Upgrade a budget bike or buy expensive brand?
Вставка
- Опубліковано 8 гру 2023
- Use links & discounts below to help support the channel:
Polygon Colossus N9
bikesonline-usa.sjv.io/c/3995...
Trail One Components
trailone.bike/?ref=yHQiW-iMc3...
15% Discount Code - SupportTheTrails-Hoff
Worldwide Cyclery (5DEV cranks, Industry Nine Wheels etc.)
www.worldwidecyclery.com/prod...
KETL Mountain Bike Clothing
ketlmtn.com/?ref=um6fa30n
HSU GoPro Accessories
hsushop.com/?ref=ppdbrlfaw9
Discount Code - THEHOFF
My Outdoor Master Helmet
Discount Code - JARED10
outdoormaster.com/?ref=to6rzt...
Join this channel to get access to perks
/ @jaredhoff - Спорт
A bike that fits you is always way better than any higher priced hyped bike
For sure!
Some people will buy the bike they dream of and make themselves fit on it.
Wrong way around 😂
I’m a Trek guy, recently my wife took an interest in doing trail riding with me so I picked up a used hard tail and took her on some fire roads and Flo trails to see if she would like it…she did…however, when I told her I wanted to get her a Trek Top Fuel she refused to let me spend that much money so I did a bunch of research and got a Polygon Siskiu D7 for her. I couldn’t be more impressed with the Polygon, not just impressed for the price, just impressed, that $1200 Polygon does everything she needs it to do with ease with the only changes being a seat, shorter dropper post, and a different dropper lever, all for ergonomics/fitment.
Sounds like you got the perfect bike for her 👍
Polygon Is Perfect So FYI : Polygon Is From My Country Indonesia 🇮🇩 To The World 🌍🌎
I absolutely LOVE hot rodding more budget guitar gear. It's fun to take something that is amazing to play and make it play and sound far better. I'd find these guitars that felt good and sounded good acoustically and then upgrade the bridge, pickups, electronics, nut etc.
This part of me would love to take my entry level hardtail XC bike and upgrade it to the 9s one day because I think that would be hilarious and also fun! What you did with that enduro bike was worth it. You like the frame and the suspension linkage is a really big deal. Definitely was money well invested and now you have a one of a kind bike that does exactly what YOU want.
This is what I like about upgrading guitar gear: You can customize instruments to do the sounds YOU want and they perform the way YOU want them to. The problem with a much more expensive bike is that at the end of the day, you're probably still going to be playing around with the contact points and cockpit to get it dialed just so which means more money spent yet again after the ticket price.
💯 🤘 One of a kind custom. Sounds like you need to make a UA-cam channel about upgrading guitars. That’s interesting 👍
I 100% agree the upgraded budget bike all the way! Lightweight wheels and any other rotational weight is a huge deal! Plush shocks 🙌🏼 The nice thing about your ungraded budget bike is that you can put the stock parts back on and keep your upgraded parts for 2 or 3 bikes if you like trying new bikes 😎
I went from a budget 2017 Diamondback to a 2020 Trek Fuel EX 9.8 (full carbon) and it didn’t really feel much nicer than my Diamondback, I got insider discount on both, but MSRP the Trek cost more than double, but only felt slightly better (it was lighter with carbon wheels). I got a killer deal on a used 2020 Ibis Ripmo for half the price of my discounted Trek and it’s my favorite bike, but my budget Diamondback is a close second.
I could hear someone arguing suspension design (and geo), I love my DW-Link, but the VPP on Diamondback felt great. Idk anything about Polygons design
Totally man! I had my doubts when I started upgrading this Colossus N9, but it’s now the best enduro bike I’ve ever rode.
I can’t wait for my friend to get his Trek Slash, so I can do back to back rides to see how the bikes compare while riding.
@@JaredHoff yeah the comparison sounds interesting
I love the way carbon bars feel and in my opinion they really do transform the way a bike feels for the better how ever after seeing them snap on impacts due to rider error I swapped mine out for the one-ups aluminium version of there carbon bars
I still think carbon offers a way superior feel and might give titanium bars ago next as they apparently are the closest of feel to carbon bars just a alot stronger and alot more expensive
Most definitely 👍 after doing back-to-back test carbon vs. alloy,,, I will ride carbon bars whenever I can afford to. Although, the price is definitely a lot more so sometimes I still ride aluminum.
Fwiw I got a 2020 Trance 2. With all the upgrades it now sits at around 5k cad. Its easy for sponsored or subsidized UA-camrs to say get the higher end bikes because they get them free or at budget prices. For the rest of us, buy the best you can afford and upgrade on the way.
