[[SBF]SaSQuATCH]

Have you guys seen the `07 Demo prototypes? I saw them on NSMB and they look sweeeeet! No more Demo 9,but the 8 is still rockin with a totally new downtube/shock housing.There is now a Demo 7 in the works too with a 1.5 headtube.I`m definately building an` 07 Demo 8 as soon as it`s out on the floors.Maybe time to put my Demo 9 up for sale soon...I was thinking of building up a Rocky RMX,but I`ve seen the light of the big red "S" once again.Good thing I get paid what I do,`cause if I didn`t I`d never own a house at the rate I`m building all these damn bikes.I`m such a gear $lut...help me I have a sickness.

 

[todd_freeride]

I'm not sure I like em. the downtube by the BB tooks too wierd. the demo 7 looks kinda cool though.

 

[[SBF]SaSQuATCH]

hmmm...

Yeah,but remember when the Demo 9 first came out everyone was like," what the hell is that ugly p.o.s.? Turned out to be the most unreal bike I`ve ever owned (besides my new SXT Trail).After riding every bike out there,Specialized has won me over.The Demo(and SXT) is the best frame I`ve EVER ridden,even though it looks like a weird shop class experiment gone wrong.

 

[j6105]

do you like performance or looks?

luckily you probably won't have to answer that question because that bike has yet to make it to the specialized design lab. Making that bike look bad now and giving it a crazy paint job got your attention now right?? And when it come out you will be eagerly hoping it will look good. marketing ploys...........

1.5 lbs lighter frame, stiffer (if thats possible), and cheaper to manufacture, and an open area for shock adjustment.

Add that on top of all the features it already has, and you have one hell of a frame.

:thumbsup:

 

[[SBF]SaSQuATCH]

you got that right bro!

Damn straight! That frame is gonna kill it,just like the Demo`s of today.I could care less if it was colored baby $hit brown or vomit yellow,the Demo design has exceeded my wildest expectations of what a bike can ride like.I stated earlier I would sell my Demo I have right now,but that was a lie.I`d never sell that thing.It`s treated me better than most of my ex-girlfriends,even when I have gone hurling to the ground off of it.In my opinion,the new Demo`s are going to be every bit as good for sure,possibly a little better.But there isn`t much to improve on.Long live the Demo`s!!!

 

[Tracerboy]

yeah and i hear there will be no more bighits or sxtrails for 07 whats going to take there place. hmmmmmm i hope the prices will go down on the demos if there is no replacement.:madman:

 

[freerider167]

they should have the regular 150 enduros and other enduros. i remeber when i saw the spesh site with the new enduros back in novemeber 2004 and i said to myself... thats one ugly bike, but after a while i began to like it and now i own one

 

[DHidiot]

Ugly....as....hell.

In my unqualified opinion, Specialized got it backwards with the Demo 8/9. The 9 should have had the longer travel and the DH oriented geometry running more sag and the 8 should have been the freerider with the slack/short geometry.

 

[Tracerboy]

Ugly....as....hell.

In my unqualified opinion, Specialized got it backwards with the Demo 8/9. The 9 should have had the longer travel and the DH oriented geometry running more sag and the 8 should have been the freerider with the slack/short geometry.

umm how do you come up with that. you go so much biger freeriding then you do downhilling. im sure some of the other dh'ers will chime in on this.

 

[hofferfish]

umm how do you come up with that. you go so much biger freeriding then you do downhilling. im sure some of the other dh'ers will chime in on this.

its because when your riding down hill you want to run a lot of sag in your suspension so you stick to the ground but the point of freeriding is getting air so running the extra long travel with sag is counter intuitive because you want to get air and after a point you have to go insanely huge to bottom 8+ inches of travel if its set up properly and the shorter travel makes for easier pedaling hence the free in free ride..........but someone correct me if im wrong

 

[standard235]

My God, you're wrong. He corrected you and you made an ass of yourself.

 

[Bombardier]

It looks like a plumber on LSD-7 designed that frameset.....

 

[DHidiot]

Yes, the longer travel in the 9 would mean more sag for DH, where the shorter travel in the 8 would be more responsive for freeriding.

 

[j6105]

yeah but your talking about a difference of 9mm of sag.

The demo 8 is 1.5 pounds lighter than the 9 AND has a lower bottom bracket.

The push for short travel DH bikes has gained popularity becuase people have begun to realize that there is not much benefit to extra 2" of travel, and a shorter travel bike pedals much better, and can rail corners better. The biggest benefit of bigger travel is big hit absorbtion (including high speed large bumps), and if you have skilled DH racers, they can control a shorter travel bike on big hits, and reap the rewards in straights and corners

Barel, Gracia, and Steve Peats old rig all pushed the envelope of short travel, with Barel and Gracia running 170mm. Sam Hill runs 8" and 8" and is one hell of a rider, even on rough courses.

In the end, its more about how well the bike is designed than the suspension length, and the 8 is basically the very refined and fit version of the demo 9........ hence the reason the 9 is no longer in th 07 lineup, becuase specialized realized that 8 inches works for both hardcore FR and DH.

 

[DHidiot]

They could have made the D9 lighter than the D8 if they had wanted to. If you're going big you're going to be running your back end stiff anyways and for DH you're going to be running a hell of a lot more sag, usually closer to 40% if not more (the 9 would give you a lot more sag to work with as well in terms of adjustment). It would wind up being a lot more than 9mm of sag difference between a really plush DH set up D9 and a stiffer set up D8. The stiffer set up would make the D8 pedal a lot more responsively for better low speed accelerations too.

And yes, Spec. did realize that 8" was working for chucking too. When I first heard they were coming out with the D8 I asked "why not just make another slightly altered version of the D9?" and now I'm asking "why not just make another slightly altered version of the D8?"....you know, maybe with real DH geometry.

My personal view on the shorter travel DH rigs is that recent courses have just gotten totally pussified (read: Sea Marmot, Cougar Mtn., Fontana, etc.) and this past couple years bikes have been reflecting that but that is an entirely different issue.

Steve Peat's old rig had 9" by the way. Gracia also ran a ridiculous amount of sag on his Gemini. I was always hearing numbers between 40%-60%, usually towards the greater end of that range. I could be wrong on this but I thought that his Gemini was 8" rear...