I like both. My wife has a Mojo 3 and I have a Ripley V3. I occasionally take out the Mojo 3 and find it fun and poppy. More poppy than the Ripley by just a bit. They both have more spunk and pop than the HD3 & HDR which I also owned. For me the Ripley is faster uphill and down, but not by much. Uphill they are oh so close, downhill, the Ripley is a decent amount faster, again that's for me.

Compared to the HD3 they both squirt up the hills. In the end I like a 29er better as a mid travel bike, if I only had to choose one. But for fun twisty poppy trails the Mojo 3 is hard to beat.

 

I like both. My wife has a Mojo 3 and I have a Ripley V3. I occasionally take out the Mojo 3 and find it fun and poppy. More poppy than the Ripley by just a bit. They both have more spunk and pop than the HD3 & HDR which I also owned. For me the Ripley is faster uphill and down, but not by much. Uphill they are oh so close, downhill, the Ripley is a decent amount faster, again that's for me.

Compared to the HD3 they both squirt up the hills. In the end I like a 29er better as a mid travel bike, if I only had to choose one. But for fun twisty poppy trails the Mojo 3 is hard to beat.

I would second what Shreddy said. I own both and if I had to give one up, I would keep the Ripley for it's rollover ability and downhill stability. But the Mojo3 is a bit poppier off trail features. Both are so good, you can't go wrong.

 

Torn here. I have a V1 Ripley. I want a burlier downhill bike. Slacker, bigger tires.

Was thinking M3, Ripley LS V13 or an Evil Following. I just can't decide!!! But I love my Ripley.

 

Ripley love affair

Guiding for the Ibis Migration #3​

The Ripley is actually not just a love affair, but a marriage to the perfect woman/bike of my dreams. It has its moments where a pedal strike is analogous to a misunderstanding with your loved one where exceptions must be made for the relationship to work. Nothing is perfect in life, but damn close! I've been riding MTB bikes since 1986 and I'm feelin the love...

So, being the home to the original Ibis (circa 1981) and one of Scot's fun spot to come back to (Migration#3), we all are riding one form or another of the Ripley be it V1, V2 or V3. I personally own two , a V1 and V2. I love the V2 OG, but my V1 has the "Offset" headset so it rides more like a V3 LS with out the boost or lateral stiffness. It's my go to winter pony as we ride all year round here on the north coast of California.

Nick on his V1 Ripley​

Our best and youngest punk rider, Nick Taylor at 59 years old, who designed and built the "Ibis Maximus" 59er bike is currently at the MTB Hall of Fame in Fairfax.

​

Nick has had all three versions and contends that when it comes to the fast downhills nothing beats the V3 LS in handling and quickness. His only concern is; that it tends to get very light in the front end on very steep climbs. The front wheel tends to wander. Now, back to V1 versus V2: the V2 is noticeably stiffer in lateral torsion. I feel the OG is the best bike for our type of XC riding. (Unfortunately, Scot informed us last spring that the OG is no longer available due to the popularity of the V2 LS version.) The OG does switch backs and climbs like a mountain goat. Even though our particular type of riding has equal amounts of climb to downhill ratio. Our average ride is 18 to 20 miles with 3K of elevation gain. So much testing has been done here with all the generations of Ripleys.

Also a note: the few Mojo 3 owners we have ridden with regret their purchases and wish they had gone with the Ripley. My experience of all the bikes I have ridden and owned, the Ripley has been - bar none the most exceptional bike in my fleet.

Hope I have helped shed a little light on your conundrum...

 

Do yourself a favor and pick up an HD3... it'll compliment your Ripley perfectly.

 

Granted, this isn't a long term review or anything, but I recently demoed a Ripley ls and was expecting to be wowed by it. I wasn't..at all. Maybe you could get on one for a full day at your local trails..Only way to really know. I'm looking at possibly getting a mojo 3 and would love to complement it with a 29er, so I totally understand..wish I could afford to do both. Anyway, try the mojo with standard tires.. That might really help you find a good middle ground if you decide to keep it.

 

Before you purchase a new bike consider investing $120 in a smaller set of tires. I have a HD3, 150 front and 2.35/2.25 tires, and it feels nimbler and quicker uphill than a M3 with 2.8 ... really: 2.8 tires are BIG, try at least a set of 2.6 tires, or even 2.35 on your M3 before you toss it.

Bikes like HD3, M3, Ripley, and a platoon or others, differ more for their set up than for some intrinsic magic given by millimetric variations in frame numbers. Sure Ripley is 29 vs 27 but if I were you I'd go out and enjoy the M3 instead of going in a wild-goose-chase for some irrelevant performance gains!

See https://www.pinkbike.com/news/your-bike-is-fine-already-just-ride-it-opinion.html

 

I've had both. I started with an SL-R, got a v1 Ripley in 2013. I rode it for 5000+ miles over the next four years. I also sold a couple other bikes in the garage and purchased a Mojo 3 last year. I loved it too--I felt it was better than the OG v1 Ripley on downhills and was more agile and poppy. However, with the v3 Ripley LS and its slacker and longer geometry and the ability to put 2.6" tires on both ends, I figured it would take on most of the Mojo 3 plus-sized tire goodness while still keeping the innate Ripley awesomeness. So, while I was injured this spring/summer, I sold the Mojo 3 to a good friend whom appreciated it even more than I did as she was coming from a 26" Mojo C and didn't really want to buy my OG Ripley. I then put my OG Ripley (with the Works -1° headset) on the market and purchased a new v3 Ripley LS after some test riding. I also sized up to a large at the same time on the Ripley which I had also done on the Mojo 3.

