just know the kind of riding you want to do and make it happen. You can't go wrong with this bike.
