Submitted by
j
a Downhiller
from linkin orgeaon US Date Reviewed: June 20, 2008
Favorite Trail:
k
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$500.00
Purchased At:
wayfare cycles
Strengths:
grips, cranks and brakes but only for the frst couple times s h i t t y ness.
Weaknesses:
lets start on the entire thing. it sucks ass. i got the bike thinkin i would be able to ride with my friend who has a session and boy was i wrong. the bike can hardly handle x factor ramps. the shock bottoms out so so easy and when you put a stronger shock on it snaps frame.
Similar Products Used:
none, the only thing i cam compare this to is a s h i t i took 2 hours ago
Bike Setup:
horrible. the way the suspension is set up sucks, when you petal standing up with force you feel a bobbing motion, it is very awakard and does not allow you to wheelie, petal hard or do anything that requires true biking.
Bottom Line:
trek is an awsome company but when they designed this bike they either were drunk or accidentally hired a retard.
buy a gary fisher, tough and fly as F#$%
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Pat Mitchell
a Downhiller
from Jamestown New York USA Date Reviewed: May 25, 2007
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
400.00
Strengths:
fork, rims, handle bars,
Weaknesses:
rear shock, snapped the frake hitting dh trails, blew out back shock by hittting 8 foot drop
Similar Products Used:
fly dh cranks, deore front and rear derailers
Bottom Line:
if you want a fast dh bike then get this bike, but if you plan to hit some freeridin trails dont get this bike. the frame snapped for me. The bike setup sucks but the bike has good geometry. Rear shock bottems out like nothin. Setup of bike snapes derailers very easily, snapped 4 of them. When the rear suspention compresses it pulles the crank away from the back tire.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
frank
a
from madison, WI usa Date Reviewed: April 14, 2007
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Strengths:
wheels, brakes, handle bars
Weaknesses:
middle of frame, me and my bro snapped them
Bottom Line:
it snapped off a curb and then off a 4" ledge
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
byron
a Weekend Warrior
from miami fl Date Reviewed: September 11, 2006
Favorite Trail:
any
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Strengths:
people dont be stupid dont buy trek .
Weaknesses:
all
Similar Products Used:
trash
Bike Setup:
crap
Bottom Line:
trek is all hipe and talk no action save your money get your self a real bike get cannondale usa made 100%
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Josh Nash
a Weekend Warrior
from Richmond, BC, Canada Date Reviewed: May 21, 2006
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$849.00
Bottom Line:
Can anyone respond and give me a website or some info on where to buy a 1500lb spring? no one sells them and im bottoming out a lot
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Brock Waldo
a Downhiller
from Kellogg Date Reviewed: May 17, 2006
Favorite Trail:
Silver mountain
Duration Product Used:
Tested or demo'ed only
Price Paid:
$850.00
Purchased At:
Exelcer Cycle
Strengths:
Good suspinstion
Weaknesses:
looks retarded
Similar Products Used:
Have a gary fisher ope
Bottom Line:
need to make look better
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Josh Le Boutillier
a Weekend Warrior
from Jersey Date Reviewed: April 23, 2006
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
Cycle Centre Jersey
Strengths:
Super Strong frame, not too heavy compared to my mates hardtail
Weaknesses:
i can't think of any at the moment.
Bike Setup:
i use to have a scott comp racing and i snapped the frame on that so then i managed to get a bruiser frame and i have judy sl front forks, fox back shok, jons ac tyres, x lite assasain handlebars, dmr v8's, raceface crank and xt setup, bout to get a new stem
Bottom Line:
frame snaps, then ill be really annoyed, need to get a hardtail and then get arthititus from all the bumping around
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Derik
a Downhiller
from Austin, TX Date Reviewed: November 15, 2005
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Price Paid:
$950.00
Strengths:
Frame, crank, saddle, tires front shock,shifters handle well, handlebars are really nice, and it makes you feel like your on a stong bike and not a flimsy one.
Weaknesses:
Chain, cassette, rear shock bottoms out for me so swtich to something else (don't bother with adding a heavier spring), for the brakes...please switch to something like avid juicy 5/7!!
Similar Products Used:
none lol
Bike Setup:
Now switched to an XT rear derail-LX front, maxxis hansventure tire, and an 850 cassette. Earls mostly everything else.
Bottom Line:
Nice, stong, cool looking bike. Fun to ride and stong. Glad I got it. Change the tubes/tires though. Ive heard that the Earls pinch flat a lot. I however got 3. Very good buy!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Mitch Gainford
a Weekend Warrior
from Brockville Date Reviewed: November 6, 2005
Favorite Trail:
Tremblant
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Price Paid:
$1300.00
Purchased At:
cranks bicycle shoppe
Strengths:
150 mm front fork , cranks ,pedals , the brakes are fine not the greatest but they work well. rims dont bend easy.
