the whole bike

not found any yet

iv had the bike 8 years now and only now have the seals started to go on my manitou axel elite forks that came on the bike, looks like the uk versions came with different forks as some said they got manitou sx as stock, great bike and its a pleasure to ride all the time, iv had no problems with it at all so far

Tough, just keeps on giving. Great climber. Handled and road much better after replacing the Manitou, fork and Python tires.

Fork

As someone mentioned earlier the Manitou, fork failed the very first ride. So did mine. Shop replaced it no question. About a week later that one bit the dust. I was able to workout a really good deal on the Fox fork. Since then I've loved and rode this bike many thousand miles without hesitation. I enjoy climbing this bike enjoy's climbing. Get rid of that stock fork take care of the bike and the skies the limit. 8, years I have no intention of replacing the bike. I live in a canyon there are no paved roads. Long steep hilly rides are pretty much the norm. The NRS 2, has never let me down since replacing that stock fork.

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Fugi Odessa, Gary Fisher Sugar

This bike made good on it's promise of rear suspension that did not bob. The value for your money at the time could not be beat.

Manitou SX Fork

This is more or less a fond farewell and tribute to my first full suspension MTB. I bought my Giant NRS DS/2 in 2001. She was a left-over 2000 model.

I went from a hardtail GT Karakoram (a very sweet cromoly steel frame, with an upgraded RS Judy front fork) to the NRS. At just under 4" of travel, the NRS made the rough trails I normally rode feel like smooth pavement in comparison. I put a lot of research into full suspension at the time; I knew I wanted full suspension, disc breaks and the pedaling efficiency (or close to it) of my hardtail. Giant promised this in the NRS, and in my opinion, delivered it.

I put thousands of miles on my NRS over the 8 years I owned it, replacing the chain a few times, the tires numerous times and a few odds and ends like the stem (stripped one of the bolts on the Titec it came with) and the brake levers (the Diacomps it came with worked ok, but Avids were sexier). Rebuilt the front hub once, replaced the Hayes MX1 disc brake pads a few times and maybe a couple of other minor maintenance items.

The only major component that had a flaw was the Manitou SX front fork. It failed after about a year and never really felt all that great, even compared to the RS Judy from my GT. I replaced the Manitou with a Rock Shox Psylo and never looked back.

As for the components let me break it down: The WTB Laserdisc wheelset was strong, not super heavy and rarely needed any attention at all. The Formula disc rear hub has worked flawlessly for 8 years. The the front hub - also a Formula disc - had a bearing issue within the first few weeks of me buying the bike, but Ray's Bikes repaired it under warranty and it never had a problem after that.

The Hayes MX1 mechanical disc brakes, while not as exciting as hydraulics, work pretty darn good. Took 'em apart a few times to clean 'em and relube them, but other than that and a few pad replacements over the years, zero problems, good feel at the levers and the stopped the bike (with me on it) down everything from Sycamore to Hummingbird.

The Race Face Prodigy cranks, bottom bracket and chainrings never bent, never ticked, never squeeked. Strong, maybe not so light, but strong.

Shimano Deore shifters: Yeah, not as sexy or crisp as XT, but they shifted the gears. In fact, with the LX rear derrailer and the Deore front, I really never had any trouble shifting, even under loads. The rear especially worked well, even after thousands (maybe millions) of shifts. I just could not break the stock Shimano parts, thus could not justify buying upgrades.

The rest of the parts, like the Titec Hellbent handlebar, seat post and and saddle hung in there as well. I did replace the saddle. They tend to get a little torn up after all those off road miles...

Last year (2008), I was rebuilding the Rock Shox SID rear shock every other ride. The Psylo was binding and the stanchion bushings had a lot of play in them. The pivot bushings in the frame's suspension components were worn, cracked and creaking. She was getting old.

I did a complete dissassemble of the rear suspension frame members. The bushings were wasted. The frame itself is sound: no dings, no visible cracks and no rubbed to the metal scoring. But, considering all the hard miles I have put on the aluminum frame, the need to replace both the front fork and the rear shock, plus the bushings and bearings for the rear, plus replacing some of the out-dated and well-used parts on the drive-train, plus a few parts just because...well, the dollar amount started to add up to "new-bike-range."

So, she has been retired. Not gloriously, with all her parts in a plastic tub; but her frame, her heart, is hanging on the wall like the piece of art she is. Rest in peace, my friend, and thanks for all those great years of service!

In the mean time, I've got a brand new 2009 Giant Trance X2 waiting for me to pick up down at Newbury Park Bikeshop. I suspect I will get at least as many years, miles and enjoyment out of my new Giant as I did my trusty NRS.

Do I recommend an NRS to anyone? Hell yes! But only if you have limited cash and can only afford a used bike. If you can score an NRS with low miles it will be a good bike. Not as plush or sophisticated as Giant's subsequent designs, but adequate, and compared to brand new, "inexpensive" lower-range full suspension bikes on the market today, a used NRS is a strong competitor. Just beware: worn out shocks and forks are very expensive to replace, and if the rear suspension bushings are worn at all, they need replaced. Do your homework.

Value: 5 chilis in each catagory. I got my $1200 worth, and then some!

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None. This was my first full suspension MTB.

