How great are the Oz/4500 bikes?

[Dennis]

I just came back from a 25 mile ride and man, am I beat. It was 80 degrees and over 80% humidity and I went through gallons of water and two bottles of gatorade. (There's a hot dog truck partway through the ride-one gatorade going, one coming back).
this ride is all singletrack although I do have to cross roads about 5 times.
the north end (start/end) is very hilly while the southern end is fairly flat with a couple long climbs and lots of twisty stuff.
What I have to say is that my Oz makes me feel like a hero whenever I ride it. It rides soooo great, soooo smooth, tracks so well, I can't believe it.
I truly think these are the best off-road machines ever made.
btw, I almost laughed outloud when I saw a fairly young guy putting his ride back on top of his new XTerra. It was a "mountain bike" with a kickstand and flat rubber pedals. One of those Motiv bikes from kmart. guess he hasn't yet learned that the money should go into the bike and not the car. well, at least he was trying to ride the trail.
Oz rules!!!

[smiley=groucho.gif]

[Simon]

Have to agree,I've tried a few other makes and models in my time but nothing has come close to overall performance and sheer enjoyment I get from my 4500,
as for the guy with the cheapo excuse for a mountain bike well thats how I started,bought a similar type of bike,found I loved the experiance, upgraded bikes through the years and here I am with my dream bike [smiley=nod.gif],so there's hope for that guy yet.
Simon.

[shovelon]

I love my Oz, BBBUUUUTTT!



One thng I hate is that I have imposed a rule on myself when it comes to my bikes.



I have become a much better rider over the years and treated myself to a better bike if I could say that I improved enough to need one and deserve one.



There is no way I can do better than my Oz. Lately I have been relying on it instead of training. Sure, I seem to be getting away with bolt-ons and upgrades but this dang bike keeps amazing me.



I get people saying to me " Hey, look at my VEEPEEPEE" or "Hey, look and my DEESK BRAAAKS" or "Hey, look at my MONOCOCK Aloominooom". I say, " Well, I will have to become a rugular Hamster Boy to outperform what I got, and I would'nt be cought dead on what you got"



Well in conclusioin Aye (It is "Talk like a Pirate Day in LA") have a love/hate ting going on, love my bike, hate my body for not keeping up with it.



My Oz keeps me thinking and riding, that's all that counts.



Terry

[Carbon_Angus]

I consider it a VERY functional work art.

Would need to get a different rear shock, to try to bring it up to a la mode.

BTW happy B~Day, Dennis!

47

hehehe

[smiley=beer.gif]

[Old Proflexer]

how great?

try one mounted on a red velvet background, framed in oak, hanging over the fireplace, accented by hidden tract lighting and barry manilow love songs in the background just to set the mood.  

yeah baby - [smiley=laughing.gif]



OP

(b.t.w. - just got back from colorado and had a very productive archery bull elk hunt)

[Matno]

I just came back from a 25 mile ride and man, am I beat. It was 80 degrees and over 80% humidity  [smiley=groucho.gif]

Man, do we have it good here in NY! I went on a road ride in Galveston on Labor Day weekend. 65 miles in 95 degree weather with gulf coast humidity. It just about killed me (especially since my riding partner was 63 years old and was pushing the pace the whole time! Than again, I got him into road biking last year and he put 4000 miles on his first bike in the first 6 months! Now he averages 250 miles a week! I hope I'm in that kind of shape when I'm his age. Heck, he's got kids that are 10 years older than I am!)

Sure is good to be back in cold New York! Also good to be back to my mountain bikes. Down in Texas, I rode a borrowed early 80's Fuji road bike that weighed (literally) almost as much as my 5000! If I'm going to ride a bike that heavy, it had better be as smooth as my K2! As for whether or not they are the best, well... I'm going to have to say that there is something to be said about newer technology. I rode a 2004 Jekyll this summer on a few rides in Utah, and I must say it was the best riding I've ever experienced. That stable platform stuff ain't just hype. Maybe not quite as smooth, but noticeably better control - even in the really rough stuff. According to my buddies in the know, the SC Blur is even better (stable pedaling AND super plush).

But for the price, I still don't think you can beat K2's 1998-2000 frames.

[Dennis]

Matno,
man, when you first mentioned the 65 mile ride, I thought you were talkin' offroad and I felt like a wimp for a second.
yeh, it sure is much nicer to road riding in the heat and humidity, going 18+ mph is sure much cooler than offroading. (35 on downhills, hope I'm not being wimpy here, but I road ride alone most of the time and do a minimum of 50 miles just about every day during the summer).
well, its offroad time again, cool weather and all. I dig it, and I dig it even more on my Oz.
OP, I almost wish I had bought two Oz frames, painted both and hung one on the wall. Blue Crush is still awesome but does have a couple little scratches here and there. plus, I just hate it when she gets dirt on her! (jk)
keep ridin'
[smiley=groucho.gif]

[Old Proflexer]

i sold carbon #3 a little ways back on ebay to a gentleman in the u.k. - it helped finance my other new beauties - a 2002 Blackwidow MAV that is perfect and a new build Blackwidow PMAX Cocobolo.  

just got the MAV and the Cocobolo should be here in 3 weeks or so.  

