[Internal14]

21" El Chucho, Quad Bearing, Heavy Duty Swingarm, RP23, magic purple dust.
RockShox Reba Team 29er
XT shifters
Hope Pro Mini brakeset
Hope ProII hubs(gold) with Stans rims.
Hope Headset, gold
XTR cranks
XTR rear der.
XTR frt. der.
XTR chain
XT 11-34 cassette
Time XS pedals
Thomson Seatpost, silver
Thomson X4 Stem, silver
WTB Rocket V Ti saddle
Hope seatpost QR, gold
Kenda Carter Excavador 2.35 rear tire
Panaracer Rampage 2.35 frt. tire
No Tubes liquid/valves
Easton Monkeylite bars carbon 1" rise.
ODI Ruffian Lock-On, gold
Nokon der housing links, gold

Weight: 28.7lbs pretty happy about that! Only 2lbs heavier than my El Saltamontes but waaay burlier

Going out tomorrow to get her dirty. Can't wait!!!

 

[wyatt79m]

awesome...........

 

[bogmonster]

Nice!!

I would love to get my hands on one of those but just cant stomache the msrp!!! Anyways why the negative stem and then riser bars??? Why not flat bars and normal stem ??

Mark

 

[Internal14]

Anyways why the negative stem and then riser bars??? Why not flat bars and normal stem ??

Mark

Love the hand position the Easton risers give me hands. And I don't think flat bars are that forgiving. I think risers inherently have a bit more give to them. Just personal taste.

 

[wojo14]

Any feedback on the bike? Very interested to know! I love 96ers!!

 

[Mickey650b]

Sweet!!!

 

[Internal14]

Any feedback on the bike? Very interested to know! I love 96ers!!

Feedback? I'm loving it!

I was able to get 10hours of ride time on a demo before I plunked the money down for my own so I already knew I was going to love it. 4 hours at Bootleg and another 6hrs of fun in Downieville which was really the true turning point. I had never had so much fun at Downieville. The travel seemed to be JUST right. Just enough to save your butt, but not too much that it made it boring. I've been riding a 7" travel rig out there for the past two years and it's just not that much fun. Nothing to really push the limits of travel on and too bulky to enjoy the sweeping climbs on 2nd Divide. El Chucho opened my eyes, wide!
You can rail corners without worrying about the front drifting. It really likes it when you force the rear wheel to start drifting and you let it roll keeping the front end planted and tracking where you want it to go. And the thing just jumps out of corners too. Zips up to speed very easily. :thumbsup:
So far no big issue with the front end getting to light climbing real steep stuff.

Fourth ride and I'm finally narrowing down the rear shock. For some reason, and call me crazy, the demo just seemed right every time I rode it with minimal thought into the rear shock, but the new bike with the same model rear shock, it's taken quite a bit of tinkering to nail the settings right.

One last thing to figure out is the rear wheel/tyre. The demo I rode had the same tyre, Carter Excatavor 2.35, but with a tube, and my bike I'm running a Stan's rim and solution mix. For some reason the rear end seems very squirley over rocks/roots. I'm betting it's the thin tyre running Stans, but I might try a tubeless tyre for giggles. And also if the tubeless tyre doesn't do the trick, then I'll rebuild my rear wheel with a more stout rim. I'm using the ZTR Olympic now and a Flow upfront. Might just build up a matching rear to the front.

So far so good though. Heading out tomorrow for some more steady climbing and rippen descending. :thumbsup:

 

[40hills]

I see you have a U-turn fork on there... what travel setting are you using and how do you like it? Have you tried it at the min/max and what are your thoughts about it?

 

[Internal14]

I see you have a U-turn fork on there... what travel setting are you using and how do you like it? Have you tried it at the min/max and what are your thoughts about it?

I'm not much of a fiddler once the wheels are turning.

Unless it's a super steep, fireroad/smooth climb that is going to go on for more than ten minutes, I don't bother winding the fork down. I find it's just too troublesome to be twisting the knob like 14times to get it all the way in or out. I really don't understand why RS doesn't just do a three position clicker, then it would be more usable.

With 5.5" out back, I find myself hardly ever limiting the front. The bike is balanced enough.

When I race it I leave it full length, lock-out on, gate 2/3 way out so it's effectively riding with a firm threshold to blow through. Once again, it's just me. I just want to focus on the ride, not flipping switches.

There is one place where I'll use the flippers though as it has 30 min climbs followed by 10minute descents, so it's worth it. Also another long loop of three hours, it's 2hrs uplocked out, turned down all the way, then flip it all open and head back down after traversing a ridge for 45 minutes into about a 30 minute 40mph descent.

As far as what it feels like, well, it feels like a full traveled bike when it's all open, and a super stiff almost rigid bike that'll climb the super steeps when all bottomed up.

I do like the Reba feel much better than the Fox I rode. I think the Fox might be a touch more directionally stiff, where the RS seems to deflect and hunt in the real steep tech descents. But let that big wheel roll instead of jamming it up, and it flows like no other, so teh damping of the the RS is more ideal for me.