# Trail rideable DJ/ park bike



## Hardtails Are Better (May 4, 2005)

Hey,
I'm looking for a winter project, and am thinking that I'd like a bike that I could trail ride on some, jump a bit, and just mess around on. It'd mostly get used as a playish trail bike, not so much for really long rides, but more for shorter rides around the local trails. I'm picturing somthing really low and short and nimble, that I can flick and pump and toss around really easily. I'd like it to be decently light, though I'm not going to go crazy trying to make it weigh 4 pounds. It dosn't need to be super beefy, since I'm not going to be going all that huge on it, but it needs to be able to stand up to some abuse. It will probably be run SS most of the time, but I want the option to run gears. I'll probably put a Pike on whatever I end up getting (if I go this route). I'm about 6' tall, so I need a reasonably large bike. I'm thinking somthing in the range of a 23.5" ETT, and a long enough seattube to get decent leg extension. I run my seat pretty low, so it dosn't need to be that long. Sooo... after that long winded description, what comes to mind?


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## snaky69 (Mar 8, 2005)

Kona Cowan frame.


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## rockcity01 (Jun 26, 2007)

a 05 or a 06 specialized p1


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## Hardtails Are Better (May 4, 2005)

The Cowan's BB is a little high, and the CS a little long. Plus I'm in between a medium and a large in terms of TT length. I do like that it has sliding dropouts, and the ST length is definatly good.

The P1 is a bit short TT wise. Plus, my local Specialized dealer blows chunks. I'd like to avoid dealing with them if at all possible.


I've been eyeing the Commencal Absolute 4X a little. The ST is a little short, but other than that it looks great. I think I could get away with the 14.2" ST, but it'd require a pretty long post. Thoughts?

Thanks for the ideas guys, keep 'em coming.


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## NoBrakes! (Jun 15, 2007)

ummm...
PORN???
Chase 1 or STP in the long size
i dont think you will find much else


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## Hardtails Are Better (May 4, 2005)

NoBrakes! said:


> ummm...
> PORN???
> Chase 1 or STP in the long size
> i dont think you will find much else


Too short.


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## JBsoxB (May 18, 2004)

seriously you could ride a bmx and be fine...

try getting an NS suburban and build it up really lightly.


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## JBsoxB (May 18, 2004)

stp would be my first choice though...


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## NoBrakes! (Jun 15, 2007)

whats too short


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## Tracerboy (Oct 13, 2002)

atomlab trailpimp frame. seriously, perfect bike for what you want. the geo is spot on, not too short or too long anywhere to stray from being a good do it all bike. im about an inch or two taller then you and it fits great.

an Evil DOC or Sov as well..


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## i like downhill (May 15, 2004)

this might be where the ever so useful chameleon comes into play...say maybe a medium?


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## bbrz4 (Jun 12, 2007)

snaky69 said:


> Kona Cowan frame.


I heard Kona's are made of wet newspaper.


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## XSL_WiLL (Nov 2, 2004)

bbrz4 said:


> I heard Kona's are made of wet newspaper.


 :madman:


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## Flat tyres (Nov 6, 2006)

Steelhead................. there I said it.


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## the_godfather (Jan 19, 2007)

identiti bikes????


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## climbingbubba (Jan 10, 2007)

don't worry about it being too short. i ride a NS suburban and i am 6 foot and the top tube is 21.8 and its still fine. its fun having a compact bike but if you want full extension then you are going to have to sacrafice stand over height. 
you have a bottle rocket thats light. ride it for the trails and build a pure dj/street bike. then you will have the best of both worlds. thats what i did
Bottlerocket = 36 pounds
NS suburban = 28 pounds
lots of fun


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## JMH (Feb 23, 2005)

I bought my first play bike with the same criteria. I am 6' tall and I wanted a trail worthy bike that I could also ride street with. I figured my XC background would make me unhappy with anything shorter than 23.5" TT. Well, I am on my third frame and they keep getting shorter and shorter, and I have given up on the Trail Riding aspect because I was tired of having a frame that was such a compromise for street.

