Can it be done sub 39lbs? The wife wants a new bike to race next season and she loved the feel/geo of a flatline that she rented at Whistler a few days ago. I know it is kind of a pig frame and I want this thing to be light enough for her to toss around. Anyone know of some light flatline builds?
Flatline? Light?
- Thread starter Buzam
- Start date
They don't call it the Fatline for nothing.
It'd be hard this one's 42 and uses some light bits.
but the red strap shoes match the boxxer & seat perfectly - nice!
Now why would they make a new DH bike and make it heavy? They are in Vancouver and Whistler and can see what people ride and still never get it right since they started making DH bike.
Not to be rude, but I'll take a guess that's exactly why they made it heavy. A full season of riding up here is brutal on a bike. There are MANY people who would rather carry a few pounds extra and have something reliable than buy into the latest weight-weenie trend. I would imagine a lot of the 37lb xc bikes we see on here wouldn't last three weeks up here before something gave out.
I'm not saying the flatline is a good or a bad bike, but it's horses for courses etc.
Flip the deemax for say an XT front, or crossmax sx, and the rear could be a hope proII laced to an 823 (or 721). Retain tubeless and you have quite a bit of weight savings. At the start of the season I tossed my deemax for a crossmax sx and wtb/721 saving myself ~2lbs. Was quite niceIt'd be hard this one's 42 and uses some light bits.
The saint cranks can go in favor of some grav lights or new saints when available; both are a lighter option.
Toss a 7" rotor on the rear for those additional pesky grams to be shed
Gamut over the lg1 and diff bar/stem combo could drop the front end and weight...
The dx clipless pedals are not light; sub in some mg-1s perhaps?
sdg post/saddle combo...
Sub 39 would be expensive on that bike but I don't really see why you couldn't make it happen. You may have to resort to some Ti bolts...maybe not though.
Sub 40 sure...but at that point, shedding another pound will destroy the cost:weight savings ratio.
Really you have to look at the final costs vs it being "worth it". If she LOVES the bike though, it's worth it.
Not rude at all but I am not convinced its the weight of the frame itself that makes for a reliable bike. Most light builds are more due to the overall built than the frame. I am sure a Demo frame for example would hold up fine for example or a light single pivot like a Morewood.
Flip the deemax for say an XT front, or crossmax sx, and the rear could be a hope proII laced to an 823 (or 721). Retain tubeless and you have quite a bit of weight savings. At the start of the season I tossed my deemax for a crossmax sx and wtb/721 saving myself ~2lbs. Was quite nice
The saint cranks can go in favor of some grav lights or new saints when available; both are a lighter option.
Toss a 7" rotor on the rear for those additional pesky grams to be shed
Gamut over the lg1 and diff bar/stem combo could drop the front end and weight...
The dx clipless pedals are not light; sub in some mg-1s perhaps?
sdg post/saddle combo...
Sub 39 would be expensive on that bike but I don't really see why you couldn't make it happen. You may have to resort to some Ti bolts...maybe not though.
Sub 40 sure...but at that point, shedding another pound will destroy the cost:weight savings ratio.
Really you have to look at the final costs vs it being "worth it". If she LOVES the bike though, it's worth it.
sounds pretty good. and plus if she isnt gonna be railin berms and bootin hits you can use lighter parts.
not sure what BB that frame needs but you might be able to use XTR cranks if its 63 or 73mm bb. also depending on where you ride you might be able to get away with single ply tires. out here in the east coast you can on maybe 1 course haha.
What was Neko's build before he got off RM? 15 year old ripper Jr. X on a Flatline - had to be sub 40.
Thanks for the thoughts guys. She has about 8 days in WBP this year on a 33lbs Covert running single ply tires and ryno lyte rims, can do the 2nd drop in the joyride park and can ride the berms on crank it up faster than me...(I can't believe they have held up either) I'm thinking I can skimp on the wheels/tires a lot...
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I thought the flatline was not only heavy, but absolutely atrociously unbalanced and awkward... not to mention designed so that with decent geometry you can't get close to full travel because you buzz the seat. Even in the middle setting you'll hit the seat if it's at all low (and I'll assume it has to be for someone small). Every rental at whistler has the seat torn to **** for exactly this reason. She may have liked it, but has she tried any other 8"+ frames? The flatline is the worst I've ever been on. I traded mine in for the slopestyle while at whistler and never went back.
your girlfriend hits berms harder then u?
Almost there. That Flatine wasn't the lightest built bike, rode like a cadillac... could pump anything.
I must admit I'm suprised...
Did they rent you the right size? I'm 6ft 2, 200lbs. and ride a large. I have the Flatline 3 which is very similar to the rentals from Summit. I run my seat with about 2 inches of post showing and I've never had this problem. Trust me when I say I've bottomed mine once or twice. I overshot most a lot of the jumps on Freight Train and flatted the A-line drop a couple times. No buzzed seat... Running the seat all the way down is not an option as it does feel awkward.
Also for the size I have, it is the most stable DH bike I've been on... Everyone's different I guess, but I think they nailed the bike's design. It rails high speed turns and jumps great. :biggrin:
Maybe this winter if I have enough money to get the fork I want and new cranks, I'll weigh the frame during teardown. I'm curious as It's reported that they hit the target weight of 11 pounds for a medium, but I doubt it. I'm guessing 12...
No matter how good or bad a bike is, a rental bike will always feel strange, espacially in whistler. 2006 i had to rent a RMX/Switch (summit sports) because i broke my boxxer on my own bike.
It was awful, those bikes aren't a single penny worth! They are in unbelievable bad conditions!
On the first bike i popped 3 spokes on the little pedalsection to schleyer entrance!! Just by accelerating the bike!!
Then i checked all spokes and they had no tension, all of them!! So i surfed down b-line to get another bike. Then i got a switch with a manitou triple travis (??).
I thought i was lucky, because the fork on the rmx was a pogostick.
I don't have to admit that all of the spokes had no tension too.... so first i had to do some work with my spokewrench. 4 hours later i broke the rebound on the fork riding garbanzo... The Mechanics were like "oh yeah? hmmm... well.... take another bike....." instead of fixing their bikes! sooo stupid.
Oh i forget, all the springs were for 200lbs+ riders..........
I really wanted to rent a bike for a week, but 6 hours were enough for me on a rental bike.
P.S: The rental bikes from evolution bikes seemed to be in better conditions, but they don't offer a insurance.... That was to risky for me. Those bikes are treated so bad, you never know if a bikepart will say goodbye on the next run and than you are the person to pay for that....
It was awful, those bikes aren't a single penny worth! They are in unbelievable bad conditions!
On the first bike i popped 3 spokes on the little pedalsection to schleyer entrance!! Just by accelerating the bike!!
Then i checked all spokes and they had no tension, all of them!! So i surfed down b-line to get another bike. Then i got a switch with a manitou triple travis (??).
I thought i was lucky, because the fork on the rmx was a pogostick.
I don't have to admit that all of the spokes had no tension too.... so first i had to do some work with my spokewrench. 4 hours later i broke the rebound on the fork riding garbanzo... The Mechanics were like "oh yeah? hmmm... well.... take another bike....." instead of fixing their bikes! sooo stupid.
Oh i forget, all the springs were for 200lbs+ riders..........
I really wanted to rent a bike for a week, but 6 hours were enough for me on a rental bike.
P.S: The rental bikes from evolution bikes seemed to be in better conditions, but they don't offer a insurance.... That was to risky for me. Those bikes are treated so bad, you never know if a bikepart will say goodbye on the next run and than you are the person to pay for that....
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