After monitoring eBay, Singletrack Classifieds and Dirt Classifieds for just too long, I finally found a new frame which I was happy with to replace the Reign. The decision to start saving and looking for something new came when I tried a variety of bikes at a demo day at Stainburn, Yorkshire which was put on by Stif Cycles. Before I rode any of the sparkly bikes (which were way out of my price range) I was relatively happy with my Reign. I thought, apart from many scratches and scuffs, it was still a great bike!
The first bike I swung a leg over was an Orange Five Pro. My dream bike. It rode very well. The geometry was spot on for me. It felt like I was in the bike rather than on it. This gives you much more confidence when railing corners because you don't feel like you're having to put effort into staying on the bike! I also like the fact that it has a little bit of lateral flex which helped me grip in corners. I'm not a heavy rider so this didn't become a problem but I can imagine if you've had a few too many pork pies your not going to get on with the flex. I could really feel the 650b wheels when it came to the rocky bits they sail over things much more easily. Some people say by using bigger wheels you are just dumbing down the trails for yourself. This is sort of true but you just need to ride and build gnarlier trails!
The second bike I rode was a Santa Cruz Blur TR which is a short-ish travel 26" trail bike. This was probably the most fun bike I rode that day. It was maybe not as fast as some of the other bikes over jagged rocks but in corners it was very flickable. On the demo day I scored a Strava KOM on one of the popular segments (500 people on the leader board) and I think it was on the Blur TR. I tried a frame size: Medium but I think I think I'd need a Large if I was to buy one.
I also rode a Santa Cruz Bronson and 5010 (Solo). The Bronson was alloy and felt very stiff. To me it felt like a pure enduro race bike. It wasn't as fun as the Blur but it was very fast. Cornering on loam was difficult because it was so stiff that you couldn't tell how much grip you had left. Maybe this was just something to get used to. The 5010 felt like a cross between a Blur TR and a Bronson. It was a little longer in the top tube than the Blur and as a result didn't feel quite as nimble but it was still a very flickable bike.
My conclusion was that the shorter travel bikes were more the sort of thing I was looking for. They seem to be able to handle rocky stuff almost as well as a 150/160 bike you just have to hold on tighter. It's the cornering that makes me really love shorter travel bikes. They just seem to control their travel much nicer and don't wallow in corners meaning you can really rip out of them!
When a 2013 Nukeproof Mega TR came up on the Dirt Classifieds within budget I went for it! I knew I could take the majority of the parts from my Reign and bolt them straight on. I only needed a new headset, wheel adaptors and a seatpost shim. I've only ridden her twice and on the first ride she shed her mech and a few spokes out of the wheel :( Luckily I had an old wheel with the same length spokes so I used them to build the wheel back up. I also bought a new Shimano XT Shadow + rear mech from the great folk at Westbrook Cycles. The second ride was ace! It was very windy and muddy, a few trees had come down that night which prevented me from going full pelt but it was great fun. The main issues I had with the reign are no more. The seat tube angle was too slack which made climbing difficult, the head tube angle was too slack which made it difficult in tight turns, but worst of all, the bottom bracket was too high! This made cornering and balancing on slow trialsy stuff very hard.
The mega has fixed all of this, I just need to be more careful not to bash my cranks/pedals on trail features now. I shall report back when I get some more riding on the bike done.
Here are some pics of her!
Cheers!
Any questions about the build or how it rides, please ask!
Very nice how does it compare to the blur TR and what travel forks are you running?
I am looking at the Mega TR and blur TR, heart says the Blur wallet says the mega lol
Hey Man!
The Blur TR I rode was a medium frame and it was probably a bit small for me. I'm about 5' 10". It was mainly the top tube which made me want to go up a size. Saying that, the short top tube meant it was really nimble on slightly slower, twisty trails. The VPP suspension system definitely grips better for climbing than the Single Pivot, Linkage driven Mega. Although the Mega still climbs well even with my 160mm travel Fox 36 Float fork up front! The main reasons I didn't go for the Blur TR were the price and the short top tube. It just didn't feel like it would be a good position to do an all day ride in. The Mega feels just about right with my 50mm stem and 745mm bars.
I took the Mega out to Whinlatter Forest, Lake District today which was a good test of it's abilities! It really carries it's speed and doesn't bog down in corners which means you can rinse the trails! I ended up with 4 top ten Strava results on downhill segments with 2000+ people on. I would be lucky to make the top 100 on my old Reign.
At the end of the day I guess it comes down to what you like to ride! I like a bit of everything really but I do tend to sway towards the steeper, rocky, rooty and twisty trails. I felt that the Blur was just a little too focused towards the smooth twisty stuff.
Cheers!
Thank for the reply what size is the mega? I am 5-11 with 32 leg so I am looking at a large as I think I will be cramped on a medium
I have a Medium (17") and I think I am at the top end of the sizing. I could have gone for either really but I do like the playfulness of a slightly smaller bike. Plus I came from an "18 Reign which was on the large side for me and I believe a Large Mega TR is 18.5.
I guess with you being a bit taller than me you'd want a large.
Cheers!
Howdy, are you still riding the Mega TR? I'm about your size and considering a 275 model (2mm shorter ETT than the 26), but I'm a little concerned about the 23.1 ETT length... The large, however seems a bit long at 23.9", and I'm not too keen on the large's 18.5" height, either. Are you still happy with the 17?