[CSkolnick]

Specialized has a few 04 Big-Hits left (in the polished color...hmmmm polished.) and i was think about picking one up. Ive been doing a lot of tight trail DH riding littered with rocks lately and my current bike has a very low/behind the BB shell main pivot. I know in the end it is the rider and not the bike but this pivot point is not so good in rough, rocky trails. it jumps great,drops well and doest have funky pedaling traits but withn the forward arcing wheelpath i cannnn feel myself getting hung up on every rock. from what i know, high pivots are generally very fast through the rough. FSR's are not as "fast" in the rough but because of the horst link,it can track very well in all conditions, including very rough trails. So where as high pivot is "fast'' a FSR is "stable". roughly.
Assumig the FSR will track better tha my low-single pivot, will the 24" rear negate any advantage id receicve (not including braking forces) from going to an FSR?

 

[motomike]

a 24" wheel wouldn't role over rocks better.

 

[su_root]

i've found that the 24 inch rear forces the bumbs to be absorbed more by the suspension, so it tends to have a rougher ride, and that seems to slow the bike way down especially over big rocks.

 

[CSkolnick]

a 24" wheel wouldn't role over rocks better.

i know. i was wondering if an FSR design would help make this less of an issue.

 

[motomike]

oh ok. It *might* reduce the issue, but the wheel would still hold you back. Definitely rock the 26"er if your doing rock gardens and rough stuff.

 

[lovebunny]

what kinda bike you got now

 

[caputo1989]

I ride a big hit through rock gardens and can go faster on it than my buddies mountain cycle. Tracks veerry well and stays in controol. Sometimes I wish I had a 26".

 

[stgil888]

I have been riding a 2002 Bighit with 8" for two seasons. I have never found the bike to be any worse at rolling over rocks, logs, or square bumps than other bikes I've tried (Iron Horse SGS, Giant DH...) that used 26" rear wheels. In fact, the suspension on the bighit feels more active and better able to absorb these impacts than the other bikes I've ridden. It's my feeling that the overall geometry and shape of the Bighit enables/encourages you to stay over the back of the bike in the rough, allowing the rear suspension to do it's thing and absorb what would otherwise buck you. However, you could make the suspension act very differently depending on the way you set it up. The Giant DH I tried with a comparable rear suspension setup was very different to ride in the rough. The Giant seemed to want to bounce over the rougher trail sections, whereas the Bighit worked it's way through using suspension to smooth out irregularities. The Giant FELT faster, but I took about the same amount of time. The Bighit gives me better control and suspension feeling in the rough while braking compared to the other bikes I've ridden. This is an important characteristic for me. I like staying comfortable and in control when I'm trying to slow down, because it usually means I feel out of control already.

The 24" rear wheel is a pain when it comes to chosing rims and tires, though. Most of the popular rims aren't available in 24" sizes, and tire choices are OK but not as wide as they are for 26" rims. No Michelins are available in 24" to my knowledge, but you can find good tires from Kenda and Maxxis.

I highly recommend the Bighit, despite it's undersized rear wheel. Some people can't live with the smaller rear wheel, apparently. I read a magazine article (MTB Action I think) that ranked the Bighit at the back of the pack for DH rigs because of the small rear wheel. However, the rear wheel has served me well. I'm on my third front wheel (26") right now, and I'm still using my original 24" rear rim. I don't know if I've been lucky or if there is some truth to the idea that 24" wheels are tougher.

 

[largextracheese]

The Bighit absolutely rips the rough stuff! You should have no worries about that. The 24" wheel does nothing to hinder you in the rough. Nothing. I've rode mine on the nastiest of trails and it performs stellar. Control is the issue. Half of control is braking efficiency. The FSR is noticibly more controlled in the steep rough stuff when braking compared to a S.pivot. A good suspension design definitely takes presidence over a 2" smaller wheel.

 

[black noise]

I guess the 24" is slower, but you don't notice the difference. It more than makes up for it in cornering, braking, pedaling, and price. The BigHit is an excellent bike, I've ridden mine for 1.5 years and done well racing Jr. X DH. Anyway, you learn to be fast and its more about the rider than the bike. I was .25 seconds off my friend at this one race and he was on a brand new Demo 8.

 

[Zark]

I feel the 24" rear does not roll over square edged hits or maintain its speed adequately for a DH bike. Suspension design can't overcome this.

The Big Hit is a good bike with an achilles heel. It no doubt can haul ass in rocks, but if your momentum drops off, you're screwed.

I owned a Big Hit DH for 2 seasons and ditched it for a M1, mainly for a 26" rear wheel.

 

[profro]

I used to ride 2001 Bighit with an Avalanche and there was no shortage of plushness. Plus I felt the bike rode better in the most progressive settings or in the middle at the very least. However, the geomtry of the bike is not setup for DH racing IMO. I know there is a difference in DH riding and DH racing, but after riding other designs I felt that the Bighit was a very akward geomtry for my style of riding. The front was way too high with a 7" fork and the 24" limited me way too much on good tire selections. I'd choose something else.

