Marin Rift Zone FRS

I recently tripped upon the aforementioned bike today in need of minor
repair at a semi-local pawn shop for next to nothing & decided to buy
it, for a spare/guest bike or even the parts if nothing else. From
what I can tell it appears to be of the 98 or so vintage. It's a black
frame with an aluminum swingarm labeled "Torque Tube". The fork is an
Answer Manitou SX. The rear shock is a Fox Vanilla. The Cranks &
deraillers/derailleurs are Shimano Deore LX, and the hubs are Shimano
STX. The bike also has Avid V-brakes.

Can anyone help me verify the year? Anyone have experience with this
bike, or the forks & shocks? I'm curious about maintance & repair, as
well as if the bike is worth riding to begin with. All feedback
welcomed & appreciated.

TIA,

Dan

On Wed, 24 Jan 2007 18:55:07 -0800,
wrote:

I recently tripped upon the aforementioned bike today in need of minor
repair at a semi-local pawn shop for next to nothing & decided to buy
it, for a spare/guest bike or even the parts if nothing else. From
what I can tell it appears to be of the 98 or so vintage. It's a black
frame with an aluminum swingarm labeled "Torque Tube". The fork is an
Answer Manitou SX. The rear shock is a Fox Vanilla. The Cranks &
deraillers/derailleurs are Shimano Deore LX, and the hubs are Shimano
STX. The bike also has Avid V-brakes.

Can anyone help me verify the year? Anyone have experience with this
bike, or the forks & shocks? I'm curious about maintance & repair, as
well as if the bike is worth riding to begin with. All feedback
welcomed & appreciated.

TIA,

Dan




Did you take a gander here -----
http://www.marinbikes.com/bicycles_2..._archives.html
--
Slack

On Jan 24, 10:10 pm, Slack wrote:
DanDid you take a gander here ----- http://www.marinbikes.com/bicycles_2..._archives.html
--
Slack- Hide quoted text -- Show quoted text -


That was actually my first stop upon arriving home. While the retail
on the current version was encouraging, the differences are too much
for a great comparison. I wasn't able to find anything about their
older bikes (hoping for a manual, service instrucions, etc). They are
only covering back to '02 from what I can find on their site, and I'm
fairly sure this is before 02. Appreciate the thought all the same.

Dan

On Jan 24, 8:21 pm, " wrote:
On Jan 24, 10:10 pm, Slack wrote:

DanDid you take a gander here ----- http://www.marinbikes.com/bicycles_2..._archives.html
--
Slack- Hide quoted text -- Show quoted text -That was actually my first stop upon arriving home. While the retail
on the current version was encouraging, the differences are too much
for a great comparison. I wasn't able to find anything about their
older bikes (hoping for a manual, service instrucions, etc). They are
only covering back to '02 from what I can find on their site, and I'm
fairly sure this is before 02. Appreciate the thought all the same.

Dan

In any case, Marins tend to be pretty good bikes all around. I picked
up a used Rocky Ridge for my wife about 6 yrs ago, and it's a great
bike. I like the Mt. Visions, especially, but the Eastpeak, etc.'s are
generally pretty cool.

CDB

On Jan 24, 11:30 pm, "Paladin" wrote:
In any case, Marins tend to be pretty good bikes all around. I picked
up a used Rocky Ridge for my wife about 6 yrs ago, and it's a great
bike. I like the Mt. Visions, especially, but the Eastpeak, etc.'s are
generally pretty cool.

CDB


Thanks. I've been tweaking it for the last few hours, and just took it
out for the maiden. Overall, I'm impressed. I was able to save all
the cables as well as freeing up the rear V-brake, saving myself a few
dollars. The suspension doesn't bob as much as I expected, and the
bike as a whole feels pretty good. The 30lb weight is a bit much, but
for a spare/friend bike it'll do. If it were my primary ride I'd be
looking to shave a few lbs. The Fox Vanilla with the 600x185 spring
feels about right with the spring stopping threaded deal about in the
middle. The Manitou feels a bit soft even with the adjuster set all
the way harsh. That could be the fork being less than ideal, the fork
needing a rebuild or maybe even my riding style. I should mention this
is the first time I've ridden a double bounce since the early 90's, and
I wasn't what I'd call a mountain biker then. It will be easier to
tell what I really think once i get it out into the real trails as
opposed to tooling around the neighborhood. For a pawn shop special, I
think I did pretty well. Now to find manuals for the Vanilla & the
Manitou...

wrote:
On Jan 24, 11:30 pm, "Paladin" wrote:
In any case, Marins tend to be pretty good bikes all around. I picked
up a used Rocky Ridge for my wife about 6 yrs ago, and it's a great
bike. I like the Mt. Visions, especially, but the Eastpeak, etc.'s are
generally pretty cool.

