Tapeworm21

Anyone riding this bike? I haven't bought a mountain bike since 1999 but I've demoed the Cannondale Rize 1 along with some other new mountain bikes. Some of the parts look a little chincy like the cranks, shifters, and brakes.... but I'll be swapping all that out. I understand that it's referred as the "poor man's Enduro," which seems to fit in with my financial situation. Anyone have some pros and cons for this bike?

And since I will be switching out the cranks, shifters, and brakes, any recommendations?

I'm thinking XT cranks, X-9 shifters, and maybe some Juicy 7's.

Other than Mtbr.com, there doesn't seem to be many people riding the Pitch.

JonathanGennick 

I test-rode the 2008 Pitch Pro, and I liked it pretty well. I've an Enduro SL, so I took the test ride mainly to compare the two.

If you can afford to swap all those components -- brakes, shifters, cranks -- would it make more sense to just buy up to an Enduro instead?

Tapeworm21

Realistically, yes. But the price I'm getting the Pitch Pro for is insanely low.

When you compared the two, what did you notice most? I understand the shifting and braking might be better, but what about overall feel of the bike? I understand the Pitch has 1/2" less travel, is that enough to tell a difference? Again, I'm a roadie so suspension is not my strongest subject.

Tapeworm21

So I got it all built up this morning and took it on some off road. Taking it a little easy on it though because you never know if you "missed a spot" when you build a bike. Worked great though.

Anyways, absolutely amazing ride. Very happy with my purchase! Not too thrilled on the STX front derailleur though. Not exactly the easiest to adjust... the cable is held by a 9mm nut. Seriously? And that nut is almost impossible to get to. Getting the cable tension right will be a work in progress.

The STX cranks I put on are pretty nice. Unfortunately, I already broke 3 teeth off of the large ring already when I thought I had enough clearence on a concrete barrier thing... turned out I didn't. Still holds the chain though so no harm done.

Pics:

JonathanGennick 

Only two differences really registered with me:

1) The single-crown fork on the Pitch makes it "blend in" better; the bike doesn't stand out so much. Sometimes when I ride that Enduro, I feel like I'm sticking out like a sore thumb. Everyone notices that dual-crown fork. I especially feel awkward when I ride the Enduro on an easy trail where there is no conceivable need for such a fork. I guess in a way, I prefer my bikes to blend in and not really be noticed.

2) The front fork was not as stiff as I liked. Perhaps I could have played with the preload setting. The (sad) reality is that my weight is probably more than what is ideal given the stock spring. (I need to lose weight!) Were I to buy a Pitch, I would probably look into getting a stiffer spring for the front fork. I generally prefer a front-end that is on the stiff side.

I'm sure there must be some difference in shifting and braking due the different components, but nothing stands out in that regard. I don't remember having any thoughts one way or the other on shifting/braking.

Part of me still wishes I'd made an offer on that Pitch Pro that I rode. It was a "test bike". It was green, and green is my son's favorite color. Somehow though, my wife wouldn't accept that as a reason to throw down the money .

Enjoy your bike. IMHO, you done good.

rankin116

Specialized's lineup confuses me. What separates this Pitch from the Enduro and the Stumpjumper? I was on the website and couldn't really tell. I'm sure there are slight geometry differences, but why offer 3 different models that appear (to me) to be essentially the same?

And what is the difference between XC/Trail and All Mountain? That sounds really stupid.

By the way, nice looking bike. Throw a bash guard on there and lose the big ring.

M_S

The Pitch is desinged to fill the same niche (all-mountain) as the Enduro at a lower price. It does not have the Enduro's adjustable geometry. The Pitch and Enduro are both longer travel and slacker than the stumpjumper, which is either 120mm or 4 inches of travel (can't remember off of the top of my head, small difference anyways). The Stumpjumper is really a cross-country bike that is oriented towards non-racing aspects. People do race them in XC, though.

So in order of short to long travel "trail" bikes, it goes like this for Specialized:

-Epic (XC race)
-Stumpjumper (XC, non-racing oriented)
-Pitch/Enduro (All mountain)

Then of course there's the gravity oriented bikes.

Cyclist30907654

I think part of what would make their lineup easier to look at is if they separated all the women specific bikes.