[Masse]

Ok, I`ve had enough of Intense`s "customer service". Uzzi is going back and I`ll have to find a new frame. I saw a pic of PDC`s Freeide and instantly fell in love with it. So...
If anyone out there has ridden it, please tell me your riding experiences. How does it pedal? Can it take serious beating? What`s best and worst in it? Comments of any kind are welcome. I`ve already been in contact with Kyle @ PDC, and all I have to say: that is what I call service.
Forgive me my bad English.

Thanks.

 

[thaflyinfatman]

Sorry to say this, but I don't think anyone pretty much anywhere will have any riding time on it other than maybe Martin Ogden or the Project Leeds (I think?) sponsored guys. Maybe Vitox will know a bit about it?

That said, Kyle is on the ball - the geo looks good and so does the frame

And yeah his customer service is top-notch. I'd tell ya all the stuff he's done for me, but some of it is a bit too helpful to mention in public

 

[CreeP]

 

[dancassidy]

Kyle is indeed a top bloke, this is reflected across the whole PDC range. We just did a test day on the Freeride yesterday and all testers were blown away. We had the bike set up with the swinger 6 way giving 8.25 to the rear and a 888 up front pushing 8 inches. It was rolling on Deemaxs with the rest of the build being a regular hope and shimano set up. Off the bat we thought that the 888 may have been to much but infact it rode sweet. We had ridden it previously with a 7" boxxer but i have to say i preffered it with an 8" up there. You asked about how it pedals, one of our team riders came back with a confused look on his face "where is the bob?"

This bike felt so right from the off, its like you have ridden it all your life, it feels so right. Saying this we have a few changes planned, nothing major just making it a little longer on the TT and neatening up the linkage plates and including a new brace, kyle is keen on aesthetics as im sure you can see by looking at the beautiful front end. I will get some pics up of the afore mentioned set up later on today.

Oh and can it take a beating, well it took abuse from some of the roughest riders we have and we didnt have a single problem, Only problem you will have is that an mrp will require a little modding before it will run, but an e13 or other will run fine.

Regards

DC

 

[Hairy Spaniard]

Ive just got mine built up last week and the bike rides amazing, much better than my turner. i have it set up very plush and i dont feel any of the break bumps in whistler rite now. The bb is low which makes it corner like a dream but make sure u get 165 cranks. I would highly recommend it, I can't wait to race it.

Carlos

 

[vitox]

Ok, I`ve had enough of Intense`s "customer service". Uzzi is going back and I`ll have to find a new frame. I saw a pic of PDC`s Freeide and instantly fell in love with it. So...
If anyone out there has ridden it, please tell me your riding experiences. How does it pedal? Can it take serious beating? What`s best and worst in it? Comments of any kind are welcome. I`ve already been in contact with Kyle @ PDC, and all I have to say: that is what I call service.
Forgive me my bad English.

Thanks.

i have ridden it, not a lot but more than enough to tell you it does pedal VERY well, totally on par with say a maestro or a vpp.
as for resistance, two guys i sponsor ride them , both are extremely fast riders, say from mid pack world cup and up fast and they have had no issues yet, and here i am talking about guys who never before had been able to make a frame last a complete season.
whats the worst with it? i personally do not like som particular aspects of the geometry, probably because the front-center is a bit longer than i would prefer for dhing (im 173cm) and also for dh i think the HA should be a tad slacker, but those are issues that mostly stem from its dual purpose origins. also i do think the swinger is a let down for the frame, i would recommend using a roco as it really makes the rear end come alive, is lighter and the bike doesnt need a spv shock to pedal great. swinger, ive tried it with swinger, avy dhs, and roco, those are the shocks that fit and since the bike is low leverage and almost needs no compression damping, roco is the ticket.
what i like best about it? well, its lighter than almost all frames out there, 3,8 kilos w/o shock but with hardware, standover is massive and the weight is al very very low, the shock is totally protected by the rear end and doesnt get any crap on the shaft.
youll find it to be a very easy riding bike, i know i did.
look for pics of it here www.26mtb.cl

hope that helped!

 

[xy9ine]

hmmm... i'd really love to try a roco on the frame; i'm not entirely fond of the swinger.

