Should I sell my DH bike?
- Thread starter norbar
- Start date
Yeah, exactly!
I totally get why it's not worth it for a lot of people to own a DH bike. That's okay! But the people who say that their enduro bike is almost as capable are lying to themselves. Hell, my G16 has a 62.5 degree head tube angle and a 40. It's still not a DH bike.
Get back on your chairlift and e-bike mate
You know its easier to make a seat angle slacker than steeper right. And also, who gives a fuck about pedalling on flat ground on a mountain bike....
I reckon Commencal have done a killer job of the seat angle on their new rigs. You don't need an "industry measured" Seat Angle calculated at the stack height of the headset
... You just need the seat angle to not get horrendously slacker when the post is extended - you know for actually sitting on.Either way, its good to have some variety on the market. Not everyone likes steep seat angles and there's heaps of options for them. I just find they make the grinding part less of a chore so I'll stick to picking stuff that winches up without causing a slipped disc...
1. I don't know what is there to understand? Should I get a cheaper 150mm, less agressive enduro bike and keep the old dh bike or should I sell the DH bike and get a burlier, slacker, longer travel enduro bike that can handle rougher tracks, gaps, park riding etc.
2. As for the privateer - I've seen a few reviews about it. Yeah that seems idiotic (let's not use the other word) since for bigger bikes mellow climbs is something you'd want to be doing anyway. Though I get you lose most energy on steeper climbs. A local trail center has some steeper sections on the uphills for no reason and they really tire you out.
For now I'm looking at selling the DH bike mostly because I've asked friends about DH trails in here and no new ones were added so we have like 3-4 ones in the whole country + 1-2 in Slovakia and CZ that really require a big bike. I also plan to go to Madeira, La Palma and maybe somewhere in Africa where one bike makes more sense.
So I'm looking at the new Radon since the build is nice on the Carbon one (3k Euro for a Carbon bike with good components), Propain (since you can customize the build) or maybe something used post season.
For sure I don't want the 2020 Reign. The 145mm travel felt short when you make mistakes even though it's good on the trails. Also the bike felt strangely high and rode a bit like a trailbike in terms of COG in certain situations.
I like my hobby. Bikes are fun. Also my aunt has started a bungalow place in La Palma so I may have a good holiday spot for riding.
In all honesty, I think the way to go for you is allmountain rig and new 26" DH-frame if needed.
Your Banshee won't get sold. DH is not fashionable anymore and 26" bikes are an impossible sell. All the hustle for not even 1000€ is not worth it if you ask me. Also if you switch to a decent sized allmountain bike you will hate to get back on the Legend. Feeling cramped you will.
So keep the parts, hang the Legend and get a larger frame, there are possibly a few Legends in large floating around.
However, there are a lot of awesome options out there at the moment for an allmountain bike that will make you happy.
The question is:
- What wheelsize do want to brag about?
- What do your usual trails look like?
- How important is new school geometry for you? Do you benefit from big wheelbases and steep seatangles (are you tall and have you long legs?)?
Your Banshee won't get sold. DH is not fashionable anymore and 26" bikes are an impossible sell. All the hustle for not even 1000€ is not worth it if you ask me. Also if you switch to a decent sized allmountain bike you will hate to get back on the Legend. Feeling cramped you will.
So keep the parts, hang the Legend and get a larger frame, there are possibly a few Legends in large floating around.
However, there are a lot of awesome options out there at the moment for an allmountain bike that will make you happy.
The question is:
- What wheelsize do want to brag about?
- What do your usual trails look like?
- How important is new school geometry for you? Do you benefit from big wheelbases and steep seatangles (are you tall and have you long legs?)?
I think I can get 1000-1250E for the legend in all honesty and it's an extra 1-1.2k for the endurer.
As for the new bike - Firmly in the 29er camp. Despite having absolutely no fitness at the moment I still ride in a fairly physical way so I don't notice the wheels being a bit harder to move around and the faster rolling is noticeable.
My usual trails are either bikepark flow trails or rooty tracks. I tend to avoid anything with too many narrow slow speed corners. Never liked pretending I'm a trials rider.
I don't want to go overboard the new geo but I want new long geo. I tried it and I like it. I also realized my 2001 trailbike is fairly long in the TT so I don't mind it as much.
Well then.
If you wanna sell, do it. Reading your posts there really is no need for a DH bike, unless you don't want to let it go. That's the reason I have still one.
I'd say the Norco Optic or Sight are awesome for that regard although a little pricey. Optic for single trails, the Sight for allmountain crushing.
