[TSchultz]

Okay, this is my first post to the forum. I've been researching on it for the last week now, and the more I read the more questions I have.

First off I am in the market for a new bike since I totalled mine out here a few weeks ago. Now I am looking for something that I can take around town, get up on ledges, bunnyhop, and drop. Now I do still have a few trails that I like to ride which brings me to my question.

How hard is it to pedal an Evil or a bike with similar geometry up a hill? Another thing to keep in mind is that there aren't any really long trails around me. The longest one maybe takes a half hour to ride. Can I get the seat high enough so that my legs are not always scrunched up?

Any helpful info is greatly appreciated, as the more different types of bikes I look at the more confused I get.

Tom

 

[sub6]

Well, how tall are you?

I'm 6' tall and I can't get full leg extension on mine, with a 410mm post all the way out. Still, I get pretty far up there, it's tolerable. Another 2 inches would put me at just about full XC-bike height. The bike is DEFINITELY more predisposed to downhill than uphill. Another issue is that by the time you get the seat that high up, it's really far back. Which makes the front end lift easily on climbs.

If you don't mind standing on climbs, it climbs great. Seated climbing is an issue though, as I've noted.

I think the bike strikes a very adequate balance of climbing and decending ability, given that it's a hardcore drop/jump/stupid-human-tricks bike, not an XC bike. It's equivalant to a 13" seattube bike, if I remember right.

If you're looking for a strong XC bike, stuff like the Cove frame (can't remember the model) would probably be more up your alley. It has a full-length seat tube.

 

[ssaddict]

Well, I'd have to agree with most everything Sub6 said. I to own a Imperial and absolutly love it and will probably NEVER sell it. I'm 6'2" and mostly legs and I run a 410mm Thompson and can get enough extension for the occasional 15mile trail ride. Climbing ain't that much fun seated but I usually stand up anyhow so its not bad. But once the trail heads down or get's techy, damn is it a bike fun to throw around (and so easy too because of the low center of gravity). If your 6' or under it will probably work great for you, and will last longer then probably any other frame avalible. I've already managed to run mine into my garage atop my roof rack and it did more damage to my car and rack than the bike. Oops!! Infact only the seat was scratched, I think that says a little about DW's over-engineering.

PM or E-mail me if you have any other questions.

 

[spincrazy]

You might want to look at the Planet X compo also.

 

[TSchultz]

I'm 6' even. One other question I had was the extra weight of the Evil, does it impare you're ablilty to bunnyhop as high? And how much do your guy's weigh in at.

 

[RD]

evil's are incredibly light actually. 6.2lbs i believe... amazing really. gotta love FEA.. took out all of the unnecessary fat.

 

[sub6]

Originally posted by TSchultz
I'm 6' even. One other question I had was the extra weight of the Evil, does it impare you're ablilty to bunnyhop as high? And how much do your guy's weigh in at.

yeah, it's surprisingly light given how ridiculously strong it is. 6lb is a figure I've heard a lot, I didn't weigh mine.

As far as bunnyhopping goes, the geometry of the bike helps a lot. There's pretty much no question about it, I can hop about twice as high on the Evil as I can on any other bike, end of story. It seriously taught me how to hop.

 

[binary visions]

Wow, I missed an Imperial thread - I almost never pass up the chance to rave about my Imperial

On the climbing issue, hell, the freakin' thing weighs 35lbs with Rhyno Lites and a Firefly. It ain't a light bike (the frame is fairly light, but the bike isn't). I'm not sitting and spinning up a 10mile climb, I'm standing and stomping. However, with the seat extended a lot, it is tolerable for most hills even sitting down. I'm not of the belief that freeride hardtails are meant to be climbed sitting down, though.

Bunnyhopping the bike isn't even slightly an issue - I think you will find, if you buy/ride one, you will be better on the Imperial than on many other bikes. I was never able to hop as high as I can on the Imperial.

It sounds like you're looking for a play bike, not necessarily a beefy XC bike, and the Imperial fits the bill perfectly for that. It's my only bike, and despite previous plans to build up a FR full squish, and a DH bike, I have decided it's really the only bike I need right now - it does everything really well.