For sure 👍
Please get a zebb ultimate it is the best form on the market you will not regret it way better than a factory 38! I love you videos man!!
Thanks man. I am really happy with the 38 that’s on here, but it would be interesting to do a ZEB versus 38 review. I wish I had the money to buy a fork for that review. Maybe one day I’ll find a way.
@@JaredHoff yeah money doesn’t grow on trees! Lol
The trek slash is a great bike but lately it’s been getting bad press due to the chain drops on the high pivot and if I’m going to spend that type of money on a high end bike it better not have any issues right out the gate so the polygon is a good choice 👍
Definitely 👍 Trek put out a couple fixes for the Slays chain drop issues, but like you said…
Front rotor looks like it's on the wrong direction?
My trailbike is a Coast Cycle Atom F/S, (probably none of you have heard about it before). Totally having fun of it, i made it unique by personally custom the paintjob. I still miss my Polygon N9 but i love what i have now.
Heck yeah 👍
@@JaredHoffjust my lame ass excuse because I’m broke, and still want to hit our local trails. 😂 btw, love your channel. Keep it up!
100% upgrade budget bike all the way! I'm doing something simular, upgrading my budget, when frame wears our ill buy higher end frame and move equipment over!
Heck yeah 👍
Agree on upgrade the budget bike. Move parts bike to bike each new purchase.
Yup 👍
Thanks for the needed commentary about today's bike prices getting out of hand. Note: Trek is not the worst offender.
For sure! Luckily prices have came down a little.
I had a giant 29er hard tail & sold it so when I decided I wanted an another bike but full suspension I looked at them. I kept having polygon ads pop up for the t7. I finally checked them out , I’ve yet to purchase one due to leaving soon for work but I think when I get back I’ll get a t8.
T8 is a solid option 👍
@@JaredHoff if I buy now it’ll get here 5-7 days before I leave the country for a month. The flip side is if I wait they may not be on sale when I get back
Great idea to investigate the subject of upgrading vs buying a bike with better specs.👍I like what you did with the upgrades, but..... 1The comparison is not completely fair. The Polygon was way better to begin with and 2 you upgraded parts that don't do a lot to performance. For instance titanium bolds.
How does the bike compare to a more expensive version of the n9 in terms of specs and pricing?
I hear ya! You make a good point.
When upgrading a bike I care about performance, but there’s something about those little color matching touches (oil slick bolts etc.) that make a difference between a basic bike and a dream ride.
Of course! Upgrading your bike to your own personal preferences is a very satisfying thing to do. I will do the same, when I will buy a new frame next year. Matching padles and grips and that kind of stuff. But I am also interested in upgrading a bike to make it objectively better. I am not sure, but I think it's hard to beat bike manufacturers considering price and quality of the components. Those companies have the advantage of buying components in large quantities.
Beautifully tasteful bombtrack build!
Thanks 👍 I’m stoked on the way this build turned out.
I think the polygon went up in price looks like it’s $3500 now. But great job on getting yours upgraded for that great spec not sure it’s possible now tho but there’s still loads of good deals around just gotta shop around
Yeah, it sucks that the price went back up
Amazing Machine😍!!
(Your front Rotor is on backwards, potentially a very dangerous thing!)
I’ll have to check out that rotor. Filming vids and working on these bikes at the same time leads to mistakes 😂
The polygon N7 for sure.
Word 👍
Great bike. Just noticed your front rotor seems to be mounted backwards. Ride safe..
😂 thanks! I had another guy point that out to me so it’s fixed. Felt like an idiot, BUT so much goes into making these videos that I make silly mistakes like that form time to time LOL
Can you type the name brand cassette you replaced? Also f you are over 6'0...the 165 's made it a better ride?
It was a Garbaruk 12 speed Cassette, but I think I would just get and XT cassette (see link) if I had to do it again. amzn.to/3U8oWYk
165 cranks are now my favorite at 6’2” BUT it was a slight trade off. The 175s made it a tiny bit easier to pedal uphill.
There are so many good deals these days I’d say upgrade as long as you spend enough on the suspension platform. If you go so cheap you get rst coil suspension it’s gonna cost to upgrade and new would be better.
I should add… I’ve done both. I Bought a bike and upgraded suspension and ended up at the $4500 price tag with making a used bike tolerable when I could have just gone for something new. Then I went new ($5500) and for me buying one that fit right was better then trying to make something work that wasn’t right. (Can’t make an enduro bike out of a park bike or a trail bike). I spent $7k trying with three different frames. So for me the new bike for $5500 was a much better buy. Definitely upgrade if you start with a good frame for your purpose… but don’t upgrade at all if the frame is wrong.