The new Propain Tyee looks definitely good on paper and gets you a lot of bike for the buck.
Raaw Madonna or Privateer 161 are probably the most DH oriented but heavy machines out there.
Not sure on the YT offerings as their geometry is a little outdated, which honestly is probably only a problem if you are above 185cm.
Really good at grinding up climbs and then going straight back down if you've got elevation to work with. Not much fun on flatter, more rolling terrain. For me, where I live, that's a tradeoff I'm very happy making. It's also built amazingly well.
Norco is hard to get here. Also them being pricey makes as much sense as transition being expensive now. Those brands used to be affordable and are now pricey for no reason.
Sell it and move on. You won't get much dough for it and the longer you wait, the less you'll get. If you keep it, it will get harder and harder to find parts. Plus, it doesn't fit. I don't see a strong argument for keeping it unless you want to hang it in the bong shed for the sake of nostalgia, but it sounds like you can't afford to have it sitting around gathering dust and continuing to depreciate.
If you're only doing a couple of DH days a year, either run what you brung and deal with it, or rent/demo a real DH bike for those days. If you find yourself doing more and more DH, you can always get a relatively cheap, proper DH rig, like maybe a Kona Operator (?) or something used but still newer than your current rig. Either way you'll be on a bike that fits better and doesn't have BMX wheels.
Seriously, new bikes are rad and the recent changes in geometry make a big difference. I'd rather be on a cheap modern DH bike with decent suspension than a 10-year old bike that never fit, even if it was all pimped out.
As for what to get next, I personally would get the bike that matches the riding you do most of the time, not a bike that is built for the extreme/outlier moments. I love my Megatower but it's a machine gun in a knife fight a lot of the time. Super fun for the spicy stuff, but otherwise it's overkill, and although I get through a few park days just fine, I still want a proper DH bike those days.
Edit: For proof of concept, take your old DH bike to the hill (if/when it opens), rent a newer bike, and do back-to-back laps. Might open your eyes.
If you're only doing a couple of DH days a year, either run what you brung and deal with it, or rent/demo a real DH bike for those days. If you find yourself doing more and more DH, you can always get a relatively cheap, proper DH rig, like maybe a Kona Operator (?) or something used but still newer than your current rig. Either way you'll be on a bike that fits better and doesn't have BMX wheels.
Seriously, new bikes are rad and the recent changes in geometry make a big difference. I'd rather be on a cheap modern DH bike with decent suspension than a 10-year old bike that never fit, even if it was all pimped out.As for what to get next, I personally would get the bike that matches the riding you do most of the time, not a bike that is built for the extreme/outlier moments. I love my Megatower but it's a machine gun in a knife fight a lot of the time. Super fun for the spicy stuff, but otherwise it's overkill, and although I get through a few park days just fine, I still want a proper DH bike those days.
Edit: For proof of concept, take your old DH bike to the hill (if/when it opens), rent a newer bike, and do back-to-back laps. Might open your eyes.
Every time this question comes up, no one mentions renting a DH bike, and the hidden advantages of it.
So I got rid of my DH sleds, and just ride my trail bike for everything local, but if I'm at Whistler or another bike park, I'll rent a DH sled for the duration and get the damage waiver. My current tally for the past three years of a couple of trips to whistler and Tahoe area is:
1 cracked rear triangle on a 2018 V10
1 dented upper on a fox 40
God knows how many paint chips, scuffs, and other blemishes that would affect resale value
4 (maybe 5?) busted rims
probably 10+ destroyed tires, most of them brand new
at least two grips fully destroyed
1 Vivid coil blown out
Total out of pocket: $0.
I'll spend my money breaking my trail bike, but someone else's breaking the DH sled. If you're not riding DH on a consistent basis of at least a couple of times a month, I would suggest the same approach.
So I got rid of my DH sleds, and just ride my trail bike for everything local, but if I'm at Whistler or another bike park, I'll rent a DH sled for the duration and get the damage waiver. My current tally for the past three years of a couple of trips to whistler and Tahoe area is:
1 cracked rear triangle on a 2018 V10
1 dented upper on a fox 40
God knows how many paint chips, scuffs, and other blemishes that would affect resale value
4 (maybe 5?) busted rims
probably 10+ destroyed tires, most of them brand new
at least two grips fully destroyed
1 Vivid coil blown out
Total out of pocket: $0.
I'll spend my money breaking my trail bike, but someone else's breaking the DH sled. If you're not riding DH on a consistent basis of at least a couple of times a month, I would suggest the same approach.
