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flag toby9843
Posted: Oct 17, 2018 at 8:54 Quote
titaniumtit wrote:
Yeah those Devincis look real brutish in a good kinda way and Freeborn are the UK importer Iirc.

Also check out Ibis’ offering of the Ripmo as that may tick the seat tube box thang straight away for you.

Plus frame warranty is a healthy 7 years :-)
Good shout on that ripmo seat tube. Looks pretty inviting although not quite a slack as I'd like at the front. They say it's not a drama with the offset fork etc, I don't know enough about these things really lol. Shame they spec shit brakes at my price point, I'd need to upgrade those immediately.
flag jcc0042
O+ FL
Posted: Oct 17, 2018 at 14:05 Quote
toby9843 wrote:
titaniumtit wrote:
Yeah those Devincis look real brutish in a good kinda way and Freeborn are the UK importer Iirc.

Also check out Ibis’ offering of the Ripmo as that may tick the seat tube box thang straight away for you.

Plus frame warranty is a healthy 7 years :-)
Good shout on that ripmo seat tube. Looks pretty inviting although not quite a slack as I'd like at the front. They say it's not a drama with the offset fork etc, I don't know enough about these things really lol. Shame they spec shit brakes at my price point, I'd need to upgrade those immediately.

I bought an HD4 with the XT kit, and the dealer was able to come down a decent amount from MSRP. You should be able to get the Ripmo with XT build within your budget if you find a reasonable shop owner.

Ibis bikes are top notch. There's something very special about their version of the DW link that keeps people coming back. They are also overbuilt relative to other brands, so they are heavy, but a rock strike likely won't bust the carbon. There are probably ten people in my area who race some gnarly enduros on an Ibis, and none of us have cracked a frame or had any other issues.

I don't think you'll run into an issue with the head angle, and, if you do, you can always just extend the fork to 170 for steeper races.
flag toby9843
Posted: Oct 17, 2018 at 14:26 Quote
jcc0042 wrote:
toby9843 wrote:
titaniumtit wrote:
Yeah those Devincis look real brutish in a good kinda way and Freeborn are the UK importer Iirc.

Also check out Ibis’ offering of the Ripmo as that may tick the seat tube box thang straight away for you.

Plus frame warranty is a healthy 7 years :-)
Good shout on that ripmo seat tube. Looks pretty inviting although not quite a slack as I'd like at the front. They say it's not a drama with the offset fork etc, I don't know enough about these things really lol. Shame they spec shit brakes at my price point, I'd need to upgrade those immediately.

I bought an HD4 with the XT kit, and the dealer was able to come down a decent amount from MSRP. You should be able to get the Ripmo with XT build within your budget if you find a reasonable shop owner.

Ibis bikes are top notch. There's something very special about their version of the DW link that keeps people coming back. They are also overbuilt relative to other brands, so they are heavy, but a rock strike likely won't bust the carbon. There are probably ten people in my area who race some gnarly enduros on an Ibis, and none of us have cracked a frame or had any other issues.

I don't think you'll run into an issue with the head angle, and, if you do, you can always just extend the fork to 170 for steeper races.

Yeah the more I'm looking at the ripmo the more I'm liking it. Add some saints to replace the terrible stock brakes and it could be a great bike. Seems bushings for pivot mounts causes some concerns in the journo world.......
flag MattyPugh
Posted: Oct 17, 2018 at 14:51 Quote
Just a heads up for the stage 6, can just get a sks anywhere mount and get a cage on the downtube. Does the job fine for me.
flag toby9843
Posted: Oct 17, 2018 at 22:42 Quote
MattyPugh wrote:
Just a heads up for the stage 6, can just get a sks anywhere mount and get a cage on the downtube. Does the job fine for me.
True enough, I have one on my propain spindrift.
flag Pablo16v
Posted: Oct 18, 2018 at 4:49 Quote
toby9843 wrote:
Pablo16v wrote:
I’ve had my AM9 for 6 months and I’m still well and truly in the honeymoon period, so this is obviously a biased reply, but here’s a few reasons why it would make a good EWS bike….

