I've still have my pre-production Banshee Prime from 2012 and there's absolutely nothing wrong with it, I mean it's definitely a tank, but other than the about 34.7lbs build weight, it's great. I've even managed to retrofit the newer proper production V1 rear tri and drop outs on it, so I can run 135/142,148 or 150 hubs.
The PP Primes all had 1.5" straight steerer tubes, so down the road if I wanted, I could easily stick in an angleset if I found the 67* HTA not slack enough. Has proper clearance for 29x2.8" tyres with the 650B drop outs (+10mm) and still plenty clearance for 2.5" with the regulardrop outs if I wanted a shorter rear end. So I can completely change how the bike rides and feels just by swapping from say my "XC" i29 wheelset with 2.3" tyres to the "Trail" i35s with 2.6" tyres and flipping the chips in the drop outs.
May 1, 2021, 4:35 p.m. - Lynx .
I've still have my pre-production Banshee Prime from 2012 and there's absolutely nothing wrong with it, I mean it's definitely a tank, but other than the about 34.7lbs build weight, it's great. I've even managed to retrofit the newer proper production V1 rear tri and drop outs on it, so I can run 135/142,148 or 150 hubs. The PP Primes all had 1.5" straight steerer tubes, so down the road if I wanted, I could easily stick in an angleset if I found the 67* HTA not slack enough. Has proper clearance for 29x2.8" tyres with the 650B drop outs (+10mm) and still plenty clearance for 2.5" with the regulardrop outs if I wanted a shorter rear end. So I can completely change how the bike rides and feels just by swapping from say my "XC" i29 wheelset with 2.3" tyres to the "Trail" i35s with 2.6" tyres and flipping the chips in the drop outs.