Izimu vs. Socom
- Thread starter ricod
- Start date
I have ridden both, had an 07 izimu and then an 08 SOCOM.
Izimu was a lot of fun, and quick and poppy over stuff. It felt more stable at high speeds.
Socom felt quick as well, especially on tighter courses, but it felt much better over rough chattery sections than the izimu did. The socom had a much steeper head angle that took some getting used to, but in the end I like riding it better. If I had to choose between the two bikes today, I'd go with the socom.
I mostly ride in northern or southern california.
Izimu was a lot of fun, and quick and poppy over stuff. It felt more stable at high speeds.
Socom felt quick as well, especially on tighter courses, but it felt much better over rough chattery sections than the izimu did. The socom had a much steeper head angle that took some getting used to, but in the end I like riding it better. If I had to choose between the two bikes today, I'd go with the socom.
I mostly ride in northern or southern california.
Izimu. I've owned a Socom and rode an Izimu for a couple of months. The Izimu just was much more pleasant and fun to ride. The Socom does well in the rough, but it is a strait up death machine. I didn't have a good experience with mine at all.
Wow, that's a pretty strong response. My advise would be to ride a socom before you buy it. Some people are put off by its geometry. I personally thought it ripped, to the point that I'm now rocking my 951 head angle in the steep setting to try and get it to feel more like my socom did.
On the other hand, the Izimu is a solid bike that you couldn't go wrong with. Both bikes can be ridden hard with confidence.
You can set the Socom up however you want. Throw some Slackers on, swap in some off-set shock bushings and install an Angleset and you'll have your 63 degree head angle and 13.5" bb. Or run it stock with your fork slammed for a tight and responsive jumper. And if you still want more, mount up a hammerschmidt and some light wheels and take off for an all-mountain ride that kills it on the descents.
owned and izumi and rode a socom a few times. My buddies socom had the slacker and lower dropouts on but i still found it really unstable when going fast and nowhere near as good in the corners. The head angle was just to steep. Back end did work better but it was possibly the least confidence inspiring bike ive ridden in a while. The izumi is just plain fun it rail corners has loads of pop and is going to be lower maintaince. The socoms eat bearings in the lower linkage. The only reason id recommend the socom is that if your tall as in 6ft + that even the large izumi is more like a medium in everything else.
I had a Socom with Slackers on it and it was bullet proof. It flew off the roof of a car on a HWY. Regular bike maintenace such as bearings and whatnot and the thing was sick. I rode the piss out of it for 3.5 years and just sold it running perfect.
The only issue I had with it, was the aluminum is really soft so after the second bearing change the housing became a bit loose and I had to throw some loctite sealant in it to hold the bearing in but it worked and rode hard for another year.
The only issue I had with it, was the aluminum is really soft so after the second bearing change the housing became a bit loose and I had to throw some loctite sealant in it to hold the bearing in but it worked and rode hard for another year.
I can't comment on the Izumi as I have never ridden one. But I love the Socom! 
I have a first generation (1° steeper HA) and run the slacker dropouts. The bike does everything I ask for and more. Fun on a lot of different DH tracks. As said by others, on rough tracks you have to be a little more on top of your game than a "plow" bike, but it gets the job done. On the other hand it kills on tight or jump filled tracks. 
If you buy a used one make sure you get the newer model with the slacker HA. You can recognize it by the 3rd cable stop on the downtube. I would not buy a frame that is obviously dented from a dual crown (pretty common) and check if the shock mount area is fine. That was a weak part on early frames.
Another thing you should consider is the swingarm stiffness. If you are a heavy dude it might be too flexy. Personal preference, just keep it in mind.
I have a first generation (1° steeper HA) and run the slacker dropouts. The bike does everything I ask for and more. Fun on a lot of different DH tracks. As said by others, on rough tracks you have to be a little more on top of your game than a "plow" bike, but it gets the job done. On the other hand it kills on tight or jump filled tracks. If you buy a used one make sure you get the newer model with the slacker HA. You can recognize it by the 3rd cable stop on the downtube. I would not buy a frame that is obviously dented from a dual crown (pretty common) and check if the shock mount area is fine. That was a weak part on early frames.
Another thing you should consider is the swingarm stiffness. If you are a heavy dude it might be too flexy. Personal preference, just keep it in mind.
Ok, thanks again guys. I am 6'1 and 190lbs (no gear) so I feel like I would flex the hell out of a socom but might be a little tall for an Izimu...damn. That being said, the socom sounds like a bike for someone with considerably more precision than I can give it. I think I am going to pull the trigger on that Izimu, the socom I found was first gen, which seems to be bad. What spring rates would you run on an Izimu?
I have never ridden a moorwood. I have socom for a while now.
The steep headangle is ideal if you are not riding really steep stuff.
'07 and feb '08 have a 1 degree change in head angle, I have the 08 and it was fairly steep I put 2 degree angle headset adjusters and the difference for me was night and day better. I tried the slacker dropouts and the bike felt dead, they made the chainstays longer. I really didn't like them.
Overall the socom is a great frame, its strong many have said before its too light but I have been riding mine since 08 and its fine, no dents or dings. I'm heavy too like 225 pounds.
Bad points..
1.It eats bearings in the wet,
2. Its a little flexy in the rear, again I'm 225lbs so if you are light thats not a prob.
3. Rear gets clogged in very heavy mud. The rear triangle has a bit of aluminium close to the top of the tire it fills with stones and stuff. It jams up in very wet conditions to the point in a race I couldn't ride it and had to stop.
this race:
http://www.pinkbike.com/video/136638/
The steep headangle is ideal if you are not riding really steep stuff.