1. The geometry is up to date without being overly radical. Good reach size for size, slack-ish, good stand-over clearance and the BB isn’t so low that you pedal strike everywhere
2. It’s stable and fast on techy descents yet hides its length well when it gets tight and twisty, and when you’re not going full gas it just loves to have fun hopping and popping off stuff
3. It’s not overly expensive so you’ll get a great build for your budget
4. The raw option looks awesome
5. ML size has a 440mm ST and 475mm reach
6. It has water bottle mounts Big Grin
7. I carry mine on a Thule Pro-ride 591
8. They aren’t heavy, and I don’t notice any frame flex, so no real need to pay more for carbon (in my opinion obviously). My build is sub 31lbs with a Fox 36, CCDB Air CS shock (the heaviest piggy back air shock I think), appropriate strength rubber, LB carbon rims, XT 1x11
9. It has a threaded BB and external hose and cable routing so maintenance will be reasonably straightforward. Important point I think
10. Technical and warranty support from Bird is top notch. Another important point if you were to suddenly need something like bearings or a replacement frame if the worst was to happen

So there you go, 10 very good (and biased) points on why you should get an AM9 Wink
You could work for bird mate. I think I'm basically sold. I reckon I'll book a test ride sometime but it's looking more and more like the perfect British riders privateer bike. Only the new rocket max to think about lol. On the am9 how do you feel in rougher stuff, DH style ground? I'd still like to hold my own in low level DH stuff maybe. That's why I was thinking about some of the longer travel 29er bikes as well. From what I hear though, the bird is plenty capable.

Sorry for the delay replying, been a hectic couple of days. Yeah it does come across a bit fanboi but I honestly just love how the bike rides, plus a mate who took mine for spin ended up buying one and another who was about to order a Capra 29 is now re-thinking his decision so it also does a good job of selling itself.

The Stage 6 and Sentinel were on my shortlist (I was looking at frame only options), and I managed to get a decent length demo ride on both before making a final decision. The Sentinel came very close to being the one based purely on the DH performance. My previous Nicolai had 140mm rear travel, like the Sentinel, but even running a plush bottomless feeling Avalanche shock the Sentinel still felt like it had a bit more travel when pushing on over the really rough stuff, which quickly put my mind at rest about the 160/140 travel feeling un-balanced. Unfortunately there was no getting away from its weight though, as even with carbon bits and light-ish Maxxis EXO tyres it felt a good bit heavier than my 32lb Nicolai (the shop reckoned it was around 34lbs). For winch and plummet riding the Sentinel would be awesome, but I wanted a good all-rounder and it also lacked a bit of the fun factor that I was after.

The Stage 6 was the first single pivot bike I had ridden in a long time and after more than 10 years on Horst link bikes I really wasn’t expecting to like it, however it ended up being a great fun bike to ride feeling quite lively at times while not being far behind the Sentinel on DH performance. The main issue I had with it though was the price. At the start of this year a Stage 6 frame with Fox shock was £2,150, about £650 more than my AM9 with CCDB Air which I just didn’t couldn’t justify and it meant I had more left in the kitty for other stuff.

The AM9 compares very well with those two on DH tracks. I have a 160mm Fox 36 Factory on mine and with the CCDB shock set on the plush side it can carry a lot of speed through the rough stuff. I had hoped to take it up to Fort William in the summer but unfortunately never made it. Would’ve loved to see how it fared compared to the Nicolai.

The new RocketMax appeals to me. I tried the previous version a couple of times on local demo rides organised by my LBS, and if it wasn’t for the fact that the XL was a bit on the short side for me I reckon I would’ve bought one. It was great fun to ride and most of the time it didn't feel like a single pivot. It must have been a similar weight to the Sentinel but it didn’t feel it in the same way, for whatever reasons. The new Longshot version looks awesome and if it had been available at the start of the year it would definitely have been fighting the AM9 for my cash.

There’s loads of good bikes to choose from these days though, so good luck with the search Smile
flag toby9843
Posted: Oct 18, 2018 at 23:57 Quote
titaniumtit wrote:
Yeah those Devincis look real brutish in a good kinda way and Freeborn are the UK importer Iirc.

Also check out Ibis’ offering of the Ripmo as that may tick the seat tube box thang straight away for you.

