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Carbon Nomad unofficial test ride review

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Loll

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Discussion starter · #1 · (Edited)
Just got back from riding the SC Nomad2 Carbon. Big thank you to Shawn and the team at Tread bike shop. Also, Arial and Abby, you guys were great! Thx for setting up the bikes. Killjoyken, how did you know it was me?

The track was a local XC race course with two mild XC~ish DH run. Here is my thought.

I was told everything is 100% the same with the Nomad2A (which I own). Setup was close to exact except the Carbon has a DHX-Air and I have a RC4 coil. With this in mind, we headed up the hill on a bike that is 1.5 pounds lighter than my aluminum version. May be it was psychological, may be it was the bike. Same track that I rode two weekends ago, I rode today with only my mid chainring and big chainring. Literally powered thru sections on the climb that I was grinding on a granny last time. Perhaps a 29 lbs bike does make some difference compared to a 31 lbs version. It seems like when ever the hill got steep, the bike just want to power thru it. Its the same feeling I lost when I went from a BLT2A to my current Nomad2A. This was a true advantage that I enjoyed when ever the decend was followed immediately by a short uphill burst.

Ride quality wise, I thought it wasn't THAT big of a difference that all the current nomad owners should just sell their aluminum version and go buy a carbon version immediately. Its stiffer for sure. But today's track was so mild that I didn't really felt it enough. A true FR or DH track would yield a better test.

On the DH, the light weight does trick you a little. Same rock, same launch, I almost overdid the mini-jumps with the same effort and was caught by surprise in mid air how light the thing was and that I put too much effort jumping it. The track today was kind of flat so there were a lot of sections where pedaling and pumping to maintain speed was necessary. Here again I felt the light weight as an advantage and just powered thru alot of those flat areas.


My humble but bias conclusion. I felt that I would buy the carbon version over the aluminum version if I have a specific reason for it. Kind of like buying an Intense and the Intense FRO for a grand more. If I was racing super D, I feel that the light weight will have a winning edge over the aluminum version. I felt that if I was Mark Wier and ride my big bike like a XC bike for 8-10 hours a day, I can also see where the Carbon as having a winning edge over the aluminum one.

If money is no object, then of course I want the carbon version. But given speedgoat??/Colorado cyclist was just selling the aluminum frame for 1495 and SC say the Carbon frame will be around 2300, it kind of becomes a personal decision what you want to invest the 900 dollars in.

I wasn't the only one that rode that bike today, so if anyone had a different thought, please feel free to post up. Camera was out of battery. If my buddies post pics, I will share it here. But basically the bikes there were available today were the exact same bikes that was in the photoshoot for the magazine ads. Also, both me and my bud thought the white looks better than the black with the gold letters. Its nice, but just a bit too normal. I woudn't mind seeing the orange from the Tallboy on the NomadC.
 
#2 ·
Nice review Loll, don't think I will be rushing out to trade up my N2 just yet. However carbon is the future and I suspect there is a carbon bike of some description in my future :D :thumbsup:
 
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#3 ·
Thanks for the review. I usually ride a shite CX rig and was really impressed by the cNomad at Santa Cruz DLV (and to be fair, ibis mojo). Having the comparison with the heckler is good. What are the chances that there will be an aluminum and a carbon Nomad at Sea Otter for the most direct comparison? ;)
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#4 ·
I myself loved it!!! Thank goodness the lady at the Santa Cruz stand(didn't get her name) squeezed me in for a quick ride right at the end. I flew up the mountain faster than you can say timbuk2, and loved every second of it. Although the only thing I can compare to is my brothers 34 lb nomad, I will definitely be in the nomad c market when they are officially released. I just couldn't believe the stiffness it had climbing, it felt like a hardtail on the uphill!
 
#5 ·
If SC did their homework right, and designed in class-leading impact resistance and durability, the results here will determine if the rest of the industry finally adopts carbon fiber for rougher, more extreme riding applications. True, it's been around in DH, and other disciplines for years, but not as mainstream as what we're seeing now.

It could make designing easier, since manufacturers are no longer limited by tubing's more conventional geometric limits.

