[Closed] Bandit v Five v Zesty

loving my bandit 🙂 never liked orange on looks alone. shalow i know

I like the look of the Five 😆

Have you ever compared a Five to your Bandit?

my mate has a five. i just dont like the look of it. the bandit rides like my bottlerocket but more nimble

Ridden the five never been sure what all the fuss and price tag are about better frames for the money. Quick spin on zesty and spicy and liked the feel.

Haven't done a Bandit. Five is very good, does nothing wrong, but as far as I was concerned the Zesty did absolutely everything the Five did, at least as well, and it some of it better. TBH I'd be very happy with either though!

I have a 2010 zesty 514 and my bro a 2012 bandit, both very great bikes to ride, I would say the zesty is a bit more lively uphill, look wise the bandit in pewter is lovely and the decals are spot on, lapierre go over the top on decals IMO. With Jedi on 5s.

I must confess the Lapierre graphics are horrid, but if it ticks the other boxes I might just see past that.

No experience with Bandit so cant help there.

Anyway upshot of an extended test on a Zesty and Five I went for the Five.

I love the Five, but I would not buy a built up one from Orange again. I would go down the Frame only route and build up. Perhaps buying a Canyon or similar and exchanging frames. ( you would get a much better spec cheaper and have a frame to build up or sell)

There was really not that much difference between the two they were both great. The Five was £1000 more but as I was intending to keep the bike for years I just went for the one I preferred.

Can you describe what was "better" about the Five? To be honest if I can't demo a Zesty it's largely irrelevant, but curious nonetheless.

No... Not Really be I will try 😀

I was coming from a fairly steep angled XC bike so both descended much better but for me the Five had a very slight advantage which I felt was more due to the bike fitting me better rather anything particularly bad about the zesty's descending.

But the deciding factor was I could feel the Five biting into sharp steep climbs and giving just a little more grip ( perhaps the Zesty was doing the same but i could no FEEL it)

As for long term ownership, the Five can be a pain climbing long hills which is not a problem when my fitness is ok, but when it drops ( my fitness) I can fall behind the group very quickly, I can still feel the back end gripping on sharp steep stuff and still like it. Descending is great, with a dropper post making it even better.

As I said my plan was to keep the bike for a good few years and I liked the idea that Orange were unlikely to change the design much.

Sorry not much help I know, but if you are in the North East I could probably arrange a ride on a ( 3yr old ? zesty and maybe a 1 year old spicy)

currently riding a bandit and loving it, climbs exceptionally well and as jedi said very nimble and direct with lots of feedback on the descents. it is classy looking aswell. i agree that lapierre's are a bit ott withbthe graphics but they ride well, ridden a mates five and just was not convinced it was not for me, probably so used to the bandit, and not keen on the looks. not sure if this helps but I would definately try to get a demo on the bike you are leaning to, says me who bought the bandit based on reviews. My bandit weighs in at just over 27lbs with carbon bits and tubeless set up rubber queens.

You're more or less saying what I already thought which is that the Five has the edge on the descending but the Zesty is a bit more capable (lighter!) on the ups. I'm like you in that I like the idea that Fives don't change too dramatically from year to year with the graphics, so they don't age as quick as the big brand bikes.

The NE is a bit too far but thanks for the offer.

get a demo on the bike you are leaning to

Demo'd the Five and it felt "right" from the first pedal stroke. On the same day and same trails I demo'd a Yeti ASR5 and didn't get on with it; I was too conscious of the Yeti and how it rode whereas the Five just seemed to suit me without any fettling. Must get on a Bandit ASAP...

would not necessarily agree that the five has the edge descending, having ridden both (but perhaps I'm a bit biased) if you are undecided see if someone will give you a spin on both plenty of the stw followers will perhaps accomodate you. not sure about pricing but good deals on 2012 bandit frames.

If you can get a go on a blur lt or c same ball park bike felt as good down as an alpine in the lakes but went up like a dream (without touching the pro pedal lever unlike the orange)

i found the exact same withb the yeti i'm in ireland so no good to you with the bandit, currently waiting on the new 2013 frame with the fox ctd.

