So I very recently picked up a used Stumpjumper from my LBS as my first full suspension – I have always been curious, and it was too good to pass up, both component wise and price wise. However, it's vastly overkill for me and my area. I'm in coastal Georgia, and because it's so long and slack, it feels like I'm trying to make it work for me more than I probably should. I'm also not a fan of 29er wheels, but the bike came with carbon wheels and DT Swiss 350 hubs.
Enter another rash purchase, a brand new, old stock, 2022 Diamondback Catch. Yeah, I know diamondback isn't well renowned as much any more, but the component listing is strong. I found online at a reputable bike shop, it has never been ridden, and the shop put on a set of Rynelds carbon wheels on it. It's 27.5 (my preference), shorter, taller, and less slack. I think it will be more practical, more agile and fun, but I also feel like they are still too similar to justify both.
What would you do?
by hunter_uu
9 Comments
Id keep the one that brings me the most joy while riding.
I would consider how much bike I really needed in my foreseeable future and keep the one that fit that the best. Sounds like you’ve already written off the Stumpy, so there’s probably your answer.
Curious – How much does it improve when locked out? I’ve ridden many gravel and paved miles on a 29er with huge travel and a big front end comfortably by just flipping the switches.
Modern 29er trail bikes aren’t always fun on slower, old school trails that were built when we were all on 26in and teeny tiny frames. Modern bikes are just too big and long to fit. If you are exclusively riding that old kind of trail, don’t feel bad abandoning modern trends and ride what feels right.
Also, diamondback has gone through different owners and business models the past few decades. They have some solid bikes in their archives depending on what they were at the time it was designed/built. Don’t shy from diamondback just because it is diamondback.
Love the color of that DB. Also crazy well spec’d.
Diamondback used to get shit on but when Seth’s bike hacks was sponsored by them we did a couple rides and that thing ripped. Obviously that dude makes every bike look godly but it he beat the crap out of em
kinda been here before. for coastal georgia with no real chunk, that 27.5 diamondback catch is gonna feel way more playful. the stumpy is overkill for flatland – you’ll work harder to get it poppy. sell the specialized and grab a nice floor pump with gauge if you don’t have one. also worth getting a good torque wrench set for swapping parts if you plan to tinker. that 27.5 with carbon wheels sounds like a blast for your local stuff. just make sure your pedals and grips are dialed since you’ll be doing more pedal heavy miles.
Diamondback was always in and out of making top bikes, but the whole buyout and consolidation thing and going out of business every few years didn’t do it favors. These were among their best bikes since the legendary DBRs of the late-90s and early-2000s
The first ever Olympic mountain bike race was in Georgia in 1996.