I started out on a Kona Cowan. It was a great frame, but it was waaaay more fun on the trails than riding urban. I could get my saddle to full height on the Large, but the CS and TT (23.8! ) were just too long to be called "nimble"

Next frame was an older Trail or Park, with a 23.4" TT. Again, I should have just gone straight for a 22.5" and not wasted my time. I sold it to another guy who was curious about a street/DJ bike and "wanted an XC-ish top tube length" 

Newest frame is a new ToP, Medium. The 15.5" stays and 22.5ish TT are perfect for me, but it took two bikes that were wrong to figure it out.

I would look at the Vagrant if you are feeling a bit trail-ish, and the new Medium ToP if you want a really nice DJ/Street frame that isn't ridiculously short.

JMH


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## captain spaulding (May 7, 2006)

Hardtails Are Better said:


> I've been eyeing the Commencal Absolute 4X a little. The ST is a little short, but other than that it looks great. I think I could get away with the 14.2" ST, but it'd require a pretty long post. Thoughts?


Yeah I have an '07 Long Absolut 4x and I convinced myself I could use it as a trail/xc bike, got a long seatpost and all that. I'm 6' 4" and it was a bit miserable trying to use it as a xc/trail bike, even with the seatpost almost fully extended I couldn't get full extension and climbing was out of the seat most of the time(doesn't help that I had a 34T front chain ring). Maybe with a longer stem it would have been more bearable, but it's really not meant to be ridden up hill when your a tall mofo like me/you.. Now I must say it's a blast going down, it's rails everything(took it to diablo also and had a blast on alot of the smoother trails) I could throw at it at the local xc loop which are know to be technical, it's like the lotus elise of bikes, super lightweight, super precise, a bit rough, but it all makes sense when you ride/drive it..


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## trailville (Jul 24, 2006)

This doesn't really fit your description but I thought I would mention it anyway because I'm planning on building one up this winter as a "more fun Xc bike". It's the On One Inbred 456. Basically it's a long-travel XC frame (steel) with a little more DH geometry and a little stronger than a typical XC frame. Certainly not designed for DJ/Park but looks like a fun bike for trails.


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## Hardtails Are Better (May 4, 2005)

captain spaulding said:


> Now I must say it's a blast going down, it's rails everything(took it to diablo also and had a blast on alot of the smoother trails) I could throw at it at the local xc loop which are know to be technical, it's like the lotus elise of bikes, super lightweight, super precise, a bit rough, but it all makes sense when you ride/drive it..


That sounds like exactly what I want. I know you said it's hard to climb with, but I am 4" shorter than you are- think it'd work out?

Thanks for the input all, keep it coming.


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## captain spaulding (May 7, 2006)

Hardtails Are Better said:


> That sounds like exactly what I want. I know you said it's hard to climb with, but I am 4" shorter than you are- think it'd work out?
> 
> Thanks for the input all, keep it coming.


I dunno honestly, with a longer stem(i have a stupid short 35mm stem on it) It might have been easier to pedal uphill.. 
I could just be out of shape as I haven't done any sort of climbing all summer..


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## Hardtails Are Better (May 4, 2005)

Yeah, that's tiny. I'd probably use a 50 or a 60, which would help some.


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## Pastor D (May 30, 2007)

What comes to mind is ... something you could have used the "SEARCH THIS FORUM" button for.


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## captain spaulding (May 7, 2006)

Pastor D said:


> What comes to mind is ... something you could have used the "SEARCH THIS FORUM" button for.


what would you search for genius?


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## el_chupo_ (Nov 15, 2005)

captain spaulding said:


> what would you search for genius?


Dont disrespect the Pastor. He would have searched "trail rideable DJ" and come up with 4 threads, with suggestions for mostly Kona bikes. He would have then realized that it wasnt what he was looking for, and posted this thread. But that is beside the point. He would have searched.

HAB: I dont know what to suggest, but Steelheads are cheap, and you wont lose money if you dont like em. A buddy of mine is right arround 6' as well, and he is riding a short Yeti DJ, and loving how small it is. Keeps trying to talk me into one, but I cant get over how small it is. He tells me he got used to it in about a day of riding, and hated riding his long P3 after.


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## Pastor D (May 30, 2007)

captain spaulding said:


> what would you search for genius?


This forum is congested with an overflow of the same information repeated in every possible way over and over again. It does not take a "genius" to see that.


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## JMH (Feb 23, 2005)

Yeah, and the OTHER forums are different... "carbon bar for dh?" "which fork for my bottlerocket?" "best place to stay in Moab?" "which All Mountain pedals?" "help with my bunnyhop?" :skep:

At least HAB has some well-reasoned critera and some specific questions to address. I'll happily read that over some of the quasi-literate information-free drivel posted on MTBR. 

