[Coldsnap]

Guess I'll kick off my registration here at MTBR with a post about my new ride....

Yesterday I ordered a Rockhopper Pro Disc (the new one) and am waiting on it to get to my local shop from, I dunno, somewhere in New Jersey I think. Anyhow, I'm quite surprised that it seems not a single person on the Internet owns this bike or at least posts about it. I made the decision to buy it based on the fact that it's a bit of a Frankenbike, a mix of XC hardtail and FR hardtail. Let's hope it doesn't totally suck!

The spec is pretty unique...
Marzocchi Drop Off Comps (130mm)
Truvativ Bash/32/22 cranks
Sun Singletrack wheels (36 spoke even)
platform pedals
2.3" tires
Beefed up frame (complete with chain gun ICSG mounts)

It's definitely not the average Rockhopper but it's not full-on FR/DJ bike like a P.

Anyone here have experience with this bike? If so, let me know what you think.

 

[Coldsnap]

So I took delivery of the 'Hopper Pro Disc today. Hot-cha, is this thing sweet! Granted I haven't had any serious pedal time on it yet but I did go for a light trail ride today for about an hour to dial in the shock, which after some tinkering with air pressures, is painfully smooth compared to anything I've ridden. It's not a light bike, but for a bit of a XC/FR crossbreed it already seems like it's going to fit my needs perfectly and stand up to a beating (knock on wood).

Pic posted below...

 

[Lee]

what size frame? how tall are you?

 

[Coldsnap]

It's a 19" frame and I'm 6'5". The standover height is a smidge high for crazy freeride stuff but we'll see. First I would need to 1) get some skill and 2) get some terrain and 3) manage to reach the bike's limit before I reach my own after dropping the seat all the way down. Had they sold a 18" frame I would have gone with that because I've been riding a 21" Specialized for 13 years and it's too damn big. That said, I can put my feet on the ground, flat, and have about an inch between my ass and the saddle.

But yeah, I'm still experimenting with the seat height depending on terrain and riding intent.

EDIT: Oh yeah, I wear a 34" inseam on my pants if that helps you at all, or if you're just into knowing useless things about people's trousers. Hehe.

 

[Coldsnap]

Oh yeah, another interesting thing I hadn't thought about....

I put the bike on my sedan, a stock Audi A4 which has been dubbed (by my friends) as the A4x4 for it's massive non-lowered ride height, which had a trunk rack. Well I hadn't considered the sloping top tube and the long fork because when I got home I noticed that the front wheel was maybe 6" off the ground. Max. I'm glad I didn't hit any speed bumps or big dips in the road or it would have surely taken the thing right off the car or at least mangled the wheel good. Next time I'm gonna put the one rack arm UNDER the downtube to prop up the front a bit.

 

[Coldsnap]

Took the new ride out for the maiden trail ride today...

First thing of note, the saddle met its match. The stock Spec body geometry ate it on a steep downhill with 20 or so 9-12 inch high water bars. As I dropped the last one I had lined it up a little too close to the center (deepest hole on the downhill side), slipped my left pedal and (I guess) my stomach hit the left lobe of the rear part of the seat, collapsing the left rail. Oof!! Luckily, still rideable. Didn't notice it until I made it home.

Second thing, the pedals. Don't be fooled, they're not the grippiest platforms ever. They're okay in the dry but when the gluey mud got into them and my shoes they started to give up the ghost. The non-replaceable pins don't bite quite enough, so time to replace them for a set of even $50 pedals.

Wheels seem to be slightly out of true but I attribute this to the shop probably not going over them during the build and checking tension.

Fork is very nice and the geometry of the bike as a whole benefits nasty rocky descent managability even for a guy who hasn't ridden in 3 years.

 

[T Nitty]

Guess I'll kick off my registration here at MTBR with a post about my new ride....

Yesterday I ordered a Rockhopper Pro Disc (the new one) and am waiting on it to get to my local shop from, I dunno, somewhere in New Jersey I think. Anyhow, I'm quite surprised that it seems not a single person on the Internet owns this bike or at least posts about it. I made the decision to buy it based on the fact that it's a bit of a Frankenbike, a mix of XC hardtail and FR hardtail. Let's hope it doesn't totally suck!

The spec is pretty unique...
Marzocchi Drop Off Comps (130mm)
Truvativ Bash/32/22 cranks
Sun Singletrack wheels (36 spoke even)
platform pedals
2.3" tires
Beefed up frame (complete with chain gun ICSG mounts)

It's definitely not the average Rockhopper but it's not full-on FR/DJ bike like a P.