Plus frame warranty is a healthy 7 years :-)

With the Bird AM9 and Cotic rocket max always in the back of my mind I've been doing some looking into the Ripmo. It does seem like a belter of a bike. Well thought out and almost purpose built for enduro racing really. I guess if I got one it'd be the end of DH racing although I expect you could smash one down any of the Pearce tracks and get away with it. I suppose that's why I'm making the change though, to stop DH and focus on enduro.

In reality, with a 7 year warranty and decent crash replacement scheme, I doubt I should worry about carbon when racing. It's not like it's just going to fall apart out of the blue huh. And anything big enough to end a carbon frame during a race is likely going to be big enough to end me and/or and alloy frame anyway. The routing for cables is sorted so that takes away the outside cables issue as well. Not sure I'm seeing many downsides although I don't think the wheels do it for me, that's my one hesitation, I'll get new brakes for it but a whole new set of wheels is extra money that I don't want to spend. Not sure I'm keen on the silent hub, 35mm internal etc. I hasve flow Mk3s on my current bike and they are awesome.

I think it's between the ripmo and a full on custom bird or cotic build.
flag HobNob
O+
Posted: Oct 19, 2018 at 0:59 Quote
The Ripmo is a no from me, runs on bushes rather than bearings, which is a pain in the arse. Also the geometry is weird, it looks like a long travel trail bike, rather than an out & out race bike. My 130mm Fuel is longer, lower & slacker (Trek numbers are a bit off on their geometry chart) than the Ibis. Way too many compromises for a £3k frame.

For me, it would have to be between the AM9 or the Sentinel. The frames are within 500g frame weight, geo is pretty comparable, so I guess it comes down to what you prefer. I ride for a shop that does Trek & Transition, hence why I ride what I do, and you can generally get a deal on them anyway so they should be fairly comparable on price as well. You can easily build a Sentinel Alu to 32/33lbs, which is what I have mine at, and at best the AM9 is going to be a pound lighter, which is next to nothing.

The new Cotic is an interesting one, i'm a fan of steel and reckon it could be a really good shout. Same could be said maybe for the Starling Murmur. There's a lot to consider, the reviews have said the softer feel of steel makes the bike less fatiguing & faster, certainly one to consider. The only annoyance for me on both is the ridiculous bottle cage mounts. if looks are important, personally I think the Starling is the better looker than the Cotic, it might just be the photo's but they look stretched and awkward compared to similar sized bikes.

Bear in mind reliability is the key here if you're doing big races. There is no point if you have a 30lb bike & you're not finishing races due to mechanicals. There's been enough pro bike checks from the like of Jared Graves to see that even a 33/34lb bike is 'light' for an EWS. These guys are racing carbon Stumpy's that are coming out a 36lbs to last the weekend.
flag toby9843
Posted: Oct 19, 2018 at 5:30 Quote
HobNob wrote:
The Ripmo is a no from me, runs on bushes rather than bearings, which is a pain in the arse. Also the geometry is weird, it looks like a long travel trail bike, rather than an out & out race bike. My 130mm Fuel is longer, lower & slacker (Trek numbers are a bit off on their geometry chart) than the Ibis. Way too many compromises for a £3k frame.

For me, it would have to be between the AM9 or the Sentinel. The frames are within 500g frame weight, geo is pretty comparable, so I guess it comes down to what you prefer. I ride for a shop that does Trek & Transition, hence why I ride what I do, and you can generally get a deal on them anyway so they should be fairly comparable on price as well. You can easily build a Sentinel Alu to 32/33lbs, which is what I have mine at, and at best the AM9 is going to be a pound lighter, which is next to nothing.

The new Cotic is an interesting one, i'm a fan of steel and reckon it could be a really good shout. Same could be said maybe for the Starling Murmur. There's a lot to consider, the reviews have said the softer feel of steel makes the bike less fatiguing & faster, certainly one to consider. The only annoyance for me on both is the ridiculous bottle cage mounts. if looks are important, personally I think the Starling is the better looker than the Cotic, it might just be the photo's but they look stretched and awkward compared to similar sized bikes.

