Editor’s Note: Here is the second of the three ride impressions on the three full suspension 29″ers being thrashed by c_g and M1 in Europe.
Specialized Epic Carbon Comp 29 – Ride Impressions by c_g
Specialized has a long history with 29er and their commitment to the genre is admirable. Just read Grannygear’s and Guitar Ted’s reports on what innovations have com from the big S over the years. I have had very little contact to them or their products – being plenty busy in covering what there is new for 29″er folks from this side of the big pond. But being given the opportunity to ride and review this trio of 29″er full suspension bikes was simply too good to pass. Each of the three bikes had always been high on my list of “Bikes I want to ride”. Last you have heard my experiences on the ROCKY MOUNTAIN Altitude 29″er SE (here) – now it is the Specialized Epic´s turn.
The key features that I was curious about with the SPECIALIZED was the famed geometry and the 2011 Brain suspension technology. So let´s step into how they made an impression on me.
The Bike: The SPECIALIZED Epic Comp Carbon 29″er isn´t the most blingy 29″er in their line by far. It also is not the base level but a very worthy and decent weight bike from their mid-range. For me it falls well within the price and component range of bikes that I might choose as a one for all rig. Functional and light enough to be raced or ridden for an epic alpine adventure – at least that is what I had expected from the bike. Did the Carbon Comp 29″er fulfill my expectations? … Read on.
For a full listing of what features and components adorn this bike – I´d like to refer you to the detailed tech intro here.
Seating position/ handling: One thing I can mention right away – Specialized has pretty much nailed the seating position and geometry to a point where it is super universal and pleasing to a lot of rider types. It sure fit me and I immediately felt at home on the bike. To optimize the fit I changed the stem´s negative 12° rise to a more moderate -8° by turning the shim, that came with the stem by 180° – I really like that system.
Once dialed I felt that the seating position was on the propulsion oriented side but not stretched or uncomfortable. If it feels too stretched for you, it is easily modified by a non-offset post and/or a shorter stem. The cockpit falls on the wider side, which may not meet every racer´s choice (but those can trim if they like) but gives additional control and leverage when needed.
The frame feels very stiff overall, the steering precision in front as well as the bottom bracket stiffness for power transfer are all top notch. There was absolutely no detectable power loss under pedaling input. By my subjective impression I´d place it higher than the TREK´s and the ROCKY MOUNTAIN in that regard. This extends to the alloy rear triangle as well.
– By handling I give the SPECIALZED Epic carbon 29″er very high marks and to me it is a bike perfectly capable of steep climbing as well as technical riding or XC-style riding. This excellently neutral handling and balanced feel (that balanced SPECIALIZED feel I have heard much about but never had a longer ride period to really get it).
Riding / Suspension
Here is where the SPECIALIZED Epic sets itself apart from any other bike I know, after all the BRAIN shock technology is proprietary to SPECIALIZED :). I found the shock to be super adjustable via the Brain Fade. It would allow for a setting from very firm to pretty soft. Note though that even when fully closed there was some remaining suspension – much like a firm soft tail, but not a complete hard tail sensation. Within the range I found my preferred position somewhere between 4-6 clicks from open (12 click complete range). The opening action by the inertia valve is super smooth and almost transition-less within the biggest part of the adjustment range. Only at fully open could I hear a slight click by inertial valve and when fully locked the opening of valve happens too abruptly under harder impacts, so the extremes felt imbalanced and awkward.
While the earlier generations of the Brain shock always had me which for some improvement, the 2011 generation has done it for me – well done SPECIALIZED :).
Overall I found the Brain shock to be eliminating any pedaling induced bobbing very effectively. I found the feel a bit strange at the beginning but very soon learned to love it.
One thing need to be said though. The “brain” does create a specific suspension feel that differs from others. So the Rock Shox Reba ended up feeling overly active when set up like I usually ride it. Setting the compression damping to 1/3 closed and a medium floodgate I found the front to match the rear nicely.
-Overall the suspension was one that is the closest to “Set and Forget” that I have ever met. I am a suspension user that often reaches for the lockout or turns the platform damping ON and OFF depending on the trail conditions and riding style. In this light the only downside to the brain is that it can only be set or altered when dismounting.
With the SPECIALIZED Epic it felt like I was robbed off all my possibilities to alter the ride when pedaling – a thing that felt awkward initially but soon grew on me. Indeed I kind of learned to love the sensation and ride characteristics of the Epic in terms of suspension action.
Components:
In terms of the components all worked pretty fine in action – no real problems whatsoever. Shifting was not super crisp like the Trek´s XO but precise and perfectly working throughout my testing period. I am starting to like double ring cranks. It sure helps keeping the front shifting precise when hammering and the 24/36 chain rings were fine for all but the longest climbs – it sure was more universal than the TREK`s 26t granny. Braking was adequate and nice, despite the 160 mm front and rear, no issue for the type of riding I did on the bike. Did I already mention that I loved the SPECIALIZED´s versatile stem with plenty of rise options without looking strange :).