Weaknesses:
rst rear suspension is horrible? tred on the tires wear really fast , the gears
Bike Setup:
stock
Bottom Line:
if u like to freeride , i wouldnt buy this bike the back suspension is realy poor , if u try to do a cat walk it feels like the bike is going to bend in half. the front suspension is nice. overall i wouldnt never buy a trek again
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
matt scott
a Weekend Warrior
from Holliston, Ma, US Date Reviewed: September 28, 2005
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$998.00
Purchased At:
bike barn
Strengths:
none
Weaknesses:
Frame (mainly below pivot point), Stock Shock bolts snapped the first day I had the bike, stock fork springs, rear shock is soft even on a 1500lb spring, and the swing arm has too much leverage, and I also figured out that when the swingarm goes up, it pulls the frame upwards, which is why I think It broke.
Similar Products Used:
walmart bikes
Bike Setup:
manitou stance flow, Bontrager big earl crank, and the rest was mostly bontrager earl
Bottom Line:
I had the bike for 1 month and snapped the frame on a small drop, and because of the warentee, I got another one and broke that in a month on a trail where I wasn't even hard on it, and decided just to get a new bike, (gary fisher GED. The bottom line is not to get this bike if you like free riding and like to do jumps and drops, your better off getting a hard tail at the same price, of spend more on a different full suspention bike.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
ben
a Weekend Warrior
from savannah, GA, us Date Reviewed: August 11, 2005
Favorite Trail:
anywhere
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Price Paid:
$1100.00
Purchased At:
bicycle link
Strengths:
front fork is ok, cranks are good, wheels and tires are awesome, hayes disks are nice
Weaknesses:
everything else, especially the frame and rear shock
Similar Products Used:
big hit comp
Bike Setup:
stock
Bottom Line:
I have had this bike for six months and have already broken two frames. If you are seriosly looking for a good bike for freeriding don't buy this bike. It looks like a tank but it is certainly not built like one.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Bonestrong
a Racer
from Texas Date Reviewed: August 4, 2005
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Purchased At:
Lance gave it to me
Strengths:
I really like rear shock set-up, although I plan to swap it for a 20,000lb spring.
Weaknesses:
Usually what bugs me is that when I race with Lance he beats me up at the end of the ride. Yelling "hey you guy, pick up the pace a bit" While he wraps livestrong bracelets around my neck.
Similar Products Used:
Sportek
Bike Setup:
I reversed the fork and stem, it just seems to handle better.
Bottom Line:
Since I started this review my buddy Lance came by, he wants to type so here he is. Hello everyone in the world, you might have heard my name before. I would like to thank god and George Bush Jr. for me being the best. Also I just took a ride on a Bruiser and it rules, its a Trek after all. Since I ride for Trek everything is awesome. Screw retiring, this is the bike I'm going to be racing DH with next year, with of course a GravityDropper seatpost. Enough about me, wait no, me and my wife are gonna do the nasty on a pile of Bruisers one night. Yah, I'm gonna go smoke a dooby with my buddy now.
Peace out, Lance Himself
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Carl
a
from Las Vegas Date Reviewed: August 4, 2005
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$1049.00
Purchased At:
Pedal Power
Strengths:
The Frames looks cool. Its really sturdy. Works great for mountain and urban areas. I was riding it in a half pipe, and dropping loading docks. This is the kind of bike to buy if you go to the mountain but live in a city. So you can ride anywhere. And the people up above rode the bike when it had the 650lb spring(and that rode like crap while i had it) but just wait till you get the 1500lb spring
Weaknesses:
Weight, Rear Shock(This is before you get the 1500lb spring, and I got mine a week after I purchased the bike.) after i got the spring the bike worked perfect
Similar Products Used:
This is my first Mountain Bike I used.
Bike Setup:
Everything is Stock
Bottom Line:
This bike is good for a person that rides everywhere (urban and mountain). I would have sex with this bike if I could. But when you buy this make sure you buy a lizard skin and put it on the rear were the chain clanks against the frame. It makes the noise when bombing it down stairs go down a lot. Those are like 12$
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Erik
a
from Dallas, Texas Date Reviewed: July 13, 2005
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Strengths:
Suspension, super sturdy frame
Weaknesses:
Doesn't seem like the tires have much traction on dirt. Better get a big earl!
Bike Setup:
Stock-Might change the crank because the 3rd gear part is used as a nice bash-guard, so it taked up alot of speed!
