[Closed] Airdrop Edit V4

Good timing, after a fair bit of dithering I bought one a couple of weeks ago, one of the 5th anniversary frames with the ext shock.

I’ve only had a couple of rides on it but I’m impressed so far. For context I got rid of an ibis mojo hd4 for this (I’m a big fan of ibis) and the airdrop is definitely a nicer riding bike. The back end feels incredible with the shock, it’s nicely balanced and lots of fun on natural twisty fast trails. I’ve got no complaints about pedalling it up either, it goes really well.
The frame seems well made and the finishing touches like cable stops are really well thought out so it’s a dead silent bike.

One thing that surprised me was the weight, it’s no where near as heavy as I thought it would be seeing as it’s got a coil shock and isn’t a featherweight frame.

Yeah, having written that I really like it even though it’s early days.

Here’s a pic because it looks pretty.

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That looks really nice, glad your enjoying it. The polished finish is ace, sadly only the XL available in that now and I'm not sure about going that big. I'm on the size border and it L for playful or XL for stability. I don't think the weight will be an issue coming from an XL rocket.

I'd talked myself out of needing the ext as was thinking if waiting for the kitsuma to come into stock. But it does sound like an amazing shock.

I had a v2 edit so can’t help with the v4 but it was an incredible bike. Probably my favourite bike I’ve had to be honest. If I wasn’t full 29er mode on bothe my bike I think an edit frame would be on the cards for sure!

Good to hear. Despite my height the 29 option doesn't appeal. The attributes that I see attributed (stability at speed, rollover) to them don't apply to the closest trails to me which are of the tighter wooded type. 27.5 still seems a better option for that. Well and having a decent set of 27.5 bits which I don't really want to replace aswell. If I did look at 29 I think something like the new jeht would be more suitable.

@squealer
That's really not helpful! About 5 years ago, I chose a Mojo HD3 over a V1 Edit and I've questioned that decision since.

Nothing wrong with the Mojo, it rides well and I have plenty of fun once I'm aboard. It just doesn't scream "RIDE ME!" When I look at it in the same way my Turner 6 Pack used to.

Maybe an Edit with coil shock could be the answer.

I've got nothing to add apart from I think they look really nice. Even the XL has 15mm shorter reach than my current bike and I was thinking of going down to a large for extra hooning ability. I wanted a black frame with a Super Deluxe coil but they sold out instantly.

I'm just wondering what it would be like for long days out in the Peak. I already want to keel over and die of boredom on bridleways so anything that makes them more of a chore is out.

I'm also not sure about a coil shock. I know they look cool and feel awesome but I really like the infinite adjustability and liveliness of an air shock. I don't really want to buy an Edit and find it glued to the ground.

What's you current bike @sharkattack? My current XL is 12mm shorter reach than the edit.

I definitely don't need a 150mm enduro bike but I do like the extra confidence and security it brings (even if it means I'm over biked and under skilled). I do what the wheels glued down other than if I choose to leave it (don't go for big air).

For flat untechnical rides I'm lucky enough to have a nice hardtail and a gravel bike.

How tall are you @nixie ?

I'm 6ft and my mates 6ft 2ins and were both very comfortable on large Edits

Awesome bikes

I’m also not sure about a coil shock

You can get them with other options AFAIK.

I’m just wondering what it would be like for long days out in the Peak

They are based in Sheffield so you could easily find out with a demo bike I'm sure.

A good pal of mine has just moved from a previous gen Stumpy to an Edit V4. He is absolutely loving it. He's running Ultimate Coil / Lyrik Ultimate.

@sharkattack Interesting you say about it being glued to the ground, I took mine to the bmx/ pump track yesterday and it definitely wasn’t as poppy as my other bike over the tables (other bike now is a s works stumpie 28)

@onzadog I also had a hd3, that is a top bike. Probably my favourite ibis I’ve ever had. Don’t ever regret buying that!

In my group of mates between us we’ve had 4. Awesome bikes but only one of them didn’t crack, which really is not great.

When mine broke the warranty experience was shocking as well. I got a very swift response saying it was a week outside of warranty then had a real battle and poor comms to get a crash replacement deal offer which was ridiculous anyway.

I bought a Patrol which is basically what the Edit is trying to be, albeit a Lidl version

@phil56 185cm so between your mates heights. Right on the current models size border. I chatted with airdrop yesterday and their advice was large for playful, XL for stability.

I'm in Southampton so like most bikes demoing at the moment is hard. That said I've never really demoed much in the past anyway.

