Submitted by
breal
a Weekend Warrior
from Asheville,nc
Date Reviewed: June 5, 2008
Strengths: Well I found this bike after a little looking,I got it from a man who got it as a gift and could not ride it after his back went out,less then 50 miles on the bike..it's from 2003 and now it is 2008 and for $300 it's a steel
Weaknesses: all i have done so far is change the head..it pulled my arms out to far so i changed it.
Bottom Line:
Well after a few trail rides I love this bike,,,lol it's my first real bike and what can i say i love it,I live in Asheville nc and the trails here are some of the best on the east coast...I got this bike almost new with around only 50 miles on it and I got it for $300 buck's..My last bike was a junker i had as a kid and so heavy now i can climb almost any hill and do some fine down hill stuff..Im going to do some upgrades soo but only one thing at a time when it brakes,
Strengths: Orginal wheelset at 11,500 miles and still rolling, although some of those miles are from the road. No broken spokes. Almost everthing is orginal. Brakes, bottom bracket, fork. Obviously I've replaced several chains, cables, brake pads and tires. I'm a light rider and don't really bash difficult stuff. Still, I'm impressed with the durability after that many miles.
Out the door, without the reflectors, and with Eggbeater pedals, the standard bike was easily under 23.0 pounds. Not bad for a 17" entry level Stumpjumper.
Weaknesses: Only weak spot seems to be where the rear der cable runs under the bottom bracket. Because of that position it aquires lots of dust and dirt and that makes the cables wear faster than they otherwise might. A minor complaint. I clean and lube the cable at that point prior to each ride.
Oh yes, and I ditched the orginal OEM Roll-X Pro tires after about 250 miles. They were slow and not particulary good in corners. Replaced them with Nokian NBX 2.0 Lites which are about the fastest CC tire you can buy. Amazing difference in speed. Still have the OEM Roll-X tires and will put them back on the bike if I ever sell it.
Bottom Line:
Amazing value for the price. My $850 price was a sale price. Even with my add ons, I'm still under $1,000 total ( not counting replacement tires, pads, tubes, cables etc.) I'm guessing I may be able to get 15,000 to 20,000 miles on this bike without spending too much more. Oh yes, and the bike climbs very good if you've got legs and lungs.
In conclusion, if you can find one of these 2003 Stumpjumpers used with only a 1000 miles or so on it, then grab it, because at that mileage its just getting warmed up. Expect another easy 5,000 to 10,000 miles.
this is a nice bike i love it...its the best hardtail i ever owned..however i would like to buy a full suspension bike....i need something with back suspension for going a little faster down hills...
the bottome line is this bike is awsome. perfect for just riding around,racing,jumping off of anything it can handle. i love it wouldnt buy any other name brand
Bike Setup: specialized fram...rock shox J4...2" rise handlebars
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Submitted by
Rock Magnet
a Weekend Warrior
from East Hartford, CT USA
Date Reviewed: February 16, 2005
Strengths: This is a follow-up to review back '03. Frame holding up great. Same with wheelset.
Weaknesses: The stock Manitou Skareb fork crapped the bed this year: Cracked the arch. If you own one, for gawd sake take a look at the arch or you will be sorry!. Stock tires/tubes were dog crap also.
Bottom Line:
Follow-up from 2003: I still love this bike after 1000 miles of punishment on Case Mtn. Upgrade or replace the fork which others have documented as prone to cracking. The wheelset amazes me: light weight and still very true with little maintenance. I did break the seat mount bolt in one rather terrifying episode. I still go down to the basement at night to stare at it proudly. Overall, zero complaints. I definitely have gotten my money's worth out of it. I am now in the market to upgrade to Stumpy Expert FSR 100 or 120 but will keep this bike running as a flat trail bike or loaner. May upgrade the flat bar soon with riser bar to ride a bit more upright. Don't think I'll ever be able to part with it! Great ride Specialized!
Bike Setup: Stock. The casting for the fork was replaced under waranty by Answer.
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Submitted by
Gary
a Weekend Warrior
from Oakland, Ca
Date Reviewed: May 5, 2004
Strengths: Light, quick, responsive.