'07 and feb '08 have a 1 degree change in head angle, I have the 08 and it was fairly steep I put 2 degree angle headset adjusters and the difference for me was night and day better. I tried the slacker dropouts and the bike felt dead, they made the chainstays longer. I really didn't like them.
Overall the socom is a great frame, its strong many have said before its too light but I have been riding mine since 08 and its fine, no dents or dings. I'm heavy too like 225 pounds.
Bad points..
1.It eats bearings in the wet,
2. Its a little flexy in the rear, again I'm 225lbs so if you are light thats not a prob.
3. Rear gets clogged in very heavy mud. The rear triangle has a bit of aluminium close to the top of the tire it fills with stones and stuff. It jams up in very wet conditions to the point in a race I couldn't ride it and had to stop.
this race:
http://www.pinkbike.com/video/136638/
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I'm 6'2" and 190. I ride a L Izimu (sorry no experience on the Socom). No fitment issues for me, but I tend to like my frames to be a little small. I'm probably at the upper range height-wise, but it's not like I spend hours pedaling it.
I LOVE this frame. Everything about it just speaks to me (aesthetics, simplicity, geo, weight). I liked it so much I went out and bought a Shova LT to replace my El Guapo as a do-it-all pedal bike.
I LOVE this frame. Everything about it just speaks to me (aesthetics, simplicity, geo, weight). I liked it so much I went out and bought a Shova LT to replace my El Guapo as a do-it-all pedal bike.
I rode an Izimu for two years with a double barrel on it. The bike was pretty fun; it jumped like a champ and the tighter the corner the better. The problem started when you got in the fast rough; the rear just sank lower and lower into the travel. I ended up running a stiffer spring to ride a little higher in the travel and that helped a bit.
At one point, a good friend let me ride his Socom. Even with it being a large, I came off a small Izimu, I still felt instantly comfortable and able to charge everything. A very confidence inspiring bike.
I would say you should compare the warranty departments of both companies, my experience with Morewood was excellent, I had an issue with my rear triangle and they sent one out the day of. I can't say that my buddy with the Socom had that good of an experience as far as getting replacement frames.
At one point, a good friend let me ride his Socom. Even with it being a large, I came off a small Izimu, I still felt instantly comfortable and able to charge everything. A very confidence inspiring bike.
I would say you should compare the warranty departments of both companies, my experience with Morewood was excellent, I had an issue with my rear triangle and they sent one out the day of. I can't say that my buddy with the Socom had that good of an experience as far as getting replacement frames.
I was running a double barrel. The low speed rebound was left pretty open, 4-6 clicks from open if I remember correctly and the high speed was moderately fast. That may have been part of the problem haha... kind of a bummer to realize these kinds of things after the fact.
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The idea of anything being able to claim 2 sizes is just so wrong. (Eg - S/M, M/L etc..)
Really MFR's need to get honest and stop it.
Really MFR's need to get honest and stop it.
Only can comment on the Socom. Rode for two seasons on the second gen (large) and liked it a ton. Really fun and versatile bike. Could never quite get the dhx 5 to work great on it (but I think that was more of a shock than linkage problem) and the rear end still worked fantastic. I can only imagine it would be stellar with a better shock. The one thing with this frame is that it seems to be love it/hate it type frame. My buddies that tried it would either want to keep it or never touch it again after testing it fwiw. My only complaint is that I could definitely feel the rear flex in the rough stuff or slamming a corner and I'm only 160 geared up. I don't know what kind of deal your getting on the frames your looking at but maybe look into a used 951 (prob only a few hundred more than a used socom....if that)? It's basically a stouter/refined Socom. I'm on one now and couldn't be happier.
I am running a CCDB...ace!
Agree partially. 951 is a refined Socom for heavier dudes or people that minded the slight flex. I would LOVE to see Intense come out with a Socom 2. Same weight as old Socom, slacker, a little lower and VPP2.
Socom it is then!
I had a socom for 2 seasons, it was a good bike but had its drawbacks. My only complaints come from the flexiness of the rear end (it certainly wasn't slight as others have mentioned) it was bad, to the point where I would have to carry a 6mm to tighten the axle at the end of long runs (15mins+) or the wheel would be practically falling out of the frame! My other niggle with it was the geometry, never really bugged me unless I was on steeper terrain then it was a handful. That being said it was a very fun bike that was hellishly adroit at jumping and carried speed well. If you can get hold of some of the new dropouts to slacken the geo and lower the bb a bit it is certainly a great bike.
fwiw I'm only 150lbs maybe 160 in gear and the flex was certainly noticed while riding. In its defense the bike was an early model the rear end could have been stiffer on the later models.
fwiw I'm only 150lbs maybe 160 in gear and the flex was certainly noticed while riding. In its defense the bike was an early model the rear end could have been stiffer on the later models.
Thanks for the input, the socom has alot going for it but that flexy rear end and bearing maintenence are real deal breakers. Mainly because if it isnt that strong, I don't want to know how it deals with 2-3 years of abuse. The only socoms I can find for a low enough price are 1st gens too. I think I am going to pull the trigger on the Izimu tomorrow.
No changes to the swingarm on the later models besides the cable stops were put on the underside of the seatstays.
FWIW: I am 145 and can feel a little flex but not enough to be bothered. And my axle stays tight (Hadley with lock nut).