ER: My Epic a year and a half later

Mattb

I mentioned doing a follow-up to my initial post about my
'03 S-Works FSR (Epic) a while back and this is it.

I was a little skeptical about the brain at first, but very
hopeful it would deliver what it promised: a great
compromise between a hardtail and a FS. Coming from a
hardtail I needed almost no time to get used to it. I sat on
the bike and it just felt right. It climbed like my old
hardtail, although I could feel it was packing a few extra
pounds (four pounds, to be exact - putting it at about 26).
This seems like a reasonable tradeoff for 90mm of rear
travel on bumpy terrain and none on the smooth stuff.

I love the handling. It feels pretty quick without being
twitchy. I can go as fast as I dare (fastest I've gone on
dirt that I've measured was 36 Mph) and it feels solid and
stable. On steep and technical terrain it also does very
well. It's light enough to throw around pretty easily when I
need to, but it never has that flimsy feeling some lighter
bikes seem to have. When I ride off a drop the shock seems
to have no lag, it's active when I land, so I think the
reports of it not being active on the first hit are not
correct (I seem to remember those being from people who
didn't actually have the bike).

I like to get out of the saddle for that extra power boost,
and I love that I can do that on this bike without it
bobbing all over the place. I still think one of those Fox
forks with the brain would be a perfect compliment, but I'm
still holding out for those to come down in price before
getting one (they are something like $800 now). In the mean
time my Manitou Black Elite Air does a fine job of sucking
up the bumps, making precise carves, and not requiring much
maintenance (just a little lube every now and then).

In the year and a half I've had this bike I've gotten new
cables and housings, tires, a new chain, and new grips. All
things I would expect to be replacing on just about any bike
that's being ridden. One small gripe is the small piece (5"
or so) of housing that goes beneath the BB. I hit mine on a
rock at some point and it got all smashed and made my
shifting really bad until I replaced it.

Another thing I've done is replace the old wheels (Mavic
517s, Specialized front hub and XT rear) and XTR V-Brakes
with a new Magura Pro wheelset and Magura Marta SL disc
brakes. The old wheels had been migrated from my old
hardtail and they had run their course. I decided to get
some lightweight discs while I was at it and I love this new
setup after riding it for a couple of months. The overall
weight of the bike has not changed, which is very nice.

So I've really had no problems at all. That is, until I was
on a group ride last night. This wasn't any group ride, but
a shop ride with the guys from the TuneUp, and we rode hard.
I was chasing the couple of guys I just couldn't seem to
reel in and I felt like I was getting a rear flat. The back
end just felt all mushy on a climb I was trying to hammer
up. I stopped and checked the tire and it was fine. It was
then that I realized my rear shock was not locking out. It
was staying active and it felt kind of weird. Today I took
it into the shop and we concluded that it was indeed not
working correctly. After a quick call to Specialized they
said they'd have a replacement shock on it's way tomorrow.
The guy on the phone didn't seem surprised and said it was
likely to be a spring failure or the oil had drained from
the brain.

So I'm happy about the response from Specialized, but a
little disappointed it broke. Hopefully the replacement will
have fixes in place so the failure doesn't happen again. I
did buy my frame very early (December 02), so it's possible
this one was "buggy". Time will tell. I'm not bothered
enough to get rid of the bike (until the next thing I just
have to have comes along anyway), but I was planning on
racing it tomorrow night. Instead, I'll be doing the Crested
Butte hill climb (up Mt. Crested Butte to the top of the
Silver Queen lift) on my single speed, which will be
interesting. Ouch.