If you can get a go on a blur lt or c

I'm trying to reduce the options not increase them 😆

No way I can stretch to the carbon Blur but I would like to try the alu one. Anyone know of any shops with that for a demo? 18 Bikes have the carbon one but not the alu.

Look up Santa Cruz site for demo options biketreks do orange and scope demos too. Rode it back to back with a nomad c and 3 weeks after an alpine and was blown away by it. Missus just got the ltc and the red is very nice....

Out of the three, I'd go for the bandit but have read some dodgy things about Transition warranty support on here. People seem to love their Fives and Orange seem to be a good bunch to deal with. Zesty doesn't do it for me.

I like the look of the new Nukeproof mega TR (130mm) only £1100???

funny how the new mega tr is so like the bandit frame?mrblobby i did in fact have a warranty issue with my bandit but after speaking with graeme at surfsales he replaced the frame without any hesitation', so great service from the distributer. Abonus is the new frame comes with the new fox ctd shock!

fudge9202 - Member

funny how the new mega tr is so like the bandit frame?

That's Nukeproof's R&D isn't it? Photocopy a Transition.

fudge9202, do you mind me asking how tall you are & what size Bandit you ride? I'm umming and arring as I'm 5'6" so on the cusp of small & medium & there's nowhere local to me to see one.

i am 5'11 and went for a large after speaking with the dealers if i were you would go with the medium. btw the large is perfect you should check out transitions website there is a size guide on there, they are as good as the reviews say!

Transitions website is where I got the sizes from, unfortunately they don't have the standover heights on there. Guess I'm just going to have to jump in the car & find a dealer with some stock to look at.

there sizing is spot on but nothing like other brands.

185 & ride a medium but i'm right on the cusp of M or L

simwit i have 32inch inside leg and standover is very good

Not read the rest of thread but my mate demoed a Zesty in the South Wales area (probably Cardiff) fairly recently. If that is any good to you I could find out where he got it from?

When I was looking for a new FS I demo'd the 5 without a lot of thought about what else I could try, bit short sighted I know but that's always been me. Took it on a Nidderdale route that I've done many times before & when I got back to the car I rang the shop & said, 'order me a 16" frame & I'll tell you what I want on it'. Simple as that. Still got it still absolutely love it.
My mate got one a year later (he used to be called 'set square desk' at work cos everything has to be perfect for him), to this day he can't find fault with it & he still amazes me with what he can climb on it! (He's got 150 forks on it too)
Proper good solid bike IMO.

Demo'd Five and liked it. Felt very at home on it

Sorry. That is your answer right there. Say you rode a Lapierre and it felt 'at home' it'd still be a Five wouldn't it?

Go for it I say. Contact Orange direct and explain/ask if they'd ship a frame to you as a one off (or via a UK address).

I've always felt that the lapierre's don't really come alive until you get a model that is nearing the top of the range. The entry level Zestys seem to be poorely spec'd comapared to what you could buy for similar money from someone else. So to get a decent Zesty, one that is imo demonstrately "better" at everything that a 5, for example, you need to either a) spend mucho ££ straight away on say at least a 514 and prefferably a 714, or b) admitt what your spending your money on is a very very good frame, buy the cheaper one (314) and then upgrade those slightly pony components over time as the original parts wear out.

Of course beyond all of that pontificating is just buying a bike you feel comfortable with and fit properly. We are not all the same size or proportioned, so as the OP points out, demo's are really a must do!

Here's one i made earlier:

[IMG] [/IMG]

😉

Say you rode a Lapierre and it felt 'at home' it'd still be a Five wouldn't it?

Yep. I don't warm to the Lapierres at all. They're on my shortlist because they get lots of great reviews for the type of riding I do and (the more expensive ones) are very light. The Zesty (514 or 714) would have to be considerably better than the Orange or Bandit* for me to consider it.

[EDIT] *subject to demo'ing the Bandit 🙂

I know a load of folk with Fives (I'm in Yorkshire) and without exception they're very happy with them. Some run more xc set-ups with 32s, others go large with 36s. I've seen how they ride their bikes too, and they defo give them some hammer, all year round too. I'd have one in a shot. I'm currently saving up...

I have a number of friends with Zesty's. [b]All[/b] have had reliability issues which include:
cracked chainstays (only one of them admittedly)
Bottom brackets that last weeks
Fork failure ( stantion coming loose in the crown!)
failed rear hubs ( x3)
Formula brakes failing
Two of them have significant surface corrosion where the paint has flaked off in places

apart from that they love them, they have been taken to the Alps, trail centres, entered races in the UK and they have kept them for years without wanting to change for another bike

to be fair, all of the above bar the corrosion were sorted under warranty, but it is a pain in the butt when you have to keep taking them back. Incidentally they have all replaced the original back wheel with a hope hub

18 Bikes have a Bandit if you've not found a demo and haven't decided on a Five. Can you keep it for a month then sell it to me for much cheapness?

I love it how people blame component failures on the bike Jim 😉

Only really the frame failures and notoriously poor bb life due to water ingress down the seat tube are Lapierre specific issues?

Brakes and forks could have happened on any bike.

The 2013 range of Lapierre Zesty's look pretty well specc'd to me. A 214 specc'd with SLX and Fox CTD 150 fork for £1899 looks pretty good to me in todays market. I'd only be wary of the Elixir brakes on that.

Mtbmoto,

I wasn't blaming the bike, and as you said the poor paint and cracked frame were not component failures, and in the same period , e.g within the warranty period, those in my group who have Orange 5's had no issues of any kind that I can recall- I know that they were component failures, but the same issues all happening to the same type of bike is very annoying, suggests poor component choices and and rather puts one off buying into the brand

I've ridden 5s and zestys (and own neither) and preferred the zesty. It is subjective though, there's no substitute for a demo. Skyline cycles have alu blurs, fives and loads more if you fancy a trip. Great shop too.
The 2013 5 spots are a very good price.
Loads of choice 😀
Great innit?

Sam, I'm planning on getting a demo from 18 Bikes. Just waiting on availability. No you can't nave it in a month 😀

Wrecker, please don't give me more choice lol (I think the 5 Spots are fugly anyway)

Orange 5 for sure. Even its shit, you'll convince yourself its the best bike ever created.

You're definitely going about it the right way. I demo'd an ASR5, Covert, Five, Mojo HD and Epic.... Went for the Five but had a few sleepless nights as I also loved the Covert. They were all great but the Five and Covert were what i was after.

As it happens I had my Five custom built by my LBS and it spanks the Pro I tested so very happy. Don't want to sound like the typical fanboy but it really is very good, but then i chose it from a selection so i knew it was 'right' for me. I get tired of people trashing other people decisions or suggesting that any bike will do, from my experience there are certain bikes that natively suit how each of us likes to ride, granted it's difficult to make a really bad decision but it makes a world of difference when you get it right 😀

Had mine a year now and no problems to speak of. I suspect the bandit will feel lighter and more nimble as the Five and Covert we're really very similar, but never tested the bandit so can't really comment. Zestys look good but never tried one.

As a fairly heavy guy (16st) and one who loves to charge down hill I discounted the bandit on looks, not aesthetically just that rear triangle looks awfully fragile. Odd how we judge things but hey ho...!

Go with what feels right. Here's what I did...oh, just make sure you get a dropper what ever you do. Can't advocate enough just how brilliant they are.

[img] [/img]

Ask1974 does it brakejack? 😉

Yes, a little. But I've never really found it to be an issue, I tend to stay off the brakes which is why it's so much fun... 😉 I used to have a Specialized FSR which of course has more active suspension, but Interestingly I felt disconnected from the trail by comparison. Same deal with the Mojo, the bike felt lifeless to me. Nice, just no feedback.

Just checked this out though...now that's just lovely...

[url= http://www.transitionbikes.com/2013/Bikes_Bandit26_3.cfm ]New yellow Bandit[/url]

My 2010 zesty BB was replaced only a few months, not bad I'd say.

(I think the 5 Spots are fugly anyway)

Other things to consider if you're keeping it long term, how much to replace suspension bearings, and how likely is a tortuous cable routing to cause you shifting problems? Not tried the Bandit, but for what it's worth, I wouldn't swap my 2007 Five for a Zesty (and def not a carbon one), feel too high at the back, low, wide and short at the front for me.

Argh! I just want to get them all demo'd and buy one 🙂

Blur LT - Cannock have a demo so need to get down there
Bandit - Waiting for 18 Bikes to confirm availability
Five - ridden it, loved it and ready to buy it if one of the others is not [u]significantly[/u] better
Zesty - no demo bikes, just demo fleets, and they haven't started touring yet

The interesting angle to this is that it is a replacement bike through my insurance. I have "credit" to spend with Wheelies which can provide the Five and Zesty but not the other two. I can take a cash settlement but it is 20% less than going through Wheelies. If I buy the Bandit or Blur the build kit will therefore be noticeably lower spec than the Five or Zesty, but I'd much prefer to buy from a bike shop. Might be a big factor.

coatsey, no doubt the simplicity of maintenance of the Five is a big plus point.

Cotic Rocket? 18 bikes/cotic on your doorstep?

still amazes me how people bang on about a 5 and miss the heckler, just as good (and bad) but for the difference you can get a decent fork upgrade and an extra 10mm or travel. (heckler owner waiting to buy something more sophisticated)

Hi.
I have a Five,I took 5 years deciding on which bike to buy and very very happy with it.
My mate has a Bandit and wishes he had bought a Cube i have rode it and found it goes uphill better than the five but i rip him apart on the downs.
My other mate has a zesty and I have never felt the need to ride it. it def goes uphill quicker but he has had lost of problems with bottom braket's.
The five is built for the uk so for me its the only choice.

but i rip him apart on the downs.

Err does he know you say this about his riding? 😉

The five is built for the uk so for me its the only choice.

Marketing mans wet dream 🙂

mike, the main reason for avoiding the Heckler is because I assume it will be quite similar to the Five. Santa Cruz is another brand I can only buy if i take the (lower) cash settlement from the insurance peeps, so I'd actually get a better build on the Five for the same virtual money.

E.g. £3200 cash settlement for Bandit, Rocket, Heckler, Blur etc = £4000 to spend with Wheelies on one of the bikes they can get (e.g. the Five or the Zesty)

LOL. We seem to think the UK is the only place with rain. Ferndale WA (where transition are based) gets 36.25" of rainfall a year. The Cotswolds get around 32". Unless my research is wobbly, which it probably is....

Fair enough, last i looked though I would only touch the 5AM build as I'd be swapping the rest of the kit out as soon as it arrived.

Just looking down the list on wheelies and it seems very limited these days. Not much choice if you had something nice nicked.

It's not just about rain though is it. It's the mix of rain and whatever the floor is made up of that causes the problems. The gritty trails of the Peaks and the Pennines are what destroy components, eats up bearings etc. I thought UK riders were unique in that we actually go out in the horrid weather 😆

I thought Wheelies had a pretty good selection to be honest. Granted they can't get all the ones I'm interested in but they do have Yeti, Orange, Lapierre, Spesh, Trek, Cannondale, Giant, Scott, Identi, DMR, Genesis, Evil...

FWIW
2004 S Works Enduro Best riding bike I have owned - did not care about bearing life due to how well it rode
Kinesis Phase - little too harsh
2006 Heckler awesome UK and alps bike rode till it dies
2009 Heckler still going strong as above
On One 456 great UK bike

tested
Orange Alpine - OK really not worth extra over a heckler
Orange 5 - OK really not worth extra over a heckler
Whytes, Marins, Konas, Cannondales and loads more
Nomad C Awesome light nimble great climber and decender
Blur Lt & Ltc as above but better for most riding, perfect for UK trails.
Having 1 pair of bearings does not make a bike ride better. Somehow some of that development outside of yorkshire has been worth it

I thought UK riders were unique in that we actually go out in the horrid weather

That's a fair point, although with as much rain as say, BC gets; if they didn't go out in it they wouldn't get out much!
As far as I'm aware, the geology of the UK isn't unique. Grit, clay, sand, mud can be found all over the world.

if they didn't go out in it they wouldn't get out much!