Anyone here have experience with this bike? If so, let me know what you think.

I'm in a similar situation, haven't ridden in a few years, and I'm looking at getting the same bike. Where did you order it, and how much did it cost you? Is everything on there stock, or did you pick your own specs?

 

[Coldsnap]

Everything on there is stock right now. Basically, I found a good Specialized dealer in my area (there were a few) and went and talked to the shop guys. When I found out the model isn't often stocked I just made note of who was the most helpful and who tried to sell me something more expensive. Since I'm a long-time rider picking a shop that didn't treat me like a 'tard was a big priority. From there the shop simply ordered the bike (only way do to it) and when it arrived they assembled it (required by Spec) and let me know it was in.

I paid $1100. Ouch, sticker price! But it's brand new and they threw in some extra crap worth about $100 at the shop. I guilted them into thinking they made a mistake in ordering silver (they did) and that I was gonna have to suck it up and take it instead of red (I like silver better). Good service plan too, free unlimited repairs for a year excluding tires.

The stock specs are pretty good and, as is now the case, I'll be replacing the few likely-broken items over time. I love the bike so far and am pretty sure if you're in the market for an all-mountain or semi-freeride bike this is the ticket.

 

[Coldsnap]

For those following along (probably all one of ya), scroll down for my ride comments....

I dropped the bike off at the shop today to start using that unlimited service plan. On the list of things are the following:

- True the wheels. The front seems more out than the rear, surprisingly. Neither is bad but I feel like taking care of it now can only make things better in the long run.

- Rear mech started skipping every 30 seconds worth of pedalling the other day. I'm attributing it to cable stretch but I'm wondering if the shop assembly guy was a bit......lacking.

- Rear mech ghost shifting once in a while. See above shop guy comment. Cable housing is probably too short.

- Blown out seat rail. The shop has already replaced the saddle with the same model from the swap bin. That'll work.

- Adjust rear brake cable which seems to be cut too long and is causing rear brake to not return very quickly.

- Install new Azonic A-Frame pedals. Really I could do this myself, I used to work in a shop as a mechanic years ago for godssakes, but why bother. These should take care of that pesky pedal slipping.

Ok enough of that boring crap. Here's some riding feedback on this pony after 4 days and 12 hours of riding. It seems like, on the whole of the Internet, I'm the only schmoe with this bike and I certainly would have appreciated some info like this before I bought it. Heh.

I'm really impressed with the way this bike flows on downhills and feels remarkably stable. My previous XC bike had 2.1" tires, which in their day were pretty wide, but these 2.3"ers are proving nice on the comfort and control levels. Rolling resistance sucks though, no surprise there though. However my lack of momentum on the flats and hills could also easily be attributed to 3+ years of not riding, soft trails, and weak legs. I'm sticking to the rolling resistance story though.

The geometry and handlebar width definitely make the bike, even though it's a 19" frame and I'm a big dude, make the ride more of a point and shoot handling affair as opposed to, say, bob and weave, or the faster brother, cut and thrust. It climbs better out of the saddle and the nose, naturally with a long travel fork, needs direct attention on steep seated climbs.

Overall my impression is that this bike is going to be great as a multidiscipline trail bike. It's not a mountain goat but neither am I. In fact I feel like a bit of a noob adjusting to things like a more upright riding position, platform pedals, and handling nuances.

 

[Hot Butter Topping]

Righto, back again. I realized that my nickname was lame and have since changed it to something more suitable for me. Sorry for confusion.

On with the noob-saga. Just be glad I keep this to one thread!

So I picked the bike up yesterday, a good two days early and rather unexpectedly. Wheels are nice and true now. I was still hearing a bit of rub between the front pads and the rotor. I gave the piston adjuster for the pads a couple clicks out to let it all breath more in the caliper and that solved it, along with the fact that the brakes were too grabby with far too little pull on the lever. Did the same to the rear as well.

I do wonder... Will these Avid mechanicals get any better modulation-wise, or is that just a trait I will need to deal with when using mechanical discs? They're awfully grabby and go from "not slowing me down" to "needs ABS, badly" with little warning.

While practicing standing/rolling manuals and manual to hop yesterday I pulled too hard and held on too long and bashed the rear wheel straight on into a 6" curb with good speed. Good strong wheel considering I'm 245 pounds of clyde.

