First ride report, based on one lap at Appin. I'm pretty familiar with the Appin loop and know how the Nomad goes out there so i figured it would be the perfect place to try out the Firebird.

Basically, it's better than the Nomad was.

I'm very happy with the build i got together. The 2.4" UST Conti Rubber Queen tyres worked very well in the slippery sandy conditions at 32psi. Not as much cornering grip as the Minions i'd say, but considering the lesser amount of weight i'm very happy with them. Rear end traction was excellent, in fact i don't think i lost traction once climbing anything. The Crossmax SX wheels felt just like the old ones except the rear hub is significantly louder. I didn't notice the quicker engagement and i'm hoping they hold up as well as my old ones because the rim has been lightened with some machining similar to the SLs.

I was a bit worried about how the forks would perform. I've always been a Marzocchi rider going back to the original Z1s, however the 2007 AM SL1s on Michelle's Devinci gave me reason to try something different on the Anthem (Rebas) and the Float 36 RC2s performed brilliantly. I think i managed to get all the settings right first go! It tracked well, sucked up all the small bumps and handled all of the ledges and stuff that Appin has. It also bobbed less than the 66RC2X i had on the Nomad when standing and pedalling.

Carbon bars are always something that give people some concerns and i'm no different. I went for the FSA K Force DH bars because the guys at the shop said they were nice and strong. They immediately felt very stiff. The front end had a very together sort of feel. Steering was faster than the Nomad.

The bike was more maneuverable than the Nomad. I could change direction and lines much faster. The Firebird didn't feel as good plowing through things as the Nomad did but it made up for it with it's overall lighter weight and responsiveness. Flickable is how it would best be described i guess. The FB was also easier to get in the air and wheelie or manual through the puddles. Which it needs to be because there is a massive Firebird sticker under the downtube and how else am i meant to show it off!

Shifting was good. On the Nomad i was running X9 shifters and rear derailleur with an XTR front derailleur. On the Firebird i have X0 shifters and rear derailleur with an XT front derailleur. Same series chain and cassette on both bikes. I felt shifting performance was level. The front derailleur on the Firebird is attached to a swinging mount. I think this is possibly a solution looking for a problem. Front shifting on the Nomad was no worse or better than on the Firebird. Perhaps i'll notice a difference when i replace the XT with an XTR front mech on the FB. While i couldn't feel any performance difference with the shifters, the X0 shifters did feel better when in use but i couldn't qualify why.

Shimano Saint cranks feel much stiffer than the Race Face Atlas AM cranks i had. It doesn't feel like any power is being wasted andi really did think to myself while climbing that the cranks were noticeably stiffer. It's not something i thought i'd pick up on but i did.

I didn't lower the Joplin seat post once. I never felt the need. I'll see how it goes for a few more rides but i might sell it and just chuck a Thomson or something on there instead. The play in the Joplin wasn't noticeable unless i was stopped and moving around to check if i could feel it moving!

So now onto the big part, the frame and how it performed...

Climbing was much better on the FB than the Nomad. I could stand without the rear bobbing up and down or feeling like i was wasting power. I spent most of my time climbing in the 36t chainring as it was just that much easier. I put it in the 22t granny ring to see how it went and it was still nice and smooth. None of the chain pull that i could feel on the Nomad in the granny ring and 4th or 5th.

Looking down you can see the gold lower link moving. It just looks cool.

Braking didn't seem to affect the rear suspension at all and the rear end felt as laterally stiff as the Nomad.

Acceleration was faster on the FB. Based on the climbing performance i think a lot of this can be attributed to the rear suspension design, although the lower weight defintely helps. Descending was probably the only spot where the lower weight was a bit of a disadvantage. The bike is very stable at speed and when descending but it's not built up quite as burly as the Nomad was, so it doesn't plow through stuff as well. There was one section where i usually aim the Nomad straight down but on this bike i felt like i was dancing around the rough stuff. It felt pretty cool. I think the bottom bracket is slightly higher on the FB too. I didn't bash any rocks with the cranks.

Next ride i'll incrase the pressure in the rear shock as i think it was a little low this time out. I didn't bottom the shock, although i'll increase the bottom out setting too, and it didn't feel mushy. Just looking down while riding it looked like it might have been using a bit too much travel. I had about 20mm of sag when Fox recommends 16mm and i left the shock pump at home. However, the rear suspension felt awesome and i don't know if i'll even bother trying the CCDB! I'll see how it goes with a bit more air pressure next ride before i put it up for sale though.

So overall, i'm extremely happy with the Firebird. My back up plan of selling it and buying a new Nomad looks like it won't come into play. It really is a step up from my old Nomad!

I found some cracks in the seat stays of the EMC2 yesterday and took it to the lbs to assess. It's now being sent away for replacement, but i might change over to a BMC SLC01 frame.