Bear in mind reliability is the key here if you're doing big races. There is no point if you have a 30lb bike & you're not finishing races due to mechanicals. There's been enough pro bike checks from the like of Jared Graves to see that even a 33/34lb bike is 'light' for an EWS. These guys are racing carbon Stumpy's that are coming out a 36lbs to last the weekend.

Some good points there mate, well put. I agree on alot of it. I think the ripmo might be more capable than it seems, after all the ibis team have been smashing it on board at alot of the ews rounds this year. They do have access to all kinds of extra stuff though and I wouldn't be surprised to see maybe an angleset in there here and there. I had a genius LT Plus last year and had 29er wheels on it and the head angle was about the same as the ripmo and it felt pretty good. The ripmo is a lot longer in reach and wheelbase though which leads me to think it'd be pretty good all round.

That being said, I like the simplicity of the bird and cotic frame and you're right, bushings seem odd on the ripmo although they must believe in it as they give free lifetime replacements.

Sentinel is deffo worth another look as well I think. Would you choose it over the patrol for enduro racing?

I always get drawn back to the cotic and am considering the rocket max and also the rocket 27.5 to be fair. Both would give me options.

Can't get past birds price though, it comes in almost a grand cheaper even in a custom build with a 160mm RC2 with the nice red lowers, GX, Saints etc etc.

Life never easy is it!
flag MattyPugh
Posted: Oct 19, 2018 at 13:35 Quote
toby9843 wrote:
HobNob wrote:
The Ripmo is a no from me, runs on bushes rather than bearings, which is a pain in the arse. Also the geometry is weird, it looks like a long travel trail bike, rather than an out & out race bike. My 130mm Fuel is longer, lower & slacker (Trek numbers are a bit off on their geometry chart) than the Ibis. Way too many compromises for a £3k frame.

For me, it would have to be between the AM9 or the Sentinel. The frames are within 500g frame weight, geo is pretty comparable, so I guess it comes down to what you prefer. I ride for a shop that does Trek & Transition, hence why I ride what I do, and you can generally get a deal on them anyway so they should be fairly comparable on price as well. You can easily build a Sentinel Alu to 32/33lbs, which is what I have mine at, and at best the AM9 is going to be a pound lighter, which is next to nothing.

The new Cotic is an interesting one, i'm a fan of steel and reckon it could be a really good shout. Same could be said maybe for the Starling Murmur. There's a lot to consider, the reviews have said the softer feel of steel makes the bike less fatiguing & faster, certainly one to consider. The only annoyance for me on both is the ridiculous bottle cage mounts. if looks are important, personally I think the Starling is the better looker than the Cotic, it might just be the photo's but they look stretched and awkward compared to similar sized bikes.

Bear in mind reliability is the key here if you're doing big races. There is no point if you have a 30lb bike & you're not finishing races due to mechanicals. There's been enough pro bike checks from the like of Jared Graves to see that even a 33/34lb bike is 'light' for an EWS. These guys are racing carbon Stumpy's that are coming out a 36lbs to last the weekend.

Some good points there mate, well put. I agree on alot of it. I think the ripmo might be more capable than it seems, after all the ibis team have been smashing it on board at alot of the ews rounds this year. They do have access to all kinds of extra stuff though and I wouldn't be surprised to see maybe an angleset in there here and there. I had a genius LT Plus last year and had 29er wheels on it and the head angle was about the same as the ripmo and it felt pretty good. The ripmo is a lot longer in reach and wheelbase though which leads me to think it'd be pretty good all round.

That being said, I like the simplicity of the bird and cotic frame and you're right, bushings seem odd on the ripmo although they must believe in it as they give free lifetime replacements.

Sentinel is deffo worth another look as well I think. Would you choose it over the patrol for enduro racing?

I always get drawn back to the cotic and am considering the rocket max and also the rocket 27.5 to be fair. Both would give me options.

Can't get past birds price though, it comes in almost a grand cheaper even in a custom build with a 160mm RC2 with the nice red lowers, GX, Saints etc etc.

Life never easy is it!

Buchanan and i think Bex went back to the 27.5 ibis though im sure so says something about the ripmo... i wouldnt bother.

Cotic is sick, i want a rocket myself ! love the clean lines.