Also, I scored the Pricepoint.com delivery of my A-Frames and Roach pads today. I'm impressed by both and the pedals are wider for my size 13s which is a plus. New owners, trash the stock pedals right off if you didn't already budget for doing so.

Ok that's it. This is hurting you all more than it's hurting me, I'm sure, and it will hopefully convince someone this is a damn nice bike.....or at least that I'm criminally insane.

 

[missbiker]

I just bought a new rockhopper pro disc 2005. I bought it this weekend and I've been riding hard. On monday I road it and I did a 4 ft drop and when I landed The crank snaped in two. I havent got it fixed yet but I think that it could have been a factory defect.Is this possible?

 

[Hot Butter Topping]

Where did it snap? At the bottom bracket? At the chainring spider? The armor itself? Or maybe the pedal hole?

I was reading a NSMB.com article about Truvativ torture testing, and while the Truvativ Blaze cranks that came on the bike aren't downhill/freeride at all really, I would expect them to be strong enough to survive one 4' drop, even to flat. I would expect them to be warrantied, provided you don't say "hey I was jumping off a 4' loading dock, landed both wheels at the same time, and I weigh 300 pounds....replace them." That might raise an eyebrow.

I give you.... 50/50 chance of free repair. Sounds like you might want to invest in some DH cranks though in the future.

 

[Hot Butter Topping]

I hit the local Maryland trails today with a buddy of mine for, what initially anyways, was going to be a fairly short, fairly leasurely ride. On the first bit of singletrack it turned into a chain gone into the space between my chainrings and bottom bracket as well as between that plastic thing on the cassette and the spokes. Ouch.

Fastforward to the end of the ride when we're hittin about a mile of tarmac to the car. I hear a strange ping, ya know, like a branch or something clipped a spoke on the trail. But there was no branch, no trail, only a few second earlier I was making a sharp slow speed turn checking to see where my buddy was behind me. And then, a telltale rubbing. "What the hell....hmm." And then I see it...

The rear wheel just went from straight to wobbly enough that the tire is now rubbing the chainstays. So, back to the shop to ask them wtf they did when they supposedly trued the wheel Monday, and also to find out A) warranty status of such a shitty built wheel from the factory, and B) whether or not it will true out. I have my fears that the latter will be a big fat "no".

I'm gonna choke someone, honestly. Bike ridden only offroad 3 times, and on XC trails, and the rear wheels looks like it got hit by a car.

 

[LESLIEx317537]

Cool, other people ride this bike also...

I bought this bike from my bike shop about 2 months ago. I paid $1000.
I got a 15.5" frame. I'm 5'7" and 112 lbs.

The bike weighs in @ 33lbs.

I'm going to take off the inner 22t ring. The chain if it falls off can get wedge between the inner crank bolts and frame and bend the chain. I bent the stock HG-53 chain and replaced it with a HG-93 chain.
I eventually am also going to get a Blackspire NS-1 Chainguide to replace the current crank and ring and take off my front derailer and shifter to save more weight.

I have Panaracer Tires coming and got Specialized Thorn Resistant racing tubes to replace the current tire/tube setup it came with. I allready got thorn punctures in both wheels. They offer no thorn protection. The new setup will save about 1 lb of rotational weight which should really benefit my light body weight.

The front fork is very beefy and has very nice travel. I have hit gaps and landed past the landing jump with no problems since the shock has so much travel. It is very heavy though. I can wheelie the bike but think it would be easier if it had a lighter fork.

The next weight reduction mods I plan on doing are getting a new Handlebar, Seat Post, and Saddle.

 

[Hot Butter Topping]

Yeah the bike isn't light really. I believe the idea was to build it up with stronger parts and sacrifice a bit of weight savings at the time. That being said I've found the front end to be on the heavy side as well. But that's and obvious result of the lunker of a fork.

I've bent my replacement stock seat (twice) and have just upgraded to a Titec El Norte which more comfortable and quite a bit stronger due to the 8mm hollow cromo rails. It's a fr/dh saddle though so dont expect it to be light. The seatpost gets the job done. Im still getting used to the wide bars and handling characteristics and people have told me to hold off on changing the stem to something shorter until I ride it more.

I think Ive finally found the optimal settings for my weight on the fork. The balance between small bump sensativity in the first 1.5-2" of travel and bottom out resistance is nice now. Its a matter of just a few psi here and there so I recommend a good shock pump.

