[Tracerboy]

I ride mostly technical single stack with lots of rock gardens mixed in and a few drops no more than 3 feet. I have ridden the Blur and Epic thoroughly and i find that the Epic is a little more aggressive which is great for everything except down hills in the rock gardens, however it does fine for my needs and local rides. The Blur was amazing in the rocks and downhill chutes but it lacked in the aggressive hill climbs that i am used to. I haven't ridden the RacerX or the Flux but i have heard great things about both. The Epic is looking pretty nice right now because for 3500 i can get full Sram X.O, Fox F100 RLT, and Mavic 819 Disc. The Santa Cruz is 3100 with Full XT Dual Control. The Titus I can get locally built with X9, Juicy 7 brakes, Truvativ crank, in house components and the Fox F100 RL fork for 3300 with DT Swiss wheels. I can build the Titus and Turner up with what i want for under $4000 through Competitive Cyclist.

From all that ride any of these bikes or have had any experience with any or some let me know your experiences, pros/cons. I am looking to spend between 2500-3500 so that should clarify the components range. I don't wanna buy a bike blind without having any saddle time in it, but if the Turner or Titus just staright up blow the other two out of the water i might have to consider it. Thanks, Lee

 

[d365]

The RacerX is a better bike all-around IMO. Cant go wrong with buying locally. You should test ride anything that you want to purchase first, even if you have to take a road trip to ride it.
Epic has lifetime warranty, racerx not. I'm pro Horst Link (FSR). I have no opinion of the others you mentioned. You may also consider the Motolite and Stumpjumper unless your hardcore racing, but then again people race these too. The Motolite/Stumpjumper will climb very well, but have the extra travel for the downhill and rock gardens. I was going to get the epic, but decided i liked the extra travel of the stumpjumper. I got a good deal on it and liked the insurance of a lifetime warranty (i'm a big guy). Otherwise I would have gone for the Motolite.

just my opinion.

 

[Flyer]

The Flux is now less expensive by a few hundred due to a price drop. It's more plush than the Racer-X, from what I've read and heard. It may also have a head tube angle that is a degree less steep than most or all other XC racers. That, combined with its 4" of travel and climbing ability, may make it the best trail bike in that range. Of all the choices you list, that would be my pick. My other two favorites are the Ventana El Fuego and the Yeti ASR-SL but the Flux is a bit more plush than those two as well which are a bit more race oriented like the Racer-X is.

 

[rzozaya1969]

I ride mostly technical single stack with lots of rock gardens mixed in and a few drops no more than 3 feet. I have ridden the Blur and Epic thoroughly and i find that the Epic is a little more aggressive which is great for everything except down hills in the rock gardens, however it does fine for my needs and local rides. The Blur was amazing in the rocks and downhill chutes but it lacked in the aggressive hill climbs that i am used to. I haven't ridden the RacerX or the Flux but i have heard great things about both. The Epic is looking pretty nice right now because for 3500 i can get full Sram X.O, Fox F100 RLT, and Mavic 819 Disc. The Santa Cruz is 3100 with Full XT Dual Control. The Titus I can get locally built with X9, Juicy 7 brakes, Truvativ crank, in house components and the Fox F100 RL fork for 3300 with DT Swiss wheels. I can build the Titus and Turner up with what i want for under $4000 through Competitive Cyclist.

From all that ride any of these bikes or have had any experience with any or some let me know your experiences, pros/cons. I am looking to spend between 2500-3500 so that should clarify the components range. I don't wanna buy a bike blind without having any saddle time in it, but if the Turner or Titus just staright up blow the other two out of the water i might have to consider it. Thanks, Lee

There won't be a huge difference between those bikes. Personally, I am biased towards Titus and Turner, in that order. Both are great bikes, but I think they would ride a little bit different, as some said. The Racer X I think is very stiff lateralily, which is a big bonus, but not as plush as the Flux. If you want a more agresive feel, probably the Racer X might be the right bike.

Also take a look at the Moto Lite, it's a little cheaper, you can have a little bit more travel, it's an exceptional bike.

 

[TLud]

Haven't ridden the Epic before, but I have ridden the other three. Both the RX and the Flux rode much better than the Blur. Add in the pivot and some CS issues that seem pretty rampant on this forum, and I crossed it off the list.

I ended up choosing the Flux over the RX because the ride and geometry were perfect for me, but you need to check them out in person. The Flux is definitely more plush, but don't let that imply that it is sluggish or has sloppy handling. The Flux has snappy acceleration and sharp, intuitive handling. It also climbed like no FS I've ridden before. The Racer-X is hardtail fast, but sacrifices a litle in terms of the ride. The geometries are very different, with the Flux being more stretched out.

You mentioned Competitive Cyclist. I ended up buying my Flux from them and I can't recommend them enough--great service and killer build. I drove up from Houston to their shop in Little Rock over a weekend to test out some of these bikes on a local trail. On paper, these bikes seem so evenly matched, but this real world saddle time made the choice stupid easy. CC also has a demo program where they'll ship a bike to you for a week to use on your own local trails. I mention all of this because I know how hard it can be to get trail time on these high end bikes.

Good luck with your choice. Take your time and enjoy the process.

 

[Ratt]

I ride mostly technical single stack with lots of rock gardens mixed in and a few drops no more than 3 feet.......

Unless you weigh less than 140 lbs not sure if any of these frame can put up with too many 3 footers. You sound more like a Motolite, 5spot, Stumpy 120 candidate

 

[Tracerboy]

i was thinking about the hucking factor so i stepped up some bigger rigs. i sted the stumpy fsr, ellsworth epiphany, cdale rush, yeti 575 and the 5spot. after riding all of them on my favorite local trail it came down to the epiphanyand 575 and the 575 won out in the end and for more than one reason. it was lighter on my biuld by over a pound, it cost $1000 less than the epiph, felt better for my riding style and was at a shop that i had more respect for than the ellsworth dealer. thanks for all of the input and info!

Lee

 

[be350ka]

Enjoy it. From what I hear, everyone who has a 575 loves the thing.

 

[Australia]

I would put my money on the Epic given Specialized's FSR system is just so pedal efficient