This bike always comes highly recommended from me. A great bike at a good pricepoint!

 

[ssaddict]

Originally posted by TSchultz
I'm 6' even. One other question I had was the extra weight of the Evil, does it impare you're ablilty to bunnyhop as high? And how much do your guy's weigh in at.

You'll never feel the extra weight. I'll be the first to admit I'm a serious weight freak and its something you just never think about when riding an Imperial (but then again mine weights in close to 28lbs). The geometery is just more fun and enjoyable, and the location of the weight in the frame is so low that I find myself flicking it around more than my lighter hardtails.

Maybe try and find someone near you that has one you can test ride, I'm willing to bet you'll fall in love just like the rest of us have.

E-mail any of the guys at Evil and maybe they can let you know if anyone has an Imperial around you. Or if your near me or come to Interbike you can ride mine.

 

[binary visions]

Yeah, what state do you live in? There's a bunch of monkeys on the board that have em and might let you ride one (myself included). If you go to any races that Evil/e.13 goes to, one of them will let you ride one I'm sure.

 

[TSchultz]

I'm in S. Minnesota, Mankato to be exact. I couldn't even find a dealer under a 7 hour drive.

I pretty much know that I don't want a full suspension bike, and yeah, your right I want a bike that I can goof around on more than anything, and the hills that I do climb really aren't that long.

One more question how many of you are using 24" rear wheels, and how much do they affect your front sprocket selection.

 

[sub6]

Originally posted by TSchultz

One more question how many of you are using 24" rear wheels, and how much do they affect your front sprocket selection.

I do, has no impact on my front ring size. Not sure what you mean by that? I'm using a DRS guide with 22/36 rings up front, 24" rear for urban and 26" for offroad. Any size rings will fit on there....

 

[binary visions]

He asked about the front sproket because a 24" rear wheel effectively gives you a lower gear - you're rotating a smaller wheel radius.

I have no idea how it affects gearing though, I've never run one. The Imperial feels exceptionally nimble even with 26" wheels - not sure you'd need to run 24's unless you have some deep burning desire to have them.

 

[TickTock]

Well first off, I am not as tall as you guys. 5'9" seems to be the perfect height for the frame. I can pretty much pedal anything from xc (not xc paced, mind you) to downhill. Its not an xc bike, it wont pedal like an xc bike, and if you want full seat extension for epic trailrides, then you are already way, way off looking at the imperial. It is the gnarliest, most fun playbike I have ever ridden. Mine is about 39 pounds of beef, but I dont like replacing components so I have some pretty beefy crap strapped onto mine. If i swapped my rims, bars, and tubes, i could drop 5-10 pouns off it easy.....but whats the point? Im not gonna be pedaling a bike with a 50 degree seat tube while seated, uphill at any speed. I live near boston so my idea of a trailride is a rock/root garden with a few gravel patches inbetween, which is how I like it. The evil is perfect for the technical playground that I live in.

I run dual 26, so i cant help ya on some of the other questions.

My evil looks like it weighs 60 pounds, weighs 40, and feels 30 (45 uphill)

 

[-dustin]

i'm 6ft and rode it on a ~10mi ride that had a lot of gradual climbing. nothing steep, but rather long. kinda sucked, and my thighs were screaming. going down was fun, though. a lot of fun. my seatpost was extended all the way, and it still felt too short (TT-wise) for me. my bars were also super-wide at that time. it was a new trail and the ride was generally uncomfortable. i got home and realized i had lost about 6lbs of water weight on the trail, so i kinda think dehydration might've made the ride seem worse than it was. i have done the trail on my XC bike, and it did feel better.

i now run a SS set-up with dual 24"s, and 38:16 gearing. i wouldn't even think to take that on the trails. the 24" does make it pedal a little quicker, but it seems as if the loss of speed is quicker, as well. if i were on 26"s, i'd go for a 2:1 ratio just because of the rolling resistence of the Kujos i have.

as for bunnyhopping......well, i learned to ride in clipless pedals, so my bunnyhopping sucks.

my Imperial comes in at 32lbs with Vanilla, Trailpimps, Profiles, etc. 36lbs when running gears.