I did manage to get my chain stuck between my ISCG mounts and the smallest chainring. To top that, at the same time the chain came off in the rear and wedged between the cassette and the dropout. That was a pain in the ass to fix trailside. But I was also riding drunk so it had something to do with it I suspect (both the reason it came off and the reason why it was hard to fix).

The overall rating in my mind is still very high. The high speed tracking is nice, it climbs fairly well despite the high front end, and the downhill ride is plush (for a hardtail).

 

[LESLIEx317537]

Yea I like the bike also and I weight only 115 lbs.

I just replaced the tires and tubes. I re-weighed the bike and it came in at 31.6 lbs now.

I'm going to take off the smaller chainring and bolts to save some more weight and prevent a chain from getting bent again. Eventually I will get a chainguide to replace it.

I'm looking at getting a Thomson Road seat post and using a shim adapter to fit the tube if needed. The seat post is like 190 grams. 27.2mm diameter.
http://www.pricepoint.com/detail/11...-68-Seatposts/Thomson-Elite-Road-Seatpost.htm

Shim- http://www.pricepoint.com/detail/11704-275_ROCSH1-3-Parts-68-Seatposts/Rock-Shox-Seatpost-Shim.htm

The seat I'm looking at is the WTB Rocket V Laser with Titianium rails. 210 grams.
http://www.pricepoint.com/detail/11685-270_WTBLV2-3-Parts-67-Saddles/WTB-Rocket-V-Laser-Saddle.htm

Both would be 400grams. The stock seat and tube I think are like 760 grams total. I'm not sure though, I have to re-weigh them.
Do you know the seat post diameter?

O yea, then I also wanna replace the handle bars with something that is the same shape and size but lighter. The Easton O/S one is nice, but is 125 buks or so.

Edit:

I re-weighed the saddle and seat post and they came to 722 grams. The seat post diameter is 30.9mm.

 

[Leadghost]

As per Specialized's website specifications on the Rockhopper, SEAT POST Alloy 30.9mmx350/400mm, micro adjust.

In my opinion, don't waste your time with Shims. There's a chance of slipage, and your seatpost could wiggle a bit. Get the 30.9 Thomson Elite, Elite 30.9. The road is just cut down compared to the regular Elites which is where the weight savings is. If you't using a length that short (250mm) then just cut the 410 down to the desired length leaving enough for minimum insertion (measure the current marking on the post and just move it up however much you chop off.

 

[LESLIEx317537]

Thanks for that information.

 

[Hot Butter Topping]

If you're looking to save weight I was going to say you should first simply hacksaw your seatpost. Alwyas a good way to do it, assuming you don't cut it too short. Shims are a great way to put undo stress on your seatpost and cause it to crack.

At 115 pounds I guess the bike would be pretty heavy at 30+ pounds. At more than a 25% of your body weight it would be akin to me riding a bike that was 61 pounds. That would definitely suck.

I forgot to mention before that I've added the fitted Specialized chainstay protector. While it does a great job, the sleeve is very long and makes for a very tight clearance of the tire's knobbies as the sleeve approaches the seat tube. It works, but I bet with some mud in there it might get shredded a bit.

Other interesting bits I left out from before.... The handlebars, though Truvativ Hussefelts according to the Spesh website, aren't labeled at all. They certainly have the shape but it's a bit odd considering the Truvativ stem is labelled.

Finally, I've had a couple of my buddies who are smaller (in the 5'9" region) ride the bike a bit and they are all impressed with the ease of maneuvering a 19" bike that's too big for them. I think this translates to, if the bike was properly sized for them it would be quite nice. For the kind of riding I'm doing most often (angry xc working my way up to freeriding) I wonder sometimes if I should have gone with a 17 but it really would have made it worthless for any seated pedaling.

 

[LESLIEx317537]

Yea, I also bought the Specialized Chainstay protector, but I got the version for Hardtails and it was for the Stumpjumpers, so I had to stretch it slightly. I used 3 zip ties to secure it even more so the velcro can't come off.

I was looking at the website and the handlebars on specs website Enduro one is $42.99 or so. 220 grams. Do you think that is lighter than our current one?

I put back on the 2.3 inch tire on the back, I now run a 2.1 and 2.3 in rear. I like that setup since I run lower PSI in rear for jumping, wheelies, and roots.

My friend helped me take off the front derailer and cable and the inner 22t ring and the bolts, so the chain won't get eaten. He also took two links out of my HS-93 chain to make it tighter. When I get the new handlebar, I will take off the left shiftlever.

I'm starting to like the bike more and more. Here's a pic of me jumping a gap yesterday: