[925hell]

I just found one available for sale, at a good price, in great condition I'm looking for anyones experiences with sizing. I'm 6' 195 lbs and the frame I'm looking at is a regular, I've always ridden small frames but just looking for additional insight from those who have or have had the BB7. Thanks
JK

 

[Dirt rider]

cool. the regular should be fine. what year? I have a 2001 and have had nothing but grief with the pulley. my bike was out of commision for months because nobody has pulleys anymore. also I have found due to the pully and extra long chain pedaling resistance is higher and less smooth than normal bikes. otherwise its a beautifaly handaling quick little bike.

 

[mandown]

i am 6'1" and my weight with gear is around 195. i just sold my 2003 regular size BB7. that bike fit me quite well. if you like small frames it will fit you just fine. i had mine rigged up with a shiver and a avy on the back. the thing was a plow. i could ride over anything. the only problem was that it was too much bike for my local trails. it got a workout once a year when i took it to whistler.

just know that those bikes are a pain in slow tech sections. they are meant to be ridden fast.

 

[patineto]

cool. the regular should be fine. what year? I have a 2001 and have had nothing but grief with the pulley.

really..

the one i have was riden, race and trash super hard and the pulley works impecable (i have the one with the cog in the middle not the one made of only delrin) and i found it marvelous

my bike was out of commision for months because nobody has pulleys anymore.

somebody here contact me about making extra pulleys for me (for my nicolai proyect) i just need to look for his name

also I have found due to the pully and extra long chain pedaling resistance is higher and less smooth than normal bikes. otherwise its a beautifaly handaling quick little bike.

i don't have that many milles to contest that statement...

i'm 6'2" and my 2001 long one (the short travel version) features a almost 24" top tube when the seat post is fully extended...
pretty much the longest toptube i found so far and i like it...

 

[mandown]

damn bro. hack that post down a notch. i hate telling others how to rig their rigs, but WOW!

i got a bb7 because it has one of the shortest seattubes compared to other dh bikes. i don't understand why peeps run dh bikes with long seat posts. TTT is meaningless to me on a DH rig. as long as the wheelbase is long enough and the saddle is out of my way. i hate feeling the saddle under me when i am going fast and things get sketchy. i respect your right to have it the way you want, but it just confuses me.

 

[mandown]

oh yeah, i also had some pulley problems. i found that the best thing was to check on the pulley after each run. i let things get too loose once and it chewed into my frame.

 

[merrrrjig]

The BB7 is quite possibly the worst bike on this planet!

 

[OGDMFG]

someone is little jaded?

 

[skyst3alth]

I absolutely loved my '03 long when I had it, the bike riiiips.

I am 6'1" ~185 and rode the long. Even still, it had a very tight cockpit.

A part of me wishes I still had it...

 

[mandown]

The BB7 is quite possibly the worst bike on this planet!

got any reasons behind that?

i loved mine. if i had more DH trails near me, i never would have sold it.

 

[FlipSide]

The BB7 is quite possibly the worst bike on this planet!

This is certainly the stupidest post ever posted on the internet.

 

[merrrrjig]

I raced one, I was sprinting as hard as I could, and there was someone next to me sitting peddeling, and I was going as fast as him, the bike is a horrible peddeler

 

[925hell]

It pedals badly and it likes to ridden at speed, slow tech sections are not suggested, what else as per most the bike is well recieved, merrrjig your post needs more info what was the spring rate your weight and so on since this a pending purchase specific info is inportant.thanks for your input
JK

 

[no skid marks]

Were you on the road?
Move to a rocky section and see who's pedalling faster.
It is a DH bike that goes fast going down and I found mine pedaled ok,I rode it on very long rides. You have to learn to spin the cranks instead of stomping but this is good for any dually just a bit more on the BB7. I didn't find the pulley noticably sucked energy.
I recon BB7s are a great bike.

 

[mandown]

yeah, the bb7 doesn't pedal as well as others on open smooth spots. but when the going gets rough, the bb7 gets going. i had an avy on mine and it was uber-plush. combined with the shiver, i was in pudding when i put down the pedal. however, with a 3.0 gazza in the front, nothing short of a the great wall of china would stop me.

once you have been on the rig for a while, you get accustomed to the quirks of the frame. i would pedal mine on xc rides. it was tough in the tech sections. as long as the incline wasn't too steep, it did the job.

what type of riding do you plan to do on the bike? that might help us tell you if this would be a good purchase?

 

[merrrrjig]

I would say the BB7 is for hucking only, I mean it is a canadian bike!

 

[mandown]

I would say the BB7 is for hucking only, I mean it is a canadian bike!

weak post

 

[RideMTN]

The only difference between the regular and the long is the seat tube. Aside from that the 2 bikes are completely identicle. I had an 02 and it served it's purpose. Since then I have upgraded to a single pivot bike. Eventhough the BB7 is in theroy a single pivot it was just to complicated for me. I also had some pully issuses. It just wore down after 3 years of riding. Just my insite take how you want.

Later,
Komish

 

[zedro]

TEventhough the BB7 is in theroy a single pivot it was just to complicated for me.

a pulley is too complicated? its not theory, it is a single pivot.

 

[mandown]

The only difference between the regular and the long is the seat tube.

i think you mean top-tube, not seat tube.

 

[mandown]

a pulley is too complicated? its not theory, it is a single pivot.

yeah, all the bolts and linkages were just so they did not have a complicated fabrication method for the rear swingarm. trying to make that out of one piece would have been hellish (if even possible).

 

[zedro]

yeah, all the bolts and linkages were just so they did not have a complicated fabrication method for the rear swingarm. trying to make that out of one piece would have been hellish (if even possible).

well not hellish or difficult, but probably heavy. Remember the rear end is cromoly, using a steel plate instead of Al would of added some weight

 

[mandown]

well not hellish or difficult, but probably heavy. Remember the rear end is cromoly, using a steel plate instead of Al would of added some weight

aww yeah! i had some of the steel plates. the guy i bought the frame from had them made (possibly from the factory) because he planned to huck the thing. he told me they suggested the steel plates. those things were HEAVY. i never put them on my bike.

 

[vallEbikes]

they are nice, but kind of clunky at times.

It is also very hard to find parts, and the link plates do break on occasion.

 

[FlipFantasia]

I would say the BB7 is for hucking only, I mean it is a canadian bike!

yeah I mean, come on, the canadian champ who was riding one was slow as f#ck, winning championships and sh!t, what a crappy bike......you are right though, he did huck it.....mine is going into year 5 and it's been killer, it pedals great, and loves, absolutely loves to go fast.....and it handles tight tech situations just fine, it's the perfect bike for banging off multiple non-stop garbanzo to village runs in an evening.......but hey, that's only 5 years of experience on one talking.......

hucker, mateiu laurin

 

[patineto]

damn bro. hack that post down a notch. i hate telling others how to rig their rigs, but WOW!

i got a bb7 because it has one of the shortest seattubes compared to other dh bikes. i don't understand why peeps run dh bikes with long seat posts. TTT is meaningless to me on a DH rig. as long as the wheelbase is long enough and the saddle is out of my way. i hate feeling the saddle under me when i am going fast and things get sketchy. i respect your right to have it the way you want, but it just confuses me.

you know what you are totally right a my brain agree a 100% but my knees do NOT and i need to keep them happy if i want to keep riding,, hell walking, besides i'm a old school mountain bike rider than never rode BMX bikes and i have very little problem geting my butt in the back of the saddle, desides i have a quick release and if the stuff get super scary i drop it down if need too..

plus that day i was test riding the bike for the first time on my favorite cross country loop so was no need for a short seatpost but then the day comes (i'm being rideless for about 7 weeks do to a .................. knee injury) i have at least 2 short thomson post that i can install on the bike in seconds (spares seat already install and everything)..

thank for worrying but is nothing to worrry about..