They just wait until the weather gets better and the trails dry out. That doesn't happen often in the UK. We just ride around in wet, muddy conditions year round and complain about the weather. There is no such thing as a mountain biking "season" in much of the UK, but I bet a lot of the riders in less temperate climates hang their bikes up for some of the year and do something else instead.

When I lived in Salt Lake City we rode bikes in the summer and skied in the winter. Certainly never rode a bike in the rain. Conversely I don't think I've ridden on a dry trail this year (until this week when they froze) but I'll probably ride every week of the year.

They just wait until the weather gets better and the trails dry out.

still amazes me how people bang on about a 5 and miss the heckler, just as good (and bad) but for the difference you can get a decent fork upgrade and an extra 10mm or travel. (heckler owner waiting to buy something more sophisticated)

Assuming it fits you, I've always liked the look of the heckler but the sizing is bloody odd to be frank, way too short for a given standover.

How much "looking after" do you like/want to do (or avoid) on your bike?

Something like a multilink Zesty is imo a more capable bike for more of the time in the uk that a 5, but is not as robust. If you like to ride, get back and just chuck you bike in the shed, then a 5 is a better bet because there are simply less moving parts to go wrong!

People always bang on about BB's on Zestys as being some sort of massive issue, but i don't get it. I've spent about £5k on my Zesty, and probably £2.5k last year in riding it (accomodation, fuel, parking, uplifts etc) and yes, i have changed the BB. it cost me £22 and took less than 20min. After a solid year of riding the old one was a little notchy (still turning fine,just a little bit grumbly, kinda like me these days 😉

And when it comes to pure speed, it's always the rider that matters. On just about every terrain i've ever ridden, the difference in downhill pace is measured in seconds between riders and bikes, but the uphill pace is measured in minutes, and 99% of that is the bikes engine, rather than it's suspension layout!

If you like the 5, you should get it.

Mikewsmith - my mate's Covert isn't designed for the UK and as a result he needs new pivot hardware every 10 mins. Fives just go on and on and on. I'd say designed for the UK is relevant, although not necessarily a deal breaker depending on the buyer.

I've toyed with changing my Alpine 160 for something different either a Carbon Nomad or Mojo HD which both my friends have. Lovely bikes but not so lovely when you get them out the back of the van and can feel play in every link! I know a lot of people slag off Orange bikes, and i would agree there are better suspension designs out there but when it comes to ease of maintenance and reliability I don't think theres another brand which comes close. I love my Orange and at the moment theirs nothing out there which will take the british weather better it just keeps going!

Cotic Rocket? 18 bikes/cotic on your doorstep?

I tried a Five and found it dull by comparison to the Rocket which descends better, climbs better, looks better & the mud clearance is fantastic. IMHO of course, you gotta ride it not us 😆

I have a five, a riding chum has a zesty.
Both good, feel a bit different to start off with but you adapt.
Get what you like the look of.
Dm

Go for the 5, its won trail bike of the year 4 years on the trot what other bike can boast that, plus there made right here in merry old england.

I tried a Five and found it dull by comparison to the Rocket which descends better, climbs better, looks better & the mud clearance is fantastic. IMHO of course, you gotta ride it not us

Can I ask what you mean by climbs and descends better? Faster up a fire road? Able to get up steeper more technical climbs? Bounces over rocky stuff better? More fun? etc

I rode a 2011 relaxed 'five'. Didnt like it. I liked the 5 though.

Orange now offering a free fork upgrade to Fox Talas 36. Should I be tempted? Reckon it could be overkill?

I'd just get the five, you know you like it and it'd suck to take a hit on the insurance money.

It's the conclusion I'm coming to. I'm spending too much time reading about these bikes and not enough time riding them 🙄