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Cotic Soul 27.5 New or previous model

15 posts & 9 voices | Started 1 day ago by four | Latest reply from vincienup

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four - Member

Hello!

I went to a recent Cotic day at QE Park and looked at the Solaris Max - looks a nice bike but 29er just seems a bit tall for me at 5’7”short.

Anyway, I’ve been thinking about a Soul - I’m just not sure which one.(The new Sould wasn’t at the demo day)

I currently have an Orange Four which is a great trail / bike park tool, but I’m ‘thinking’ about doing the SDW in a day this year (did it last year on the Four over 2.5 days) and was over biked making some hills a bit harder than they needed to be. It’s also not as light asa HT.

Now I’m thinking a hard tail would be better, a steel one rather than aluminium as I still want some comfort at 50 years old and think the Sould would fit the bill.

I’ll be swapping over everything from my Four inc Pike 130 forks. I may need to change the stem and will put a fixed seat post on rather than my dropper.

My question is which model Sould would be better for my needs a new one or the previous model (I’ll onviously need to find a previous model somewhere) for a ride like the SDW (which is my main riding)?

I want good climbing and not twitchy shafting my pants descending with ride comfort.

Thoughts please.

Thanks in advance.

Posted 1 day ago #
four - Member

Or after sleeping on, it would the Four actually be better for my needs / the ride than a Soul????

Confused.

Posted 20 hours ago #
bungalistic - Member

Why would you discount the Solaris max at your height? I'm only 5'8" and ride a 29er and plenty of other folk i'm sure ride 29ers at all sorts of heights, you'd need to test ride a few to see if they are for you though, not everyone enjoys the larger wheels.

Get in touch with Cotic you can demo a new Soul easily enough with their touring demo fleet. The new Soul is just a bit longer, slacker etc so should feel a little more stable at speed.

Posted 18 hours ago #
Scienceofficer - Member

I went to a recent Cotic day at QE Park and looked at the Solaris Max - looks a nice bike but 29er just seems a bit tall for me at 5’7”short.

Agreed, in general I reckon wheel size should be proportional to rider size, no hard rules about this though, and arguably, a 29er is better for the long distance xc you're thinking about.

I currently have an Orange Four which is a great trail / bike park tool, but I’m ‘thinking’ about doing the SDW in a day this year (did it last year on the Four over 2.5 days) and was over biked making some hills a bit harder than they needed to be. It’s also not as light asa HT.

Unless you go full on race whippet, there's often not as much difference as you think if you want it for general trail work.

Now I’m thinking a hard tail would be better, a steel one rather than aluminium as I still want some comfort at 50 years old and think the Sould would fit the bill.

Post CEN standards especially, this is urban myth. Look at design not material. An FS will be more comfortable, especially over longer rides.

I’ll be swapping over everything from my Four inc Pike 130 forks. I may need to change the stem and will put a fixed seat post on rather than my dropper.

Not going to be much lighter then is it?

My question is which model Sould would be better for my needs a new one or the previous model (I’ll onviously need to find a previous model somewhere) for a ride like the SDW (which is my main riding)?

I'd suggest the new one and go plus for comfort if you're intent on a hardtail.

I want good climbing and not twitchy shafting my pants descending with ride comfort.
I'd focus on my fitness and tyres above everything else if I was riding the SDW.

Posted 14 hours ago #
muddyground - Member

You just want a new bike by the sounds of it! SDW is more about fitness and grim determination than the bike. Rode a bit of it with my mates last year - they were on suspension bikes, me a hardtail. They mullered me.

You could drop mass on the Orange - mine came with forged iron rims and a pig iron handlebar and stem combo. Superstar wheels, new tyres and some choice eBay purchases saved well over a kilo. Mind I still don't like it.... I'd not use it on the SDW! It's not what I call a climber.

Posted 14 hours ago #
vincienup - Member

I surprised myself with some Strava numbers on my local default loop (Ladybower). Since starting Strava again, I’d been riding it on my Soul275 (now the ‘old’ model) and when I took my old 26er Zesty out on the same loop in similar conditions expected slower climbs and faster descents. That’s how it felt, but the numbers tell me the Zesty was faster *everywhere*. Obviously there’s a lot of fitness variables etc but probably most significant is the techy rocky climbs where a FS has the ability to keep the back end busy rather than it being pinged all over (assuming you haven’t locked your rear shock... )

I’m seriously interested in a new Soul, partly as a shameless Cotic fanboy, but I’m not expecting it to replace my Mk4.