 

[patineto]

The BB7 is quite possibly the worst bike on this planet!

really...

i have a Nicolai M-Pire (actuallly two of them) and the old Balfa BB7, the two of them are single pivot, one of them a exercice of complexity one of them a exercice of simplisity..

and you know what the two of them ride marvelous, in fact the BB7 sometimes works even better than the ultra expensive M-pire..

this is a side story that somehow explain the balfa aproach to design

many years ago NASA spend a few million dollars and years of R&D trying to figure out how to make a pen that will work in outspace (to gravity to bring the ink down) the Russian response to the same challenge use #2 lead pencils..

that is pretty much how i see this two bike compare, the two have merits but one of them is design like a old Mig-15 figther jet and for sure is not the german bike

 

[patineto]

a pulley is too complicated?

in my concept the design of the old Balfa Pulleys (Aluminum with a shimano metal cog pattern) is a absolute work of art, simple, elegant and extremlly well put togheter..

its not theory, it is a single pivot.

yeap

 

[925hell]

as to mandowns question, I'm sorry it took so long to post but I was at work. I live in Utah the majority of riding will be racing and training for racing I am returning after a year hiatus to rehab my shoulder, to be frank, I'm not a hucker in the truest sense of the word, I don't seek out monster drops and such, if I find it on a race course then yes huck away. If I had my own way fast and faster would be the way I ride, at 195 lbs gravity just grabs you by the belt buckle and pulls. The last bike I had saw pretty much lift assisted riding, and a few rides to the 7-11 for beer. Hope this helps, thanks to everyone so far for your input.
JK

 

[ChrisRobin]

Eventhough the BB7 is in theroy a single pivot it was just to complicated for me. Later,
Komish

Complicated?.....BLAM!

BTW, this is in theory, a single pivot. Oh yeah, don't pay attention to how it's setup. She's in the process of getting a complete parts change!

 

[RideMTN]

Dude F all you guys it was just my opinion, you don't have to attack me and call me an idiot.
I hate this web site

 

[zedro]

Dude F all you guys it was just my opinion, you don't have to attack me and call me an idiot.
I hate this web site

no one attacked or called you an idiot, just a counterpoint saying that the bike is in fact a single pivot and quite simple compared to alot of bikes out there. Don't get all saucy because everyone doesnt agree

 

[tmoney727t]

Dude F all you guys it was just my opinion, you don't have to attack me and call me an idiot.
I hate this web site

haha, wow. I dont think he meant it as offense. but dont have a "hissy fit" over someone correcting you.

 

[mandown]

as to mandowns question, I'm sorry it took so long to post but I was at work. I live in Utah the majority of riding will be racing and training for racing I am returning after a year hiatus to rehab my shoulder, to be frank, I'm not a hucker in the truest sense of the word, I don't seek out monster drops and such, if I find it on a race course then yes huck away. If I had my own way fast and faster would be the way I ride, at 195 lbs gravity just grabs you by the belt buckle and pulls. The last bike I had saw pretty much lift assisted riding, and a few rides to the 7-11 for beer. Hope this helps, thanks to everyone so far for your input.
JK

i would say that for racing, you could probably find a better rig, but it depends on the terrain on the race course. don't get me wrong, but bb7 is good. it just depends on what you are looking for. you could probably find something lighter or more nimble that would be better on smooth courses. if you race on gnarly shizzle, then the bb7 will plow over it.

the bike design is strong and stable. the smaller size felt just fine on me at 6'1" and 195 lb of rider weight with gear. it saved my bacon in more nasty spots than any other bike i have been on (and i have been on a few). the frame is burly and can take tons of abuse. the problem is, if something does break, there are limited replacement options. the pulley can be a problem. but not always.

bottom line, the uglier the trail, the better the bb7 choice will be.