But there are some smaller issues as well. While 142+ rear hub usually is designed to be self centering the rear triangle was too wide and so the mounting the 142+ rear hub was pretty fiddly. Once mounted it worked like a charm. I found the Renegade 2.00 rear tire to be nicely matching the more aggressive THE CAPTAIN up front giving good speed and traction while providing plenty of control and tracking on the front. The quick release front fork combined to the wide flanged front hub tracked nicely also, only in direct comparison could I detect the difference to the ROCKY MOUNTAIN´s through axle.
As a race bike the SPECIALIZED Epic Carbon Comp 29″er suffers a bit from the slightly high weight of 12,1 kg, but the really good specs and frame for the asking price are absolutely justified. And if you are looking to reduce the weight, do a bit of tuning or go for the next higher spec’ed frame.
– Once again I found very little reasons to complain, The double ring configuration up might not be the most adaptable for general riding or epic adventures but then again running the XT triple on the ROCKKY didn’t give me a lower gearing either. For fast riding the 36t big ring gave me plenty of speed for 98% of the time.
Verdict:
As you have read in detail above, I ended up liking the Epic very much. To me it felt best when set up like a soft tail – with some give for trail chatter and small things, very stable and efficient on smoother grounds, yet capable of really rough riding as well. The Epic made use of all its travel on rough rides without ever bottoming out. The BRAIN shock produced the best of two worlds – hard tail efficiency under smooth sailing and plush suspension when needed. If I were to put it into one phrase it would sound like: “The Epic is a soft tail with full suspension capacities”. By handling and steering it is apparent that Specialized have a well refined geometry that suits a really wide range of riders and riding styles.
Before the test I had been more skeptical on how much I´d like the bike but now I got to admit – I am loving it. :).
Stay tuned for the third (and most prestigious) bike in the trio, the TREK Superfly 100 Elite.
RIDE ON,
c_g
* “The bikes had been submitted to twentynineinches.com from the national distributors of each brand at no charge and we want to thank them for that.”
* “All pictures of the bikes are from the early testing phase, meanwhile my camera broke and has not been returned to me until the end of the test”
Thanks for the review.
I’d like to know the geometry. All the links on my dial up won’t be as good a ride as the Specalized.
Guitar Ted, thanks for the review, I have been waiting to see a good review I can trust on this bike! I would like to know how standing acceleration and climbing were handled by the Brain, and if you think a new Fox Terralogic fork would be a good match to the Brain, or if they would not play well together?
“Specialized has a long history with 29er and their commitment to the genre is admirable.”
LOL
From the 2007 Specialized catalog:
“It seems like bike are getting more niche every year, …. what’s next, a full-suspension Twentyniner?”
From the intro to the SX trail.
BTW I have owned one of these Specilized fullsuspension 29ers since 2009.
12.1 KG = 26.67 lbs for reference.
Sounds like c_g confused Gary Fisher with Specialized when talking about commitment to 29ers!
@Mel: Of course, this review was written by c_g, but I have had some time on a Brain equipped Epic Marathon and I feel it would match up just fine with regards to a fox front fork. It’s all in the set-up.
Standing climbing and acceleration can be “hard tail-like” if you set the Brain up to react that way, at the small compromise of small bump compliance. It would be as c_g says in the review, a “soft tail” feel. If you’ve ever ridden a soft tail, that may make sense to you.
For $240 you can have your Specialized dealer send the Reba in for a “Brain Transplant” which puts the brain internals in the fork. Included in the price is a full service. I plan on getting mine done at the end of the season. The standing climbing is hardtail-like in the rear but the fork bobs. Brain transplant will cure this.
How would you say the carbon frame and 142+ spacing in the back compares with last years Epic Marathon?
Curious what you think about the BB height, especially for marathon riding where I will be sore, tired and not paying as much attention as I should be after 5+ hours and go spinning into a technical section. I spent about an hour and a half on a 2010 Epic29 recently, and my first impressions were very much like yours. The ride felt pretty dialed, just pro enough that I didn’t feel like I was sitting on a bar stool, relaxed enough to go all day. Angles were a little more relaxed than a lot of 29ers but it still did great in the twisties and gobbled up climbs and descents. My impressions of the rear end were similar as well, it rode like a soft tail that somehow magically gobbled up big hits too (with a little feedback). — I was fairly impressed, except, I was slamming the crank arms and pedals into every obstacle I found. Was I just having an off day, or does this bike really have a myseriously low BB when it’s sagged?