Great frame,strong wheels,love the Avid disc brakes and the Fox AVA shock. Shimano LX and XR,Raceface cranks are all good for the money. Climbs like my old Stumpy hardtail.

First FS after years of riding hardtails and I`m ready for more suspension travel but I wouldn`t sell the NRS `cause it`s too much fun. No weaknessess if you ride it for what it was intended. Oh yeah, dumped the Pythons and have used Weirwolfs that past couple of years.

With the new Recon and more travel up front the ol` NRS2 is much better in the rock gardens and on the descents but it`s still a short-travel Cross-Country racer-type bike. It is what it is. That said, I`ve ridden mine hard for four years and it keeps on tickin`n with common-sense maintenence and for the money it`s been a really fun, fast bike. The Anthem is the new version but at this stage of the game I`d be looking at the Trance or Reign for the bigger hit performance but for railing the single-track my NRS is hard to beat....`nuff said!

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Trek, Kona, Stumpjumper hardtails

Great bike for people who want hard tail performance on uphills and road, but a bit of added cushyness and traction on trails. Fast bike for racing.

Was always that little bit harsh to ride, unless the pressure was dropped on the rear shock unit. But that made it a bit saggy, which is not the design intention of the bike. But it was still fun!

This is another memorial for a stolen bike! People, locking a nice bike in Brisbane City is not a good idea.. Sadly, the bike survived for years in the Philippines without being stolen - even in a poor country. But weeks after it arrives in Brisbane (I lived in the Philippines for a while), it gets nicked by a selfish ba***rd! I'm a student, and I love biking - having a bike that I earned through a part-time job stolen is bad news! Anyway, it was a fun bike to have - my first full suspension.

Sadly I'm just riding a Merida TFS Alivio-clad hard tail at the moment, while I save some money for something else. Thinking about a Trance for a bit of all mountain-ish performance.

Happy biking everyone. Oh, by the way, I totally recommend a well-maintained second-hand NRS for people who want a fast dually :-)

Climbs like a billy goat. Handles well and looks fairly good, Aesthetically.

Bushings are worn out on the shock mount so the bike clicks a little. Nothing else really weak I'd say.

Extremely light frame in my imho. Or course for the money. Some bushings are going in the bike now, but I have beat the crap out of it and it just keeps ticking away miles. I am going to ride this frame into the ground as I see no need for a change unless I ride more aggressive terrain or get into full on racing. With swapping all the components I think this bike was meant to move and shift like a dream.
I would recommend this bike to anyone.

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Good frame with great components.

?

Over 4 years since I posted my first review of this bike. I still ride this NRS all the time and don't even think they are made anymore. Bike has served well, only changed out tires. Regular maintenance. Still looks new (with exception of few scratches here/there.

Great bike!!!

Solid, medium light, rear suspension does what it says, cushioning without sapping your pedaling action. Snappy paint job. People will inevitably say "Nice bike" if you own this - I sure got that often enough, from more than just fellow bikers.

It's a mid range priced bike and you get what you pay for (not that it was cheap, in price or quality).

This is kinda memorial for my bike, as it got stolen recently. I had it for three years, put about 4500 miles on according to my odometer, had some good times. I don't have car, so this was my main mode of getting around, aside public transportation, and to that end it served me well. I didn't hit trails as much I had liked with it, though when I did it was certainly suited to such. The guy at the shop where I bought it from said he had raced with the same model (different year though) for several years.

My college is notoriosly vertical and fraught with stairs, though I had no problem throwing my bike over my shoulder to scale the steps as needed - the thing's no carbon frame, but it's fairly light.

Looking at other reviews here, I'm a little annoyed I paid what I did for it, but as a bike by itself, it's a nice ride.

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It was my first full suspension bike - it's a lot better than my last one, which was sans anything of a springy variety.

Great bike - see below

seatpost, tires

Great bike value and it has exceeded expectations. Agree with strengths listed for others - climbing, suspension, disc brakes, etc. However, the Titec X-wing seatpost that came stock, busted on me recently. The saddle clamp bolt sheared off and the clamp cracked under fairly mild riding. Although I didn't see other NRS folks note this problem, check out the X-wing seatpost review and it is clear that this is a design issue. Luckily, I made it without injury - others may want to replace it or keep an eye on it. I had to replace the tires after about a year, but other than that, it has been a great purchase.

The suspension. It rides just like a hardtail until you hit the rough stuff on the downhill, then it is smoooooth. The Rock Shox SID is fantastic! Lasted 4.5 yrs with no maintanance and probably had a few more left.

Some rear end flex when high torque applied. Need to keep rear tire to a skinnier variety (some 2.25's OK others too wide). Learn to avoid high torque situations. This is only a problem during climbing.

The NRS-2 just rocks. You no longer need to pick a curvy line, a straight line to the next curve is all you need. Rocks, ruts, roots: who cares? This bike makes them fun! Only because the flex keeps this bike from being perfect, I give it 5 by 4 chilis.
This is a post mortem report. I knew the bike was a little light duty for my riding, but I got it anyway. I didn't want to haul around a heavy bike and the suspension is as good as everyone says. I finally broke it in half, but I *hammered* it for over 4 years. I got the Trance for a replacement, it's stronger and doesn't have the flex issue. I'll have to get used to the extra pounds.