what do you think about this for a giant dh?

[publicenemy]

ok so i have a banshee scream right now (04) and i can get 1150 dollars for my frame and rear wheel and i could buy a 2003 giant dh comp frame with a BB, the chainguide, rear wheel (ringle hub w/ mag 30) and a pig dh headset and i was wondering how the frame holds up and how it is small bump wise while still being able to jump and drop stuff..so is this a good deal and how do you stand on the durability of the giant along with still being able to freeride with it opposed to just dh?

[Incorrigible]

Ok, I have not ridden the Giant, but it is a race bike, made for going fast, and has a long wheelbase. The Banshee (which I have ridden), is a little twitchier and not as good at speed. I liked the ride though; it was very manoueuverable (sp.?).
Are you going racing? If not, why change frames?

[Solar_mtb]

^ tru dat
the DH is a serious race-bred bike made for going as fast as possible downhill, and thats the first thing that comes to mind when you ride one... of course that all depends on the parts setup; a giant DH team frameset w/ a 888 as opposed to the dorados will feel a lot more freeride than its stock companion.
^^ if you thought your banshee was maneouverable, and thats what your after in a bike, the dh will stand far above and beyond... however, if hucking, jumping, drops and general shore-style xtreme freeride are what you are after, the banshee, IMO, is a much more solid bike.

[Zedbra]

Having a race frame with a low bottom bracket is not a lot of fun on trails - hence my Turner is going bye bye

[Sticky]

Originally posted by Zedbra
Having a race frame with a low bottom bracket is not a lot of fun on trails - hence my Turner is going bye bye

I just did the opposite.....

I'm selling my Bullit because I just bought a DHR. They are a very different feel on the trails, but so far the low BB of the DHR feels great. Having more fun on the same trails on the DHR (corners much better). It's all just personal preference.

Always fun to try a different style of bike IMO.

[Zedbra]

Originally posted by Sticky
I just did the opposite.....

I'm selling my Bullit because I just bought a DHR. They are a very different feel on the trails, but so far the low BB of the DHR feels great. Having more fun on the same trails on the DHR (corners much better). It's all just personal preference.

Always fun to try a different style of bike IMO.

Well the trails here are loaded with rocks, high roots, and many sections of needing to climb up quickly. My DHR is designed to have a minimum of 2" of sag, dropping my BB to 9". When pedaling hard, the design forces the bb even lower making many technical sections very frustrating.

For going fast on open trails, a low BB is just fine. For North SHore trails/Freeride, it is a real nuisance.

[Sticky]

Originally posted by Zedbra
Well the trails here are loaded with rocks, high roots, and many sections of needing to climb up quickly. My DHR is designed to have a minimum of 2" of sag, dropping my BB to 9". When pedaling hard, the design forces the bb even lower making many technical sections very frustrating.

For going fast on open trails, a low BB is just fine. For North SHore trails/Freeride, it is a real nuisance.

I guess I haven't ridden the DHR anywhere where there is high roots/rocks. Rode some local single track downhill sections and then a bunch of shuttle runs on a DH race course on Sunday. I'm just happy about the high speed handling and cornering......the Bullit didn't rail like this bike.

[publicenemy]

Originally posted by Incorrigible
Ok, I have not ridden the Giant, but it is a race bike, made for going fast, and has a long wheelbase. The Banshee (which I have ridden), is a little twitchier and not as good at speed. I liked the ride though; it was very manoueuverable (sp.?).
Are you going racing? If not, why change frames?

im going to start racing and i dont really do so much of the freeriding drops and stunts but i do like to do shore type stuff like nelson and and seymour and i love aline and dirt merch so im still considering

[publicenemy]

