I had posted on the IBEX forum and realized that they may be a bit biased. Just looking for feedback on the Atlas bikes (specifically the Atlas Sport) Thank you,

I have the Atlas & a Versus Blitz II & will still recomend the Asta :thumbsup:

 

um, I think the OP is looking for an unbiased opinion

 

Kind of hard to do

um, I think the OP is looking for an unbiased opinion

How can you give an un-biased opinion of a bike if you own one. :thumbsup: Besides, the title of the thred starts "Anyone on an IBEX Atlas". That clearly implies that he's speaking to (biased by nature) Atlas owners. The feedback the OP will get is going to come from Atlas owners (I'm one of them) or people in these forums who have heard us Ibex Zealots rave about the bike. Either way, he's going to get the same feedback, and it will be biased.

Pros and cons are as follows:

Cons: You can't test ride it.

Pros: Bang for the buck.

Let's face it, the Heckler is often considered the de facto standard in single pivot, AM bikes and it has a great reputation to back it up. Prophet has a reputation that speaks for itself too. The Atlas is a great bike and the reviews you see in the Ibex Forum, while biased, are pretty damned accurate form my personal experience with the bike (I own the Expert).

If you really want an "un-biased" opinion, keep your eyes peeled for the upcoming review of the Atlas Sport in Dirt Rag.

Bob

 

I agree with the above post, mostly, but there are a few people (such as dogonfr) that are far too zealous and "spammish" about Ibex. If he's looking for "unbaised" opinions, I would not be seeking out mrpercussive, dogonfr, or jake to name a few Good guys, but ibex zealots who I'm sure do Ibex searches on these forums to make sure they dip their fingers into every post relating to Ibex. A bit too much. I got the same "baised" impression from the Ibex forum.

 

who I'm sure do Ibex searches on these forums to make sure they dip their fingers into every post relating to Ibex. A bit too much. I got the same "baised" impression from the Ibex forum.

That would be like a job :madman: There are allot of great bikes out there & if you ask somone there oppinion they will say theirs is the best & they are correct. :cornut:

 

lol, that's true enough... I know you guys love your bikes for sure I'm wondering about ppl who AREN'T so happy with Ibex. If they exist. Dunno.

 

I'm not insulting you Ibex guys, it's just that the OP stated that he felt like he got biased opinions on the Ibex forum, but then the first response he gets here is from a regular of the Ibex forum (complete with a link to the Ibex website in his sig...).

 

lol, that's true enough... I know you guys love your bikes for sure I'm wondering about ppl who AREN'T so happy with Ibex. If they exist. Dunno.

There is always going to be the handfull of ones that had a bad experiance with something, nothing is perfect. There are products that i had bad experiance's with & just dont recomend them. I do sales & CS with Formotion & i feel we are great at standing behind our product's & helping our customers any way we can but we get bad emails & phone calls about 2 a month. But the bright side is we get over 100 happy responses for every 1 bad. :thumbsup:

 

I'm not insulting you Ibex guys, it's just that the OP stated that he felt like he got biased opinions on the Ibex forum, but then the first response he gets here is from a regular of the Ibex forum (complete with a link to the Ibex website in his sig...).

All cool here no insult taken.

I also have Formotion,Versus then Ibex in my sig. I noticed he had a post while i was here, nobody had responded so i was the first, not planed. I had also responded on the Ibex forum that is why the model recomended is not in his question here. :thumbsup::thumbsup: There are many post that just keep slipping down without a response, someone needs to bring it back up to start the flow of input.

 

There are some folks who keep misinterpreting what I have wrote here and use it as arguments to steer the readers to one direction only or to beef up their egos (post-purchase syndrome) so I have decided to remove all what I have said here and no longer participate in any discussions where these people are likely to participate.

 

Thanks, guess I should have proofed the message b4 posting...

I meant to write if anyone had been on an Atlas? As in "had anyone rode one before being that it is a mail order only item?" But thanks for the understanding. The summary of pros and cons was good and previous posters were right that the IBEX forum is a little "too positive" but that may be a good thing. Maybe if I buy one, you'll see me doing a little bit of cheering myself. A better question would be regarding the Atlas's riding characterestics which would obviously have to come from owners or people who had the opportnity to ride it. I mean, the price seems really, really good I just wished I could get it in raw or polished or flat black for that matter!! Thanks for the help

 

There are some folks who keep misinterpreting what I have wrote here and use it as arguments to steer the readers to one direction only or to beef up their egos (post-purchase syndrome) so I have decided to remove all what I have said here and no longer participate in any discussions where these people are likely to participate.

 

I also ride a Versus Blitz II that weighs in at 39lbs & was my do all bike till i picked up the Atlas. The Blitz II is more capable of taking a impact & very easy to ride fast on the DH because of it's travel & designed build. Since riding the Atlas it is now my local trail bike, it's not as plush nor as fast descending the rough carp but there is no lack of confidence. The Atlas is also a great climber something im not but hay no one's perfect. As a AM/DH bike it has no problem holding it's own plus we cant forget besides a sweet bike the nut holding the handle bar is what really makes a bike shine. The Heckler is the original single pivot do all bike way before the term AM came around so it is the goal that all manufactures have to meet or coughcough beat. It aint easy to beat the master but technology has come a long way especially in the suspension area so the field has narrowed. :rockon:

 

There are some folks who keep misinterpreting what I have wrote here and use it as arguments to steer the readers to one direction only or to beef up their egos (post-purchase syndrome) so I have decided to remove all what I have said here and no longer participate in any discussions where these people are likely to participate.

