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I’m in the market for a new enduro bike and I can’t decide which bike would suit me best. Some of the bikes I’m looking at are the yt industries Capra comp, canyon strive al 5.0 race, the specialized enduro comp, and the commencal meta am v4.2. Does anyone own any of these bikes? I also need something that won’t kill me on climbs. If there are any other bikes like these in the 3000$ price range I would really appreciate it if you had any recommendations! Thanks!
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I have the 2017 Specialized Enduro Comp 650b. I have never ridden the other bikes that you have listed, but I absolutely love my enduro. I had a 2007 enduro and just got the 2017 earlier this year. It is well priced, I think retail is 3200. I found mine online from someone local for 1800, only ridden a couple of times. I climb up anything and feel so fast and controlled on the downhill. Uphill is going to be a little harder than a XC bike, obviously, but worth it for the downhill. Not sure if this helps you out, but thats just my opinion.
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Im looking at a Pivot Mach 6 to build this winter. I demoed one and fell in love with it. If you go with a carbon mach 6 you lose quite a bit of weight, but gain in the price tag. The aluminum alloy mach 6 can be purchased as a complete bike for around 3 grand.
When you get to the 3000$ figure, most of the bikes that are priced in the same range will have similar components. our biggest bang for the buck in my opinion is making sure you get a frame that fits your body geomerty well. I like that Mach 6, but the specialized enduro comp doesnt feel right with my size and built.
Everyone is different when it comes to fitting a bike. I would suggest going to a large event where you can demo several different bikes. This will allow you to get a good feel for the bike your buying before committing on the financial side.
Good luck and let us know what you decide!
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My buddy has a Canyon strive al 5.0 race, and I haven’t heard any complaints from him.
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I have only ridden 4 enduro bikes, I liked the Giant Reign best, but there are lots of good ones. Salsa Redpoint and Santa Cruz Bronson were also nice. The Pivot Mach 6 just didn’t fit me right.
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If you’re in the market for a new bike in the $3k range – try everything you can! The same size bike from different manufacturers can fit quite differently. I ride a XL Trek Remedy and it feels more like a large. Our son rides a Commencal Meta and loves it. It was the most inexpensive bike in our price range but it came with a Rockshox Lyric and 3-position shock in the rear. We have upgraded the brakes to Shimano XT and the rear derailleur from a SRAM NX to GX. Good luck!
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If you can find one the Process 153 SE is a screaming deal at $2200. Bombproof and a lot of fun. If you want a slighter better climber and are willing to sacrifice some all out descending prowess you could do a Process 134 for even less. That said, I’d go with the 153. Enduro races aren’t won on the climbs and the beefier bike will make you strong like bull, plus you’ll have money left over for upgrades or better yet beer.
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Dr Sweets,
Do you own a process 153? Do you know the weight on that bike or what the frame is composed of?
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@KM332: “Do you own a process 153? Do you know the weight on that bike or what the frame is composed of?”
No, I don’t own one, but I’ve ridden that particular model (the frames are all the same; only their spec differs) at several demos as well as riding a couple of my friends 153’s on occasion. I believe one of the headcheese’s here Aaron owns one too. I nearly bought one back in ’13 as they are really fun bikes. They are aluminum and weigh around 31-33 lbs with pedals. The new Process line is totally different and I’ve yet to ride one of those, but you can find tons good of reviews of the 153 out there.
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Thanks for the info. I tossed around the idea of a 153 over the pivot mach 6. The reviews on the 153 sound great. Still kinda on the fence but I cant find anywhere near me in Illinois where I can demo a process 153. If anyone has any suggestions of where to demo one in the midwest I’m all ears.
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I have a 2016 Scott Genius 710 and it’s pretty amazing. Scott doesn’t get a lot of attention here, but it’s a super versatile bike that is amazing on the downhill.
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What do you guys think of the Diamondback Mission series? I haven’t actually sat on them or anything because I couldnt find one in town, but I just ordered the Mission 2 from the DB website.
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@KM332: “Still kinda on the fence but I cant find anywhere near me in Illinois where I can demo a process 153. If anyone has any suggestions of where to demo one in the midwest I’m all ears.”
Where in Illinois are you? There are a handful of dealers in the Chicago metro and one in Madison as well as Milwaukee. There are actually 2 dealers in Michigan that have Process’s for demos in Grand Rapids and Marquette. That could be a nice field trip for ya. Kona does a demo tour and usually swings through most areas at least once a year. They are moving through the west coast currently. I expect to see them down here in Georgia before the end of the year.
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@KM332: “I tossed around the idea of a 153 over the pivot mach 6…”
If you are not constrained by a $3K budget, then you have many options. Once again, I haven’t ridden the new Mach 6, but have taken the old one, the 429 trail and the Firebird out. They are good pedaling bikes, but none of them blew me away. The Kona on the other hand has that hard to define characteristic of simply just being fun. It wants to party. Your results may vary. On that note, there are bikes that make awesome race bikes and some that are more inclined towards fun. While these assets are not mutually exclusive, it does make you evaluate what you are hoping any bike will do for you. Knowing thyself will help save you from disappointment.
