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2015 Canfield Jedi or 2015 Trek Session 9.9 650b

metalMTB

Monkey
Sep 14, 2005
699
3
Richmond, VA
Debating on which one to go for. Looks like I'm going to have to wait a while for either. The canfield looks sexy and looks very durable. The session is insanely light, high tech, and has 650b. Carbon though..not sure about how long it will last.

I can probably build the canfield up for about the same price as the session complete...maybe a bit more for the canfield since I get a deal on treks. What do you think?
 

no skid marks

Monkey
Jan 15, 2006
2,511
29
ACT Australia
Canfield doesn't need the bigger wheels to help it roll over obstacles as much thanks to it's rearward axle path.
Consider geo and sizing too though.
 

jackalope

Mental acuity - 1%
Jan 9, 2004
7,596
5,894
in a single wide, cooking meth...
Trek:

* ABP = (ill-gotten) DW split pivot = bucking Brook

* It looks like a Session

* no WC wins for the Session since Gwin...career killer

* Lance used to ride for Trek

* Trek just released a 46 lb e-trail bike

* Trek pays Gary Fisher to be stoned and were a Dr. Seuss hat


Canfield:

* American idler

* rearward axle path...its cup runneth over

* you can get a murdered out black frame

* Luke Skywalker > weak sauce IPAs

* Bro cred

* It rides lighter than a Zerode

* Demo9 rides one



Don't fvck this up.
 

ianjenn

Turbo Monkey
Sep 12, 2006
2,998
702
SLO
The new Canfield looks pretty sick. I am not sure of weight on new frame the 2010 we tested was 10.5 with Elka and a steel spring size LG. The whole bike with real DH parts steel bead 2.5 tires and aluminum bit was 40 and some change. I would guess the new variety with spandex weight dork parts would be 36-37 LBS built.....

The bike does eat rocks very well. It pedals well I have never ridden a Trek so I cannot compare.
 

William42

fork ways
Jul 31, 2007
3,908
634
I don't know if its relevant because apparently all that matters is "Trek suxorz mah nutzorz" and "Canfield is da bomb yo" but as far as actual riding experience goes, they're pretty different bikes.

Extensive ride time on both. They're both pretty bad to the bone in their own way.

The Canfields reward bump absorbing blahblahblah is overhyped. Its wheel goes up and down just like every other downhill bike wheel does. . It just has slightly less of an edge to each bump then most bikes, but anybody focusing on an "ohmehgehrd" type of difference is spending too much time running into curbs and not enough time going fast over rocks. The original one was kind of meh as far as geometry goes, because it was too short and steep, and so when the rear end extended it make it awkbawk in teh cornerz n tight twisties n jumps. They made it longer, gave it more travel (haven't ridden the big boy 9" travel version yet though, but I'm willing to bet it'll give you the willies how smooth it makes ****), and made it a lot lower. So the current, and last iteration were pretty baddass, if still slightly awkward in cornering and maneuvering and jumping and generally tossing the bike around like an abused redheaded step child. Pretty damn stable for steep sh1t, and it'll let you focus on the trail ahead and what you're going to do next rather then "holy sh1t why is my bike trying to throw me over the handlebars and oh god i'm gonna die."
+11 on a scale of 1-10.

The trek loses a little bit of that softness the jedi has, but luckily its rear wheel still goes up and down, and still sucks up teh rox quite well (better then most bikes I've ridden. But hard to tell how much of that is shock toon vs leverage n ****). ABP is just another way of getting around FSR, and anybody who claims it'll buck you is either trolling, or quite literally dumb as toast. All it does is make it so it doesn't feel stiffer then ron jeremies dick in your rear every time you try and grab the breaks, which is nice, because most people don't want that. Wouldn't rank ABP highly on "things that make a huge difference in the way the bike rides." Would rank ABP highly on the "marketers idea who has no idea how to market actual ride characteristics." The session has a much more centralized and wiggly area to plant your weight in. Where the jedi changes lengths so much as you move through the travel, forcing you to change your position on it and adapt, the session you pretty much just plant your weight, and you're good to go. Every time you want to pump, jump, corner, and generally chuck it around like a woodchuck, you always plant your weight in the same place. It's my favorite bike I've ever ridden and I terribly regret selling mine (for reference, I had an aluminum model, not the fancy crabon stuff).
+11 on a scale of 1-10

