AM Banshee Prime

Scott101

Likes Dirt
After months of searching for a perfect Do Everything bike for a 195cm 115kg rider I came across the Banshee Prime.

Frame -Banshee Prime XL
Rear shock -Cane Creek DBair CS
Front fork -Rock Shox Pike
Handlebars Race Face Atlas 780mm
Stem -Race Face Atlas
Headset -Banshee
Grips -OURY Lock ons.
Saddle -Race Face Atlas
Seatpost -Reverb Stealth
Front brake -Zee 203mm
Rear brake - Zee 203mm
Cranks -XT
Chain -XT
Pedals -DX or Straightline
Front derailleur -XO
Rear derailleur -XT
Front shifter -XT
Rear shifter -XT
Cassette -XT
Wheel Set - Crank Bros Iodine 29er 2
Tyres -Maxxis Ardent Tubeless


Why the prime?

I wanted a bike that could handle my weight, go up almost as well as my Superfly Carbon Hardtail and down like my Intense M9. After only riding a few hours at Stromlo and a quick spin at Beechworth I am pretty happy with the way the Prime, Pike and DBair CS ride. No pedal bob when riding on the up. Super smooth on the downs.
Already beating strava times...

At the time of looking the biggest thing for me was customer service. I had looked and test rode many brands and bikes in the AM market such as Bronson, SB66, SB95, Polygon AXX, Reign, Zesty. I was very close to buying an SB66 with out a test ride. However most of the other brands were not available for test ride. I did not like the way the Yeti handled the rocky rough downs.

Ben from Single Tracks ran me through all options, specs, and what was available at the time I was looking to purchase. I was able to test ride a Demo Prime just north of Wollongong which shattered all of my doubts about how the bike would handle the rocky steep downhill tracks. I was so stoked with the bike and Ben's Professionalism, I locked in an order and purchased the full build kit through him also. I wanted to keep the entire purchase in Australia.

Ben built the bike for me and arranged to meet me and a mate, who also purchased a Prime, at Stromlo for an arvo of shuttles and custom tune. This is by far the best customer experience I have had with a bike sale. http://singletracks.com.au/

Will give a more of a detailed ride report as I hit up the country side.

Banshee 1.jpgBanshee 3.jpgBanshee 4.jpgBanshee 5.jpgBanshee 2.jpg
 
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Aussie_Ryder

Likes Dirt
Wow congratulation it looks amazing!!

All I hear is nothing but amazing things about singletracks and banshees customer service and that was one of the deciding factors when I ordered my Banshee Spitfire.
 

HimynameisMike

Likes Dirt
looks superb. Would like to get your feedback on the crankbrother wheels. I'm up for a new set on my Specialized Enduro, I'm tempted by the CB's wheels purely because they look so shiny and cool.
 

Scott101

Likes Dirt
The CB wheels for purchased to keep the price down as the rest of the build went over budget, $330 for the pair. Not sure how long I will get out of them but will worry about new ones when they break.

Just smashed out a loops 1 & 2 of the Wombat and feel fast and less fatigued on all sections. Bars maybe a tad wide.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk - now Free
 

C0na

Likes Bikes and Dirt
I have a set of CB Iodine 3 wheels. So far so good, they have held up with a fair amount of abuse. A tip though, Buy yourself a couple of spare nipples/spokes & shove them up ya seatpost. I have broken both the nipples and spokes out on a ride, not fun walking the bike home....
 

U.D.O

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Looking good, Scott! Dared to weigh it yet?
Thanks again for bringing mine down from Sydney. All built up now, not as pimping as yours but i'll get a PYR up once I get some pics.

I had CB wheels on my DH bike, the rims are a little soft but the crazy spoke design held up perfectly, so just keep tyre pressure up and you should be fine.
 

oriion

Likes Dirt
wow, that looks remarkable.

Hope those wheels hold up, I blew up a set of those (i'm 110KG) on my nickel in about 2 hours lol.
 

Asininedrivel

caviar connoisseur
Hope Pro 2 Evos laced to Arch EX/Flows blaaaaaah ($500 for a set?)

Or..... Mavic Crossmax STs ($7-800) - great reviews though, and probably my choice.


Orrrrr.... Easton Havens (and prepare for a chorus of "mate haven't you heard? The hubs are shit" regardless of their actual quality) (around $5-600


Or just engage in some localised extortion and buy a some Enve AMs. Whatever floats your boat.


As an aside, I've got a set of Cobalts and am yet to destroy them or have any issues *gasp*. And these are the "really crap" ones made in 2010 with less hub bearings.
 

XYGTHO

Likes Dirt
God dam that is nice!!! Love the build. I found Ben to be a top bloke and also a great rider. Great to hear of such good customer service it makes all the difference.
 
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