^^^You were probably typing when I posted, but I did suggest renting in my post just above yours.
Also, remind me to not lend you a bike.
Also, remind me to not lend you a bike.
Yeah, I've had a few issues with rentals and happily exchanged the bike for another one...but the catch 22 is they are giving you some bike that is often grossly incorrect for your weight, as far as spring rate. That is downright dangerous. If it's Vivid airs and Air X2s, then it's not so bad, but that's not what tends to come on most park rental bikes. So here you are with a grossly over spung or under sprung bike. I hear you, I always try to rent for the same reason as you. When I sign the form, I write on it that they are knowingly providing me with the incorrect spring rate for my weight. They love that. I'm on vacation though, I want to be enjoying the runs as a DH bike allows, rather than fighting to survive on some trail-bike. It's the difference sometimes between actually enjoying the DH vs. only looking forward to the lift ride because I can't stand to get pounded.
I find it funny that a crowd so obsessed with every mm more reach or 0.5 degrees of head angle would jump on a rental bike not set up for them and claim they can go fast on it. Maybe I am crap at this, but until a new bike feels perfect to me I need a month or so with regular rides on multiple tracks, get the contact points right, suspension dialed etc. I bet his absolutely dialed but too small bike works better than any new rental that is set up in 5 minutes. At least you know all the quirks and that way can bring it closer to the limit w/o crossing the border.
Indeed you were, I was just too lazy to hit the "View new posts" button.^^^You were probably typing when I posted, but I did suggest renting in my post just above yours.
Also, remind me to not lend you a bike.
And no, you should not lend me a bike, I am fantastic at breaking them. Happily for me, I seem to break bike parts in lieu of bones, which is a preferable trade-off (frantic woodpecker noises).
this part IME
Maybe I'm not as picky, or maybe I've been at it long enough, but I can jump on pretty much any bike, move a few things, and feel pretty comfortable. Sure, with time it'll get tweaked a bit but as long as I have realistic expectations I've never had much trouble setting up a rental or demo bike, at least to the point that it's close enough. As for a clapped out bike, wrong spring rates, etc., those can absolutely be issues but if you pay for a decent bike from a decent shop you should be able to get things sorted - again, at least to the point that it's close enough.
Every approach has trade-offs but for someone on the fence, a rental or demo can be a good option.
Every approach has trade-offs but for someone on the fence, a rental or demo can be a good option.
In Whistler, I’ve found the only place I’ve had a rental shop really tune the bike to my size, weight, reach, etc is Evolution. Do yourself a favor and go straight to them if ever renting there. The bikes are dialed as well.
Most people can just hop on a rental and go rip, but not the people here. They are unique snowflakes who require custom tuned suspension for sport level riding even when World Cup pros are riding stock shocks.
That's kind of my experience. Sometimes there'll be a shop that will rent out good stuff, sometimes not. In both cases, you'll pay out the ass, but paying out the ass to abuse someone else's bike at a park is not a bad deal on a vacation IMO. I want to make the most of it and not be sidelined by breaking my bike during the day. I've found it rare to non-existant anyone that will swap coils and I've been and seen coils that were horribly wrong, but I've also seen places doing rental DH bikes with air, which is a damn good application for those kind of shocks (real DH air shocks that is). Just depends. If you don't care how a bike rides, may not be an issue. At Trestle you can get by with like anything just doing big jumps, crank the rebound way up (for your 650lb spring) whatever, but it's not like that everywhere.
Are those WC pros running at least the correct or close spring rate for their riding? Interested parties want to know. It's really not about being a snowflake, it's about not having a 650lb spring when you need a 350 or a 350 when you need a 650...100lbs makes a huge difference.
Has anybody pointed out to the DH parks that if they set the damn bikes up properly for each rider, then they would have less busted up stuff, both human and bike to contend with?