Matno and I are gonna have to get on our bikes together some day packin our pieces, ride out into the wilderness and create a little havoc.


OP

[Matno]

OP,

Absolutely. Your place or mine?   When I was in Texas this past month, I stayed with a doctor who had an entire house full of animals (all dead). Most of it was from Africa (cape buffalo, kudu, warthog, etc.) although he did have a huge bull elk from Colorado. It made me realize just how long it's been since I've been out in the wilderness with a gun (not since I started med school over 3 years ago!)

Dennis,
65 miles on the road bike is probably about like 20 offroad, and you're definitely not a wimp. I am though... The worst thing about it for me was actually the saddle. It wasn't a terrible saddle, but my butt hasn't ridden that far in one setting since last summer, and it wasn't MY saddle. The pain combined with the heat was a bad thing...
We should get together sometime and ride. I'm only about 3 minutes away from the Whitestone Bridge.

[nieuportpilot]

I have had a proflex 4000 for about 3 years now and have really enjoyed it.  It is my first FS experience and the difference in comfort from my hardtail is remarkable.  In fact, I just rode itin the Tour of the White Mountains in Arizona last Saturday and had a great time.  I don't like the fact that I can't stand to pedal uphill, and wonder whether I should upgrade to spv shocks or just get a different bike.  What does everyone think?  What are the ride characteristics of our single pivot bikes with spv shocks?  Id it better to upgrade the crosslink fork with a Risse shock or just replace the fork?

[Kevins19]

They really are nice frames. Much more comfortable than a hardtail!

That is one drawback to a fs bike, it will "bob" up and down when you pedal. Morso when you are standing and pedal. I have heard nothing but good things about the Manitou SPV shocks. One of the best upgrades to do to these frames is change the rear shock. I am still running the stock NR1 on my EVO 4.0 and it is good but not great. A Fox RC w/ Pro Pedal, Manitou Swinger SPV, or 5th Element shock (all hav forms of pedal damping) should be a huge improvment in ride quality, added pedal damping, and suspension quality.

For characteristics the bike will deffinetally "work" a lot better. The ride will be a lot better and it will soak up the nasty stuff way better. Suspension technology chages very quick so these new shocks are way better than those 6 years ago!

For the Fork I would just get a new fork. Even if you upgrade the shock it will still have limited travel. And new er forks add other things like disc brake tabs. A Fox fork with Terralogix (Foxes version of SPV) or a Manitou Sherman, Skareb, Minute, Black forks have models with SPV. Any of those would be good forks.

[Matno]

Yes, get a new fork. Definitely an improvement over upgrading the X-link. (Not that I've ever actually ridden one, but 3" of suspension is NOT enough for this frame!)

As for the bob, although even SPV won't entirely eliminate the bouncing associated with standing on the pedals (which, technically speaking, is not "bob"), it certainly helps. (Pedal induced bob, in theory, is the bouncing produced by uneven pressure on your chain, which pulls your rear wheel forward toward the frame). Unless you somehow manage to maintain a perfectly round pedal stroke with both feet, even while standing, a full suspension bike can still bounce.  
That said, the SPV does an amazing job of eliminating most "bob." The tradeoff is a less plush ride, but that may be worth the trade. I rode a C-dale Jekyll (also a single pivot frame) this summer with a Manitou Swinger shock, and the ride was incredible. There were a couple of times in really fast rough situations, where I longed for the plushness of my K2, but otherwise (especially on the way UP the mountain), it was incredibly smooth.

I'm still dying to try a SantaCruz Blur. From what my buddies are saying, it's the best of both worlds. No bob, but still plush. Of course, that probably wouldn't solve your problem, since it can still bob when standing (unless you use an SPV shock in addition to the frame design, which some of them come with). For me though, that's a non-issue because I can climb much steeper, tougher hills when I'm seated than when I stand...

[Simon]

For me though, that's a non-issue because I can climb much steeper, tougher hills when I'm seated than when I stand...

Couldn't put it better myself,because my bike rides so plush I'm only ever out of the saddle on fast bumpy decents, mostly when pedaling isn't required (can't spin the cranks fast enough to keep up) or at the very top of a steep hill where I just hover out of the saddle for that last extra push,other than that I just stay seated and keep on pedalling, it just don't bob for me.
Simon.

[nieuportpilot]

I agree that staying seated most of the time works best.  But as you say, the last part of a steep climb is where standing might help; but not with my current setup.  I just bounce up and down and am then forced to jump off If I can't spin all the way up (still working on that).