TLDR:
Jedi - marketing hype overrated, but slightly smooshier and less harsh on bumps at a cost. Still a great bike.
Session - marketing hype overrated, slightly more jarring bumps, but still damn good at sucking up bumps, easier to plant your weight and stay centered and stable - bigger deal if you ride a ton of park ****, less of a big deal if you ride a lot of natural gnarnia. Great bike also.

Anyway, as you were gentlemen, Trekz0r sukz0rz Canfield R0x.

Oh yeah, I also got fycking excellent service on any small parts or tuning questions I ever had working with both trek and Canfield.
 

jackalope

Mental acuity - 1%
Jan 9, 2004
7,596
5,894
in a single wide, cooking meth...
You're ruining the ridemonkey experience. Again, the ABP system will buck you due to its kinematical association with DW (legal or otherwise).

More importantly, the Canfield bros have never worn one of these

 

sbabuser

Turbo Monkey
Dec 22, 2004
1,114
55
Golden, CO
I haven't ridden a Session, but disagree with W42's minimization of the Canfield's rearward magic. It accelerates in the chunk and when landing on transition. I also had no issue with where to put my mass when jumping or around turns, but maybe it's somewhat similar to my old Sunday, which did take some saddle time to get used to turning. My only niggle with the Jedi was weight, but that was a '12. I'm sure when they're plastic, they'll be just as light as anything made to dh.
 

eater

Monkey
Nov 25, 2005
476
20
Switzerland
i ride the jedi 2012-2013 2014 since 3 saison and have swing out to some other brand but finally i ride Jedi .. best overall performance for all terrain.

+jump landing.
+corner from" wide open to berms"
+roots and rocks
+single trails and Parks
 
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ianjenn

Turbo Monkey
Sep 12, 2006
2,998
702
SLO
I haven't ridden a Session, but disagree with W42's minimization of the Canfield's rearward magic. It accelerates in the chunk and when landing on transition. I also had no issue with where to put my mass when jumping or around turns, but maybe it's somewhat similar to my old Sunday, which did take some saddle time to get used to turning. My only niggle with the Jedi was weight, but that was a '12. I'm sure when they're plastic, they'll be just as light as anything made to dh.
I wasn't fast enough to notice the WB growing while testing our 2010 Jedi. Nate Lewis noticed it on very steep 90 degree plus corners. I think the new version is a bit better at this. It would be a tough choice bikes are very different. Sqaure edge bump eating would be advantage for Jedi light weight gram counter would be Trek.....
 

demo 9

Turbo Monkey
Jan 31, 2007
5,910
46
north jersey
I have had a few Jedi's and I had the Trek. The trek was light and fun, maybe even more-so than the jedi, but i felt the jedi had much better suspension, dramatically better suspension. Sure the hype is probably pushed a bit, but the facts are true, it really does accelerate in bumps. Not to say that if you took a jedi you would instantly win a WC, but i think the difference between it and the trek is worth paying for. The trek felt a bit more predictable, but not in the sense that i personally liked. The ride you get from the trek is pretty "bland" vs the jedi which is almost in a way exciting. The first day may be a bit of a handful to some, as its nature is somewhat opposite of what one may expect, particularly in rough terrain and tight turns, but once you get used to it chances are you will not want to go back.

