First Full Suspension
 

I purchased my Orbea Occam at the end of last year but didn't use it for winter riding. I use my fat bike with studded tires for winter riding. So, when winter ended, I finally was able to pull out the Orbea for some riding. Since then, I've been finding myself riding it most of the time instead of my Trek Stache or Giant fat bike. Being that I live in nice rolling to hilly trail riding region I wasn't sure of riding a full suspension. Several other riders I knew ride hardtails and suggested staying with the Stache hardtail I have and don't get a full suspension. The said that they felt to bouncing when climbing, but I pull the trigger anyways. This bike is a far better climbing bike than my Stache and with my setting I'm running at I don't feel bouncy. Just loving the bike and the other bikes are feeling jealous I think.

Nice bike! I really like the Occam it's a sweet ride and you chose a great color too.

Nice!! Congrats on the new bike. No experience with full susp., but it would seem to me that it would be less bouncy than a hardtail. So long as the suspension is set up correctly, and it's a good design (which I'm sure Orbea is), seems it would soak up bumps roots, etc. I know my hardtail bounces around on roots, and such. As mentioned, though, I have no experience with full susp.

It allows you to pick are more direct line thru obstacles, knowing that the suspension deals with the bumps. On long rides saves energy and you feel less fatigued.

I am contemplating adding a full suspension to my stable. I have been on a steel hardtail since I got into MTB two years ago. I have rented a few on vacations in different parts of the country but those trails were unfamiliar to me. Plus the cushy feeling while in the saddle was off-putting for me. I am thinking about going to Alafia this Friday and renting a full suspension. I will take my hardtail and ride both back to back to see if I like the squish.

Squish is better than no squish...IF the design is implemented properly. Some designs result in pedal bobbing which robs efficiency when climbing hills.

I think Zipp has discovered (what I've mentioned many times on this forum) is that fat tires don't replace suspension. A lot of people are misinformed when buying a fat bike and think the fat tires will make up for it.

Congrats on the bike. The Ocam is a nice machine.

I had the same experience that FS had a huge advantage almost all the time. If there was anything lost in climbing I didn’t miss it. I only switched back to a hard tail for half a decade of kid trailer and bike seat duty and I’m looking forward to a full squish again

Nice RIDE! Love the Orbea's! At the end of the day, ride what fits YOU best :) .

Happy riding!

I had my mind set on a Polygon Siskiu T8. I couldn't find a bad review. But they have been out of stock for a while now. I added myself to the notify list for when they returned to stock but I had no idea how long that might take. Local bike stores were no better. Very little stock if any.

I ended up ordering a Diamondback Release 3 from JensonUSA. It seems they are closing out their Diamondback stock as they had it on sale for 20% off. There are a few reviews I found....mostly on some older models or carbon version. It seems the geometry has not changed much in the past few years. I know there are mixed feelings on Diamondback but the specs are pretty good. At 20% off and in stock the deal was too good to pass up. Compared to the Siskiu and only $500 more I think I got a pretty good deal. I know I'm taking a chance on mail order but I'm confident I can adapt to the bike...especially at my skill level.

On a side note. After ordering the bike I got a notification the Siskiu was in stock via email. The email said to order quicky as it would not last long. I clicked the link and of course it was already out of stock again. :rolleyes:

Here are some specs and pics of the bike if anyone is interested.

• SPECIFICATIONS FRAME Hydroformed Aluminum
• FORK Fox 34 Performance Float, 140mm Travel
• REAR SHOCK Fox Performance Float DPX2 LV EVOL, 200 x 57mm
• HEADSET FSA No.57 Sealed Cartridge
• SHIFTERS Shimano XT M8100
• FRONT DERAILLEUR Nope
• REAR DERAILLEUR Shimano XT M8100 Shadow Plus SGS
• CRANKSET Shimano XT, 32T
• BOTTOM BRACKET Shimano BB-52 CHAIN Shimano XT M8100
• CASSETTE Shimano XT, 10-51T
• BRAKES Shimano XT M8100 Hydraulic Disc
• WHEELSET Diamondback Blanchard 28R TR Rims, Aluminum Boost Hubs
• TIRES Maxxis Minion DHF 2.3" EXO TLR, Minion DHR 2.3" EXO TLR
• HANDLEBAR DB35 Aluminum, 760mm Wide, 15mm Rise
• STEM DB35 Aluminum, 35mm Reach, 35mm Bore
• GRIPS/BAR TAPE Ergon GE10 Evo Lock-On
• SEATPOST KS LEV Integra Dropper w/ Westy Remote
• SEATCLAMP Single-Bolt
• SADDLE WTB Koda Race
• INTENDED USE Trail, All-Mountain

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...3a7066d101.png

I had a similar Diamondback and liked it fine. It’s true they’ve barely updated it, but it was right up to date and a good design when they launched it in I think 2016. They’ve kept the build up to date at least. Over the years they repurposed the 27.5+ version into a 29er and made a carbon version. You can find community support in the MTBR thread though it’s slowed down a lot since the late 2010’s