Another AM bike thread - Ironhorse MKIII v. Giant Reign 1

[arpit]

I need a new bike.

I want a dually with 5-6 inches rear travel.

I want one which rides like a Yeti 575.

My budget is 3700 dollars.

I am deciding between the Iron horse MKIII expert and the Giant reign 1.
They have 5 and 6 inches of travel respectively.

The Iron horse is 3600, the Reign is 3000. The Ironhorse mostly has better parts than the Reign - better rims, and Juicy 7s instead of 3s. It has Pikes instead of Float forks, which are, apparently, easier to service.

It does, however, have a float R rear shock. Propedal isn't adjustable. The Reign has a RP2 Shock with adjustable propedal. I like adjustable propedal.
The guy at the LBS said they may be able to upgrade the shock for me for 200 dollars or so. That would bring the cost of the Ironhorse MK3 to 3800 dollars. Expensive.

The Juicy 7's are worth about 100 dollars more than the 3s to me.
The Improved rims are worth about the same.

That leaves a price difference of 600 dollars.

Are the forks and suspension differences in the Ironhorse worth paying 600 more for?

Ironhorse - Pike air forks, DW link rear suspension

Reign - Fox 32 Float RL w/lockout, Maestro rear suspension.


The bike shop won't let me do test rides.
I'd like to be able to make a decision by this time tomorrow, or at the latest, the day after tomorrow.

Thanks in advance guys.

[chuckrockswell]

just my 2 cents...

getting an RP fitted to the MKIII shouldn't even come in to the equation. the DW linkage conflicts with platform shocks, hence the reason they spec'd it with a float. there's nothing wrong with the float, its a fantastic shock and was spec'd for a reason. even the top end world cup azure is still spec'd with a float r.

also, the whole 07 IH range is on sale now as per this link (this is purely our pricing)

http://www.iridebikes.com.au/news/jul-07/IHSale.php

so you can do better than 3600 ;)

Cheers!

[arpit]

Well, your 2 cents could very well be worth 500 dollars to me ! :D

Thanks mate!

The guy at the LBS said that the Iron horse bike they had was a 17 inch, which was Ironhorses 'small' size. I need a 'small' bike since I am 5'5.

Yet, on the I ride bikes site, they seem to have 15 inch Iron horses!

Did the guy at the LBS make a mistake, or does Ironhorse cater to 4 foot tall people too? :cool:

Seems to me that the fit of the bike will be rather important.

Thanks!

[NH_]

17" is ironhorses medium size, then sundays come in 16" as well but yeh the mk3's come in 15"

for the record im 6" 1 and ride a 17" sunday

[dain2772]

I ride a 2005 MkIII which is essentially the same frame and I have really enjoyed the bike.

I am just under 6' and I actually ride a 15" as that was the last one they had and came with a huge discount.

The joy with the Iron Horse is that you can ride a bike that everyman does not own.

[6POINT8]

I would personally go for the MKIII, simply because it has better parts and the 454 Pikes are one of the most adjustable forks around.
I think that the extra bit of money is worth the MKIII.
Another thing is that, there are far less MKIII's around than the reigns, so you would have a more unique bike.

[peanut]

I guess another thing to keep in mind is what sort of riding you going to do with it.
Niether bike will be like a 575, both are heavier and use more active suspension systems.

The reign has the extra travel and slacker head angle, so will inherently be a bit more stable on the downhills, not much but still a difference.
Even more difference if your looking at the reign x series.

Rear tyre clearance can be an issue for the mk3, a 2.35 nevegal won't fit without rubbing, a high roller will.
The allen head bolts can come loose on the lower links near the bottom bracket, locktight them up before it turns to frustration.

The mk 3 is the better climber and is fantastic to pedal over rough ground. The reign pedals well also for it's travel but the mk 3 felt better.

Forget about propedal for the mk3, if anything send the float away to push and get a custom tune to suit your riding and the dw link.
Pay attention to getting approx 30% sag to find the sweet spot.

I own a mk 3 and spent some time on the reign. I tried them both out before i bought one.
I'm Still glad i bought the mk3 over the reign for the riding i do, the spec is better for the cash esp, if you can get it from that link.

[arpit]

Hi guys, thanks heaps for the help. I decided to wait a few weeks before posting, so I could give some comments on my new bike!

I bought a Reign.

You see, whilst I do more XC stuff than rough stuff, its the rough stuff which I really enjoy. Further, the medium Ironhorse just felt too large. I could get a Reign in a Small, which was perfect.

The suspension on the Reign feels just like the suspension on the Yeti 575 - especially with propedal on. It's great!

Oh and I got a Reign 0. I got it on special for 3500. It's lighter than my old STP .

I can climb steeper and rougher stuff on my STP. Any terrain I can descend on the Reign I can also descend on the STP.

However, where the reign really shines is that it allows me to pedal on the flat on rocky tracks. The suspension allows me to stay seated.

I love it! The only problem with it is the scarily expensive parts. I'm sometimes tempted to ride like a grandma, lest I bash off the x0 derailleur. I covered the fork legs in gaffa tape and rubber lest I accidentally bash a hole in them. And it was a sad day when I bent one of my spokes in the front wheel. (a 1.5 metre long 40mm thick branch went through my wheel and locked it up).

Thanks again for all your help.