 

Yes, but I think the big advantage of this "old" Heckler/Atlas technology is seen once you start taking the frame apart for maintenance. I like the simplicity of the single pivot frames and I am sure it goes hand with hand with reliability.

Yup 2 bearings on either one. :thumbsup:

 

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You get what you pay for...

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About the Heckler: awesome bike, probably THE single pivot AM bike to measure all others on (at least on a parking lot). What do you pay for? Single pivot technology? Like my '96 Proflex?....awesome, I do love SP bikes...even bobbing ones with MCU rears. The only thing you're really paying extra for with the Heckler is it's "Pose-a-bility". Pretty feminine colors and curvy tubes that I tend to ding and scuff-up in my first two weeks of riding anyway.

Bikes lasting forever? It's definetly possible....although I have a frame that won't take disc brakes or custom rear shock (air/coil/etc.). So technology can limit a frame's longevity.

This was my bottom-line thought in my purchase decision:
Rich Posing AM Biker - buy Heckler
Thrifty AM Biker - buy Atlas (comes in men's colors only, btw)

After my wife said, "Now that's a pretty bike"...nail in the coffin. I'll let her pick out my clothes for her functions I attend, but I draw the line with bikes.

I've been beating on my Atlas Expert for three weeks now and I'm a happy camper. I'm not worried about chipping off a little of my man-color (as I didn't break the bank on this trail tank).

 

After my wife said, "Now that's a pretty bike"...nail in the coffin. I'll let her pick out my clothes for her functions I attend, but I draw the line with bikes.

Sounds kind of my wife... When I was choosing my current frame, her only comment was "that looks like it comes from Biltema" (A shop selling crap full suspension mountain bikes for about $99).

Once I received it she was like "Hey, that actually looks really nice... Though it looks like a womans bike 'cause it has red and white."

 

How much front travel do you want? According to Ibex, the Atlas is built to run a 120mm to 140mm front fork. The new Heckler's geometry is built around a 140mm fork but is spec'd to handle up to 170mm. :thumbsup: A late model Heckler takes up to 160mm. This tells me that the Heckler is a beefier bike (at least up front).

For full disclosure, I have a Heckler ('05) and love it. But like every bike, there is no one bike that fits us all. My only concern with going Ibex would be that you can't sit on one, let around pedal it around. $1000 is a lot of money to drop on uncertainty.

If you want an Atlas, find an Atlas owner that lives close enough for a day trip and would be willing to let you take it for a spin.

If you decide a Heckler is in your future, be prepared to wait. Santa Cruz is often behind schedule and unable to meet customer demand. So the Ibex or Cannondale may be the way to go if you need it now.

Lastly, the Sport is spec'd like a $1000 bike. Try to stretch for the Expert. If you're looking at the Pro, just go Heckler.

 

There are some folks who keep misinterpreting what I have wrote here and use it as arguments to steer the readers to one direction only or to beef up their egos (post-purchase syndrome) so I have decided to remove all what I have said here and no longer participate in any discussions where these people are likely to participate.

 

There are some folks who keep misinterpreting what I have wrote here and use it as arguments to steer the readers to one direction only or to beef up their egos (post-purchase syndrome) so I have decided to remove all what I have said here and no longer participate in any discussions where these people are likely to participate.

 

Right under the words Add To Cart it says Geometry if you click on that you will find numbers. :thumbsup:

Was this your LBS that tryed to sell you a 19" bike

 

There are some folks who keep misinterpreting what I have wrote here and use it as arguments to steer the readers to one direction only or to beef up their egos (post-purchase syndrome) so I have decided to remove all what I have said here and no longer participate in any discussions where these people are likely to participate.

 

Thanks for the effort, now I see it too:

Effective Top-Tube Length
22" 23" 24"

And this is pretty cool that they have listed it as "Effective" :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

No, it was one of the 'new' 3-frame size internet company like thous that pop up like mushrooms after a rain. And I called them twice and spoke to all the two people I could get on the phone coz I had hard time believing it. Man am I glad I did not get this 3-frame size company frame?

Experiances like that will sour ones taste for the rest, sorry you had a bad experiance but you were at least smart enough to know better. Others that may not no better are or could be on the wrong size bikes.:madmax:

Just so all know my Atlas is always ready for a test ride in real world conditions but im in NorCal so i didn't offer it up. No i dont work for them just like riding & getting more people involved.

 

I'm not saying that the Heckler is a bad bike...in fact, just the opposite. It's one bike that can can be configured from light XC to freeride. 6" travel is great for FR/DH, but a little much for all mountain (this forum), but I understand your point...the frame IS tough. It's a very popular bike....I just don't see/read any REAL benefit of more money for the Heckler frame, as compared to the Atlas.

p.s.
I'm just joking about colors...they actually make my mouth water, thinking about fruit. Black looks rockin'....or is that "midnight lunar eclipse"...

 

um, 6" too much? Seems to be the standard for the Enduro, Nomad, Reign... kings of the AM hill.