JMH



Pastor D said:


> This forum is congested with an overflow of the same information repeated in every possible way over and over again. It does not take a "genius" to see that.


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## .Danno. (Jun 18, 2005)

ebfreerider510 said:


> an Evil DOC....


D.O.C. is a good choice. Its seattube is slightly longer than most DJ bikes. It also has the cool vertical dropouts that adjust horizontally. With those you've got the flexibility to go derailleur or non-tensioned single speed as well as QR or bolt axle.


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## Pastor D (May 30, 2007)

JMH said:


> Yeah, and the OTHER forums are different... "carbon bar for dh?" "which fork for my bottlerocket?" "best place to stay in Moab?" "which All Mountain pedals?" "help with my bunnyhop?" :skep:
> 
> At least HAB has some well-reasoned critera and some specific questions to address. I'll happily read that over some of the quasi-literate information-free drivel posted on MTBR.
> 
> JMH


Other forums doing it does not justify it in this one. There are plenty of answers to the "well-reasoned critera and some specific questions to addressed" in this forum without adding to the redundance of pointless posts. This is in no way putting down HAB. I am merely stating the obvious and hoping this foum can be the exception to the others. Goofy smiley face here.


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## Mikey_C (Mar 8, 2005)

Pastor D said:


> Other forums doing it does not justify it in this one. There are plenty of answers to the "well-reasoned critera and some specific questions to addressed" in this forum without adding to the redundance of pointless posts. This is in no way putting down HAB. I am merely stating the obvious and hoping this foum can be the exception to the others. Goofy smiley face here.


of all thread to call out on the urban/park/dj you chose this one?? wtf, this place if filled with useless threads and even more useless replies. This dude asked a legitimate question with specific criteria...search functions are of not much use there..

there are some valid points being raised that when you want a bike do 'do it all' there are going to be compromises. the park/ dj setup bikes rarely have seattube lengths to handle any xc riding.

spaulding is a tall mofo but even at 6foot you would have good amount of seatpost out on a 4x for xc riding. The commencal frame can handle that for sure or the doc cuz to me steel is a great way to smooth out the ride on an xc hardtail(i would be a little weiry to run a huge seatpost on on atom lab frame for instance). As long as you have a decent handlebar rise and a little longer stem length you can make a versitle bike. My only concern would be when you do jack up the seatpost for xc your center of gravity is alot higher meaning more weight will be on your hands which can suck(hence the need for a higher bars)


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## -.---.- (Jun 15, 2007)

steelhead....................there I said it too.

Really kickass frame survives all DH tracks and you can get it on ebay for 175$. Take your chance!!! It will last you for ages. I've seen pictures of guys using em for XC to DH on one size frame. They had some forks with two different travels and just put their seat up or down and they're ready for two opposite extremes...take your chance you won't regret it. Check the mtbr reviews!!!


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## -.---.- (Jun 15, 2007)

im not joking dude it's BOMBPROOF...literally and visually.


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## teoz (Oct 8, 2007)

-.---.- said:


> im not joking dude it's BOMBPROOF...literally and visually.





> steelhead....................there I said it too.
> 
> Really kickass frame survives all DH tracks and you can get it on ebay for 175$. Take your chance!!! It will last you for ages. I've seen pictures of guys using em for XC to DH on one size frame. They had some forks with two different travels and just put their seat up or down and they're ready for two opposite extremes...take your chance you won't regret it. Check the mtbr reviews!!!


which frame?


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## el_chupo_ (Nov 15, 2005)

teoz said:


> which frame?


Its in your quotes.:skep: Steelhead...


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## teoz (Oct 8, 2007)

steelhead what? azonic?


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## el_chupo_ (Nov 15, 2005)

yes, Azonic Steelhead. As far as I know, they are the only company that makes a bike call the Steelhead. look at azonicusa.com for specs and such, and ebay and pricepoint sale is good pricing


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## Hardtails Are Better (May 4, 2005)

Hehe, thanks for the support all.  Pastor, I did search here before posting this. I didn't find quite what I was looking for, hence this thread.



This thread has given me some good things to think about. Thanks.


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## Jiffycake (Sep 22, 2005)

+1 for the steelhead


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