Diamondback Overdrive 29er Mountain Bike - 2012 Special Buy

Comments about Diamondback Overdrive 29er Mountain Bike - 2012 Special Buy:

This is the bike that won me over to 29er wheels. I'm 5'8" w/30" inseam and the standover height of the DB Overdrive small size frame (16") is perfect. I've owned several mountain & BMX bikes and this is the closest I have found that offers the best of both worlds. It's no dirt jumper; this bike is not designed for big air, but it simply offers no less than a fully intuitive ride on trails and pavement alike. DB's website/frame size selector recommends an 18" frame for me but riding one proved to be too much of a reach resulting in sore neck, wrists & palms. Not so with the 16" size; cramps & soreness are virtually non-existent. This bike really must be ridden in order to fully realize the virtues of a 29er. Big plus; REI is the only retailer I'm aware of that offers the Overdrive in this beautiful Midnight Blue paint scheme. My only gripe is that the forks aren't beefy enough (hence 4 out of 5 stars) but at this pricepoint who cares? A great entry-level 29er overall.

Comments about Diamondback Overdrive 29er Mountain Bike - 2012 Special Buy:

Had the bike about a month now and ride it 3 times a week on 10-20 mile rides in the mountains of Western NC. It handles some pretty difficult trails but does need a fork upgrade for them. I am a new rider, riding with guys on $2-$3k bikes and holding my own.

If you are looking for a new cheap 29er to get in to mountain biking this is the one.

Comments about Diamondback Overdrive 29er Mountain Bike - 2012 Special Buy:

I ordered the bike and had it sent to REI. It arrived quick and was built the same day it arrived. Happy with REI and the bike. Took the bike out to some out of season crosscountry ski trails. It was great, bike did awseome on off the pavement. Only problem was the front derailer poped the chain off a couple times. Not sure if this was my doing or not but that was the only negative thing. Get some padded shorts!!

Comments about Diamondback Overdrive 29er Mountain Bike - 2012 Special Buy:

Bike is a great buy but I might have to invest in a new, more comfortable saddle.

Comments about Diamondback Overdrive 29er Mountain Bike - 2012 Special Buy:

Used for a ride across Missouri along Katy trail. Put in 250 miles in the first week of owning the bike. Added toeclips, bar extenders, didn't change the seat and should have. Seat is uncomfortable. Everything else seemed to work great.

Comments about Diamondback Overdrive 29er Mountain Bike - 2012 Special Buy:

I am 6'4" and this bike fits well. I love to go on the dirt trails and it has handled great.

Comments about Diamondback Overdrive 29er Mountain Bike - 2012 Special Buy:

Brakes are the only thing bad on this bike. I'm new to biking but expected these disc brakes to really make a solid stop, might as well have the old style brakes that don't work, because these sure don't.

Comments about Diamondback Overdrive 29er Mountain Bike - 2012 Special Buy:

Just upgraded my 15 year old bike with this one. So far I only have a few miles on it so far, but I'm impressed! The only complaint I have is the disk brakes don't seem to be as effective as they should be. I read another review that mentioned they should be sanded down and I will give that a try. Taking this to the west coast of Michigan this weekend and put some good trail miles on it!

Comments about Diamondback Overdrive 29er Mountain Bike - 2012 Special Buy:

Just bought this bike last week as the price was too good to pass up. Cousin in Austin bought one as well and we gave them a good test at Rocky Hill Ranch outside of Smithville this weekend. BIG FUN! The bike handled everything the trail could throw at us. I pounded up hills with loose rock where my 26 had always spunout. You have to assert yourself on this bike as it is not as easy to turn on the tight turns as a 26, but once you get used to it and really lean into it, it works. It handled a crash well and kept on going (much better than my shin). Can't wait to get out there again!

Comments about Diamondback Overdrive 29er Mountain Bike - 2012 Special Buy:

I went in with my dad and bought this as a gift for my 16 year old brother. And while I still feel it's a great buy for the money and a solid bike overall.

It's been almost nothing but problems I've spent more time working on it than my brother has riding it. A large part of that is that I'm still just learning but a week old bike shouldn't develop a new problem every time you take it out. 20 Min into the first ride found out who ever set it up at rei doesn't believe in tighting wheel locks or handle bars. >.>

Next ride got a buzz in the shift controller, well I learned how to dismantle handler bars take apart a shifter and fix it T_T/=D The pin controlling the reader came loose for some reason.

Fixed that on the fricken ride go us!.....course had to go home early because the problems with the front derailer that he had from the very first day got worse to the point he couldn't shift to third.

Ok so I learned how to adjust derailers .....problem while I was doing it the bolt holding it to the frame stripped so now I need a new one..............GAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAH.Ok I loosened and tightened it 3 times I was being picky but come on give me a break.

Long rant capped I'm going to assume bad luck and suggest he exchange it since the sale is still going. I'm sure a decent mechanic could get it up and running again in 20min but at this point it's the principle of the thing. Plus I've been learning to do my own work partly because the last rei mechanic kept my bike for 4 weeks over charged me and stole a piece of my gear. O_o

I'll probably shorten my crazy rant after the exchange *hopefully* goes well assuming that's what he wants to do. Just wanted to throw out the dark side here a bit after working on this thing for 20 fricken hours.

Service and delivery comments:

They half arsed the assembly and didn't bother to tighten the handle bars or the front wheel lock. I also have my newbie suspension since the shifting was off from day one and by the end of the week it couldn't make third gear they didn't adjust it right.

Oh and when my family went in to get it the employee couldn't find it they had to for her and then the guy checking it off just mass checked everything on the list.....Kinda suspicious in hind sight. That was the westminster rei and the theft thing was the boulder I've had good experiences at both particularly the boulder but honestly I'll be going thru the denver one in the future never had a problem there.