Heckler with Fox RP3 or Swinger 4-way Air [Archive]

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jchkeys

12-10-2004, 03:05 PM

Hey,

Has anyone out there put a Fox RP3 or Manitou swinger 4-Way Air onto a Santa Cruz Heckler. I have both a Heckler and a Bullit; and I am looking to make the Heckler alittle more XC/trail then it is now with the 5th. If you can give me any good input, please help me out.

For all the weight-conscience people that are going to 'correct' me on the fact that the Heckler is not an XC bike, mine is weighing in at 27.8lbs. That is XC enough!

genpowell71

12-18-2004, 02:19 PM

No, but you need to let me know how it goes, I plan on getting a Heckler this spring.

manziman

12-18-2004, 02:59 PM

I just bought myself a brand spankin' new heckler..
http://ridemonkey.com/forums/showthread.php?t=105437
It's pretty great with the Float R. light and easy to maneuver. My last bike was a 49.5lb Kona Stab Primo with a fat coil shock. so, now i'm just getting used to the air shock. Make the Heckler XC/Trail if you have the bullit for DH.
one more cool thing about the heckler..the bottle opener on the rear left side drop out.

TryAndStopMe

12-25-2004, 06:22 PM

Booker

01-12-2005, 02:24 PM

I have been on my 2005 Heckler for a little over a month now. I don't have the RP3 but i do run the 2005 FOX Float R. (basically an RP3 without the external adjustment) IMO it feels great and for the ammount of travel soaks up more than i would expect.. A little background: I only weigh 140lbs, I have primarily ridden/raced DH bikes for the past two years and just recently got back into just trail riding/XC. I made the switch from my DH bike (ironhorse SGS) to a Trek Fuel and quickly learned that was a mistake. I was bounced all over the trail, and constatly bottoming out on little 2 foot drops. I didn't know if it was the Air Shock, bike design, or low travel causing the harsh ride, but I hated the bike and definatly felt out of my element. I did some research and narrowed it down to a Heckler or Cannondale Prophet. Chose the Heckler and decided to give the air shock another try, hoping the 5.5" of travel would help the suspension feel. It was a good decision. I really am having a hard time finding a problem with the air shock. It feels almost as plush as the Swinger 3-way coil i had on the SGS, and climbs better than my Fuel. ( i know that sounds like a BS statement but it really is true) When riding techy/rough stuff i forget that i am not on my DH bike. Havn't had a chance to really drop the bike off anything, but while boosting logs and rocks in the trail i don't feel like the shock is working to hard or anything. While climbing i get no noticable "bob" while seated in the granny or middle ring. If i stand up to sprint the shock "bobs" a few strokes and then kinda hovers in its travel. The best part is i only gained 1 pound by switching from the Trek Fuel over to the Heckler and swaping the parts over.

EDIT:
My bike built is:
Small Heckler
Fox Float R 5.5"
RS Reba 4.5" (awesome fork)
Tubeless tires ect...
About 28 LBS

mobius

01-12-2005, 07:46 PM

Whow this thread came at the perfect time. I have a 04 heckler and trying to lighten her up but keep it strong still. Amazing builds you guys must have im trying to swap some parts for lighter counterparts.

JCHKEYS if your build is that with a 5th coil what are you running on it?

bikenweed

01-19-2005, 01:08 PM

I am straight fed up with how poorly my Heckler pedals and rides. I'm about to put a Swinger air shock on it this week, probably a 4 way. I'll let you know how it feels. I might even try to get a shorter eye-eye shock to lower the bike and rake it out a little. For now the Heckler feels too tall and steep, but I like bikes like the Tazer and M1.

genpowell71

01-19-2005, 06:10 PM

What kind of set up do you have? I cant think that a Heckler is THAT bad that you'd want to get a Tazer over it

bikenweed

01-21-2005, 01:48 PM

Heckler=31lbs. Talas up front, Fox Vanilla Shock, and lighter weight parts all around. I've got a 36t single ring on it, and it bobs pretty horribly, at least in comparison to the M1. Been considering putting a 38t or 40t on it, but since I ride mainly Cross Country on it, that would make the rocky and loose climbs around here a little too much of a headache. Yesterday I tried to mount a Swinger 4way on it, but it was waaaaay too small for the 7.88" eye-to-eye for the Heckler. Does anyone know if a 7.5" eye-to-eye would be enough to make the bike ride better? Or should I go for something even smaller? I believe the Swinger we tried was a 6" or 6.5", it was off a Jamis. If I can't find a way to make this Heckler ride better, I'm gonna have to sell it...

MTB_Rob_NC

01-21-2005, 02:02 PM

If I can't find a way to make this Heckler ride better, I'm gonna have to sell it...

The 5th Element Coil has worked Flawlessly for me. It pedals perfect. Just make sure you have the appropriate weight spring on there for your weight.

bikenweed

01-21-2005, 08:18 PM

Eh, Heckler's not my style of bike. I'm just gonna sell it and get something lower. Thanks for the advice though.

genpowell71

01-22-2005, 09:19 AM

What do you want for the frame?

bikenweed

01-22-2005, 02:49 PM

$700 for my Medium Trans Blue Heckler. I bought it on the 23rd of December, so it's not even a month old yet! I've been riding it, but riding it rather lightly. It has a Fox Vanilla shock on it. If you buy it you can put it together and ride it immediatly, and considering the frame retails for $900, it's a good deal. I'm gonna post it in the buy and sell as soon as I can get a good picture of it. I have a lot of old parts laying around too, including a 2002 Marzocchi Z1 QR20 with front wheel, and extra rear wheel, a two year old XTR rear deraillure, and all kinds of old stuff. If you need anything just let me know. If you want to make me a deal, send me a PM so we don't hijack this thread too badly.