Hitting my mid 40's I finally had to give in and admit that I NEED a suspension bike.
Just bought a Jamis Pro29 less then a year ago and love the bike, but my back does not like hard tails anymore :-( I think after 30 years I had to jump my ego and conquer.
I am not up to date on the fast moving market and need desperately your guys advise:

1. Should I sell my almost new Jamis Pro29 and buy a complete rear suspension bike, or should I buy a suspension frame, move the components over and try to sell my Jamis frame ?

2. If I move the components over, how much is a 19inch 1 year old Jamis Dakar Pro29 frame worth ?

3. I did a little research to find the most suitable XC and versatile bike without extruding the $ 4k range, so far I like the Ellsworth Evolution and the Pivot 429 with X9
Is this a good choice ? Which one is preferable ? Do I miss another brand ?

Thank you for your help !

it is far easier, and often way cheaper, to just buy the new whole bicycle, as opposed to getting a frame and switching over parts and needed new parts for stuff that doesn't fit etc etc....

pivot makes a kick ass bike, i would go with the pivot. if you want a full suspension 29er, also look at the santa cruz tallboy, aluminum. rocky mountain also makes a decent full suspension 29er.

Thank you for your insight.
I read only great reviews for the Pivot. A very new company just a bit concerned since they are a newer company and maybe not as solid as others are which are much longer in business, on the other hand it could be a good thing.
The closest Pivot dealer is 200 miles away and not knowledgable about the brand at all...is there a way to order a pivot direct from factory or a good, honest dealer you guys know ?
I will check out the Cruz Tallboy and the Rocky Mountain as you recommended, thank you.
I am fine with aluminum, actually call me crazy I prefer aluminum over carbon (am a bit old fashion).

I would also check out the Norco shinobi. 2nd on the complete bike. Enjoy the shopping!

Pivot is a solid company and make great bikes. They might be "new" but the guys at pivot have been around quite a while and know what they are doing.

Pivot's not *brand* new...they've been around since 2007, I believe, and the guy who founded Pivot was at the helm at Titus for quite a while.

With a budget of 4 grand though, I don't think you can really go wrong. Demo as many as you can. A lot of stores will take the price of the demo off the final price of the bike. If you're spending that much cash, don't just test ride it around the parking lot (unless you REALLY fall in love with the parking lot test ride and there are no demos around you). When I was buying my full-suspension, I came on here with my top picks from research...and then I went and bought a completely different bike after I fell in love during a demo.

+3 on new bike.

Thudbuster and keep your bike.

Yes, the Thudbuster was my first idea as well and I bought one a few months ago in hope that my back will not get as badly abused.
The Thudbuster did help but is in NO way comparable to a rear suspension.
It feels like the bike comes "bolting" up and only 2-3 inches away from he spine dampened 30-40% where a rear suspension IMO takes at least 80% of the impact.

1. I'm assuming you didn't mean to type "Dakar"?
2. If you like the way your 29er feels with the exception of the lack of rear suspension, koo...but if you ever thought it maybe the wheels were holding it back a bit...have you thought about the 650b dually?

3. Transition makes the Bandit 29'er frame that looks really fun. It's probably the only 29'er dually that I'd be interested in looking at ATM.