2016 Intense Primer

slider_phil

slider_phil

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Well, after telling myself (and my wife) no new bikes in 2017...I bought a new bike :behindsofa:

Got wind of a good deal on a Intense Primer and decided to snap it up. The DVO Topaz is already sold and I've ordered a Cane Creek Inline IL to replace it. The idea being one of the caveats that the new bike had to have over my Canfield was the ability to run a bottle in the main triangle for after work rides. Was getting real sick of either putting up with dirty bottles on the Riot or filling and cleaning a pack for a 1hr ride.

I've got some new wheels coming from Zelvy for it (thanks boost...) but otherwise, everything else will be moved over from the Riot. Thanks to Moorey for sending me out his spare seatpost shim so I didn't need to fork out a fortune for a new dropper post!

https://flic.kr/p/U3BYLQ

https://flic.kr/p/T1cCMm

And my Riot, before I stripped it to raid for the Primer. Riot frame will be up for sale shortly if anyone's after an awesome 29er!

https://flic.kr/p/Qzb8jT
 
E

EyeMacHunt

Likes Bikes
Nice colour scheme. I was so close to pressing go on a Primer recently. I'll be interested to hear what you think of it once built.
 
Spike-X

Spike-X

Grumpy Old Sarah
Veeeeeeeeery nice! I'm not usually a fan of stealth, but there's just enough non-black on that to make it look interesting.
 
slider_phil

slider_phil

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Spike-X said:
Veeeeeeeeery nice! I'm not usually a fan of stealth, but there's just enough non-black on that to make it look interesting.
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It would've been my last pick if buying new. But this came up and the price was fantastic. But I made sure it wasn't a complete blackout!
 
nzhumpy

nzhumpy

Googlemeister who likes bikes and scandal
Very nice, (I'm a fan of the stealthy look) it looks like a hoot.

I had one of these on the radar for a bit, looking forward to a ride report.
 
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k3n!f

k3n!f

leaking out the other end
Looks fantastic, congratulations!

Very keen to hear a ride report, might be a replacement frame for me if I break another Yeti. Don't suppose you got a weight on the frame?
 
slider_phil

slider_phil

Likes Bikes and Dirt
k3n!f said:
Looks fantastic, congratulations!

Very keen to hear a ride report, might be a replacement frame for me if I break another Yeti. Don't suppose you got a weight on the frame?
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Weight of the medium frame was 3.1kg with the DB Inline, axle, headset and derailleur outer cable installed. The high end model uses a carbon upper link and shaves another 200g off from memory.

Got out on it today and its a rocketship compared to my Riot. Doesn't give up much on the downs compared to either which is nice! The hardest part for my was dealing with the racier rear tyre. Since I was coming off a bike that ran a 2.5" DHF on the front and a 2.3 Aggressor on the back. The RR on the rear was awesome on anything but loose tech climbs and a misses out on some braking traction. Will probably upgrade to something a bit more aggressive on the rear, but really enjoyed the NN on the front.

The bike was super efficient out of the saddle and that's something I missed on the Riot. Seated climbing was still excellent with the steeper seat tube angle and something I wasn't going to give up on after having that on the Riot for the last 2 years. Before that I had the Evil Following and while it was awesome out of the saddle, it was so hard to keep the front weighted during seated climbing. Its also much more efficient going down in the rear compared to the Evil. That could be the extra 10mm of travel or the Cane Creek shock working its magic over the Monarch on the Evil.

I like to think its a nice amalgamation of the Following and the Riot. So after a flawless maiden ride, I'm happy to report that the bikes staying and I'm glad a went for a less burlier build that my last bike. I may end up regretting that last sentence when I get back to the alpine regions haha.

List of changes? A more aggressive rear tyre, had a few sketchy moments today :tongue:

Will get a proper component and setup list up soon, too busy riding :smile:
 
slider_phil

slider_phil

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Got an XC oriented ride in tonight. Bit of water around and basically a sit and grind. Felt pretty much the same as all my other bikes on these trails. A touch more pop through a rollers section but for the most part, this is just sitting and grinding on the pedals. Gotta love living in a flat town!

https://flic.kr/p/URd7k2
 
slider_phil

slider_phil

Likes Bikes and Dirt
The factory plastic downtube guard was peeling off (seems to be pretty common over on MTBR) so I ordered and fitted a Rockguards carbon downtube guard. Will do the job but it cuts a fair bit of the decal from the side of the downtube. Might look at pulling it off and cutting the sides back a bit maybe to make it a bit more aesthetically pleasing.

https://flic.kr/p/VZ5SJK

https://flic.kr/p/WBBKmC
 
slider_phil

slider_phil

Likes Bikes and Dirt
hifiandmtb said:
Looks good. But what's going to protect the carbon rockguard? :whistle:
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Hehe, well it's replaceable I guess. It was more because the factory peeling rubber looked a bit shit. Plus those internal cables when the suspension at full flex where touching the rubber and starting to wear through. Give me external cables every time
 
crank1979

crank1979

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Have you found a decent way to cover the lower link to protect it from all the crap the tyre spits on it?
 
BB1

BB1

Likes Dirt
I have just bought the same bike (and colourway) but as complete build. I'm watching with interest your build as although I'm very happy with current spec I do plan on changing the shock and maybe wheels down the line.

For those interested... it was down to this or the Yeti SB4.5 after ruling out other contenders (Stumpy, Evil, Jeffsy). Absolutely no regrets with my decision. Only had three decent dirt rides but I'm already matching my fastest times and don't feel like I'm pushing it yet. And it's just a fun ride - quick, playful, and I've never hit corners better. Previous ride was a 140mm 27.5 that I really enjoyed, but this thing is on another level. And just so damn sexy to look at... first time I looked at one I didn't realise it was a 29er.
 
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