Mini DH thoughts

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May 24, 2012, 09:50:48 AM

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Total Voters: 287

[Rich]

I've got a Mini DH on test for a few days and looking to get some feedback over how they ride as an all rounder. I've only managed to get out once, yesterday afternoon and I went through a mixture of emotions. The initial being a kind of despair whilst going up hill that, yes, I was in the easiest gear... to 'oh god, I can't believe how much fun this is' when going down.
I know that it's going to need me to fit a double chainset to make it work for me, and then probably a  shock with some kind of platform to stop it being so bouncy, but in the end does this bike make a workable all rounder ? I see a lot of them on ebay and wonder whether everyone convinces themselves that it will be alright, and then realise that in the end, it's just too heavy, too specific to ride out on day to day XC rides where there's as much up as down.
Thoughts would be appreciated as I have to hand it back soon...

[jonboy1886]

i tried (& failed) on a couple of occasions to use the mini dh as an all rounder...its only my opinion but if you want a trail bike buy one, if you want a dh bike buy one. i certainly wouldnt recommend any sustained xc use.
the mini was great for me as i wanted it as an entry to dh, but i just couldn't get on with it on anything other than light downhill trails....
eventually i sold it to move onto a full dh bike.

[Ant]

I agree, it's not very good at the XC bit, but for having a laugh down the woods, doing DH, jumps, drops, roots, rocks, it's ace. But it's hard work on the climbs.

I'd get a meta 6 for a Do-it-all bike, not a mini.

My mini is basically a fly around the local woods bike/Downhill bike. (My local woods is full of big rocks, slabs, natural drop/jumps, gullys etc, so the mini is perfect for hooning around there).

[willer]

I use mine as a allrounder. Had 2 of them over the last 4 years and love it. I ride it with a manitou X6 and it provides a stable ride with some extra platform, and i have different settings for either XC or DH. Fork choice makes a big difference. Used to have a pair of 55s on it with ETA and that was perfect on the ups. Now i changed it for a 36 van at the bike has lost some of its all round qualities as i cant lover the fork on the ups but it still rides ace. Must say though that i ride in Denmark and we don't have long assents to struggle with here and that probbroply makes some difference. But i would still say that with a platform shock it is very pedalfriendly and on technical sections very fast.

Cheers

[memphis raines]

The miniDH and me have got on very well for a while now, even in a full DH form i still find it worth having to push up the hills for the pleasure of the ride down!

But now i have started rebuilding the spec to get the weight down from DH to AM, air forks and shock, decent light AM wheelset and smaller tyres.

I hope its worth it, i will find out when i spend a week riding in the scottish borders, mainly hitting glentress for 4 days! 

I keep looking at something lighter, like a giant reign or the meta6, but its hard to match the minidh on the descents, so i just change the route to have as little climb and as much descent as possible!

[Rich]

 I guess I see that some of you guys are really trying to make it work out... but when you talk about new wheelsets, forks, shocks etc. (not to mention chainset) you are talking an expensive conversion. The deal on this bike really works out well only if I could just ride it.
The thing is, I have never ridden a bike like this in it's element before and It just seemed to give me a wonderful sense of security and confidence in its balance and plantedness on landings. I had a big off last year and this confidence it made me feel is the main reason why I am agonising about it, when essentially my mind otherwise is telling me that it is going to be too expensive to make this come close to an all day ride.
It still might go either way though!

[memphis raines]

i meant to add that i did for a short experiment run this with a full triple chainring and it handled it very well, tho it was mostly to see if i could climb in the granny ring, which it did ok, even with long travel forks on, so with something a bit shorter up front and less weight all round i think it will work for me.

i aint saying its going to be as easy as a meta5 or even a 6, but the solid feel i get from the supreme gives me the confidence i crave on the way down to push it!

I guess I see that some of you guys are really trying to make it work out... but when you talk about new wheelsets, forks, shocks etc. (not to mention chainset) you are talking an expensive conversion. The deal on this bike really works out well only if I could just ride it.
The thing is, I have never ridden a bike like this in it's element before and It just seemed to give me a wonderful sense of security and confidence in its balance and plantedness on landings. I had a big off last year and this confidence it made me feel is the main reason why I am agonising about it, when essentially my mind otherwise is telling me that it is going to be too expensive to make this come close to an all day ride.
It still might go either way though!