 

[ChrisRobin]

I would say the BB7 is for hucking only, I mean it is a canadian bike!

All the BB7s I've seen built up were meant for racing mostly. They're originally spec'd with Boxxers or Dorados and XTR cranksets.

 

[ChrisRobin]

Eventhough the BB7 is in theroy a single pivot it was just to complicated for me. I also had some pully issuses. It just wore down after 3 years of riding. Just my insite take how you want.

Later,
Komish

A pulley wearing down after three years I guess isn't bad. But I can 'sorta' see what you mean by 'complicated' since you need 1.5 chains, you have to pass the chain behind the plates and it's a pain in the ass to set up a chain-guide with the proper chainline. On top of that, you have to make sure when you shift your chain doesn't want to hop off the pulley and eat the frame.

 

[Ian - AE86]

Hi Guys,

im thinkin about gettin a BB7 myself and from reading through this 3 page thread its summarises that they are a tough rugged bike that have 1 common prob...the pulley? is it a case iwth this pulley that it will EVENTUALLY wear out and need replacing or can it be maintained to avoid wear out?? excuse my ignorance but i dont entirely follow what part it is that wears out because for 1 i have never owned a bb7 and 2 i have never had any "pulley" probs before on a bike?

im looking at the bike later on this evening and would like any help at all...especially on this pulley topic! what is the best way to see if its fooked or ok. could save me a fw quid and a lot of hassle.

Ian.

 

[konarider98]

Hi Guys,

im thinkin about gettin a BB7 myself and from reading through this 3 page thread its summarises that they are a tough rugged bike that have 1 common prob...the pulley? is it a case iwth this pulley that it will EVENTUALLY wear out and need replacing or can it be maintained to avoid wear out?? excuse my ignorance but i dont entirely follow what part it is that wears out because for 1 i have never owned a bb7 and 2 i have never had any "pulley" probs before on a bike?

im looking at the bike later on this evening and would like any help at all...especially on this pulley topic! what is the best way to see if its fooked or ok. could save me a fw quid and a lot of hassle.

Ian.

Ive had 2 bb7's myself, an 02 and an 03. they both had minor pully problems and that was it. the problems on both was that the pully bolt that holds it on got loose due to shock and tension. i wused an acorn nut and things like lock washers and such and that sort of helped. then i tryed loctite. worked very well. use the red stuff and it wont go anywear. its not that the pullys suck they just come loose. good luck on your purchase and hope you like it if you get it!

 

[Ian - AE86]

Ive had 2 bb7's myself, an 02 and an 03. they both had minor pully problems and that was it. the problems on both was that the pully bolt that holds it on got loose due to shock and tension. i wused an acorn nut and things like lock washers and such and that sort of helped. then i tryed loctite. worked very well. use the red stuff and it wont go anywear. its not that the pullys suck they just come loose. good luck on your purchase and hope you like it if you get it!

Cheers dude, i was actually just thinking was it the pulley assembly or the fact it comes loose? hence, use some good locking nuts and Lock-tite cos ive used similar stuff on solid rose joinmted compenents on my Drift car and Lock-tite keeps em Rite-tite!

Im goin to look at it after 6pm here in Ireland which is in 15minutes so il let ya now what its like when i get back...the ad was like this:

06 balfa bb7
full bike for sale.
boxxers,
hope discs,
truvative cranks,
blackspire device,
azonic bars,
michelin tires,
mavic rims,
goldtec hubs.
all deadly stuff.

I know the year of the bike sounds suspect so thats why i was interested in knowing what colors Balfa had for each year of manufacture?? that will give me a fair idea of how old the bike is when i look at it...because it deffo is not 06'.

Ian.

 

[konastab01]

Dude it cant be a 06 BB7 as they stopped making them last eyar or the year before.Check out the year mate.