Get rid of Karp, find 204?

[Nemesis Gnat]

This is the passing of an age...

[JskierPX]

k I think we all have bike troubles, but not to the extent of these karpiels. My friend has a disco and an armageddon and has had to replace the bushings linkages and rebuild the shock on both of them, and replace the swing arm on the army. I think you know what you want to do, if you hate it enough then you will sell it, but if you still are up for the fight keep workin and spendin...Your right, karps are sik when they run, but I rarely see them running so I dont recomend them to anyone, it just pisses me off when my firend cant ride b/c his piece of crap is broken AGAIN. Luckily I ended up with a used M1 and never had to even touch it once the whole year I owned it. I hate any bike that brakes sooo often as to keep my friends average hours working more then his riding. Fu*k it, I guess all I'm sayin is stop pouring money into that piece and get a real bike that at least has some C.S. behind the company. Its just gonna keep breakin and keep drainin your wallet, believe me or any other of Jan's customers.

[El Santo]

If the Karp gets more wrenching than riding time, get rid of it. Presumably you enjoy riding more than turning bolts and dealing with Fox. A bike that doesn't work is useless.

About the 204- are you absolutely set on getting a DH sled? If you are doing everything on this bike, you might consider getting a freeride rig with two rings + a DRS guide. Cheaper, lighter, and more versatile for just about everything but racing world cup courses. Before my Bullit I had a SGS Team, which was all giggles on the DH but was a holy beeyotch to pedal uphill. The Bullit seems to be a good compromise for me, but I don't know you or what you like. If you race, this advice prolly isn't for you.

If you are concerned about the extra 1-2" of travel, look into the '04 SC VP Free (8") or the successor to the Foes Fly (9", supposedly). If cash is an issue, I highly reccomend the Bullit- it really does everything and is built like an oldsmobile 98. Last week I did a 40 mile XC day on it in Moab, and shuttled the crazy-burly trails in Virgin 4 times on the way home. With a Shiver and a 5th it's freakishly plush on the DH, but climbs really well.

My $0.02.

[Darren]

Bullits are cool, and most likely much less maintenance too since it's a single pivot. But I don't want one. They're nice, but everybody has one - it just doesn't do it for me. I'm set on another DH rig, because I'm going to have a hardtail built up shortly. I personally don't see any point in having a mid travel bike if I'm going to already have a hardtail that I'll be using for XC rides. The Karpiel was built to hit the slopes and such.. but I didn't know about the service of the company itself, until I had to deal with them.

And it's not a piece of crap either. The only thing that is really a piece of crap is the CS of that company. If they were more well-managed, then I wouldn't be complaining so much. And that frame has got to be one of the stronger frames.. that is interesting about what you say on the linkage bushings though? I've found that you just have to pay real close attention to those bolts and make sure they are tight. Bit of a problem on the Karpiel. Not to mention the lack of support for a chainguide. The only other flaw so far that I can think of on the bike is that the wheelbase changes throughout it's travel - but I really can't tell when I'm riding so I'm not sure if it affects me or not.

Thanks for your thoughts. Sometimes ya just gotta let it out. I will post hopefully in the next week to let y'all know if the Karpiel is a success or failure.