As for converting my bike, i actually have 2 bikes i am breaking to make 1, but i could easily sell the miniDH parts alone to get most of the lighter bits 2nd hand.

the point you make about confidence and inexperience... we all start there, and tbh, the MiniDH just keeps on giving, its a bike that most people will tell you LOVES to go fast, over rocks, in the corners and off drops! You just have practice on smaller things before diving into the gnarly DH runs!

I have rode mine, in places like fort william, wharncliffe and morzine and its been amazing, it can feel a little short in the BIG rocks, but most people would just jump them where i prefer to plough through!

I have got out of my depth many times, resulting in regular crashes! but in DH thats why you have full face helmets and lots of body armour and protection!

Now that i ride trail centres a lot more i find myself going very fast, in just an xc lid! which is a bit scary! so i am going to get some new smaller knee pads and a better fox xc lid


Basically what i am getting at, is push your limits a bit, but not too much, always wear appropriate protection for the trails your riding and how often you expect to be on the deck, (like sessioning a double into a tight berm, where you keep going over the back of the berm... oops! LOL)

[Nippy]

If you can only afford to get one bike but want to do a bit of everything then it's ideal.

I've done everything from the Marin Rough Ride which is a 50km (1250m climb) event over the moorlands of Hereford to a week in Verbier doing nothing but downhill. All I've changed is the tires, front chain ring and the head angle.

Yes it's a bit harder on the climbs (but not by much) than a 140 trail bike but it's much more fun on the downs, and it can't quite match a full downhill bike on steep rocky tracks but it's not far off.

As it happens mine is up for sale http://www.commencalownersclub.com/index.php/topic,7727.0.html 

[Rich]

Good feedback and info, thanks. It's a double edged sword this confidence thing. I had bags of confidence when I went over the bars on an XC ride last year and landed on the back of my neck resulting in a crushed T4 vertebra, yet if you are mincing around and not committing, then it seems like you are more likely to come a cropper.
I was unlucky (though at the same time very lucky!) but in the end all the bloody armour in the world wouldn't have stopped it happenning. The only thing that would have stopped it is watching Sunday afternoon films instead. I'm not going to do that.
I am not going to get into true downhill. My skills aren't good enough (though i'll always be learning) and I whilst I don't intend to mince about, I still have to be aware that I have an injury that I can feel everyday and that I would rather not try and repeat.
I have a radicalised Giant NRS at the moment with, wait for it, Junior T's fitted. I got the frame cheaply because I wanted a full sus after the accident and fitted the forks because a) I wanted it to be a bike which it wasn't and b)  I had them.
It doesn't feel weight balanced in the air (suprisingly) and is a cramped cockpit up hill (of which we have many) and I'm always on the nose of the saddle to try and keep the front wheel down whilst banging my knees on the bars. I never quite know what it's going to do when it hits the ground after a jump as the standard SID shock is completely lacking in damping, and in the end, I'm on it, not in it and even with the seat right down i feel that keenly.
It's not so light either, with the triple clamps, and I can still make it up pretty much anything with the triple on it and it's grip not power that normally does for me in the end. Nobody with any sense would see my bike and recommend it for long XC, trail use, but that's what it does... week in, week out.

I've thought about upgrading the Giant instead, by putting on a pike and decent rear shock and converting to tubeless, all of which would make it a much more.. well .. respectable XC fast trail bike but in the end... regardless of accidents and lack of skills ...I love to go downwards and I only really understand now that the giant doesn't do what i want it to. I'm not talking about big jumps or drop offs but that feeling of switchbacks through trees and drifting the back end and taking jumps without having the time to be worried. the things the Mini seems to do with such delight.

Any major frame issues with them? I can see there have some issues with others...

[memphis raines]

Mate, you seem to have had your fair share of bad luck!