Weaknesses: Geometry sucks for me. The aggressive positioning on the bike is slightly uncomfortable for me. I think it's because of my height and arm reach. I'm going to try to fix the problem with either riser bars or a higher stem (probably the latter, I like flat bars).
Bottom Line:
I like the stumpjumper very much! It's the only hardtail anyone should EVER buy if you're doing mountain biking, not road riding. It's a great frame. I love the response you get from it. It's very nimble and can do so much. Best advice though, get used! Much better value than brand new! There's no comparison between this and my Gary Fisher.
Weaknesses: Seatpost heavy and difficult to clamp, Roll-X tires don't roll as well as the Revolt Super-X I'm used to. Headset wouldn't stay tight.
Bottom Line:
Picked this bike up last year after breaking a 7-year old M2. Specialized exchanged the frame no questions asked, and Town & Country offered a credit towards a complete bike in stock, so I was back riding within a week :). Kudos to Specialized and T&C - I read a lot of bad customer service reviews, but they get my highest marks from me.
I'm partial to Grip Shift, so I immediately switched out the stock LX/XT drivetrain to an almost brand new SRAM 9.0 from my old bike, and sold the Shimano parts new. Also switched the seatpost & handlebar to save some weight. I had a brand new Duke C on the old bike, so I moved that over as well, but now the Duke is leaking, so the Skareb is back with a stiffer coil spring while the Duke is in for service. I don't have any real trail miles on the Skareb yet. The Roll-X tires advertise better grip and less rolling resistance, which to me seems a contradiction. What I found was ok grip and poor rolling resistance compared to my old tires, so the Bontragers are back. I don't understand complaints about the seat. It's probably my favorite seat on all of my bikes.
Bottom line is that I was devastated when my bike broke. It was like losing a limb. I even had bad dreams about it. I knew that I would get a new bike, but I was happy with my M2. I didn't imagine that the M4 would be better than the M2, the most I was hoping for was "as good." Turns out, the new Stumpjumper is an amazing bike. It has all the responsiveness and acceleration of the M2, if not more, and it is better in corners. My first few rides I was amazed on how easily I could throw the bike into turns, in situations when I'd need to work to keep the M2 in line, and the M4 just tracks effortlessly. I find it easier to correct both the front & rear ends when the bike starts to slide.
Some components leave a little to be desired, but IMO you buy the frame, and this is the same frame as the more expensive but better spec'd Stumpjumpers, and for that reason I give 5 chili value. Components are so personal, that you expect to wear the stock setup out and replace with what you love, in the process becoming equivalent to (or better than) the high-end bike. If you don't wear out components, then you're not riding enough, and probably won't have any problems with the stock setup.
To me, the package is all about acceleration & handling. If you ride twisty singletrack and want to enter corners hard, then accelerate out quickly, then you'll be happy with this bike.
Purchased At: Town & Country Cycles, Northville MI
Similar Products Used: Stumpjumper M2
Bike Setup: Easton EC70 seatpost & handlebars, Time ATAC, Chris King Headset, SRAM 9.0 shifters & RD, Revolt Super-X tires, Specialized A1 bar-ends, SRAM PC-99 chain, stiffer spring for the Manitou (had a Duke C on last year).
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Submitted by
el fuerdo
a Cross Country Rider
from westerville, oh
Date Reviewed: February 21, 2004
Strengths: The stumpjumper is a great entry level cross country hardtail.I own a 2001 stumpjumper m4, and since then there have been only minor changes. They took out the large head-tube gusset an put a better fork on it. The mavic 221 wheel set is a strong, light weight set that is easy to true and inexpensive to replace if you destroy them. The drive train is all LX, with the heavy duty XT rear deraileur.Rides smooth and fast.
Weaknesses: This year it comes with spd pedals, which when compared to times, are lacking. while the crank arms are strong, the chainrings on the house brand cranks have a tendency to bend.
Bottom Line:
The stumpjumper is an exellent bike for the money. If you have to replace any one thing on it, it will be the cranks.
Similar Products Used: similar products I have used include my own m4, and also the Giant XTC 2. The XTC is very similar, but the race face cranks are alot better than the specialized house brand.