I'm sure I, and many others, will finally accept carbon from other manufacturers based on how SC did here. If so, hopefully the prices come down in time as Taiwan and China gear up their CF production capabilities.
 
Discussion starter · #6 ·
kattrap said:
Thanks for the review. I usually ride a shite CX rig and was really impressed by the cNomad at Santa Cruz DLV (and to be fair, ibis mojo). Having the comparison with the heckler is good. What are the chances that there will be an aluminum and a carbon Nomad at Sea Otter for the most direct comparison? ;)
Image
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I was told that they will be doing something on Thursday at Sea Otter. I assume this means demo???. What you need to do is head to SC for the carbon. If they dont also have an AL available, head over to X-fusion and look for John. I think he has an AL version with him most of the time for test ride.
 
#7 ·
glitz said:
If SC did their homework right, and designed in class-leading impact resistance and durability, the results here will determine if the rest of the industry finally adopts carbon fiber for rougher, more extreme riding applications. True, it's been around in DH, and other disciplines for years, but not as mainstream as what we're seeing now.

It could make designing easier, since manufacturers are no longer limited by tubing's more conventional geometric limits.

I'm sure I, and many others, will finally accept carbon from other manufacturers based on how SC did here. If so, hopefully the prices come down in time as Taiwan and China gear up their CF production capabilities.
Click to expand...
Even in China or Taiwan, quality carbon fibre will still probably end up being more expensive than aluminum to produce. I'd be interested to see the actual production cost on both the Al and CF nomads. Pretty sure the higher price of the carbon doesn't reflect the actual difference in production costs.
Carbon fibre is an expensive material and the its processing is very labour intensive, probably more than welding aluminum tubes... and quality control is also more complex if you want to do it properly.

But yes these bikes do look great.. even with these ... strange ... graphics
 
#8 ·
Hey Loll, nice to meet you and good review. When you said you had a Nomad and used to have a BLT2, I just guessed at who you were.

I didn't get a chance to ride the carbon Nomad (the mediums were always out) but I did demo a V-10, Tallboy and BLTc.

V-10: Completely different riding style. Stay low, lean her way over and go really, really fast! Cleared Rocky Ridge faster than ever before, but you really gotta have balls to get the most out of that rig. I'm definitely picking one up for next season.

BLTc: Uber stiff frame. Climbed a little better than my Nomad with the Monarch, but not by much. A better rear tire would have helped. Heading down Stiles I was slower though. I was absorbing the rocks more than the Revelation could. I'm so glad I picked a Nomad over an LT. The LT felt more XC than all mountain when compared to a Nomad.

Tallboy: Holy $#$#% can that thing climb! I scampered up like a scalded cat. There is a definite advantage to 29" wheels....not as much as the hype would lead you to believe, but an advantage none the less. I didn't really notice any downsides to the 29s, even on the switchbacks, and with more aggressive tires and an adjustable height seat post I could see myself buying one.

I think the carbon Nomad you rode was a good build with the DHX air and Lyrik and would make a great all around bike. Personally it's a bit out of my price range, but that's because I prefer to have 3 bikes instead of one. If I could only have one bike, it would definitely be the carbon Nomad, hands down. Although I didn't ride it, I rode 2 other carbon bikes and the there is a noticeable increase in stiffness.
 
#10 ·
killjoyken said:
V-10: Completely different riding style. Stay low, lean her way over and go really, really fast! Cleared Rocky Ridge faster than ever before, but you really gotta have balls to get the most out of that rig. I'm definitely picking one up for next season.
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V-10.3 or was it a new version?
 
#12 ·
killjoyken said:
I'm pretty sure it was the current version and not whatever new one they have planned. It was my first time on a real DH bike with dual crown forks, so my usual riding style didn't work so well.
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Ah very good. Yep, it is a different ride isn't it. After riding the Nomad for a few days it always takes me a run or two to adjust back to the V-10.
 
#13 ·
glitz said:
If SC did their homework right, and designed in class-leading impact resistance and durability, the results here will determine if the rest of the industry finally adopts carbon fiber for rougher, more extreme riding applications. True, it's been around in DH, and other disciplines for years, but not as mainstream as what we're seeing now.