Matt

John Morgan

MattB wrote:

> I mentioned doing a follow-up to my initial post about
> my '03 S-Works FSR (Epic) a while back and this is it.
>
> I was a little skeptical about the brain at first, but
> very hopeful it would deliver what it promised: a great
> compromise between a hardtail and a FS. Coming from a
> hardtail I needed almost no time to get used to it. I sat
> on the bike and it just felt right. It climbed like my old
> hardtail, although I could feel it was packing a few extra
> pounds (four pounds, to be exact - putting it at about
> 26). This seems like a reasonable tradeoff for 90mm of
> rear travel on bumpy terrain and none on the smooth stuff.
>
> I love the handling. It feels pretty quick without being
> twitchy. I can go as fast as I dare (fastest I've gone on
> dirt that I've measured was 36 Mph) and it feels solid and
> stable. On steep and technical terrain it also does very
> well. It's light enough to throw around pretty easily when
> I need to, but it never has that flimsy feeling some
> lighter bikes seem to have. When I ride off a drop the
> shock seems to have no lag, it's active when I land, so I
> think the reports of it not being active on the first hit
> are not correct (I seem to remember those being from
> people who didn't actually have the bike).
>
> I like to get out of the saddle for that extra power
> boost, and I love that I can do that on this bike without
> it bobbing all over the place. I still think one of those
> Fox forks with the brain would be a perfect compliment,
> but I'm still holding out for those to come down in price
> before getting one (they are something like $800 now). In
> the mean time my Manitou Black Elite Air does a fine job
> of sucking up the bumps, making precise carves, and not
> requiring much maintenance (just a little lube every now
> and then).

Thanks for the equipment report, Matt. I would also like to
add my thoughts about MY '03 S-Works Epic (stock setup). My
story is this:

I learned to ride off road on a hardtail, so my style has
always been a bit harsh, especially when climbing. One day I
got sucked in to the whole "freeride" buzz and decided to
buy a 5" full suspension bike. I hated it. It felt so
inefficient compared to my old hardtail, half of my ride was
miserable (the climbs). In order to remedy this problem, I
sold it and again bought a light hardtail, which was great
(which wasn't as fun on the downhills). Couldn't there be a
compromise?

YES! The Epic responded to this need for compromise, being
at once, both a hardtail and a full suspension ride. It
locks out on the smooth stuff, being compatible with my
hammering climbing style, but provides the extra traction I
want when going over rough terrain.

The way I would describe it is, it feels almost exactly like
a hardtail when riding. It doesn't add a lot of comfort like
a fully cushy would. The suspension, when active, is fully
active and working like it should, providing traction as
your wheel moves with the terrain, but you probably wouldn't
know it's doing this unless you look down and see the shock
moving. The truth is, after a few rides, I stopped trying to
figure out if the suspension was working or not. It's great,
it's one less thing to distract you from the focus of your
ride. (Is my suspension active, is it locked out? Am I
losing efficiency climbing this hill?) You just pedal and
let the bike do the thinking.

When taking a jump or a drop, the shock activates fully
before landing... and that is one of the only times I can
feel a big difference from a hardtail. A hardtail jolts
uncomfortably when landing, and this one feels like landing
on pillows. =)

This bike is truly happy at speed. The geometry allows it to
hold its own going through tight twisty stuff, it's even
decent in technical areas... but you unleash this bike on
smooth FAST singletrack and you'll be amazed at its
stability.

Definitely the best riding bike I've ever had the pleasure
to mount, and also my favorite bike I've ever owned.
However, its purpose only fits a small pie slice of riders.
If you love riding hardtails and hate squishy full
suspension inefficiency, this bike is for you. If you love
the challenge of climbing, but would like more traction than
your hardtail can provide you, this bike is for you. If you
race XC, this bike is for you. If you're riding a hardtail,
the only reason you should not upgrade to an Epic is if you
can't swallow the extra pound or two.

Speaking of weight... coming in at 24-25 pounds... this
bike's weight doesn't bother me a bit. My hardtail is around
22-23, and I can't even tell a difference while on the bike.
Any extra energy expended in hauling this bike's extra
poundage uphill is more than made up for by the superb
suspension design.

To sum it up: teh bike is are good!

