2008 Norco Fluid LT vs 2007 Kona Coiler

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bob^

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I hope someone can give me some advice on these two frames (yeah great not another what bike thread :))
I am after a frame that is well suited to all mountain. I want to be able to ride up the hills that I want to go down hill on. I'm not a weight weenie who wants to do XC all day long, but I wouldn't mind putting a few KM on it doing some of the XC tracks at the You Yangs. But I also would like to do a few of the DH runs there too - 4 maybe 5ft drops at the very most (nothing too crazy, getting too old for that!)
I have the option of buying either the Fluid 2nd hand, with a Fox DHX5, or the Coiler with a Fox Vanilla R, brand new.
Does anyone have any experiences with either frame that they could share?
The forks I will be puttig on are Bomber 55 ETA-R 150mm travel, and the wheels are Da Bomb revolver. Not the lightest stuff, but more on the stronger side.
A plus for the Norco is it is lighter and has a much better shock, but it is air and not coil, so I am not sure how that will go with my weight.
A plus for the Coiler is it looks like a stronger frame and will work out a little cheaper, but is a little heavier.
 
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ocatarinetabelachucchux

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Coiler 2007

I own a 2007 model. It rides pretty well with the stock components. The Van R is an Ok shock, the same the drop off 4. They both have basic settings but do the job.
Some components are very cheap, use them until they last and then upgrade. My bike has had a lot of punishment since December 2006. I have basically destroyed and upgraded almost every part but the frame has only minors marks. I ride 99.99% of the time FR/DH.

Change the brakes If you are planning to do a lot of DH, they have no modulation and they fade away in long runs, even running 203mm rotors (tested at Thredbo). Hayes HFX9 are most in the xc side.

This bike really shine in FR. Easy to throw around and move in the air. Bulletproof frame.

My current setting includes a DHX5 Air shock, a 2006 Boxxer Ride with u-turn and Dabomb revolver wheels and stock brakes. Thinking about replacing the Boxxer for something smaller, probably a Marzo 55 (2010) or a Fox 36 Vanilla or Talas.

Heavy going up, even with the stock components.
 
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Langers

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I ride the 2008 Norco Fluid LT it is a decent bike, I haven't been to You Yangs but I'm sure its defintely capable of the riding you mentioned for both xc and downhill. The Fluid LT is quite light around 16ish kilos, with the Specialized Horst link in my opinion would make for a better ride than the Coiler; eliminating brake jack and better pedal efficiency paired with the platform shock. The Norco has 2 travel positions that acoording to their 'VPS' technology has no effect on the geometry, providing 137 and 158mm of travel changing the progressiveness of the shock, I can't say i noticed a huge difference between the two, but it had been 10 weeks off riding when I moved to the longer travel setting and haven't looked back since as I mainly do dh/fr.
Durability wise, make sure that the Fluid LT you are looking at has square tubing on the seat stays, if not if the seller is the original owner they could easily get them swapped at a local norco dealer or where the bike was purchased from. The first round of LT's that were distributed had circular tubing which caused a 'turkey gobble' noise under braking eventually leading to a crack just above the rear disc mounts which I experienced; the new square stays feel much stronger and have zero braking noise/vibration.
If you go to inspect either of the bikes check for any play in the linkages, I hope that you will be happy with whichever bike you decide to go with and if you have any more questions feel free to PM me.
 
r.ayres1

r.ayres1

Likes Bikes and Dirt
I can only comment on the fluid in that one of my riding buds owns one, and as a trail thrasher - all mountain type rig it ticks all the boxes. Up hill is also more than reasonable (depends how you kit her up too), an easy all day ride! :):):)
 
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Brendan.

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I have just bought a new frame and will be looking at selling my 04 kona stinky frame.

Bike was bought as a complete 04' Kona stinky then recently had forks (8" travel), wheels and brakes upgraded to more of a DH setup. Now i will be changing the frame too to a ironhorse sunday (8" shock).

I am abit of a mtb noob, but frame is in good condition, I measured it to be 19" Large. It has got fox vanilla rear shock. Not to sure on the exact spec's of the shock. Rear shock eye - eye is approx 200mm, not sure what the stroke is or the spring weight. Also not sure what amount of travel this equates to? I think it could be 6" travel although this will need to be confirmed

Let me know if this frame is of any interest to you / suits your needs. Question's welcomed and inspection possible if your interested (bike is still together so its ride-able). I'm in Melb. looking for $250ono for frame and shock. (have both owners manual for kona and fox vanilla)

Hope this is of help to you :)

I'm 175cm and the top tube give's me no standover height clearance (although i do have 200mm travel forks).


Regards,
Brendan.
 
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bob^

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Thanks Brendan looks like a nice bike but it is not the riding style I am after. The stinky is more of a DH bike.
 
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