Bottom Line:
First of all it's a great price for what it is. Second the suspension is excellent! Front is amazing, and the REAR is EXCELLENT, not bad;). Mine is pefect and it taked bumps amazingly. It also depends on how the buidler builds it at the store you bought it from. One problem though; when ever I go about 20+mph theres this ringing somewhere near the font wheel base. And if I make a slight turn it gets really bad! It could be something with the disk braked(which work great) , but I don't know. lol and I get alot of stares at it when i'm out...great showoff bike lol
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
byron
a
from miami .florida Date Reviewed: April 3, 2005
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Strengths:
follow up review
Weaknesses:
rear shock
Bottom Line:
It has been two months since I bought the bruiser 3 and after a few emails and phone calls trek has not solve the rear shock problem, the bike is completely useless the way is set up with the RST rear shock and a 650 lbs rate spring they claim it needs a 1500 lbs spring but my trek dealer has not receive it yet. No other rear shock fits or works on this frame because of the high leverage set up, I spend $300.00 trying to solve the problem on my own but nothing works and no one sells a 1500lbs spring. Please test ride the bike before you buy it don’t make the same mistake I did. I order the bike from a local dealer and now two months later I am stock with it. And as far as trek I will never buy one of their products again their customer service just plain sucks
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
byron
a Weekend Warrior
from miami .florida Date Reviewed: March 6, 2005
Favorite Trail:
markham park
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$900.00
Purchased At:
cycle world
Strengths:
the frame is bullet proof nice wheels too.the alivio rear does a nice work
Weaknesses:
fork ,rear shok ,brake levers and pedals
Similar Products Used:
none like this one
Bike Setup:
stock
Bottom Line:
Well where to start, the bike’s price and suggested use (free ride) makes the bike attractive only to fall short on expectations way short .the rear shock is garbage, refuse, waste, rubbish. The handle bar is cramp the brake levers broke apart on my second ride. The compound on the brakes has to be the most inexpensive they could find and the fork is six inches of useless travel. Don’t get me wrong my other bike is a Trek Liquid and is the most awesome bike I ever owned and is because of my Liquid that I decided to go whit Trek again for my second bike whit out a second though. And is not about the money because people buy what they want no matter what the price. It’s just that I never expected such poor quality from a company like Trek .I think big box stores offer better quality components then what you’ll find on the Trek Bruiser 3
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Trail_Nazi
a Cross Country Rider
from Cleveland Date Reviewed: February 27, 2005
Duration Product Used:
Tested or demo'ed only
Strengths:
Follow up review
Bottom Line:
Trek has heeded the cries of the first few to ride or own this bike. They are going to start spec'ing the rear shock with a much heavier duty spring. I believe its a 1500 pound spring, so this should fix the rear suspension issue. Once I have had the chance to ride a new one, I'll through in another follow up review.
5 and 5 chili's while we wait for the new verdict
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Trail_Nazi
a Cross Country Rider
from Cleveland, TN Date Reviewed: February 4, 2005
Duration Product Used:
Tested or demo'ed only
Strengths:
Super burly frameset, decent to nice components. The brakes, even though they are cable disks, work fantastic. I liked the Manitou fork up front as well.
Weaknesses:
Rear shock- an RST? Come on Trek; I've seen Huffy's with a better rear shock.
First and foremost, I never took this thing out of the bike shop parking lot. I just wanted to see how the spring rate was and check out the pedal feedback with the stock rear suspension. If you are doing strictly downhill shuttle runs, this rear suspension setup may work just fine; although I would be concerned about bottoming the rear shock out. If you plan on pedaling on even the slightest uphill grade, you will have more fun pushing the bike. This stock spec needs to change immediately to a form of stable platform technology. The pedal feedback was so bad from this RST rear shock, that it was kinda scary to try to pedal the bike standing up. It feels as if you are getting ready to be thrown forward off the bike. I had the spring tightened down and the valve turned as negative as it would allow on the shock. I've borrowed a couple of different 8"-10" travel bikes before and I know that when you get into that much travel, the rear suspension can make the bike have odd feedback when pedaling uphill. The Bruiser 3 only has 6" of travel and has much worse feedback than say a Yeti Lawill 8 or an Intense Uzzi. Everything else on the Bruiser 3 is up to par. I already have many of the same parts from my Bruiser 2, so I know they are of decent quality for a stock setup. Like the Bruiser 2, the 3 has a short if not cramped cockpit, but I've been finding that as more of an advantage for this style of riding. Swap out the rear shock for a Romic or 5th Element coil over, and you'll probably have an awesome bike at an awesome priceline. Until then, I'm sticking to my RM Switch as my only full suspension play bike. Come on Trek, this wont be the only review you see like this, surprise us, make us rave over the bike! 5 chili's for value 2 chilli's for averall due to the rear setup.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
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