John M

John Morgan

MattB wrote:

> So I've really had no problems at all. That is, until I
> was on a group ride last night. This wasn't any group
> ride, but a shop ride with the guys from the TuneUp, and
> we rode hard. I was chasing the couple of guys I just
> couldn't seem to reel in and I felt like I was getting a
> rear flat. The back end just felt all mushy on a climb I
> was trying to hammer up. I stopped and checked the tire
> and it was fine. It was then that I realized my rear shock
> was not locking out. It was staying active and it felt
> kind of weird. Today I took it into the shop and we
> concluded that it was indeed not working correctly. After
> a quick call to Specialized they said they'd have a
> replacement shock on it's way tomorrow. The guy on the
> phone didn't seem surprised and said it was likely to be a
> spring failure or the oil had drained from the brain.
>
> So I'm happy about the response from Specialized, but a
> little disappointed it broke. Hopefully the replacement
> will have fixes in place so the failure doesn't happen
> again. I did buy my frame very early (December 02), so
> it's possible this one was "buggy". Time will tell. I'm
> not bothered enough to get rid of the bike (until the next
> thing I just have to have comes along anyway), but I was
> planning on racing it tomorrow night. Instead, I'll be
> doing the Crested Butte hill climb (up Mt. Crested Butte
> to the top of the Silver Queen lift) on my single speed,
> which will be interesting. Ouch.
>
> Matt

I'm surprised the shock failed. When I spoke last with the
local Specialized sales rep, he said he only has had one or
two cases where the shock failed (for the phoenix metro
area!), and they were warranty replaced. I'm glad they're
taking care of you on it.... and did you stop to consider
that maybe they'll replace your brain shock with the new '04
Brain w/ IQ adjustment?

One of the biggest complaints I've heard is that the shock
wasn't adjustable (in the original 2003 model), but I have
to say, I enjoy the stock "1G" factory setting quite well.
It's set up just right for my style of riding.

Good luck!

John M

Slacker

MattB wrote:

> So I'm happy about the response from Specialized, but a
> little disappointed it broke. Hopefully the replacement
> will have fixes in place so the failure doesn't happen
> again. I did buy my frame very early (December 02), so
> it's possible this one was "buggy". Time will tell. I'm
> not bothered enough to get rid of the bike (until the next
> thing I just have to have comes along anyway), but I was
> planning on racing it tomorrow night. Instead, I'll be
> doing the Crested Butte hill climb (up Mt. Crested Butte
> to the top of the Silver Queen lift) on my single speed,
> which will be interesting. Ouch.
>
> Matt
>
>
Very cool report. And long live Specialized... their bikes
(for the most part) and customer service kick ass!

--
Slacker

Cc

"Slacker" <slacker7@sbcglobal.net> wrote in message
news:2l3mt2F897l6U1@uni-berlin.de...
> MattB wrote:
>
> > So I'm happy about the response from Specialized, but a
> > little
disappointed
> > it broke. Hopefully the replacement will have fixes in
> > place so the
failure
> > doesn't happen again. I did buy my frame very early
> > (December 02), so
it's
> > possible this one was "buggy". Time will tell. I'm not
> > bothered enough
to
> > get rid of the bike (until the next thing I just have to
> > have comes
along
> > anyway), but I was planning on racing it tomorrow night.
> > Instead, I'll
be
> > doing the Crested Butte hill climb (up Mt. Crested Butte
> > to the top of
the
> > Silver Queen lift) on my single speed, which will be
> > interesting. Ouch.
> >
> > Matt
> >
> >
> Very cool report. And long live Specialized... their bikes
> (for the most part) and customer service kick ass!
>
> --
> Slacker

Amen.

Mattb

John Morgan wrote: <snip>
> I'm surprised the shock failed. When I spoke last with the
> local Specialized sales rep, he said he only has had one
> or two cases where the shock failed (for the phoenix metro
> area!), and they were warranty replaced. I'm glad they're
> taking care of you on it.... and did you stop to consider
> that maybe they'll replace your brain shock with the new
> '04 Brain w/ IQ adjustment?
>

I was surprised too. I haven't heard of any other failures
first hand. I was also hoping for an '04 but they
specifically said they were sending an 03, which is also
fine. My only gripe about my 03 is it stopped working.