 I dont know much about back injuries, i am assuming it will heal? otherwise long bike rides proabably isnt the best choicse of hobby! but the First thing i would do is think about the gym, if you are worried about being able to control the bike, and getting injured again, building up muscle is a good way to help protect against injury when you fall off (we all do it, life would be boring if we just rode fireroads and never pushed our limits!) Also extra strength will help with pedalling the heavier bike!


Getting back to the MiniDH, have a look here http://www.commencalownersclub.com/index.php/topic,6039 for my small problem. I ended up getting a local welders to sort it out for £15, and its back as good as ever!


You said you stuggle and your skills are lacking... when i moved from mincing about on country lanes and limited off road riding, to full on DH runs (overnight pretty much) I ended up in the mud more often than all my mates put together! But that was over 4 years ago now, and now i ride with regional / national level DH racers, most of the time i am at the back, and sometimes i still end up in a heap, but pushing MY limit is so much fun!

I have been following Kathy Pruitt, US national DH rider, who hit a tree in race practice and ended up breaking all the ribs on her right side, and tearing out her shoulder blade (scapoid is it? i cant remember) but she is back out and back on her bike just about and that sort of thing pushes me on after my busted ankles and knees and shoulders etc!

ANYWAY! A better bike WILL make a huge difference to your riding ability and enjoyment...

Hearing what 'bike' you are riding is painful in its self! How old are you and what country are you from? (never can be sure on this forum!) If you cant manage to get a new bike drop me a pm i have some spares that can help you get a better (more suitable) bike for very (very)  little cost.

[tank_rider]

I use my 09 supreme mini dh as an allrounder.  It's basically just the frame now from the 09 supreme 2 with lighter parts on it.  It weighs in at about 36lb with no compromises on DH strength.  It climbs reasonably well (I'm probably going to get a push tuned van r to help) but is soo much fun ripping on the flat and downs.

The main thing I found that improved it's all round ability is getting some single ply tyres for xc use and using dual plys for dh only riding.  That saved over a pound of rotating weight and made it feel a lot more sprightly round the trails.

[Ant]

BTW, the single thing that has made my mini climb better recently, is the addition of clips.

[willer]

Yeps, clips all the way.

Regarding frame issues. I had my first MiniDH when it was still called Supreme FR and i molested it for about 3,5 years before the frame gave in. And that was freeride/DH twice a week as well as weekly XC rides so i was not surprised when the frame gave surrendered (Started to crack in the front triangle, around the pivot insert for the rear end). I guess i landed it sideways to many times and i weigh 100kg fully suited up. But i went straight out and bought a new one and it gets the same regular beatings as the old one without any complains. I don't think you can get a more solid frame than this

[Rich]

Well, I've gone and bought it... no more Giant NRS chopper for me.
I'm the proud owner of one Dirty brown Mini DH.
I'm getting a Hope Pro 2 / Mavic 721 built up for the front, and putting my old hope XC/ Mavic 517 on the rear. I'll stick with the forks as they seem great to me (compared to what I am used to).
The diameter of the face knurl on the locknut on the Shimano 475 hub is very small and they tend to eat into the edge of the dropout aperture a bit so the bigger diameter of the hope will help. Before the new models' replaceable dropout mod this design involved the hub mostly gripping on the hanger spigot. I have never liked that detail. I am also going to weaken the hanger (probably by drilling a hole through the 'beam') because they are too strong and if you really clout them, the dropouts open up by bending the back of the frame out. I've seen a few (at least three...one  Mini Dh and two meta 5s) where it's happened... it's a design fault and they've sorted it with the new models. It would be better sorted with a bolt through (which won't spread) but until I can afford another wheel build, I'll do what I can. I'd probably still weaken (lighten ? ) that too. It's a bloody strong hanger whatever the fixing method. It certainly doesn't give your mech much of a chance.
I've also got a manitou swinger x 3, that I'm thinking about fitting... It'll make it easier to pedal but I guess I'll see how well it works. Anyone using one on a mini?
As for clips...I've thought about flats, but I use clips on everything at the moment.
At some point, soon, I'll get a double ring for it and go from there.
Thanks for all the input, I've found it all very helpful.