canfield balance or transition br

[jeff da grom]

I'm looking at the steel front triangle version of the canfield balance or the transition br. I already have a dh bike and a dirt jump bike. I need a bike that can pedal for the North East freeride trails, but can definitely take a drop and be tricked w/.

i'm stuck...

what would you pick... and why.????

[DHRFX Joe]

Hmm.......I have a few friends with both......and they all love both of them. I will say the BR seems a bit lower and slacker, while the Balance seems a bit taller and steeper. The BRs I have seen have been predominately setup for heavy trail/freeride use, whereas the Balances have been setup for aggressive XC/trail. In addition, the travel adjustability of the Balance (4-6") makes it a bit more versatile. However, both bikes seem to be able to handle all these types of riding fairly equally. I would post this same question over on bustedspoke.com (sign up if you aren't a member, it's New England's main MTB site). Lots of guys on BRs over there, and my friend Adam is on a Balance).

Good luck.

[jeff da grom]

has anyone on here ridden either or both???

[mandown]

i'm on a bottlerocket now, and i was considering the canfield, so i know a little about each bike. i liked the idea of adjustable travel and geometry on the balance. i also liked the idea of the steel front triangle. i was uncertain about how the linkage suspension would feel, but i had confidence that canfield would be good.

some of what swayed me to the bottlerocket in my actual purchase:
1 - lower seattube in the large size, which i like.
2 - full length seat tube. the canfield has a kink in the base and it takes out some of the ability adjust the saddle height. i know the tube is "longer" than the transition at 18" vs. 16.5" but that kink removes some of the range of adjustment for the seat post.
3 - i got to test ride other transitions and talked to kevin and kyle about how the bottlerocket would feel compared to their other bikes.
4 - it looked like the bottlerocket was going to weigh a bit less.
5 - the price on the bottlerocket is lower.

keep in mind, i bought the bottlerocket as soon as it was available to the public. at the time the balance was also just starting production. i had to make some assumptions about how each one would ride.

the bottlerocket has been going strong for two summers now. i use it for trail rides and for freerides. i started off with a 2-ring+bash setup, but moved to a single front ring. there are times where i miss my granny, but not too often. i started with a fox VAN36R and moved to a boxxer ride. i like the longer fork and the travel adjust. it makes it easier to climb. i would highly suggest getting a travel adjustable fork for this bike if you will use it for all-around riding.

i took the bike to whistler this year and it handled well. i was a bit sick and i started having problems with my front brake and my new clipless pedals, so i didn't ride as well as i wanted to. a bigger bike would have helped suck up my mistakes, but the bottlerocket was plenty fine (and there were a ton of them up there too). i also rode the shore for a day on the bike. it was perfect for riding there. the frame was strong enough and the geometry was good for the steeps and the tight turns and stunts.

[El Gordo]

I have Preston and a few weeks ago I rode a BR for the first time and fell in love I wish I had went for the BR instead of the Preston. It pedaled like my Preston actaully I think it felt a little better, I just fit on that bike perfectly the frame geo is exactly what I like and in the air it felt alor better than my preston.. It just felt perfect for me.. Riding the BR is what made me order the Blindside since I wanted to build a DH race bike for next season.. I cant say much about the Canfield since I have never rode one, they are nice bikes for sure.. But the BR is the SH*t, I know that much..

[bballboy388]

what fork was on the BR you rode just out of curiosity.

[El Gordo]

Fox 36 Van R, I think thats the best fork for the BR. Cam at Transition swears by that fork for the BR and he was right it felt great, I didnt get to really do any DH I did some local trails that had some small DH and a few nice drops and stuff.. The BR handled great, pedaled like a goat on the climbs and felt real smooth on the rocky stuff the 36 felt like Butter...

[jeff da grom]

i think i'm leaning towards the br.... i took one out for a test ride. it felt awesome and pedaled really well. thanks for all the help and opinions

[El Gordo]

Yeah bro you wont be disappointed.. Seriously think about the Fox 36 if felt perfect, also my buddy was thinking of a new zoke 55 that would be real nice too, I just got a Zoke 55 for my Preston havent got it yet but I will let you know how it is. Yeah a BR with a DHX air, Fox 36 some 823's laced to Hopes and some Holzfellers OCT's oh yeah nice and light like a 35lb BR would be the Sh*t... Good luck

[mandown]

i rode the BR with both a 36VANR for a while and it was a good fork. i still have the fork and it is sitting there waiting for me to either sell it or put it back on the bike. i'm not 100% sure which i will do.

i went to the boxxer ride because i wanted the extra bit of travel and a more raked out dh-sled feel. the travel adjust on the boxxer is nice, but i only ever use it to slam the front end down for climbs. i did run the BR with a pike for a few weeks. it felt ok in the 140mm setting on smoother trails. anything below 120mm felt like death, even for climbing.

[TheMauler]

besides unless your gonna get a used balanced you might have trouble finding one as i guess they dont have any more and their not producing the bike anymore.

id go with the BR or maybe wait for the new canfields to come out and see if you want any of their new bikes

[TWeerts]

either way, looks like you need to change your avatar

[mandown]

pricepoint has the canfiled.
http://www.pricepoint.com/detail/15087-175_CNFBL6-3-Parts-60-Frames/Canfield-Brothers-Balance-Frame.htm

[jeff da grom]

yeah... canfield also has a few larges left.

the avatar is because my dh sled is a demo 8

[gackrider24]

check out sicklines.com which has review's of both bikes. The balance is the frame used in the "do it all" bike build project, the bottle rocket has a complete review