@nixie if you're not in a rush, once the lockdown is over we could meet up and you could have a go on our bikes - mines coil, Pete's is air shock. We often ride Exmoor and occasionally Dartmoor if those are within reach for you?

What’s you current bike @sharkattack? My current XL is 12mm shorter reach than the edit.

I've got a Geometron G16 with a reach of 520mm. It's mint but I've had it over 3 years and I'm getting a wandering eye. Also as an only bike, it's a lot of bike. I want something that isn't such a monster truck which is more fun on twisty jumpy stuff. I'll probably keep the Geometron because it's such a wild ride.

You can get them with other options AFAIK.

I know but that black frame with the red spring is soooo hot right now.

They are based in Sheffield so you could easily find out with a demo bike I’m sure.

I know, they're just around the corner from me. As far as I know they're selling everything they get their hands on and haven't had any demo bikes for a while. I also didn't want to bother them as I'm pretty indecisive!

@sharkattack Interesting you say about it being glued to the ground, I took mine to the bmx/ pump track yesterday and it definitely wasn’t as poppy as my other bike over the tables (other bike now is a s works stumpie 28)

Thanks for the info. I've already got that problem with the G16. It flies on big fast jumps but on smaller, tighter transition stuff that needs a lot of body language it's bloody hard work.

I might be better off with a hardtail.

I'm interested in the kitsuma raw option but have two reservations, why does the raw option still have black stays and the 2 year warranty is a bit measly compared to nukeproofs 5 years.

Yeah not the best warranty though increasing that would also increase the price. I'm looking at all black with chrome orange logos as my hardtail is raw and two raw bikes is 1 too many.

Thanks for the offer @phil56 both are a fair trek but might be a possibility if my itchy finger doesn't get the better of me.

No experience to share, but that's a very good price for the frame with EXT shock.

Good job they don't do a 29er or I might be tempted.

Yeah given the ext is what nearly 1k aftermarket its very keen. Frame is £1500 with a kitsuma iirc.

Doesn't help directly as I replaced my V2 with a V3, but the large V3 has a lot in common with the V4, so I'll throw in a few comments anyways.
I'm a MTB guide in Chamonix, so I ride exclusively longer, steeper terrain (if it helps with trails I've guided for Bike Verbier, Ben Jones MTB and The Inside Line as well as my own private work) except when I go on holiday to flatter places like Finale or BC or visit family back in Scotland.
If I was riding mostly in Scotland I'd go for the air shock for the extra "pop" and adjustability between pedaly days and more downhilly days, but in the alps the coil is a no brainer. It's not the lightest bike, although for me much of that is the build (DH or DD tyres, inserts etc etc) and I've been happy to pedal it for up to 2500m a day (ok, happy is perhaps the wrong word, but that's more to do with my legs than the bike) basically you won't be fastest up the hill, but it goes up with very little effort. And on the down it's more fun than any bike I've played on. I'm 185cm tall and ride the L, I've got no desire to ride the XL even though it's in my size range, BUT I prefer slightly shorter bikes than some and like the maneuverability for some of the real interesting tech, flat out speed isn't as important to me, though if it was the XL would be my choice.
For reliability I can only add anecdotal evidence. I sold my v2 with 770,000m of descending on it to a MTB newbie who is also quite a good skier, obviously he took to MTB like a duck to water and the V2 is nearing about 1 million m of alpine descending. That is quite a solid performance for any bike. The V3, thanks for France's quite severe lockdowns and winter, has had only 6 months use, but still done about 50,000m of up and 225,000m of down. The full strip and rebuild last month only took an afternoon as none of the bearings needed replaced (it was a fairly dry summer and i didn't wash the bike much), in fact over the whole bike I just needed to bleed fluids and service the forks (lyric ultimates, that needed to go to SRAM for a little warranty work, but all done very easily)
I get my bikes on a bit of a deal from Airdrop, but no better a deal than being a French MTB guide gets me on Pro Forma from most of the bigger bike companies so it is a choice to ride the bike, albeit my opinion is not without bias. Hope that helps!

Thanks @Grump that's useful insight 👍.

Yeah useful info but also quite depressing to read! I would kill to have easy access to Alps.

All we've got is endless, boggy, slow motion bridleways packed with walkers, horses, dogs and bloody gates every 2 minutes. It's absolute purgatory. One hour of climbing for every minute of fun descent.

Actually bollocks to this....I'm buying an e-bike.