# Got my Syren built!!



## MizzBlood (Aug 23, 2007)

hey ladies, the syrens have fineally arrived!!! I picked up my syren yesterday and built it up last night. here are some pictures  
http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=396896


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## mtb888 (Aug 2, 2006)

Beautiful! So, any stickers later? Can't wait to hear about the riding report.


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## MizzBlood (Aug 23, 2007)

yes, i plan to add stickers....i am just undecided on the color for now.


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## georgezilla (Sep 28, 2005)

*oh la la!*

that looks purdy! black sparkle w/purple decals is the color scheme i'm drooling/dreaming about! the "h" is some nice added bling too! :thumbsup:


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## SuperKat (Mar 27, 2005)

Nice ride. Have fun with it.


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## rugbyred (Aug 31, 2006)

The Syren page on Transition's web site is updated. I am not sure who is more excited, myself or my girlfriend. Can't wait for the frame to arrive.
Eric

http://www.transitionbikes.com/2007/Syren.cfm


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## SpecRider96 (Sep 30, 2005)

Very nice pics!I cant wait to get mine, I think Im going with the blue.Lets get some ride reports soon so I can get a better feel for which size I need.Im 5'3" with a 30 inseem and have an older small julianna now,so it looks like I need a small,which they are out of till whio knows when.


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## connie (Mar 16, 2004)

I just got a call from my bike shop and hopefully mine shipped today and might be here by Friday.... He figured Tuesday at the absolute latest.


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## mtb888 (Aug 2, 2006)

Same here. Looks like mine will arrive on Friday according to the tracking number. If it arrives early enough on Friday, I will be out the door with my new Syren on Saturday morning for a test ride. It is all exciting.


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## SpecRider96 (Sep 30, 2005)

So how many of you all are going to build it yourself?Im thinking about just getting one of their build kits since they seem to have mostly good parts and $1250 is not that bad ,compared to what I would pay for everything else after shipping and tax.


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## connie (Mar 16, 2004)

SpecRider96 said:


> So how many of you all are going to build it yourself?Im thinking about just getting one of their build kits since they seem to have mostly good parts and $1250 is not that bad ,compared to what I would pay for everything else after shipping and tax.


I'm building mine myself. I know the build kits look pretty good but enough specific parts I wanted to use that I figured it made sense to just build it. This is the first bike I've done that with, so I'm excited to get the frame and put everything together! :


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## SpecRider96 (Sep 30, 2005)

Hey connie, are you by any chance using smaller bars/grips?I have an extra set of the wylder bars and grips that Im going to be putting on my Syren ,and I was wondering if you or anyone else here knows of a smaller diameter lock on grip.I know Titec makes the hellcat stuff which is smaller but they dont have lock on grips.


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## connie (Mar 16, 2004)

SpecRider96 said:


> Hey connie, are you by any chance using smaller bars/grips?I have an extra set of the wylder bars and grips that Im going to be putting on my Syren ,and I was wondering if you or anyone else here knows of a smaller diameter lock on grip.I know Titec makes the hellcat stuff which is smaller but they dont have lock on grips.


Nope, just regular sized ODI Ruffian's for me. Though, my hands fit in men's medium sized gloves so I guess grips must be generically sized to my hands anyway. You'd think someone would make lock ons for smaller bars?


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## mtb888 (Aug 2, 2006)

My friend mechanic had a great difficulty with Syren over the weekend. So, my Syren is unfinished for now. We have to get a new shock... bummer. We especially had a difficult time fitting the XT or XTR front derailleur due to Syren's E-type deal plus the seatpost design. It looks like I won't be able to have a chain guide... Anyway, I am waiting for a different Marzocchi Roco. But, here is my Syren on hold.


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## connie (Mar 16, 2004)

mtb888 said:


> My friend mechanic had a great difficulty with Syren over the weekend. So, my Syren is unfinished for now. We have to get a new shock... bummer. We especially had a difficult time fitting the XT or XTR front derailleur due to Syren's E-type deal plus the seatpost design. It looks like I won't be able to have a chain guide... Anyway, I am waiting for a different Marzocchi Roco. But, here is my Syren on hold.


Bummer. Did you have an e-type front derailleur and it still won't work with a chainguide?

I'm not using a front derailleur... hopefully I won't run into chainguide issues. I'm still waiting on a few other parts to show up now, so I haven't gotten mine together yet. My headset should be here tomorrow though and then we can get going.


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## mtb888 (Aug 2, 2006)

As long as you are doing the single chain ring, you will be fine with chainguide situation. I am doing two chain rings, so it has become a bit of problem. But it sure is a beautiful bike!


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## MizzBlood (Aug 23, 2007)

I put a e13 drs chain guide on my syren with a e-type derailleur on mine. you just need to be to use the e13 back plate


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## Brodiegrrl (Jan 12, 2004)

wow looks like a fun bike! nice and nimble!


