Ripley AF vs Ripmo AF

PB Forum :: Ibis
Ripley AF vs Ripmo AF
  • Previous Page
  • Next Page
Author Message
flag Jtfranson
O+
Posted: Jul 17, 2021 at 17:50 Quote
Hopefully one of you has experience on both bikes.

I demoed a ripmo af and was really disappointed in how sluggish it felt going up hill. But i am concerned the ripley won’t give me the confidence that the ripmo gave me on the descents. Would changing the assegais on the ripmo to something faster rolling make that much of a difference? How does the ripley do on the descents?
flag krehzeekid
FL
Posted: Sep 9, 2021 at 14:22 Quote
Jtfranson wrote:
Hopefully one of you has experience on both bikes.

I demoed a ripmo af and was really disappointed in how sluggish it felt going up hill. But i am concerned the ripley won’t give me the confidence that the ripmo gave me on the descents. Would changing the assegais on the ripmo to something faster rolling make that much of a difference? How does the ripley do on the descents?

I have a Ripmo, and have demo'd the Ripley- it's not a ton of experience, but it's enough to have some thoughts on it. The Ripley was loads faster on the uphills, especially chunky terrain where keeping momentum is hard. I suspect the weight, kinematics and shock tune play to that. It's very good downhill for what it is, but it's definitely not going to keep up with a bigger, more descending focused bike.

The Ripmo definitely benefits from lighter tires. The Assegai's are not only on the heavy side, but a very slow rolling tread. The grip is great, but there's a serious trade off. I ended up going to a set of Goodyears (Newton ST front, Newton rear) and it made a world of difference. They're not crazy light tires at about 1.15kg each, but they move loads better than the Assegais, moreso that I expected. Playing with sag also works well to make the bike feel a little sharper under power.

That being said, they don't turn it into a beefy XC bike. While the Ripmo pedals well for a big-ish bike, you can only make a 4kg frame feel so light. The suspension kinematics do a great job limiting pedal bob when climbing steadily, but you can definitely feel some movement when you stand and mash. Add in some weight, and you end up with a competent but not speedy climber.

Personally, I took a Ripmo because I wanted the descending prowess, and don't mind spinning my way up. It's not really made to race up, but rather to get there without wiping your energy. I honestly found it as good or better than most of the bikes in the travel class. Without knowing how or where you ride, it's hard to say what to choose, but I'm very happy with my Ripmo.
flag SkinnieAF
Posted: Sep 10, 2021 at 6:15 Quote
Never ridden a Ripley but I changed out the rear Assegai on my Ripmo AF to a 2.4 Dissector. It made a huge difference on rolling speed for me.
  • Previous Page
  • Next Page

 


Copyright © 2000 - 2024. Pinkbike.com. All rights reserved.
dv65 0.008510
Mobile Version of Website