 

[vitox]

hmmm... i'd really love to try a roco on the frame; i'm not entirely fond of the swinger.

do it!:redhot:

 

[thaflyinfatman]

i have ridden it, not a lot but more than enough to tell you it does pedal VERY well, totally on par with say a maestro or a vpp.
as for resistance, two guys i sponsor ride them , both are extremely fast riders, say from mid pack world cup and up fast and they have had no issues yet, and here i am talking about guys who never before had been able to make a frame last a complete season.
whats the worst with it? i personally do not like som particular aspects of the geometry, probably because the front-center is a bit longer than i would prefer for dhing (im 173cm) and also for dh i think the HA should be a tad slacker, but those are issues that mostly stem from its dual purpose origins. also i do think the swinger is a let down for the frame, i would recommend using a roco as it really makes the rear end come alive, is lighter and the bike doesnt need a spv shock to pedal great. swinger, ive tried it with swinger, avy dhs, and roco, those are the shocks that fit and since the bike is low leverage and almost needs no compression damping, roco is the ticket.
what i like best about it? well, its lighter than almost all frames out there, 3,8 kilos w/o shock but with hardware, standover is massive and the weight is al very very low, the shock is totally protected by the rear end and doesnt get any crap on the shaft.
youll find it to be a very easy riding bike, i know i did.
look for pics of it here www.26mtb.cl

hope that helped!

I'm also considering one (not for immediate purchase but possibly a couple of months down the track) - I'm 6'2" (190cm or so) and find my medium IH SGS too short in the reach/front centre (it's 710mm by my count), cos I find myself having to hang right off the back of the bike in the fast/rough stuff where I'd really prefer to be able to get a bit further forward, do you reckon the PDC would suit me better? Keeping in mind I like slack head angles, can I put an 8" fork (and possibly drop crowns if necessary, I'll deal with bar height however I need to) on it and not jack the BB up too much? Or would it be better to put a shorter-stroke shock in?

Also, are your guys using the 12mm or the QR rear end?

 

[vitox]

you can put an 888 with drop crowns on and HA becomes spot on for dh. in fact, i set the boys bikes up with lower drop crown, upper flat crown (for the theorical stiffness advantage you know) and with lower cane creek xxc headset / upper e13 zerostack. the bike is low anyway, for the 160lbs rider, roco and 350 lbs spring nets you good sag and the bike and shocks progression means travel is used very well.

12mm is considerably stiffer from what im hearing, but im too slow to notice.

 

[thaflyinfatman]

haha ahh the irony... I'd end up looking for 888 drop crowns after spending so many years bitching about the height of them

 

[xy9ine]

i've got a 8" boxxer wc (pretty much as low as it will go) with a flush reducer headset & my bb is sitting @ about 13.6". i think the head angle was close to 66d - i'll double check. the front-center feels perfect for my 6'-1" height.

i bought both sets of dropouts; i built it up with a qr wheel - and haven't felt the need to try the t/a.

vitox - i'd like to check out the 'light' roco before i make a move. sounds hot.

 

[freakrock]

Keeping in mind I like slack head angles, can I put an 8" fork (and possibly drop crowns if necessary, I'll deal with bar height however I need to) on it and not jack the BB up too much? Or would it be better to put a shorter-stroke shock in?

the frame is ULTRA low... mi current rig has a WB DH-3 fork, and 2.6 & 2.5 tires on atomic trailpimp rims and the BB height is 14". i'm currently saving money to get a 888 in order to increase my bb height a little bit.

 

[vitox]

haha ahh the irony... I'd end up looking for 888 drop crowns after spending so many years bitching about the height of them

ah well, its a tiny bit more HA you can squeeze out the way im pointing out, because with a flat top crown you cant run the fork full tall, it was just a matter of that extra mental edge i think

 

[vitox]

vitox - i'd like to check out the 'light' roco before i make a move. sounds hot.

didnt quite get that, you need a 8,75" (222mm) roco, either with a 350 or 400lbs spring, i think i remember you had a swinger with a 400 ti spring on? if so, get the roco with a 350 and check what suits you best.
you will have to remove the compression adjuster to make it fit, just a matter or unscrewing the top part of it thats all.

 

[BiunK]

two guys i sponsor ride them

one pics in action xD xD

xD