 

[evilbob]

CSkolnick, if you can get a deal take it. Big Hits are pretty near bullit proof which means more time riding. The FSR is about the best when it comes to breaking and they pedal pretty well too. While I agree that the 24 may not be the very best set up for a pure DH race bike I honestly believe that the only people who will really gain in a race are those who have the skills to compete at the very top of expert and pro and only on certain tracks. I have been riding/racing Big Hits for 4 years now and find them to be very confidense inspiring to ride any where. If you are thinking of doing trail work type DH, hucking off nearly anything and maybe some DH racing get one. If it gets you into the riding you want, get one. Personally I have had absolutly zero probs getting rims, tires and tubes. One other thing, if you really are thinking of doing some trail riding get an E-13 DRS, they work awesome and you can race just fine with one installed. Good luck!

 

[CSkolnick]

CSkolnick, if you can get a deal take it. Big Hits are pretty near bullit proof which means more time riding. The FSR is about the best when it comes to breaking and they pedal pretty well too. While I agree that the 24 may not be the very best set up for a pure DH race bike I honestly believe that the only people who will really gain in a race are those who have the skills to compete at the very top of expert and pro and only on certain tracks. I have been riding/racing Big Hits for 4 years now and find them to be very confidense inspiring to ride any where. If you are thinking of doing trail work type DH, hucking off nearly anything and maybe some DH racing get one. If it gets you into the riding you want, get one. Personally I have had absolutly zero probs getting rims, tires and tubes. One other thing, if you really are thinking of doing some trail riding get an E-13 DRS, they work awesome and you can race just fine with one installed. Good luck!

hey thanks for all the replies, very helpful. evilbob, since you have been riding a big-hit for a while, how do you feel about sizing them? I am about 6'2'' with long arm and legs and im teetering between a medium and large. i'll be using it for fr/dh. the medium has the same downtube measurment as my current ride so i think they will fit similar when standing in the cockpit as usually done when riding DH and jumping. however,its seat angle is much more laidback so iit looks as though ill get a nice stretch (with a telescopic post) when commuting to the trailhead (my current bike is very cramped with the seat up at full leg ext. position-steep seat angle). what size do you ride and how tall are you (or any others on a big hit)? everyone seems to say big hits run big, but is it standover big or wheelbase big? my buddies med. comes in at 45" in the wheelbase where my ride is 46.5", a length that is starting to seem a bit long on everything but wide open jumps/turns/trails. thanks again

 

[JeffD]

I've been on BHs for four years now and have had both a medium and a large. I'm 6'1" and long limbed as you are and like the medium w/a 70mm stem the best.

I second what Evilbob said - for anything short of pro/top expert DH racing, the bike is the ultimate do-it-all bike. I sold one, tried a different brand bike and bought my old one back and will now ride it til it breaks.

 

[evilbob]

hey thanks for all the replies, very helpful. evilbob, since you have been riding a big-hit for a while, how do you feel about sizing them? I am about 6'2'' with long arm and legs and im teetering between a medium and large. i'll be using it for fr/dh. the medium has the same downtube measurment as my current ride so i think they will fit similar when standing in the cockpit as usually done when riding DH and jumping. however,its seat angle is much more laidback so iit looks as though ill get a nice stretch (with a telescopic post) when commuting to the trailhead (my current bike is very cramped with the seat up at full leg ext. position-steep seat angle). what size do you ride and how tall are you (or any others on a big hit)? everyone seems to say big hits run big, but is it standover big or wheelbase big? my buddies med. comes in at 45" in the wheelbase where my ride is 46.5", a length that is starting to seem a bit long on everything but wide open jumps/turns/trails. thanks again

I ride a large 02 DH and my son rides an medium 03 expert. Both feel fine to me and I am 5'10". The 03-05 large frames feel a bit long to me but might be fine for you, the wheelbase is pretty long though so I would tend to recommend you get the medium if you get an 03 or later. At 6'2" Big Hit stand over is not an issue you need to worry about.....unless you have really short legs and an abmormally long upper body... Post up when you get your ride. :evil:

 

[bighitfsr]

I'm 6'2" and have ridden both the large and medium.
You definitely want the large.
The seat tower on the large is taller and gives you a much wider range of seat post adjustment.
I found I was hitting my knees on the handlebars with the medium frame.
I have no probs getting my weight back on the large frame either.

 

[Kntr]

my wife is 5'9" and she rides a medium

 

[RaID]

I'm 6'2" and have ridden both the large and medium.
You definitely want the large.
The seat tower on the large is taller and gives you a much wider range of seat post adjustment.
I found I was hitting my knees on the handlebars with the medium frame.
I have no probs getting my weight back on the large frame either.

in the same boat as above
Im 6'2" owned a large and rode a few times on the medium

the large is a bit top tube length gets you a bit more clearence for your knees
to stay free from the handlebar fork area
pretty much essential if youre gonna do any trail riding on it

the med is that slightly bit shorter that you might find your self hitting knees every now and then, however if you prefer your bike feeling ab it shorter
this would be the way to go

not a huge difference in size between the both though
try sitting on one to see how it feels
even better a test ride