Polygon Is From Indonesia My Country Factory Location At Sidoarjo, East Java, Indonesia My Opinion Is Upgrade Using Groupset Uptoyou For Budget You Can Use Shimano Deore 1x12 Hyperglide +, Tyre Kenda, Shock Rockshox Or If Has A Lot Of Money You Can Use Fox😁😁😁😁
I was happy that this bike came with some good Fox suspension already and Shimano XT drivetrain 👍
Like every industry lots of people identify some brands as prestigious and/or have brand loyalty. Which ultimately means they feel good about spending lots of money on a product because its trendy. Then they justify why then spent that much to protect their lavish purchase. Just because the product is expensive does't mean its good quality. For example lots of specialized mtb had issues with their linkage which cause rear shock binding which lead to damage or completely snapping them. Specialized is what i consider one of the biggest brands pretiguous brands, but even then looks like to me the quality was not there.
Id say buy whatever you are comfortable spending and you can upgrade as you go along and be happy with it.
Word 👍
How about the bearings in colossus? It is durable? I mean the linkcage
I haven’t had any issues so far, but I haven’t taken it apart to inspect it yet. I need to service them soon so I’ll check.
@@JaredHoff last question. All the linkage of n9 is bearing? Or some are bushing only? Like in the chainstay. It has bearing?
Budget is the way to go. Trek is way too much money. Polygon is sick. I really want that bike
I’m so stoked on this Collosus N9. I can’t believe the bike I built. Thankfully bike parts are heavily discounted right now. I couldn’t have done this a couple years ago.
Definitely don’t get the Trek chain dropper !!
I’ve always loved the Trek Slash, but the Polygon N9 is by far my favorite enduro bike.
However, I am going to use my friends Gen 6 Slash to do a versus video riding both bikes back-to-back…
Sick bike brother!🔥 You did the right thing! With all the upgrades done to that bike. I wouldn’t call it a budget bike EVER again! And ignore the haters and naysayers bro! Most People are sheep and they follow the crowd! They will say and DO whatever the next guy with a greater influence says and does, in this case the bike industry!
Remember… LIONS DONT LISTEN TO THE OPINIONS OF SHEEP!
Keep up the great work!🫡
Thanks man 👍
There's just something about upgrading a bike feels better then buying a expensive bike
Most definitely 👍
Nice bike! But it looks like the front rotors are mounted the wrong way.
They most definitely are 😂 I fixed them now. Made that mistake while filming.
Filming solo and doing maintenance leads to some silly mistakes 🤦🏼♂️
The Slash is great on paper but most of them won’t hold a chain for a full descent. The Polygon was designed to be a tank so an inexperienced rider, like me, won’t destroy it the first time they screw up.
I would like to purchase a Colossus N9 but it’ll probably be back to full price by the time I’m ready to do that.
Hopefully the saving will continue so you can get one. The bike market is in a weird place. There’s a good chance we could see savings through tax return season, BUT you never know.
Now is definitely a great time to get a good price.
@@JaredHoff it definitely is. The reality I don’t need an enduro bike and probably wouldn’t truly test it’s ability that often, but it’s certainly more geared for my riding style than my hardtail, which now has a stress crack on a weld… and the company just folded up this year so it’s now a neighborhood cruiser.
Interesting video. I like watching upgrade videos, but you can tell this is an ad. No hate to you. You seem pretty chill. No matter what you do, unless you stumble across a stupid good deal, which does happen every once in a while, it will always be better/cheaper to buy a new bike with better parts. In fact, that's how some people would get a nice frame with good parts. They would buy a meh frame with good parts and a nice frame with bad parts, swap, and sell the lower spec bike. That used to be cheaper.
Anyways, the video wasn't really fair, but you did own a slash before. You never mentioned that you had the new high pivot slash, which is notably more expensive than the last gen slash. To be a totally fair comparison, you would have checked the last gen slash and other bike brands models. If you did, you would have found plenty of other options that come better stock for a similar price.
A lot of DTC brands have come down. What really sets it apart is that you're getting a bike from other brands that can be lighter anywhere from 6-7 OR more pounds. Also I have heard quite a bit about polygons QC. Many people have to completely look over their bike before riding because things weren't tight.
