Yeah, mine also works great. 170mm version. Friends KS lev, reverbs not so good ...

 

modern day cave man

 

Cool pic!

 

A few images of my build. I am 5'10" with a 34in inseam and went with the large frame with a KS Lev 150mm seatpost.







Unfortunately temperatures have been brutal and I still have not had a chance to take the bike out for a shakedown ride.

 

Sweet. That green doesn't get old. A bit of spring in that otherwise wintery picture.

 

Wimp we went to jungle today. 15 when we started. Probably much colder up your way. Looking forward to your review !!!

 

Wimp we went to jungle today. 15 when we started. Probably much colder up your way. Looking forward to your review !!!
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Very nice! I am actually South of you now in PA, so I really don't have a good excuse other than my kid bringing home every ailment from day care and me being sick for the past month or so.

 

Damn. This thread is REALLY making me wanna chop up my Mojo SL and upgrade to a HD3. I've been re-visiting this and the other HD3 thread on MTBR countless times over the last week, and I think the green is starting to grow on me. Coming from a black SL, a change of color might be nice... and I'm not that big a fan of the blue accents on the black HD3

Has anyone had time on the HD3 and can compare it to the SL? It should be a much larger difference than those coming off a HD or HDR, but I'd like to hear your first-hand opinion.

 

No time on an SL but there is really no downside to the switch. The bike will climb as well or better and the descending will not even be close. It is amazing how much they improved it over the HD/HDR.

People have downplayed the difference but when I got my Mach 6 the HDR was not ridden again. This bike is a significant improvement over the Mach 6 and even more over the HD.

 

Damn, just when I thought I had my mind made up on the blue color. That green looks pretty slick!

 

Hate or Love?

The customer decided to not go with the Onza with gumwall sidewalls. What do you guys think?

 

The customer decided to not go with the Onza with gumwall sidewalls. What do you guys think?

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Eh, black looks better. It's not horrid, it just takes away from the epic pop the green frame provides when surrounded by black highlights.

 

Different strokes for different folks. Personally not a fan but then again people are pinning things much crazier than me on a pink bike and no one's making fun of him so.... If he likes it then :thumbsup:

 

Per the post the customer didn't go with that tire selection and I'm not surprised !!!!

 

Never seen that tire before...is it popular somewhere else in the world? Not a fan, personally.

 

Hey mods, can we sticky this thread?

Word up, thx!

 

I kinda wish they'd named it something else, like the Ibis Rowdy or something. HD3 makes it sound like an incremental update when it really is a whole nother bike...

 

Can someone verify the stem length the HD3 comes stock with. The website says it's a Thompson 40. Is that 40mm stem? I thought it looked like 50mm stem in person.

 

Good question. Thought it had to be a 40mm but you're right. Mine measures at 50mm(size M) Fine with me, fits perfect!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Thanks for the feedback fellas... I have no doubt that the HD3 is better than my current SL but i guess I just wanted more affirmation that the DIFFERENCE between the two was big enough to justify the upgrade.

Only complaint I might have about the SL is that it gets a bit caught up in rocky stair drops perhaps due to the steeper head angle (i've pinned my front tire between rocks and gone over the bars before)

I guess it's settled then. Just have to decide between the black or the green. The baby blue 917 theme is nice to look at but not my scene really. And frankly, its not even very 917-esque compared to Production Privee's Shan.

 

that would be the Gulf Oil livery I think you're referring too...and, while carried on the 917, was also carried an many a race car including the Ford GT40 that won Le Mans. Ibis has been know to do colorways that mimick car paint jobs ('Cobra' blue on the HDR, 'Lambo' orange and 'DB5' silver on the SL-R's to name a few....but I'd be surprised if the blue HD3 colorway was an attempt to mimick the Gulf Oil colors as it's really not very close.

And to your point on the differences...it sounds as if you don't need add'l convincing...but it's really hard to compare two bikes that are so different. As one person posted, having gone from the SL to an HD as I did as well, the fact the the HD climbs better than the SL was as huge surprise. And then, everywhere else, it's just in a different league in terms of capabilities.

 

nybike which grips are them?

i was really after a set of TLD odi lock on's they had in a vit p ish green but can't find them anymore.

 

They are ESI chunky. I have been using these grips for a couple of years and they work well for me.

 

Thanks Terminator Z!

 

Starting to bank a good chunk of hours on the HD3 on local trails I know back to front, and have ridden many, many times on the HD and HDR over the years. For sure the latter remain great, fun bikes but damn... the HD3 is proving to be a seriously impressive do-it-all bike.

The improved pedaling performance alone is a big deal, effecting every part of the ride. The HD3 climbs more like a short/mid travel 29er than the HD/HDR or a 6" bike IMO - very direct and effiicient feel. Also stomp on the pedals at any time, out of corners etc and there's an immediate snappy response.

Fully open, the shock is so settled on smooth terrain, climbs etc but immediately lively as needed

Add in the cockpit changes, BB etc... the thing is just so agile and responsive overall. It begs you to ride familiar trails way more aggressively.

FWIW here's a little video compilation of the first 90 seconds or so of every local ride of mine, with the GoPro pointed down towards the shock. I leave my house, climb to the nature reserve behind the house and then scoot down. Feels like leaving the bat cave which is always fun.

Anyway hope it gives you a sense of the behaviour of the rear end of the bike (with the shock fully open, factory settings). Up and down it feels pretty frickin awesome from a rider's point of view, and kinda adds a new lease of life to my local trails.. bonus!

 

totally agree. I've got 15 or so rides in on mine...mostly in the open space behind my house...so they're trails that I know REALLY well...the thing that strikes me most is that the bike pedals so much like my Ripley...closer to my Ripley than to my HDR. And that's a compliment. I'm not talking about pure climbing efficiency...I'm talking about that sense that at any time you can jump on the power and get that immediate sense of forward thrust. It's really remarkable. Then I added the super-fatties rims (741's on kings) and that was a whole new set of giggles railing bermy singletrack and doing drops / jumps that I've done 100's of times before.

 

FYI: after my ride yesterday I noticed that both bolts that connect the rear triangle to the yoke were very loose. Like a few turns from having fallen all the way out. I checked every other bolt on the bike and the rest were tight to spec. Just those two bolts I mentioned (not the inner bolts but the two larger exterior connectors.

 

thanks for the headsup. I should check mine over again.

 

I kinda like the skin colored sidewall tires. Looks old school to me!

 

Waiting for my blue HD3 ... does anybody know if a direct mount SRAM X.0 front derailler fits ?

 

So the HD climbs better than the SL and the HD3 even better? U guys are making it impossible for me to NOT upgrade!

And to think I was just a few weeks ago contemplating a Kona Process 153

 

yes, the HD climbed better than the SL (Ibis and Dave had had many more years of experience with the DW-Link by then...plus the bike was stiffer) and, yes, the HD3 climbs better than the HD. Like I said before, the only possible reason I could see not to move to the HD3 would be cost. As for the Process...I have no experience with that bike.

 

I was thinking about a transition patrol until ibis decided to drop this bomb on us...

2 week countdown!

 

Luv the ESI chunky grips... really couldnt ask for anything more, solid.

 

yeah agree. I run the Extra Chunky's and love them. Make for a relaxed comfy grip. Just waiting for a fresh pair to arrive ATM.

 

Just got word from my buddy at Trailhead Cyclery that my HD3 is in. So glad I waited for the green.

 

No doubt your patience was worth it.