I’d agree that you should take another look at the Solaris for the sort of riding you’re talking about. I’m 178cm And was running so much post on a medium Mk1 Solaris I had to swap my old 125 dropper for a 150 to stop catching my shorts on it...

Posted 14 hours ago #
four - Member

Thanks for the comments.

Lots to think about, I’m guessing there isn’t a ‘best bike’ for the SDW?

Maybe the Four is as good as any really? I’m not shelling out for a shorter travel 29er as I’m not sure it would make a noticeable difference.

Posted 9 hours ago #
core - Member

Best bike for SDW from what I've read would a carbon short travel full sus.

Posted 9 hours ago #

chiefgrooveguru - Member

The best bike for the SDW is the one that guarantees you dry weather and a tail wind!

Posted 9 hours ago #
ayjaydoubleyou - Member

29er just seems a bit tall for me

Is rubbish - your cranks, saddle and bars will be (or can be) at the exact same height as on a 27.5 bike.

29ers for short people fall down on squeezing in rear suspension, keeping the bars low enough, and avoiding kicking the front wheel while pedalling. A hardtail, with 120 forks and short head tube, with modern head angles will not suffer any of these faults. 5'7 makes you taller than most pro xc women, who generally can ride 29ers without issue.

I've attempted SDW twice. Failed on my gen 1 Solaris, succeeded on a bird aeris. My fitness/health at the time may have had something to do with it though.

I would recommend a decent rigid seat post. It is far more comfortable than a dropper in the up position.

As I see your dilemma

Four pros
Comfortable for long day
Already own it so likely a better bike than a second bike built on a budget

Four cons
Slightly heavier and slight energy loss
No bottle mount. 12 hour ride is immensely better without a backpack

Soul pros
All parts transferable apart from seatpost therefore cheap way of obtaining new bike
Bottle mount

Cons
New username required
Don't kid yourself- you will swap back your parts to the full suss at most once per year, so you still only have one bike

Solaris pros
Larger wheels maintain momentum over slightly rough ground as typical on the route
Bottle mount
New bike!
New bike can be more tailored to long distance xc, leaving you with a four for play/gnar

Solaris cons
Most expensive option
Two tyre sizes to maintain a comprehensive tyre selection for

Posted 8 hours ago #
four - Member

Thanks for comments.

Is a ridged seat post more comfortable than a dropper? I didn’t know that, what’s the reason please? If keeping the Four to do the SDW swapping out seat posts could be a decent weight saver.

I’ve already fitted betterrims and lighter tyres, put carbon bars on and the Guide brakes are being swapped out to XTR Race.

Posted 7 hours ago #
vincienup - Member

I have never found myself wanting to swap a dropper for a regular post on grounds of comfort.

Posted 7 hours ago #
ayjaydoubleyou - Member

I personally have found it more comfortable. Nice Thompson rigid vs reverb.
My guess is that there is a bit of flex in the thin walled tube of the regular post, compared the the thicker walls of the moving parts of a dropper post.
Alternative and possibly contradictory theory - my reverb was a bit squishy. Recently swapped to an e-thirteen and where it is locked into the top position rather than having a mum or two of give feels like you are more efficient pedalling (almost certainly placebo effect)

Posted 6 hours ago #
benmotogp46 - Member

I did the SDW on my 2012 Five in a day and having put many hours in the saddle to train for this length of ride, I got through it okay, but, it was a long day!

I built up a 2014 Soul (26) a few years ago and am waiting for the opportunity to do the SDW once again, once my children are all in school and I have some more "free time" to train.

I'd definitely recommend a Soul for this type of ride but fitness is the priority as both bikes are very capable, just different in what they offer.

If you can, build a new bike up from new parts so you have two bikes, unless you plan on getting rid of the Four.

Posted 2 hours ago #
vincienup - Member

...sharing a wheelset at least until you’re sure would be a sensible budget move ...

Posted 1 hour ago #

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