Banshee Legend Mk2 = Over priced, over hyped, over promised. This bike has been in the prototype stage for over 3 years. They have missed a whole season due to redesign problems etc. I appreciate R&D and QC and not rushing a product to market, but there is nothing really new to this bike. The best part of the Banshee was the CNC one piece bottom bracket assemble call the canoe, which has been replaces by a cast forged replacement. I would be worried about replacement parts and warrantee. I would not want to be one of the first production customers. I'll pass!
Banshee Legend Mk2 = Over priced, over hyped, over promised. This bike has been in the prototype stage for over 3 years. They have missed a whole season due to redesign problems etc. I appreciate R&D and QC and not rushing a product to market, but there is nothing really new to this bike.
would you rather they put out a poorly performing product?
or would you rather that Banshee sees the development process through and put out a *quality* product considering its YOU the public that actually put down your hard earned dollars or pounds when you buy a frame like the Legend (or any DH race frame for that matter)
Banshee had 50 RACERS around the World on the Mk1 version of the Legend last season, to properly develop the frame, and iron out problems - its interesting that bushings became so much of an issue, that the frame was redesigned with full compliment ball bearings and titanium pivot hardware
Turner's new DW-Link DHR is going through the same issues - its been redesigned and redeveloped following exhaustive testing, and its missed the season because Turner, like Banshee, want their product 100% right
nothing new to this bike? I don't see any other brand making the same frame? it's unique to Banshee....its certainly going to hold its own on the DH race scene against other leading companies like Trek, Specialized, Mondraker and La Pierre
The best part of the Banshee was the CNC one piece bottom bracket assemble call the canoe, which has been replaces by a cast forged replacement. I would be worried about replacement parts and warrantee
its not "cast forged" - casting and forging are two completely separate processes, casting is not suitable for such bike components as the Legend's shock canoe (the exception being Empire's AP1 frame which is x-ray'd after sand casting to check for voids)
if you know anything about manufacturing, cold forging is always superior to CNC because the forging process aligns the metal's grain flow with the shape of the component
CNC uses forged billet stock, and 50% is cut across the billet's grain direction to create the piece
forging allows the designer and manufacturer to create a lighter, tougher, stronger and more durable component, but has a HUGE cost in terms of investment in tooling and the process itself
the Legend Mk1 could NOT use a cold forged shock canoe because of the costs involved, once the design was locked down, they went ahead with tooling for the Mk2 production bike
Banshee (like Santa Cruz, etc.) has a 2 year warranty, which actually covers race use...no need to worry
No, I don't want a manufacturer to put out an inferior bike, but I want a manufacturer to keep to their time lines. From what I know, the 50 test riders never happened as they could not meet the initial 50 bikes. In the first two years they had what 3-5 frames. A couple of riders in South America and a Canadian rider. That was their test program......the owners and 3 riders. Last year (2009)they had a small production run but they all went to new riders as the South American and Canadian riders went with other companies. Maybe they got tired of waiting, I am not sure.
I like Banshee, but I am getting sick of all the hype and no bike. Lets see if any show up at Canadian dealers as other brands have gained traction while waiting for the Legend. I have to admit, I like the look of the bike, especially in the raw polished form of the second run proto.
But the time that this has been in the development stage is ridiculous.
Hopefully it won't be as slow on the runs than it is in the development
no the development time is not rediculous. whats rediculous is companies putting out half asses products to make a quick buck off my back. there's no reason why a product needs to be ready X years after the first concept. it if takes a lifetime to get it right, thats better than me riding a lifetimes worth of shitty product.
think of all the forks that have had problems, maybe if they had taken more time to develop them and find the flaws, we wouldnt all need to be sending them off to warrente twice before they get fixed?
banshee is for sure doing the right thing. imagine if you were the one who bought an MK1 and now its junked?
products do go through an awful amount of testing.. not my frames these days fail that bad as soon as theyre out and usually if they do its fixed in the next batch and the old ones are warrantied, which is still faster then how long its taken banshee to make the mk2, maybe the new mk2 will have a weak spot what isnt going to show up in fea testing and all the ones people buy are going to crack? theyve changed the frame a bit and no amount of in house testing and show whats going to happen when its out in the real world..
and its only the new rock shox forks what have a problem really.. but this is normal because rs quality control is terrible
From what I know, the 50 test riders never happened as they could not meet the initial 50 bikes. In the first two years they had what 3-5 frames
the 50 test riders did get their bikes for the 2009 season, and were ridden very successfully all over the Globe with many gold medals and podium finishes (check the Banshee Blog for Legend wins)
the polished Legend I posted at the start of this thread is actually the "Mk2" production bike, not another prototype
we are due to receive the first batch of Mk2 Legend frames at the end of this month for UK customers
its called "Mythic" in the UK because Halfords (our version of Canadian Tire / walmart for bikes / car parts) own the rights to "Banshee" as they make a cheap suspension bike called a Carrera Banshee....