https://vimeo.com/101003904
 

SCARY

Not long enough
I have had a few Jedi's and I had the Trek. The trek was light and fun, maybe even more-so than the jedi, but i felt the jedi had much better suspension, dramatically better suspension. Sure the hype is probably pushed a bit, but the facts are true, it really does accelerate in bumps. Not to say that if you took a jedi you would instantly win a WC, but i think the difference between it and the trek is worth paying for. The trek felt a bit more predictable, but not in the sense that i personally liked. The ride you get from the trek is pretty "bland" vs the jedi which is almost in a way exciting. The first day may be a bit of a handful to some, as its nature is somewhat opposite of what one may expect, particularly in rough terrain and tight turns, but once you get used to it chances are you will not want to go back.

https://vimeo.com/101003904
So, the Trek is Light......Bland......AND Fun.
Schizophrenia much?
 

demo 9

Turbo Monkey
Jan 31, 2007
5,910
46
north jersey
So, the Trek is Light......Bland......AND Fun.
Schizophrenia much?
just talking about the ride quality really, its light and playful on the park type stuff, but in the rough its just kind of dead, doesnt really "reward" you in my experience. Not a bad bike, but sort of uneventful-which may not appeal to some people.
 

William42

fork ways
Jul 31, 2007
3,908
634
I didn't mean to spark a debate between sponsored riders for calling out a bit of marketing bs on the reward thing. It does make a difference. Just not as huge as its made out to be. It definitely doesn't "accelerate" through rocks any significant amount more then any other bike out there (or if it does, its because of faulty shock tunes, not because of axle path). Remember that when you pull a wheel back away from the frame, you still have to push it forward against the rocks you're smashing it into, and eventually it'll run out of "backward direction" to go in. Its noticeable landing jumps (I didn't love that part of it, but buddies did. To each their own). It takes a bit of the initial shock of hitting a series of bumps off, and makes it a bit smoother but that diminishes as you go faster and hit bigger/harder rocks, roots, and holes.. Its got great geometry, a great shockrate, and so it generally rides like a bat out of hell. Its a great bike no doubt. I just think that the marketing hype surrounding its rearword axle path is overblown, and that its got negatives that you never hear about on forums but definitely are noticeable while riding (just like every bike - Mr. Demo 9 didn't particularly care for his session because it felt uneventful to him - different bikes for different people).
 

ChrisRobin

Turbo Monkey
Jan 30, 2002
3,346
190
Vancouver
Does Canfield even have a 2015 model? I bet they go to 650 eventually. Hmmmm rearward axle path with a bigger wheel...more betterer??
 

Killingtonvt

Monkey
Sep 19, 2005
134
2
Bellingham, WA
Does Canfield even have a 2015 model? I bet they go to 650 eventually. Hmmmm rearward axle path with a bigger wheel...more betterer??
I'll have our press release for our 2015 Jedi will be out by the end of the month, from the sounds of it, you'll be stoked with the one change we made for 2015.

Cheers!
 

jonKranked

Detective Dookie
Nov 10, 2005
85,573
24,193
media blackout
I'll have our press release for our 2015 Jedi will be out by the end of the month, from the sounds of it, you'll be stoked with the one change we made for 2015.

Cheers!
The Canfield Brothers made THIS ONE CHANGE to their downhill bike for 2015. Click here to find out what it is!
 

Dogboy

Turbo Monkey
Apr 12, 2004
3,208
581
Durham, NC
so trek is changing their suspension platform? Or are they just adding bigger wheels like everybody else?
Also, thanks for the negative rep - the only that I have. I'm not the one making blanket statements about bikes that I haven't ridden.
 

demo 9

Turbo Monkey
Jan 31, 2007
5,910
46
north jersey
Also, thanks for the negative rep - the only that I have. I'm not the one making blanket statements about bikes that I haven't ridden.
You have a jedi? 2015? Or do you have the 2015 trek? I have owned both. (A few of one) Have you?

I came off a jedi, got a trek. Thought it was so meh i dumped it halfway through the season to get another jedi.

Tell me your experiences