Specialized Bikes Stumpjumper FSR Comp Carbon 2012 Full Sus
Discussion
Guys,
Any help would be great, I went to Sunset Bikes in Cardiff on Wed and booked a test weekend on a Orange 5 Pro however I plan to do a few 12 and 24 hour events this year also London to Brighton Off road (will use the hard tail), from what I can find on reviews the Orange 5 is heavy but great fun all the same.
After i've added some upgrades the Orange 5 is bloody expensive, then I see the Stumpjumper Carbon for the price of a standard Orange 5, can't find any reviews.
Anyone own one or race one? Up to scratch? Any other bikes in this price range more specific to my needs?
Thanks in advance.
Any help would be great, I went to Sunset Bikes in Cardiff on Wed and booked a test weekend on a Orange 5 Pro however I plan to do a few 12 and 24 hour events this year also London to Brighton Off road (will use the hard tail), from what I can find on reviews the Orange 5 is heavy but great fun all the same.
After i've added some upgrades the Orange 5 is bloody expensive, then I see the Stumpjumper Carbon for the price of a standard Orange 5, can't find any reviews.
Anyone own one or race one? Up to scratch? Any other bikes in this price range more specific to my needs?
Thanks in advance.
Both are very nice bikes, i think specialized tend to have the edge when it comes to value for money though. also the specialized customer service and warranty is meant to be brilliant (though ive heard good things about orange too)
specialized and orange use very different rear suspension systems. People who get on with the Horst linkage that specialized use (like myself) often dont get on so well with single pivot like the orange.
do you have much previous experience of full sus bikes?
specialized and orange use very different rear suspension systems. People who get on with the Horst linkage that specialized use (like myself) often dont get on so well with single pivot like the orange.
do you have much previous experience of full sus bikes?
For 12/24 hour events I'd be looking for something lighter and more XC specific than an Orange 5. They're more suited to "all mountain" type riding. I'd be looking at 120mm travel and sub 27 kg.
Have a look at the Canyon Nerve XC. I bought the XC7 last year and I've been massively impressed with it. Great spec, great handling, light and excellent value for money.
http://www.canyon.com/_uk/mountainbikes/bike.html?...
Have a look at the Canyon Nerve XC. I bought the XC7 last year and I've been massively impressed with it. Great spec, great handling, light and excellent value for money.
http://www.canyon.com/_uk/mountainbikes/bike.html?...
have you been to any races and seen what the top guys are on? its generally a good idea of what works. i have seen a lot of riders on the scott spark, some one the full sus focus (cant remember the name!) and various 29ers. only a few were sponsored so its fair to assume the rest bought bikes with their own cash. for enduro stuff, i think most people go for 100mm-140mm, i certainly havent seen anyone lug an orange five around!... too much bike for xc/enduro racing i would suspect.
I've owned an '09 Stumpy and, at the same time an '09 Epic (with Carbon frame) and without doubt the Epic is the racing snake's weapon of choice rather than the Stumpy.
The Orange 5 is good but, as others say, it's a different linkage system - doesn'1t suit all although it takes some beating in terms of durability and mud clearance here in the UK - and is really intended for more 'fun' use on trails and all day mountain adventures.
The Orange 5 is good but, as others say, it's a different linkage system - doesn'1t suit all although it takes some beating in terms of durability and mud clearance here in the UK - and is really intended for more 'fun' use on trails and all day mountain adventures.
My BIL has the stumpy FSR non-carbon.
He used to run a bike shop, was a sponsored rider in the early 90s racing xc and DH against the likes of Peaty, and is also mates with the chap that now has the biggest bike shop in his home town, so he had access to pretty much what he fancied having a go on due to his contacts.
He took them all out (six or seven different bikes) for half a day each and tested them up a series of steep climbs, twisty single track, and 30+mph downhill.
His view was that it does nothing brilliantly, but it is, by a long way, the bike that balances all the disparate requirements the best. It climbs well, is nice and stiff, and is good enough for moderate DH if you're not into big jumps.
He used to run a bike shop, was a sponsored rider in the early 90s racing xc and DH against the likes of Peaty, and is also mates with the chap that now has the biggest bike shop in his home town, so he had access to pretty much what he fancied having a go on due to his contacts.
He took them all out (six or seven different bikes) for half a day each and tested them up a series of steep climbs, twisty single track, and 30+mph downhill.
His view was that it does nothing brilliantly, but it is, by a long way, the bike that balances all the disparate requirements the best. It climbs well, is nice and stiff, and is good enough for moderate DH if you're not into big jumps.
pablo said:
i certainly havent seen anyone lug an orange five around!... too much bike for xc/enduro racing i would suspect.
slightly OT, but its always interesting to hear things from the opposite end of the biking spectrum. A fair few people in this thread have mentioned that an orange 5 is too burly and heavy to be a fast race machine, which always makes me do a double take because of my DH background. To me an orange 5 is very light and extremely pedalable, but nowhere near burly enough for race use :P
rhinochopig said:
His view was that it does nothing brilliantly, but it is, by a long way, the bike that balances all the disparate requirements the best. It climbs well, is nice and stiff, and is good enough for moderate DH if you're not into big jumps.
If the OP is intent mostly on racing and having the best bike for racing, I can confidently state that the Epic (whilst still being fun on xc trail centre riding) is the better of the two - that's what it's designed for and why it is justifiably popular.(I've ridden the Enduro Six, solo two years running; once on the Stumpy (wasn;t carbon, was just the cooking model) and once on the Epic and know which I'd choose every time.)
deadtom said:
slightly OT, but its always interesting to hear things from the opposite end of the biking spectrum. A fair few people in this thread have mentioned that an orange 5 is too burly and heavy to be a fast race machine, which always makes me do a double take because of my DH background.
To me an orange 5 is very light and extremely pedalable, but nowhere near burly enough for race use :P
horses for courses, i borrowed a friends Epic for Afan and was miles quicker than anything else i have ever used there. so much to praise, the handling and the lack of wasted power at the rear just allowed you to keep momentum up and really attack stuff. was probably 100mm max front and rear but it makes you pick your lines rather than career off the drops and let the bike deal with it.To me an orange 5 is very light and extremely pedalable, but nowhere near burly enough for race use :P
having now seen it happen in the flesh though, regardless of your own fitness and bike handling skills, in an xc race the lead riders will all be on 29ers...
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