Long Term Review - Titus El Guapo by Ed Snyder

Ed's been riding the Guap for 8 months now and I don't think he wants to give it back.

Have a look at his review to find out why.

Hey Cam, it would be neat to know what reviewers consider their regular bikes, so we can compare what they are 'expecting' out of a new ride.

that's a damn good review. in fact, one of the best i've read. thorough, thoughtful, and relevant. nice work!

this bike is on my short list for all the things mentioned: geo, weight, full seat tube, horst link, etc.
a competing bike that immediately comes to mind is the enduro, which has a steeper seat angle (74) and slightly slacker head angle (67).

makes me feel better about trying air suspension again too.

Wow, one of the best written reviews I've read. Makes me want to go out and buy one!

fantastic review!

Nice write up and a great looking bike. I would like a 170mm version please.

Hey Cam, it would be neat to know what reviewers consider their regular bikes, so we can compare what they are 'expecting' out of a new ride.

Great question. Unfortunately the answer is a little fuzzy. I don't really feel like I have had a bike that is "mine" this year, as the test schedule has been fairly full. Here is a list of the bikes in the same class that I have spent time on this year (besides the El Guapo):

Diamondback Mission 3
Knolly Endorphin
Jamis Dakar Xam II
NSMB.com Project Bike (2006 Specialized Enduro Pro frame)
Transition Covert (the updated 6" design)

So while I never did get to settle in on one frame, I did get a pretty good feel for what's out there in the category.

Many thanks for the kind words about my work.

31.5 pounds with 3 rear rotor bolts I see.

The Float RC2 turned out to be one of largest revelations on the bike. Simply put, it is the best fork I have ever run. The fork is stiff (36 mm stanchions), solid steering (20 mm thru axle [HTML_REMOVED] One Point Five steerer tube), supple, ridiculously adjustable (high and low speed compression as well as rebound) and weighs in under five pounds.

This. I thought I was taking a bit of a chance when I ordered the Fox Float RC2 with my Transition Bottlerocket. I had never owned an 'air' fork before but through research and 'test rides' I felt they had closed the performance gap on their coil counterparts quicker then rear shocks have.

Needless to say I was pleasantly surprised to see how good my fork felt out of the box. After reading the manual and a number of suspension tuning web articles I was able to dial it right in.

This fork is easily the best fork I have ever owned. It's plush feel is only rivaled by an older generation Boxxer I once had and so far it's durability/maintenance is on par with the more reliable offerings from Marzocchi.

The sub 5 lb weight of this fork (4.75lbs claimed for 1.5 steerer) is an added bonus that makes my bike feel incredibly 'flickable'.

In 1 year of hard riding I've logged a lot of miles and have zero complaints… It is however just about time to send it in for tuning (i'm going to be contacting suspension works).

I really liked this review and I liked how the author highlighted the components that stuck out in his mind but did not neglect the bike as a whole. Even if the Titus is not on your radar you can take something away from this review for just about every component or component groupo - major or minor.

I think the last few reviews on NSMB have been pretty good.

31.5 pounds with 3 rear rotor bolts I see.

Hmmm. I'll add some weight by adding the missing three, if it were my bike.

[QUOTE= 31.5 pounds with 3 rear rotor bolts I see.

Nice catch… where were you guys when I was building this thing? =/

The rotors came already on the wheels from Titus and I gave them the (very) quick once over before tossing them on to the frame. After a shakedown ride (or two) I put the bike in the stand for its bolt check. Did the old "drop test" to check for rattles and heard one in the back of the bike. Tracked it to the rotor… two out of the three bolts were loose too. :damn:

Filled up the empty spots for a full count of six bolts and retorqued them all. No more issues. I've said it before and I'll say it again… ALWAYS do a bolt check after a building up and bike and riding it once or twice. The skin you'll save will be your own.

Great writeup! Looks like a real dream machine. I was hoping there'd be some mention of a 12mm rear axle option - QRs seem out of place on such a versatile steed - but then I noticed the DT RWS system. Do the 1750s use the 9mm axle or the 10mm thru-axle?
The icing on this "handsome" Titec cake would be a thru-bolt option, or the wheels with the 135x10mm thru axle. I'm about 220 riding weight, and would benefit from such a feature.

Great writeup! Looks like a real dream machine. I was hoping there'd be some mention of a 12mm rear axle option - QRs seem out of place on such a versatile steed - but then I noticed the DT RWS system. Do the 1750s use the 9mm axle or the 10mm thru-axle?
The icing on this "handsome" Titec cake would be a thru-bolt option, or the wheels with the 135x10mm thru axle. I'm about 220 riding weight, and would benefit from such a feature.

they use the RWS 10mm axle. FWIW, many rear hubs are convertible to 10mm and there are a number of 10mm through axles that are interchangeable - DT, hadley and hope - with various hubs.

ed - you set the new high standard for reviews with this one