CDB


Thanks. I've been tweaking it for the last few hours, and just took it
out for the maiden. Overall, I'm impressed. I was able to save all
the cables as well as freeing up the rear V-brake, saving myself a few
dollars. The suspension doesn't bob as much as I expected, and the
bike as a whole feels pretty good. The 30lb weight is a bit much, but
for a spare/friend bike it'll do. If it were my primary ride I'd be
looking to shave a few lbs. The Fox Vanilla with the 600x185 spring
feels about right with the spring stopping threaded deal about in the
middle. The Manitou feels a bit soft even with the adjuster set all
the way harsh. That could be the fork being less than ideal, the fork
needing a rebuild or maybe even my riding style. I should mention this
is the first time I've ridden a double bounce since the early 90's, and
I wasn't what I'd call a mountain biker then. It will be easier to
tell what I really think once i get it out into the real trails as
opposed to tooling around the neighborhood. For a pawn shop special, I
think I did pretty well. Now to find manuals for the Vanilla & the
Manitou...


30lbs for FS is anything but a pig.

On Jan 25, 7:59 pm, cc wrote:
30lbs for FS is anything but a pig.


30 May not be much in the full suspension world, but it's rather heavy
for XC in comparison to what I'm used to. Seems like a pretty good
ride all the same though. It also seems that Marin uses the same basic
frame for the FRS models and separates them by componentry. If this is
the case the Rift Zone is just a better fork & a hardtail component
swap away from being a pretty nice full sus, by 1999 standards. Still,
I don't see myself tearing down the trusty hardtail to make a
double-boing my main ride anytime in the near future - especially a
double-boing using old technology. The reviews I've been reading
suggest I'll fall in love on my first ride, strip my hardtail for the
parts, and make this my primary. I'm still a skeptic, but can't say
for sure until I get her into the trails. I'd like to get that done
this weekend if this 0 degree weather doesn't keep me wussed inside.

I've had the Rift Zone out a few times now, and have formed some
opinions. I'll update this thread in case anyone comes across it in
the future searching the same questions I was.

Pros:
- The weight (30lbs) doesn't bother me nearly as much as I thought it
would.
- The bits (now reworked & adjusted) work pretty well, impressive
performance for entry-level components.
- Rear suspension doesn't bob as much as I expected
- Extremely comfortable over rocks & logs
- Extremely comfortable up & over pallet bridges & such
- Extremely comfortable in general
- Ritchey saddle is pretty comfy. I decided to try it before I put
mine on, and I'm impressed.

Cons:
- Significantly heavier than the hardtail
- Water bottle placement is horrible. The lower one is on the bottom
of the frame, exposed to all elements (as are some of (unhoused!) the
cables). The upper bottle holder is in the way of the rider when
mounting & dismounting, especially when slipping and falling or almost
falling. My cage is done for after 1½ days of snow riding. Looks
like it's back to camelbacks for now.
- Thumb shifters are awkward, making bars feel cramped. Bars & bits
to come off other bike if this becomes my primary ride.
- Forks are a little soft, even on stiffest setting. Most likely just
need a rebuild.
- I can't hop the bike to turn 180 degrees like I can with the
hardtail. I'm hoping it will come with practice. I find it similarly
difficult to pull the back end up onto or over an obstacle. This is
partially negated by the ability to pedal onto or over many things I
would have lifted the back of the hardtail onto/over.
- V-Brakes require deflating tires to remove (compounded by my mid-
size car requiring wheel removal). The XTR V-brake on my hardtail
does not have this problem with the same tire & wheel.

Bottom Line:
I like the bike. I'll keep riding it, at least through the winter. I
like not worrying about my nice stuff in the snow & salt, and this
bike is fun & new (to me). There's a good chance in the spring I'll
swap all the hardware and make this my primary ride, at least for a
while.
I have not been able to truly test my biggest concern - climbing. I
did quite a bit last Saturday at Fort Rock but the longer, steeper,
more technical sections kept us walking the bikes up the worst of it.
I'm curious to get the hardtail & the FS to some trails together in
the spring to compare them on the same trails & climbs. I may post a
follow up here when I do. For now, I say it gets the thumbs up. I
wouldn't empty the piggy bank for one, but if a good deal comes along
I'd suggest snatching it up. I'm glad I did.