Originally posted by Solar_mtb
^ tru dat
the DH is a serious race-bred bike made for going as fast as possible downhill, and thats the first thing that comes to mind when you ride one... of course that all depends on the parts setup; a giant DH team frameset w/ a 888 as opposed to the dorados will feel a lot more freeride than its stock companion.
^^ if you thought your banshee was maneouverable, and thats what your after in a bike, the dh will stand far above and beyond... however, if hucking, jumping, drops and general shore-style xtreme freeride are what you are after, the banshee, IMO, is a much more solid bike.

i see what your saying but are you saying if i wanted to go do a road gap the giant isnt the bike fore me...or if i do that day in and day out i should stick with the scream...and as sticky said i was at the shuttle race day last sunday and in the corners and real fast bumby sections the banshee wasnt good at all so i want a much more sensitive rear end so im leaning towards the dh but im not sure yet because i still want to be able to drop and drop the bike from time to time

[Banshee Beast]

I rode a Banshee Scream for a couple years and ,yes it was a great bike. But, I sold it to buy an '04 DH Comp and absolutely LOVE it:D Zedbra is correct in saying that a low bottom bracket will make riding some shore steep drop off shit sketchy (bang on stuff) you will learn to go off faster. As for droping off the bigger stuff I wouldn't worry about it. The 6-way Swinger, with the proper set up, will eat anything you throw its way. I'm also about 215-220 lbs and this bike will fly straight and drop whatever you have the balls to do:eek: Oh yeah, She likes to go FAST!!!

[spookymilk]

Whatever you do the most of, choose the bike for that.

The Giant goes fast and is insanely sensitive at speed to little bumps. If you're dropping it, it should be fine, Giant also has a good warrenty staff. The Giant will rip A-Line and dirt merch for sure, it's very maneuverable in the air

[publicenemy]

sweet it turns out its an 04 large frame which makes me happy but do you think it will be to big if im 6'1?

[atb]

I have a 2002 giant DH team with a 7" boxxer and a 24" rear wheel. It’s super fast on steep technical trails and it's also great at taking huge hits, the suspension is so progressive it feels bottomless.

The large frame is very big. If you can get a med it would work better. But ether way it well be a great bike.

[Incorrigible]

The difference in the two at speed only applies at race speeds. For shore type stuff you won't notice, except the Giant is longer. If you are planning on beginning racing, I would keep the Banshee - for one it is a more solid frame. You will probably have more fun on it to start with.
But you want to change bikes, and I can understand that. Don't forget to have fun.

[publicenemy]

yeah im really only concerned about the size now and i really want the giant but will see how big is big when i test ride it next week

[Zaskar]

i went from a banshee scream to an 03 giant dh team, and its definitely got a different feel. less chatter through corners and an all around lighter feel to it. the giant corners like a mofo IMO, i love the feel if you hit a berm right.

i find that i dont like the giant so much for skinnies, it's long and akward for technical skinnies at that, but it's a descent all around.

the shock position is gonna piss you off, it pisses me off. with no remote reservoir on m bike i gotta work the shock out of te bear trap of a linkage everytime i wanna pump the air in the swinger up.

i find the BB height is a bit annoying but it's manageable, it's an annoyance for rooty steeps and stuff where you're going slow speed, since you end up sagging and sometimes clipping stuff with my MRP (though I do have a 44T ring...some of the problem is that).

it's definitely a nice bike for whistler and i can't complain. the workmanship seems great since ive had no probs. had one bolt in the linkage back out riding whsitler and had the swingarm loosen 2 or 3 times. blown the swinger once, warrantied the dorado internals once...if you're getting the dorado expect to be servicing it. more and more it's annoying me, since it starts t seep oil after a month or two of riding.

perfect bike for whistler.
manageable on newer flowier shore trails
a bit big feeling on oldschoolin slow tech

i find that one thing i do notice a difference in, is that the banshee i felt like i was sitting "in" the bike. alot more slack angles and stuff. this bike feels more long low and ranked, but it also feels like im more over the front end, which could be the fact that the dorado isn't a tall fork, but meh. that's just a personal thing.

i'm 6'1 and riding a medium. PM me for anymore questions