Some of this stuff is a lawsuit waiting to happen, for good reason. It also reminds me of when I went to demo some skis a few years back, I fill out the blah blah paperwork, yes I'm an expert skier, whatever, and they set the DIN at like 6 or 8 or whatever. Then ski comes on while riding resort's own double black doing a jump turn and I go sliding head first for a few hundred feet. I'd never set my DIN that low and I'd expect skis to pop off if I did. So when they set it up, they didn't say anything about it not working on all of their terrain. They hold liability if they are going to give it to me that low with the understanding that I can ski the whole mountain with it (the intent of a demo btw). I can sign all the waivers in the world, but if the other party is knowingly doing something carelessly, they don't apply. Sometimes they just take an "easiest path out" approach which works most of the time, but is cheapest, etc. Obviously they don't want to set up a ski binding to break someone's foot off, but it's just as negligent to set it up so it won't hold your foot under normal conditions either. On the bikes, I've had them tell me before "oh yeah, we can help you set it up", which in the end meant they could help me turn the dials. That should earn a swift punch in the face. Being oversprung can easily launch you or being undersprung can cause just as bad of a fall. No, not looking for a perfect custom-tuned ride on a rental, just a goddamn Vivid air, CCDB air or X2 air will do just fine, so I can at least use the travel and have it set up safely.
Most people also think a fully open 2008 Fox DHX 5.0 is good suspension and half of them would take parking lessons from Brian Lopes
The thing is the setting up part is done by underpaid workers so they don't care. If the owner doesn't ride he won't understand as they will not pass him any info.
Yeah. Knowing why something is happening is nice. Having a bike that works according to your preferences is also nice. I also kinda feel safer on my own bike since I know it's not abused so it wont self destruct. A comfortable bike just gives me confidence even though I have rented and tested for local bike mags a ton of bikes that were imperfectly setup. They were still fun. Just not as much fun as my own bike. Though I think don't represent the norm given I take pills for not focusing on the right stuff and focusing too much on other stuff. Ie. exactly what we are talking about.I prefer the comfort of wrecking on my dialed bike.
I've gone down this path before, and ended up getting back on a dh bike when I could afford it. I guess my DH bike is technically for sale, but for such a stupid price that nobody will buy it. If they do, then we'll both be happy. A trail bike is simply not a DH bike- they're two disparate tasks and trying to jam a carbon wunderbike through some gnarly rockgardens is a recipe for sadness.
The problem with renting is that you never know what you're going to get, and you may not have much say in the matter. If you ride at the same place every time and are distinctly average, then you might be just fine...but if you're a bean pole or tiny tank then you're going to have a bad time. The other thing I've noticed is that shocks are typically the bottom of the barrel when it comes to adjusters...and yeah people here care whether they have hi/lo rebound crossover, but it's also nice to be able to having a working compression adjuster let alone high and low speed. I keep thinking about going down this path, but honestly once you get your bike dialed, there's no better feeling.
The problem with renting is that you never know what you're going to get, and you may not have much say in the matter. If you ride at the same place every time and are distinctly average, then you might be just fine...but if you're a bean pole or tiny tank then you're going to have a bad time. The other thing I've noticed is that shocks are typically the bottom of the barrel when it comes to adjusters...and yeah people here care whether they have hi/lo rebound crossover, but it's also nice to be able to having a working compression adjuster let alone high and low speed. I keep thinking about going down this path, but honestly once you get your bike dialed, there's no better feeling.
I retired my dedicated DH bike a few years ago and have been riding my 160/170 bike for everything. You give up a little bit on the lift-access stuff, but for me it's not enough to need an extra bike.
Do I miss having a DH bike sometimes? Sure. Having a super-capable long-travel trailbike for everything is pretty cool though.
Do I miss having a DH bike sometimes? Sure. Having a super-capable long-travel trailbike for everything is pretty cool though.
The saddle rails were already set back in the privateer's dropper. (inline clamp)You mean like a dh bike?
I thought the same thing about the new gen GG megarocker front triangle when I got it.
I moved the seat back.
AND TOTALLY CHANGED MAH BUTT REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECHHHHHHHHHHH OH NOES!!!!!!!!!!!!
AH HAVE A CUNDISHUN AH PICKED UP IN THE 70s THUT CAUSES ME TO MOVE MU ASS FORWARDS ON MU SADDLES WHEN TACKULIN THE STEEPEST CLYUUUUUUMS
I know folks have gone mental buying bikes since the pandemic but I still can't see a 26" DH bike going for anywhere near a grand second hand. It may fetch enough to buy a new RS or FOX coil shock but probably not enough for a 170mm single crown. That sort of money isn't really going to make a huge improvement from whatever the budget bikes you have your eye on are.
Different markets different depreciation.
Also with Direct Sales and Used options, 1k is a like going a model up - better drivetrain and susp.
I got $1500 for my Turner DHR right before shit hit the fan.
I kind of feel sorry (but not sorry) for the guy. It is his first DH bike and he seemed very excited to get to use it.
....two weeks later the only halfway decent DH hill within a 5-6 hour drive announced they won't be opening for 2020.