@Samuel – I have the 2010 Epic Comp 29 and the BB is low. Compared to my Mamasita and Mary I am slapping rocks on a regular basis. It’s just the way they setup their BB height. I have gotten used to it, but you do tend to hit cranks more regularly. Their hard tails
The review is pretty much spot on for the Epic 29 series. I think they have that line up dialed in. It really is a pleasurable all around bike to ride. Hard tail when you want it, FS when you need it is how I have always thought it should work and Specialized has done it.
@Slim : Cracking me up there! I too find it humorous that Specialized is all on board with the 29er now. (glad they are) Giant is the same way. I refuse to buy a Giant 29er simply because they were nay sayers about the 29er geometry for so long and now they claim to be industry leaders. While the little guys were putting their neck on the line with the 29er those two big players were poo pooing the big wheel movement. Oh wait, people want big wheels and we can make money on them. “We are all in, and we’ve been wanting big wheels all along.” HA!
Oops. I meant to add that Specialized hard tail 29ers have the low bottom bracket as well. It’s just how they have them designed.
I’ve got the Expert version with brains at both ends, and agree with your review. It’s a great bike (with sub-par wheels, especially the rear). My rear triangle is also too wide, which is no big deal to manage in the shop, but a pain on the trail — as I found out while repairing a torn sidewall in the S-Works Captain tire, which IMO is too thin in the sidewall department for tubeless conversion if any rocks are present on your trails!
If you find yourself constantly fiddling w/ the rear lockout lever on your FS bikes, you gotta try a Pivot 429. It rides so well you’ll wonder why it has a lockout on it at all, you’ll never use it.
Hey to all. I have a 2011 Epic Expert 29er and love it!! Review here is spot on. But today was a sad day…. I was riding downhill into a bottom right turn and my front tire hit approx. a 3-4″ rut. My front wheel folded under me and over the bars I went. Multiple superficial injuries occurred to me, but I was devistated when I got up and dusted myself off. My front tire looked like a pringles chip and was wedged between my forks. I strapped my bike to my shoulder and hiked it back to my car 4 miles thru the woods and 3 creeks. Finally I put it in the rack and headed to my LBS for emergency care. Just bought the bike in January, and now need to purchase a new rim. Grrrr!
Enough of me crying in my beer. I was wondering if anyone at all has seen or heard of any problems with the DT swiss 450SL rims. Nice low weight rim, but the spokes seem to be way to thin (16G). Wondering if I should get OEM replacement or stray from it. Since 29er wheel set/rims are fairly new in the after market crowd, not sure where to look or go to.
Sorry for posting on your review, but I have been looking for answers. I also have saved your site! Really like your 29er style!!
go with Stan’s Arch rims, you can have a set built for as low as $375 at aebikes.com. A friend ordered a set from there with x9 hubs and flow rims last year, he has crashed numerous times, and they are as straight as an arrow! He was also riding them with a ridged fork, took a nasty over bar tumble in a rock garden, and no issues with the wheelset. I think the Flow rim is a bit overkill, the arch is the same design in a slightly narrower profile.
The stock wheels are the downfall of the Epic 29er line. I have been snapping spoke nipples on the drive side a bit now. I also have to have them trued up on a regular basis. Brass nipples are the only way to go on 29er rear wheels. I’ve had nothing but problems with alloy on rear wheels. I’m not a big guy at 160 pounds.
I would disagree with the Flow being overkill. The wider rim actually makes the tires handle better. The tires take a different shape and puts a bigger foot print down. I would go with Flows because they are a wider rim. If you can try out a set before deciding I know you will see and feel the difference. The tire doesn’t squirm on a Flow like it does on a narrower rim.
My $.02
Ben
I was wondering if anyone else, especially the writer, had any comments about pedal strikes with the Epic 29er. I know XC bikes have a low BB but some are certainly worse than others due to their suspension design. It can be a real bummer if you ride agressively or like more techinical XC riding. How did the Epic compare to the other Superfly 100 and the Giant?
I have a 2011 Epic Marathon 29er, but I just bought the frame and built it up myself. I put a Fox Terralogic fork on the front with a thru-axle. My drivetrain is XTR triple, and the wheels are Edge rims laced to DT Swiss 240 hubs. This might be the best all-around 29er I have ever ridden. While it has only 100 mm of front and rear travel, this bike can take on some really rough trails. And the brain is as advertised. Older versions of the brain were clunky and didn’t feel right. The new brain shock is incredible. This bike will feel like a hard tail until an impact opens it up. Like the reviewer said, this is as close to set-it and forget it as you will find. The stock wheels are crap, which is why I bought the Edge carbon XC wheels. They are light and bombproof. They are also quite expensive, but they will be the last wheelset I need to buy. Buy this bike, you won’t be disappointed.
Hi. C_g: how tall are you? I’m 181 cm and not sure if M or L should be my choice. It looks like you had your seatpost to the max out there…was it all good in this set up?