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## Yazzle Dazzle (Jun 27, 2007)

*Build Delay*

My build was also delayed due to the e-type DR issue since I went with the dual ring package. I've still been able to ride while waiting for my chainguide by using a product called N-Gear Jump Stop, which is a very simple device that keeps the chain from falling onto the smaller ring and only cost $10.

The bike has been a blast to ride, though I'm still getting the DHX Air dialed in. I'm not posting pics yet since I need to dress the bike up a little first  . There is a picture in the Gallery on the Transition site from riding this past weekend though.

I'm really looking forward to hearing ride reviews from all you ladies who purchased the bike without testing and hope you're all as blown away as I was.


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## mtb888 (Aug 2, 2006)

Does any of ladies who have built and ridden Syren with two chainrings have tips for front derailleur shifting issue? Mine wont's shift easily and drags the chain quite a bit. I hear it's the E-type derailleur issue and is difficult to solve... Any suggestions would be very cool. Thanks! Happy riding, ladies.


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## nintense (Aug 17, 2004)

*I my have some ideas...*

To take off some chain drag, wait for your chainguide first..
:thumbsup:


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## connie (Mar 16, 2004)

*Woohoo!!!*

I got the frame in last Friday, and today finally got... well at least enough parts in to build it up. The new chainguide is supposed to arrive monday, and I should be putting new handlebars on it... rear brake cable needs to get shortened, blah blah... but at least I can ride it!

Woohoo!














































And the re-build on the El Cuervo: still missing the new bashguard and saddle, but otherwise complete:


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## Yazzle Dazzle (Jun 27, 2007)

*Yeah Connie!*

The blue accents look great! Very sleek and fast looking! What size frame did you end up with and how does it fit? I see you also went with some protective film, 3M? Great stuff for saving the paint and frame from rock chips.
Congrats!


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## connie (Mar 16, 2004)

Yazzle Dazzle said:


> The blue accents look great! Very sleek and fast looking! What size frame did you end up with and how does it fit? I see you also went with some protective film, 3M? Great stuff for saving the paint and frame from rock chips.
> Congrats!


Yeah, I just picked up a roll of clear plastic protective stuff from the local auto parts store and wrapped it around the downtube to try and keep the paint nice. It's just too pretty to mess up! I'm still debating on putting the blue Transition sticker on the downtube... the paint is just so pretty I hate to cover it up.

Anyway, I got a medium. Went with a 65mm Sunline stem. So far the fit is feeling pretty good. It's smaller than my AS-X was for sure, but I think that's a good thing - I was wanting it to be more maneuverable and such.

We're heading down to Moab tomorrow afternoon so I can finally try it out! Can't wait!

I guess that will also be the test to see if my gearing choice made sense. I decided to go with a single 33T ring and an 11-34 cassette. We'll see how that works out. My husband thinks I've lost my mind not having a dual chainring, but I think it'll work.

I've also never tried the Kenda Telonix tires before. So lots of new stuff to test out all at once!


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## MTNgirl (Jul 20, 2004)

oooh that looks so nice. i say leave the decal off the downtube, but i'm a fan of the clean look. very thekthy!

post up some pics of your honeymoon ride in moab!


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## mtb888 (Aug 2, 2006)

Very nice, Connie. What kind of saddle is that? Is it THE? Have a great showdown in Moab!


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## callmeCrash (Aug 28, 2007)

Nice build up Connie, like the blue and black combo, still undecided if I should buy the small frame, apparently it's going to be a 6-8 week wait regardless because they are so popular. Hope you have a good time riding it!!


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## connie (Mar 16, 2004)

mtb888 said:


> Very nice, Connie. What kind of saddle is that? Is it THE? Have a great showdown in Moab!


Yeah, it's a THE. I can't remember the model, but it's titanium rails and such. We'll see how that works out too... I haven't ridden this model before, but it seems to be about the right shape/size for me.


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## soly (May 29, 2006)

Connie - that bike is totally hawt!! Blue accents sure are purty, they tie it all together. Now go git her dirty.


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## connie (Mar 16, 2004)

Warning - this bike may be so much fun to ride that you ride yourself to death, or until you start coughing up a lung, anyway.

Anyway - I'm pretty dang impressed! We rode lazy-man's porcupine. LPS looked like it had too much snow, so we started there, but rode down Sand Flats road and dropped into lazy-mans and then climbed to the overlook. It was freezing cold this morning when we started riding down the road and I was feeling so good on the drop in that I started to really hammer up the climb. It should have set off a warning bell that I was up in front of the guys on a climb on something other than my 20lb singlespeed... but I was having too much fun rolling up rocks and such. Right up until the shock of the cold air on my not-warmed-up-at-all lungs finally hit me and then I was a mess and could barely breathe for about 20 minutes. So that took some of the fun out of the climb... I also realized the cheap seatpost I put on there isn't long enough to extend to where I need it for proper climbing height... so that was annoying too. But I found a shim and have a longer Thomson at home that will work better anyway.