Go with the Bird or cotic man.
flag jcc0042
O+ FL
Posted: Oct 19, 2018 at 17:44 Quote
You guys are harsh! Owning an HD4 -- the 27.5 Ibis enduro bike, I can tell you the fact that people stuck with the HD4 over the Ripmo says more about the HD4 than anything else. It is an absolutely phenomenal bike. I've ridden all over the U.S. with it, and it can handle anything with ease. The DW link lets you sit down on a slacked out enduro bike and pedal for hours with ease, then stand up and plow true DH trails (think Windrock Bike Park.) I can't remember if I previously mentioned this, but I know a guy who did a 50+ mile endurance race on his HD4, and finished really well.

The only drawback of the HD4 is the seat tube angle. Everything else is spot on.
flag HuckersNeck
Posted: Oct 20, 2018 at 0:34 Quote
jcc0042 wrote:
You guys are harsh! Owning an HD4 -- the 27.5 Ibis enduro bike, I can tell you the fact that people stuck with the HD4 over the Ripmo says more about the HD4 than anything else. It is an absolutely phenomenal bike. I've ridden all over the U.S. with it, and it can handle anything with ease. The DW link lets you sit down on a slacked out enduro bike and pedal for hours with ease, then stand up and plow true DH trails (think Windrock Bike Park.) I can't remember if I previously mentioned this, but I know a guy who did a 50+ mile endurance race on his HD4, and finished really well.

The only drawback of the HD4 is the seat tube angle. Everything else is spot on.

The seat angle, and the fact that the OP is looking at 29ers, unless you've found a way to wedge bigger wheels into it Wink

I would probably have the HD4 over the Ripmo to be fair though.
flag toby9843
Posted: Oct 20, 2018 at 1:40 Quote
HuckersNeck wrote:
jcc0042 wrote:
You guys are harsh! Owning an HD4 -- the 27.5 Ibis enduro bike, I can tell you the fact that people stuck with the HD4 over the Ripmo says more about the HD4 than anything else. It is an absolutely phenomenal bike. I've ridden all over the U.S. with it, and it can handle anything with ease. The DW link lets you sit down on a slacked out enduro bike and pedal for hours with ease, then stand up and plow true DH trails (think Windrock Bike Park.) I can't remember if I previously mentioned this, but I know a guy who did a 50+ mile endurance race on his HD4, and finished really well.

The only drawback of the HD4 is the seat tube angle. Everything else is spot on.

The seat angle, and the fact that the OP is looking at 29ers, unless you've found a way to wedge bigger wheels into it Wink

I would probably have the HD4 over the Ripmo to be fair though.

I'm on 27.5 DH bike and free ride bike so open to 27.5. Just thinking for ultimate race speed 29er seems the way ahead. For instance, the rocket and the rocket max are both on my shortlist and I'm demoing in Dec. Whether I can hold out that long is another question!
flag Arierep
Posted: Oct 20, 2018 at 5:01 Quote
Another happy AM9 owner here, 5 months relationship now.
Suspension is the right balance between activeness and efficiency, can pedal 1500m climbing days with my XC buddies and then gnarly DH tracks the day after.
Geometry is spot on. Also, the frame price was so good I just couldn't justify any other option.

Only minuses:
- no downtube or chainstay guard, but look at the price
- our either have a piggy back shock or a bottle
- Bird only approves a 150mm fork. Wouldn't mind 10 more mm up front, but balanced f+r travel has it's own advantages
flag Roguee
FL
Posted: Nov 28, 2018 at 14:13 Quote
Can vouch for a Murmur here, have mine about 8 months now and its stud up well to 3 months in Europe, and also gotten me my best result to date (Personally but not on Paper as it was Qualifying at the Redbull Foxhunt) Feels like alot more than the 145mm travel suggests, abit like the Sentinel I would imagine.

For racing in Europe next year I want to ideally get a burlier wheelset than the Hope Tech Enduros, ditch the 12spd for 11 and get a bigger shock as the ccdb inline was struggling with overheating on the bigger tracks so dont make those mistakes!

Mine has a 64.5 ha, 480 reach but you can get the taiwon made ones cheaper now with 65 ha and 485 reach on the large. Being honest I genuinly think it is as quick as any bike at the moment and is really well suited to the big alpine tracks. I dont plan on changing mine any time soon

 


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