The tl;dr is that I like the v3 Ripley with 2.6" tires better than the Mojo 3 with 2.8" tires.

 

I've been on a Mojo 3 for 1.5 years, and spent some significant trail time on a Ripley V3. Similar to what others (and on other threads) have stated, the Mojo 3 is more "fun". (I admit the V3 is so easy to ride fast, maybe even faster...) I run my Mojo 3 with 2.5 WT/2.6 tires, seems to be the sweet spot in tire size these days....

 

Cambriabike still has Hd3 complete bikes in stock.

 

Thanks. Just old ones with old CCDBInline (I'll never go there again) and last gen drivetrains and non-boost.

 

Welp, I've decided to post my Mojo 3 for sale. It's in the classifieds section if anyone is interested. It's an SLX Werx build w/carbon bars, Ibis 742 i9 wheelset and everything upgraded to XT components except for the crankset which is still SLX. If I can get a reasonable price for it I'll jump ship to a Ripley and see how I like it. Asking $3850 shipped...

 

I'm getting worried now after hearing of a few people trading their mojos..I thought I was sold on one but I'm worried the plus tires will feel too sluggish on flatter, more pedally stuff. Hmm.. Did you ever give 2.6 a try on the mojo 3 or even 2.35-2.5 ? Looks like a decent deal and I'd be interested but I'm still on the fence about this bike, a different 27.5 like a thunderbolt or 5010..or a 29er like a Devinci Django..that was a great feeling bike on the short demo ride..

 

I've only ridden it with the stock 2.8 Rekons that came on the bike. We have a lot of loose areas where I ride and skinny tires can be downright scary, so I never bothered putting on a different tire.

 

Yea, I still prefer the smaller wheels but short travel 29ers are so good now..in a different way. I'd be happy on either, but my my next bike will be on the smaller, nimbler wheels. Maybe some day I'll be able to pick up something like a used Django or Fuel to add to the stable. Sounds like your enjoying your new mojo.. did you post any pics?

 

had a nonboost HD3 with 2.5 tires. Traded it in more a Mojo3 with 2.8 tires. Do have carbon rims now. I climb faster. Descend faster because more in control. More comfortable on narrow trails with exposure. The bike is not sluggish in my opinion. I do not race but climb a lot. I keep up with my friends on 29's with 2.3 tires.

 

Cool deal. What tires are you running?

 

I didn't see this post earlier, But I had a M3 with 2.4 tires on it and now on a Ripley OG V2. Like the Ripley much better.

 

Ordered myself a Ripley X01 build and some 29x2.6 Rekons. Will post an update when I get it in a couple weeks!

 

Went from HD to Ripley v1 to Mojo 3 all medium. Ripley is the fastest best climber, but never loved it in the turns, especially S turns. Mojo 3 is a better climber then the HD and more fun for me in the turns and down then Ripley. It’s probably just my lack of skill but I just never felt comfortable leaning the Ripley as much in the turns as the Mojo’s and didn’t feel as quick to snap into a turn. Also when my back tire starts to slide I feel more in control on the Mojo. Ripley certainly rolled over, but on trails with lots of small rocks the 2.8 tires with low pressure really smooths things out. Depends what floats your boat. Ripley was more stable and faster. I ride in Arizona everything from rocky 10 milers to 30+ mile 3000ft xc. And hands down Mojo one of the best looking bikes out there. Ripley just sits in my garage.

 

Went from HD to Ripley v1 to Mojo 3 all medium. Ripley is the fastest best climber, but never loved it in the turns, especially S turns. Mojo 3 is a better climber then the HD and more fun for me in the turns and down then Ripley. It's probably just my lack of skill but I just never felt comfortable leaning the Ripley as much in the turns as the Mojo's and didn't feel as quick to snap into a turn. Also when my back tire starts to slide I feel more in control on the Mojo. Ripley certainly rolled over, but on trails with lots of small rocks the 2.8 tires with low pressure really smooths things out. Depends what floats your boat. Ripley was more stable and faster. I ride in Arizona everything from rocky 10 milers to 30+ mile 3000ft xc. And hands down Mojo one of the best looking bikes out there. Ripley just sits in my garage.

Great rundown of the differences.

Question: HD vs Mojo....how much difference does the extra travel make on the HD at 160/150 compared the Mojo 3 at 140/130? I'm looking for that extra margin of error as an 45yr old only getting older and less smart in the lines I pick. I've always been thinking the overlap with the Ripley in terms of travel and rollover vs the M3 made the HD3 the sensible pick to get a trail bike that was going to change the game, but it sounds the like the geo of the M3 really changes things up.

 

I demo’d The HD3&4, Mojo 3, and the Ripley before getting the HD3.
The difference in travel between the mojo 3 and the HD 3 is most noticable on jumps and drops. The margin for error on the HD goes up considerably: The mojo “can” do jumps and drops, where as the HD “wants” to do jumps and drops.

If you’re looking for a one bike, that you can take anywhere, the HD is your bike. The HD lets me ride out of mistakes.

If you don’t do jumps or drops the mojo 3 is an awesome , well rounded, bike.

The Ripley is the only bike that I have ever climbed with and stayed at the front of the pack with.

But to be fair, I would have no problem riding any of the three for an extended period of time: they’re all great at different aspects of riding.