But once we got past the overlook, I was feeling better (actually able to take a somewhat full breath without coughing) and starting to get the feel for the bike too. The first thing that really impressed me was this weird little line I've tried a few times that does a sharp probably 120 degree turn around some rocks that I've had about a 25% success rate with in the past. I rode around it like it was NOTHING. Shorter wheelbase and easily maneuverable bike = super fun on techy stuff. I guess that's common sense, really, but it feels so good to just cruise through that kind of stuff!

I will say, the downside to that is that on the parts where you're just flat out straight-line bombing down babyheads/broken rocks/gravel... that's where it's not as good as the long-wheel base, heavy, extra inch of travel AS-X. It did just fine - nothing broken or rattling, and not even anything close to a wreck, I just felt like I was going a little slower and being more cautious than I would in that stuff on my old bike. Part of that is a matter of adjustment, I'm sure - the whole balance point feels different, but as I got more and more used to the bike I was starting to reel the guys back in. And once we got out to the singletrack, I was stoked. There were several things I cruised right over that normally at least worry me, if not give me trouble, and I rolled over them like they were nothing.

Definitely way easier than other bikes at popping the front end up. The 5lb Lyrik fork probably helps with that too, but it is very good for techy stuff that way. And it climbs really well when I'm standing too. Not what you want to do on long climbs, but when you need to power up something short, steep and techy - that helps me out a lot. I'm wondering if that actually helps with having the bike heavier in the rear than in the front... maybe it helps keep the bike more stable when you're standing to climb. So in contrast - probably not the ideal setup for seated climbing... but this isn't really the bike I'd pick if that were the strengths I was looking for in a bike anyway.

So we finally got the climbing out of the way, and once we were into the swoopy parts of the trail it just felt perfect. Very, very fun in corners. There were parts of the singletrack that went from swoopy fun to... rollercoaster in heaven. I felt very comfortable leaning the bike over, hitting little angled rocks that created mini-wall-ride types of lines, and just generally felt like I had a ton of room to move around over the bike and be very active with my riding.

I do have a tendency to smack my pedals a bit more, as the BB is lower than what I'm used to, but it wasn't bad, and I think I'll get used to avoiding that just fine. I'm really stoked overall. And I can only imagine it's going to feel better and better as I get used to the smaller frame and such (I had a few _whoa_ moments where I'd realize there wasn't as much front of the bike out there as I'm used to, but nothing more than that. I'm also pretty happy with the Kenda Telonix tires. My husband was using one for his front tire as well and we had no flats or issues (and this trail always lets us know if we're going with too much of a lightweight tire...) The sticky rubber side knobbies felt a little squishy at first, but once I got used to the feeling, I'm starting to like it more and more.

Anyway.... :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

Can't wait to ride tomorrow!!!


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## mtb888 (Aug 2, 2006)

Very cool report, Connie. Ride on my fellow Syren rider!
Here are my Syren photos. I washed and shined it, so here she is.




























REVIEW:
So, like Connie said, this bike is a total kick-ass. I took Syren to local xc trail and DH trail this week. It climed fine; it added 6 extra minutes to my usual (w/ 26lb Titus) 50 min climb. It also helped that I have 66 ATA that reduced my travel to 140mm. Of course, my bike is 35 lbs and had flat pedals, so it took a little extra to climb.
Now, the DH portion of the program was superb. I just could not believe how I cleared everything today. Everything. Wow, it was so fast and cornering was so much fun. I really love this bike. Size small is perfect for me (5'3 with 30inch seam). Highly recommended. 
If you are in SoCal area, my bike guy who built Syren is highly experienced especially with unique Syren frame design. https://www.bike-improve.com/

Happy Riding, Ladies!


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## Yazzle Dazzle (Jun 27, 2007)

*Nice!*

Wow! :eekster: Your gold accents and Connie's blue look so hot! It's nice to read your reviews and have my own impressions shared by others. I've yet to take mine on any long, pedaling rides, I'm still having too much fun at the local jump course, but soon. More pics!


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## SpecRider96 (Sep 30, 2005)

Wow mtb888!That is all I can say! I am going to explode waiting for mine to come.


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## Yazzle Dazzle (Jun 27, 2007)

*Action shots anyone?*

Let's see some Syrens in action. Here's a few pics from this past Saturday when my husband and I had the jump park to ourselves.


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## mtb888 (Aug 2, 2006)

Nice pics and nice jumps!!!


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