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@DrSweets is right, I have a 2014 Kona Process. It is still one of the most fun bikes I’ve ever ridden. If you’re talking about the first generation, the frame is going to be aluminum and it’s not light. Kona made some slight alterations to the frame after 2014 to lighten it up a bit, but to give you an idea, my size large weighs right around 30lbs. That’s with nice, but strong parts. The Process climbs well enough for what it is, but descending is its strong suit.
I haven’t ridden the latest Mach 6 that just came out a week or so ago, but I did ride the previous generation. It’s a good bike, but not my favorite in the Pivot line up by any means. I much prefer the Switchblade over the Mach 6. Despite having similar travel to the Process, the Mach 6 rode like a shorter travel bike. A lot of that has to do with the geometry. The reach on the previous Mach 6 is 414mm and my Kona Process FROM 4 MODEL YEARS AGO is 460mm. Granted, Kona was one of the first major companies to really stretch their bikes out. Personally, I love the really long reach, but I also have long arms. I get that it’s not for everybody. The new Mach 6 now has a 460mm reach, but Kona already moved on. Last year’s aluminum bike and the new carbon G2 Process have a reach of 475mm! So maybe the 2020 Mach 6 will get there.
Some of the downsides of the Kona: the frame doesn’t play well with coil shocks and there are a shit ton of bearings in the linkage. I think 10 or 12. Some of them are very small and don’t last that long. Also, I don’t think the manufacturing tolerances are all that tight, at least on my personal bike. The non drive crank arm only has a couple mm of clearance between it and the chainstay which limits the cranks I can run. Even with the slim-armed XX1 cranks, there isn’t room for the crank boot. So there’s that. And there’s only room for a bottle underneath the downtube, which is useless for me. So I always have to ride with some sort of pack.
But, it’s a damn fun bike and with the G2 coming out, the Process 153 SE for $2,200 is a screaming deal.
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@AaronChambelain: “DrSweets is right…”
…but soooo wrong.
@Aaron Chamberlain: ” Despite having similar travel to the Process, the Mach 6 rode like a shorter travel bike. A lot of that has to do with the geometry. The reach on the previous Mach 6 is 414mm and my Kona Process FROM 4 MODEL YEARS AGO is 460mm. Granted, Kona was one of the first major companies to really stretch their bikes out. Personally, I love the really long reach…”
Aaron is right about this as geo on the Pivot is certainly more “XC” oriented. Furthermore, I don’t think arm length makes a huge difference. I am 5’9″ built like a cinder block and certainly do not have a big wingspan, but my ’17 medium bike with a top tube length 0f 624mm is nearly the same as Aaron’s Kona. I run 800mm bars too with a 35mm stem and love the set up. I highly endorse going for the longer top tube/shorter(est) stem combo.
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@DrSweets yah. More than arm length it’s about personal preference. In my experience it’s my shorter buddies that don’t like the mega long bikes though. It could also be that many of them come from an XC background and they need to baby step their way up to mega reaches.
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I run a 2015 KONA Process 134 DL (XL). I’m 6’1″ ~220lbs and ride the hell out of this bike. It’s only ‘weakness’ for me over the years has been the factory brakes. They just couldn’t bite well after 2-3 hours, or very sloppy conditions. I’ve thus upgraded to some Hope Tech 3 V4’s (quads) and they are spectacular for my weight / aggressive riding. I’ve gone through many components (due to crash’n’destroy scenarios usually) and always go for near top replacements, but prefer beefier answers over lighter (ex: dropped to a 1-by setup with a Saint rear derailleur). I’m not shy to take a flat-landing off a 4-5 drop/jump either. I’ve seriously beaten the snot out of this bike and it’s laughed at all of it. Including bearings. They’ve never needed replacement. Strava is reporting 2,100 miles on it. Which is probably missing about 800. ~3,000 miles total with mostly just component replacements, and twice annual overhauls.
My LBS is “Sixes Pit Bike Shop” up in Canton GA. They’re a Kona dealer and have the 134/153 regularly for test rides. My next bike will surely be a Process again.Here she be: since I’ve added a new saddle (finally broke the stock WTB), and a larger capacity rear-shock (same RL though, just bigger)
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@SP3NGL3R: “My LBS is “Sixes Pit Bike Shop” up in Canton GA. They’re a Kona dealer and have the 134/153 regularly for test rides.”
Those guys are str8 up crooks!!! Bahahahhahahaha!!!
@SP3NGL3R: “My next bike will surely be a Process again.”
Should be an Evil, but I’m biased. Ha! Furthermore, a big galoot like you would do well with a 29er.
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