Bike Setup: Fully stock
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Submitted by
Dean
a Weekend Warrior
from Nashville, TN, USA
Date Reviewed: October 30, 2003
Strengths: Lightweight. Dependable drivetrain.
Weaknesses: Skareb Comp suspension
Bottom Line:
Good basic hardtail. The bike is stiff and light with adependable drivetrain. The front suspension, however, is a piece of garbage (2003 Skareb Comp). Sent it back to Manitou, they claim the internals are all blown, the compression and rebound dampers shot. Should be receiving the fork back from Manitou any day, hopefully they fixed it. The 2004 model comes with a Fox fork, it's supposed to be a better product. Other than the fork, the bike's great.
Submitted by
Dan Gibson
a Weekend Warrior
from Southampton, UK
Date Reviewed: October 28, 2003
Strengths: Very light, great handling, very stiff. Gear shifting is great. Fork is plush, tracks well and is light. Classy paint job.
Weaknesses: Saddle is very uncomfortable, I changed it after 1 ride. Inner tubes punctured in minutes, not a major weakness though. Fork could do with lockout, but you get what you pay for!
Bottom Line:
This is a great hardtail and I got it for an amazing price, so five flamin chillis for value.
Going downhill, the handling is confidence inspiring and the fork seems to perform well on all sorts of ground. On singletrack the bike copes with tight corners easily. On the uphills it excells. Every bit of energy put into the pedal stroke is transmitted to the ground and it is very light.
Similar Products Used: Trek 8000, Specialized Rockhopper
Bike Setup: Original set-up apart from saddle. Rock Shox Duke XC rather than Skareb. I bought a small frame (17 inch) and I'm 6 foot tall, so I needed to get a longer seatpost. I wouldn't have chose a 17 inch if left to my own devices, but it was the only one left in the shop. I don't regret it now, because the handling is amazing.
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Submitted by
Mark Grise
a Cross Country Rider
from Dublin, OH 43016
Date Reviewed: September 11, 2003
Strengths: Extremely light, strong, quick, and simple.
Weaknesses: None
Bottom Line:
A little pricey for the average consumer, but if you are looking for an extremely light, strong, simple, and clean bike- this is an excellent choice. It took a few weeks to get familiar with the seat and geometry of the bike, but once I was ready, this punished the trails and handled great. The suspension is very effective for the weight it consumes, the brakes are simple and ergonomic. The shifters are perfect. The frame is a unique black metallic color, have to see in person to appreciate. Lastly, I made the transition from an older GT Karakoram (great bike for it's time and a little heavy too) to this 03' Stumpjumper, and it was well worth it. Previously when riding on trails, I was often left behind due to the weight and make of the GT, but the Stumpjumper is so light- it literally flies through the uphill climbs, eases through the singletracks and is great for downhill (although I am sure a 40 lb. downhill bike would be more effective)for all practical cross-country trail riding, this is great. Email me with any questions. Mark Grise markgrise@hotmail.com
Submitted by
Enrique Gonzalez
a Weekend Warrior
from San Juan Puerto Rico
Date Reviewed: July 8, 2003
Strengths: The frame is great stiff, light and you can upgrade this baby. Is a beauty.
Weaknesses: The grips and seat post, no big deal change those and you have a beast
Bottom Line:
Is the best investment for your money, the way it’s performing in all terrain (road, sand and mud) is unbelievable. Specialized put his name in an excellent fun machine for beginners and intermediate MTB fan.
Bike Setup: Upgrade XT Cassette, Disk Magura breaking system
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Submitted by
jeremy
a Weekend Warrior
from victoria,tx,usa
Date Reviewed: June 29, 2003
Strengths: good component package for the price, awesome frame geometry and finish, well known name
Weaknesses: saddle is a little hard, tires just plain blow, and the brakes could use an upgrade, but none of these are things that can't be easily fixed.
Bottom Line:
this is a great mid range bike and has a good frame to build on. the name is well known and honored, the components are mid-level and the fork(RockShox Duke XC) is awesome. If you are looking for a great bike to tear up the trails at your local track and have other rider's heads turning as you ride by this is the perfect bike, or if you are a racer this bike is a great starting point for an all out XC HT. so if you have a G to spend and want quality, dependability and satisfaction then this is the bike for you.