> One of the biggest complaints I've heard is that the shock
> wasn't adjustable (in the original 2003 model), but I have
> to say, I enjoy the stock "1G" factory setting quite well.
> It's set up just right for my style of riding.
>
> Good luck!
>

Thanks!

Matt

John Morgan

cc wrote:

>> Very cool report. And long live Specialized... their
>> bikes (for the most part) and customer service kick ass!
>>
>> --
>> Slacker
>
> Amen.

Wow, and here I was thinking that Matt and I were the only
Specialized fans on this NG. I guess that even those who
don't own them can still appreciate a well-made mountain
bike at a fair price.

John M

Dan

"John Morgan" <jhnmorgan@NOSPAMcox.net> wrote in message
news:hX3Hc.70093$6r1.43510@fed1read06...
> cc wrote:
>
> >> Very cool report. And long live Specialized... their
> >> bikes (for the
most
> >> part) and customer service kick ass!
> >>
> >> --
> >> Slacker
> >
> > Amen.
>
> Wow, and here I was thinking that Matt and I were the only
> Specialized
fans
> on this NG. I guess that even those who don't own them
> can still appreciate a well-made mountain bike at a
> fair price.
>
> John M

I love my '04 Enduro so mark me down as 1 of the few...

Dan in NZ

Parbs

John Morgan wrote:
> cc wrote:
>
>>> Very cool report. And long live Specialized... their
>>> bikes (for the most part) and customer service kick ass!
>>>
>>> --
>>> Slacker
>>
>> Amen.
>
> Wow, and here I was thinking that Matt and I were the only
> Specialized fans on this NG. I guess that even those who
> don't own them can still appreciate a well-made mountain
> bike at a fair price.
>
> John M

I'm another Epic rider and also very happy with it.

Rob

Alpha Male

Well, I don't have an Epic, my pocketbook is thinner than
Ally McBeal, however I purchased an 02 HardRock Pro. It's by
far been a pleasure to ride.

Three seasons later and everything is still stock. The only
problems I've had is a) My preload adjuster blew out the
second time riding it, but I figured as much, it's just
plastic. The replacement was like $30 or something, so I
didn't bother, knowing I'd but it again. b) My bottom
bracket gets loose about once a season, need some
tightening, but this is trivial.

All in all, beinga first time Specialized buyer, I know that
I've found my brand name to support.

Oh yeah, any tune-ups and stuff have been cover as warranty
at my local bike shop.

Long live Specialized!

Alpha Male

"John Morgan" <jhnmorgan@NOSPAMcox.net> wrote in message
news:hX3Hc.70093$6r1.43510@fed1read06...
> cc wrote:
>
> >> Very cool report. And long live Specialized... their
> >> bikes (for the
most
> >> part) and customer service kick ass!
> >>
> >> --
> >> Slacker
> >
> > Amen.
>
> Wow, and here I was thinking that Matt and I were the only
> Specialized
fans
> on this NG. I guess that even those who don't own them
> can still appreciate a well-made mountain bike at a
> fair price.
>
> John M

Tj

"John Morgan" <jhnmorgan@NOSPAMcox.net> wrote in message
news:hX3Hc.70093$6r1.43510@fed1read06...
> cc wrote:
>
> >> Very cool report. And long live Specialized... their
> >> bikes (for the
most
> >> part) and customer service kick ass!
> >>
> >> --
> >> Slacker
> >
> > Amen.
>
> Wow, and here I was thinking that Matt and I were the only
> Specialized
fans
> on this NG. I guess that even those who don't own them
> can still appreciate a well-made mountain bike at a
> fair price.
>
> John M

I have never heard of a broken "Big-Hit" love mine.

TJ www.gvii.net/hundtoft www.fatboy.s5.com