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Submitted by
David Bennison
a Weekend Warrior
from Cranbrook
Date Reviewed: July 31, 2003 | | Favorite Trail: | View point 2 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$1700.00 | | Purchased At: | cycle Path (calgary) | | Strengths: | one of the strongest bike for the money. feels really good for ever type of riding exsept XC, but why peddal when you can push. The rims are super beefy. love DJ2 way better then my old 2000 Z3Qr20.No one in Cranvbrook with a hard tail that can compare. People just stare its really funny. Love the kenda tires really big. people laugh at me some times because they think I have dirt bike tires.. wish I had Gazzaladies 3.0. Love that you have a mounts for v-brakes 24 or 26. | | Weaknesses: | Really really heavy. chain guid works fine if you keep your chain lubed. Its worth 280 it better be good. If you don't lube your chain the chain guid is really loud I just lube it and it makes almost no noise. Brakes are almost to grabby for a hard tail. Lots of money. Norco's most exspensive hard tail they make. | | Similar Products Used: | 2000 P3 | | Bike Setup: | Fork: Marzocchi Dirt Jump 2 QR20,
travel: 130mm, 5"
Rear: N/A
Tires: Kenda Kinetic 2.6 DHT / 24 x 2.35 DHT
Spokes: 2.0 stainless black
Rims: Alex DX-32 26 / 24
Front: Blackspire KM-1
Rear: Shimano XT
Shifters: Shimano Alivio 8spd rapid fire
Front: Hayes HFX-Mag Hydraulic 8”
Rear: Hayes HFX-Mag Hydraulic 8”
Levers: Hayes Hydraulic
| | Bottom Line: | Well this bike is super sweet.If you want to buy a really sweet hard tail go this bike. Some times can be really heavy. feels really good at high speeds. Way better then my 2000 P3. Good bike if you have the $$$. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Adam Thompson
a
from Los Angeles, CA USA
Date Reviewed: June 1, 2003 | | Favorite Trail: | Sulivan Canyon | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$1600.00 | | Purchased At: | ThePath in OC | | Strengths: | Tough as nails. Everything on this is overbuilt and ready for abuse. Come up short and stack a landing, all you need to do is dust it off. | | Weaknesses: | Heavy, but that was expected and worth it for the confidence in the strength. | | Similar Products Used: | Nothing similar - other bikes have been an old rigid Marin, a newere XC hardtail, a Kona Stinky and recently an Iron Horse SGS Expert | | Bike Setup: | Stock, except for the Lizard Skin chainstay protector | | Bottom Line: | The reviewer below me did a great job of describing the bike, so I won't go into much detial, but I agree with almost all of what he said.
I was looking at spending much more on a 24 or an Evil, but then I found this gem. For the money, it is tough to beat. Exclude the money, and it is still hard to beat. The frame is solid, the geometry feels great (I am 6'1" and ride a medium). I trail ride this thing, I dirt jump it, I use it for urban, and I have no complaints.
It is certainly not the greatest climbing bike in the world (weight/geometry), but I don't mind being a tourist. The trip back down the hill is always worth the extra time to the top. I have no fear about drops on this bike. It can take more than I have the guts to do. I plan to take it to the local mountains and use it for some DH runs, just to see what it is like.
I was unsure about the DJ II and the air assist, but I love it. For trail riding, I let all the air out and the fork works great. It is as plush as it needs to be for a hardtail. For dirt jump and urban, I up the air pressure to the point where the fork is near rigid, and it works great.
I wanted a sick hardtail that I could abuse in any riding condition without ever wondering if the bike was strong enough to take it. I got what I wanted. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Butter Nut
a
from Austin
Date Reviewed: June 1, 2003 | | Favorite Trail: | streets | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Purchased At: | 1200 | | Strengths: | Beefy. Stiff. Mellow geometry. Stout fork. Stout wheels. Stout stout stuff. Nice bars and stem. | | Weaknesses: | Pingy brakes (ehh well). Heavy. Slow handling. Prefer a different saddle. | | Similar Products Used: | None really. | | Bike Setup: | Stock except for a DK Jump seat. Cut off a couple inches from the bars. | | Bottom Line: | Imagine my trepidation when ordering this bike coming from a mostly trail/xc background with a bit of BMX thrown in. Basically, a bike that was so different from my other bikes that I had no clue what it would ride like. I asked around and got a good deal from the fellas up at Cycle Solutions in Toronto so I had them order one up in a medium. Then I waited...
Three months later, I had a heavy box with a brand new 5Hun ready to assemble. The first thing I noticed was the heft of the bike overall (38.3 lbs), but of the wheels especially. The combination of tires and rims makes for a heavy, burly wheelset. The rims are wide and stable giving me the confidence to bunnyhop ledges and fail at 180 bunnyhops :o) I'd be lying if I said 'you don't notice the weight', but you do. Or I do, at least. Mostly when riding normal trails, however. So I've learned my lesson and will keep it on the streets and dirt jumps.
Which suit this bike just fine. Despite the slack head angle, the bike handles fine on street. In fact, very similar to my 20" BMX strangely. The 24" rear wheel and short stays make it easy to manual and bunnyhop and the low angles also aid in keeping the bike out of the way for hops. The only thing I might change is the stem for a longer version but the FUNN Serial Killa is a work of art so I may work with it for a little bit more.
I have only done a little bit of (slacker) jumping on this bike so I can't go into huge detail about how it handles on the dirt jumps. It does feel stable and the fat 2.6 Kenda tires soak up the little mistakes a newb like me makes on landings. I'm sure I'll put a lot more time on the dirt, tho, once I have a chance.
As far as the components, they work. The fork is a 03 Marzocchi Dirt Jump II with QR20. One of the QR20 flaps actually broke on the first ride, so I'll have to have that replaced. Strange. But the fork is fine; it's stiff and, um, stiff. I don't set it up like the z.1 FR on my trail bike, but instead keep it stiff and predictable. The bars are FUNN cromo and have a nice, solid feel. A bit wide for my tastes so I cut em down a bit. The stopping is done by Hayes hydro disks with 8" rotors front and rear. Personally, I think 8" rotors on a hardtail is a bit much, but heck, I got em, so I'll use em. The front took a horribly long time to break in, but they're up to Hayes par now. And they like to ping ping ping. Eh. Other parts include FSA cranks that are BURLY, a BMX BB, and a Blackspire chainguide (which needs some work on my particular bike). Well thought-out and confidence inspiring (but a bit porky hehehe).
Overall, if you come from trail riding background, this bike will take a bit of getting-used-to. You'll be hard pressed to find a bike at this price, however, with such a functional setup. Purpose-built to say the least. It's a fun bike to ride on the streets.
| Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Barry White
a
from Moose Jaw
Date Reviewed: May 28, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | Bow Cycle | | Bottom Line: | There is no such thing as a Norco VPS-5 Hundred. Drop the VPS as it is a hardtail. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
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