It could make designing easier, since manufacturers are no longer limited by tubing's more conventional geometric limits.

I'm sure I, and many others, will finally accept carbon from other manufacturers based on how SC did here. If so, hopefully the prices come down in time as Taiwan and China gear up their CF production capabilities.
Click to expand...
Ha ha! Can you say 'Armchair Quarterback'? Funny post, clueless, but funny.
 
#15 ·
I agree with socalMX - like a Lt compared to a Ltc - there has to be a few more light years difference between the two Nomads. I know that Loll said it was a tame track, granted, however, reading between Loll's lines, it seems like there was a good difference -

It seems like whenever the hill got steep, the bike just want to power thru it
Click to expand...
And this yelled out the most to me:
Same rock, same launch, I almost overdid the mini-jumps with the same effort and was caught by surprise in mid air how light the thing was and that I put too much effort jumping it.
Click to expand...
Potentially sensational I would say - a 6 inch bike that goes through the rough with unparalleled stability and yet feels as light a 4 inch jump bike or a XC bike on the ups.

A re-write of the 6" bike rules possibly - I'm sure that was what SC were aiming for...and have done.

Come on guys, anymore feedback. Am I way off point? Prod prod prod.

Surely someone has greedily hogged a bit more saddle time by now?
 
Discussion starter · #16 ·
Hey WilliamK,

Thx for pointing this out. Rather than attributing the sudden burst of climbing ability to the stiffness of the carbon fiber, and me getting caught off guard mid air, I feel that it was the lightness that contributed to it.

By lightness, I dont mean that it is a light bike and thats why it fly up hill and is easy to jump. What I mean is that I am going from my Alum. version that is 2 pounds heavier to the carbon version that is at 29 pounds, I used the same effort to ride it uphill and to jump it and was just caught off guard. Is like going from a FR bike to a AM bike up the hill. Of course the AM rig would be much easier.

If something is to come out from this experiment, then the 2 extra pounds savings did some good. Hope this make sense?
 
#17 ·
Say which trail did you manage to ride Loll? I rode up the backwards route of rocky ridge and climbed through that long stretch of rock gardens. I was amazed at how It efficient it pedaled over everything. The bike was light and stiff enough for me to maintain fluidness. Although I haven't ridden much of the aluminum nomad, I most definitely was able to tell a difference from the short technical climbing I had experienced.

Too bad the price range is far from my poor college life income. Maybe in 3 years...:thumbsup:
 
#18 ·
...actually

dropmachine.com said:
Why clueless? What he said makes sense. What you said is pointless forum-asshat trolling.
Click to expand...
Well, I guess i can just see in his wording that this guy reads too many magazine reviews and has no clue regarding the engineering and development time that go into carbon frames and components that are currently on the market.

I am a big fan of SC bikes and they are absolutely true to their mission of making bikes for real riders...HOWEVER...they have comparativley little experience with Carbon. You may not presonally like the brands like Giant, Specialized, Cannondale, Scott, Trek etc...but these companies are giant in comparison to SC and as such have a lot more in the way of resources to pour into Carbon frame engineereing, design , TESTING and such. I would personally trust a product from them to be both as light as possible and as durable as possible...as opposed to a first year SC frame, nothing personal to SC, they just dont have the experience yet.

There is a huge difference between outsourcing your aluminum frames (which is what SC does) and actually 'designing in class leading impact resistance and durability' as our little friend describes. One point where is is kind of correct is that with Carbon frames the sky is the limit regarding tube shapes and the Industrial Design that makes the whole thing pretty. The issue with the Nomad is that its an existing design that people love. That is an issue because the Nomad was designed to be an Aluminum bike. So to design a carbon frame ( years later) with an Alu frames shape limitations you are simply not reaping âs big a benefit as you do when the Carbon frame is designed first and the alu version is made to look as close as possible...which is how its done by true carbon experts (the companies described above).