"A lot of peolple told me that I should have spent my money on a fancy, high-end bike instead of spending my money upgrading my budget enduro bike." And they weren't wrong. Anytime other than this absolute buyers haven of a market, you would have spent way more money and this comparison to the slash wouldn't have made sense. It is almost always better to buy a whole bike with the parts you want because they get crazy bulk prices on forks, drivetrains, etc. You can buy the collosus, upgrade it to the absolute highest end parts everywhere, and it will still be heavier than a comparing aluminum bike.
Again, there is no hate on you or polygon. These were just my observations from this video. I've been working on bikes for years, and I've upgraded my bikes through coils shocks, factory forks, high-end wheels, etc. Imo the wheelset is the only good upgrade for a bike unless you swap a fork damper. I've been close to ordering a polygon 2 or 3 times these last couple of years, but I always end up finding a better option for me or in general.
Edit: interesting you say your only in $4500, when an earlier video says that the wheelset you bought cost $2000. I9 is expensive, i lnow that first hand, customizing the wheelset like you did made it more expensive. But that bike can not be only 4500, even with sales. Something somewhere was overlooked or cut out to make the price sound better. Even with it onsale right now for $2799, with shipping and tax, your still over $4500 with those wheels. Maybe you got those wheels on sale, but thay would only drop them to roughly $1300-$1400. That still puts you on edge ($4199 without tax/shipping), which along with the other things you mentioned: Cranks, tires, grips, dropper lever, bars, stem, cassette, saddle, bolts, etc, etc. That would still put you just about on, or more likely, a fair chunk over 5k.
For a third time, no hate, but the numbers simple dont add up. Feel free to correct me, but as far as I can see, 4500 was just thought up because 1: It sounds better 2: Was close enough 3: Makes people want to buy that bike if they can get something "super capable" for cheaper than a more "name brand" companys offer
I hear ya man. A lot goes into making these videos and it’s hard to capture everything or state every detail perfectly since these are not scripted videos and I’m doing all this as a solo creator.
I get most parts for free these days and when I originally got the i9 wheels they were priced around $2,000. With the recent bike market crash, I started seeing all these sales and when I looked up the cheapest prices I could find all the parts for it came out it to around $4,500 but I agree that it could easily be closer to 5k.
I’m truly blessed to get parts for free sometimes and I’ll do better to explain more of that in future videos. Hopefully you understand. I’m definitely not fake or just trying to sell people. Although, BikesOnline has really supported me and I’ve been so surprised how good this N9 rides.
@@JaredHoff Thanks for being honest about it though. I completely understand your angle, but sometimes things can mislead some people that are really inexperienced.
Anyways, thanks for the reply. The candid response was unexpected and really nice. You earned yourself a sub. It's cool that you have support from a company to keep doing things you like. Have a good one 🤙
It's only 'cheaper' if:
1) you place no value on your time - possibly the most valuable thing we as mortal humans have.
2) Warrantee and customer service and dealer/repair network.
Definitely agree and my local Trek shop is amazing to work with. That’s the main reason why I bought Trek bikes.
Although, BikesOnline has been great to work with as well 🤔
Not a fan of the high pivot bikes with that added chain tensioner tooth ring or whatever it's called. Too many moving parts. And they say the more moving parts a system has, the higher the chance of failure. I'd stick with the N9.
For sure 👍
Although, I’m setting up a ride to test both bikes back-to-back so I can really see how the Slash performs.
I ride a deviate Highlander II high pivot bike. The maintenance is not even close to as bad as people say. At least with my bike, there isn't a lower pulley to deal with like the trek slash. I've put nearly 500 miles on mine in less than 3 months and I'd say it's holding up just as good as any of my other bikes.
Trek slash 8 has obviously more modern and progressive geometry, but i totally agree about their price to spec value. Its just terrible. I have 2022 9,8 slash XT. Its carbon light and i absolutely love the bike. Was lucky to get it on big sale at 5500 dollar. I think this bike had great spec to price value as i got carbon everything, XT setup and rear superdeluxe ultimate shock. Lately ive been looking to get an ebike aswell. I really like the looks of gen 4 Rail. Was looking at the 9.8 XT model. Boy was i shocked how overpriced it was. 12k and you dont even get zeb ultimate and sdx ultimate rear. Its just really bad. I would say for that price XTR setup and ultimate in front and rear is a must. So i decided to not do it. Ive look for YT decoy core 5 that comes at 6999 dollar and has better specs. Trek is just way to overpriced, no wonder they have interal issues. I might wait till next year to see what happens. Maybe to get an ebike on black friday or something. I absolutely love trek bikes. But their prices is just retarded,.