Also ''hopefully China and Taiwan gear up in time to keep prices down'' make basically no sense. Carbon production in Asia is Full Speed Ahead since years, and one more outsourced carbon frame from a small manufacturer is not going to make things any cheaper, more expensive, more difficult or easier....it wont matter at all.
What does matter is the price of carbon. As a petroleoum product, the price of Carbon fiber is highly dependant on the price of Oil...you may have noticed this has gone up in the past 24months. Also, no matter how huge we think the bike industry is, ...well its peanuts, and when the few 'big' carbon frame plants get delivery pressure on the raw materials its because of huge factors like Aerospace, Military and Automotive concerns...each of which alone uses many times more carbon per year than our little sport. As such these industries have buying power. When mister 2 Trillion dollar carbon account decides he wants more, he gets it...even if supplies are limited..when that happens mister peanuts account (bike biz)...has a shortage and that shortage trickels down through the manufacutrers and someone somewhere is calling their bike shop every other day asking about the dope new carbon bike they ordered three months ago.

So if you are still reading, thats why I said clueless. I am sure this guy loves to ride and has nothing but good intentions, and I am sure he will love the lighter weight of his Carbon Nomad if he can afford it. But he clearly has no idea about how that frame will come to be.

peace.
 
#19 ·
I think if you take a closer look you will see that tube shape is not identical to the aluminum and that they did optimize much of the frame for carbon. Ibis began with a carbon frame and theirs isn't so much different. JMO, etc.

alias said:
Well, I guess i can just see in his wording that this guy reads too many magazine reviews and has no clue regarding the engineering and development time that go into carbon frames and components that are currently on the market.

I am a big fan of SC bikes and they are absolutely true to their mission of making bikes for real riders...HOWEVER...they have comparativley little experience with Carbon. You may not presonally like the brands like Giant, Specialized, Cannondale, Scott, Trek etc...but these companies are giant in comparison to SC and as such have a lot more in the way of resources to pour into Carbon frame engineereing, design , TESTING and such. I would personally trust a product from them to be both as light as possible and as durable as possible...as opposed to a first year SC frame, nothing personal to SC, they just dont have the experience yet.

There is a huge difference between outsourcing your aluminum frames (which is what SC does) and actually 'designing in class leading impact resistance and durability' as our little friend describes. One point where is is kind of correct is that with Carbon frames the sky is the limit regarding tube shapes and the Industrial Design that makes the whole thing pretty. The issue with the Nomad is that its an existing design that people love. That is an issue because the Nomad was designed to be an Aluminum bike. So to design a carbon frame ( years later) with an Alu frames shape limitations you are simply not reaping âs big a benefit as you do when the Carbon frame is designed first and the alu version is made to look as close as possible...which is how its done by true carbon experts (the companies described above).

Also ''hopefully China and Taiwan gear up in time to keep prices down'' make basically no sense. Carbon production in Asia is Full Speed Ahead since years, and one more outsourced carbon frame from a small manufacturer is not going to make things any cheaper, more expensive, more difficult or easier....it wont matter at all.
What does matter is the price of carbon. As a petroleoum product, the price of Carbon fiber is highly dependant on the price of Oil...you may have noticed this has gone up in the past 24months. Also, no matter how huge we think the bike industry is, ...well its peanuts, and when the few 'big' carbon frame plants get delivery pressure on the raw materials its because of huge factors like Aerospace, Military and Automotive concerns...each of which alone uses many times more carbon per year than our little sport. As such these industries have buying power. When mister 2 Trillion dollar carbon account decides he wants more, he gets it...even if supplies are limited..when that happens mister peanuts account (bike biz)...has a shortage and that shortage trickels down through the manufacutrers and someone somewhere is calling their bike shop every other day asking about the dope new carbon bike they ordered three months ago.

So if you are still reading, thats why I said clueless. I am sure this guy loves to ride and has nothing but good intentions, and I am sure he will love the lighter weight of his Carbon Nomad if he can afford it. But he clearly has no idea about how that frame will come to be.

peace.
Click to expand...
 
#20 ·
I am willing to bet the difference you felt climbing is more then like a result of adrenaline and excitement at riding the bike than anything from the bike itself. I really don't think that the pound difference between the two will really be that noticeable, not in the frame anyways. In the wheels, yes.

That said, I think the bike looks spectacular, and I am so curious about it. I can't lie, I quite want one, if only to finally try it out and shut me up with my admittedly skeptical-but-curious criticisms.
 
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