I still like Trek bikes as well. YT and other brands definitely have better deals. I am really loving the Polygon N9, but only after I put all the upgrades on it.
I don't know how all those upgrades only cost 2000 the wheelset cost that much
I found some really good deals and get discounts from my UA-cam channel as well.
The best value in MTB UK at the moment is used bikes. Can pick up some steals and upgrade them. Also some mad prices on Nukeproof frames due to wiggle and affiliate company demise.
So many good deals right now. I’ve always wanted to try a Nukeproof.
The problem you have is warranty on anything used. If you find a crack in the frame a couple of months later, you are screwed. Also, where do you stand on warranty with Nukeproof if they go under? a little bit risky at the moment anyway.
Not sure where you got these parts for 4500 all in. Smells of free parts to put together a sponsored bike. The bike itself is $3500 on polygons site and that wheel set alone is like $2000 from I9. Add in all the other tid-bits and you're easily passing 6000-6500. You can buy a ready to ride carbon bike from basically any brand you want for $6000... you just won't have oil slick bolts and 5dev cranks I guess. Oh and you'll have a warranty too.
The bike is on sale for $2,499 at bikes online.
Polygon Colossus N9
bikesonline-usa.sjv.io/c/3995632/1308917/15955
The wheels were heavily discounted during g the Black Friday sales, but I do get discounts from some channel sponsors like the trail on components discounts that I offer to my subscribers.
All the parts I got still have full warranty and BikesOnline is really easy to work with.
@@JaredHoff Should stick to one or the other... either sale prices or non-sale prices. Trek is also notoriously expensive as a brand and just so happens to not be doing major sales on this particular model right now. Quite the convenient choice of bike/model for comparison. Basically any other brand will sell you a mid-range speced carbon bike for $4500. Unless you want some specific parts, buying and immediately upgrading a bike makes no sense and is not cheaper...
Oof trail1 bolts upgrade are steep, probably high grade tho, I usually get all my titanium bolts from wanyifa but recently I bought a 12pcs kit for brake rotors from a local shop and they were fake, stainless steel, but clearly marketed as being made of titanium, beware a set of 12 in Ti is supposed to weight less than 17 grams vs 18+ for stainless and 19+ for hi tensile... Just for info...
Great info 👍
Polygon
Yup 👍
You have size xl and how tall are you
6’2” I can usually get away with riding a large
@@JaredHoff may i know why did you choose a xl soze
$4,500? How much did you pay for the wheels? The dev cranks and wheels make up 75% of the upgrades.
Huge discounts available right now. You have to look for the Black Friday discounts and take advantage of the current bike market prices.
what is your height?
6’2”
Please don’t buy a trek
Trek makes good bikes. Expensive, but good. Although I do love my Polygon 👍
I’m a mechanic for trek. Please find anything else
This is an ad. Polygon is going a on advertising attack mode.
but why tell these lies!!!!!
There are beter bikes for the price:
only a few
-COMMENCAL META AM V4 ORIGIN - € 1.916,66
- yt capra core 1- 2.499 € - rockshox zeb & super deluxe r - sram brakes -
- rose ROOT MILLER 1- 2.299,00 €
- radon swoop 2499€ with 38 fox - Fox Float X2 - magura mt 5
- canyon spectrak 2299€ - Shimano DEORE M6100, FOX 36 Rhythm Grip
with a the polygon you get a semi truck of a bike and you still NEED to upgrade at least for 500€.
dont buy "good enough" bikes. buy the best you need. bikes can last 30years and its not worth saving 100bucks.
Did you watch the full video? Do you think the Trek Slash was better for the price?
I hear your passion, but wonder if you’ve ever rode a Polygon. Don’t hate it until you try it. Especially with the setup I have on my upgraded N9 🤩
If this is an ad then why is everyone in the comments in support of Jared's decision of him upgrading his N9 versus getting a Slash? This is not an ad. Not everyone wants the latest and trendiest bikes just because they're from big brands. Furthermore, when it comes to buying a bike, the bike as a machine is only 1/3 the experience. The other is build quality and customer service. I've heard bad things about Canyon's customer service, a brand *you* quoted. Elitism will be the death of mountain biking...
The META AM is does under cut the Polygon (but cheaper Deore and much cheaper suspension). The Deore is not going to last as long as the XT on the N9 though, so 30 years is a stretch. Dont know how that Horst-link pedals uphill, but on balance, that's real brand/pedigree for the money.
Resale value isn’t there for a polygon. You’re stuck with that thing
There’s always different ways to look at it.
It cost $2,499. Keep your stock parts so you can keep the upgrades for the next bike.