Commencal Supreme Review: Too Complex Or Perfectly Tuned? | 2024 Downhill Bike Field Test

[@oprangler]

Love my V5. For those considering buying one here's what I don't like: - The rear brake hose & derailleur cable are routed underneath the bottom bracket. I slashed mine grounding the BB on a rock. Recommend rerouting under the top tube. - Mine came supplied with low quality chinese branded bearings in all the pivots instead of Enduro bearings sold on website - BB & headset are press fit - The adjustments to the bridge and chainstay require additional parts to be purchased - When you have to service your bearings it will cost ~$400 for the full set. In contrast Santa Cruz will send you free pivot bearings for the lifetime of your V10.

[@RealLakeFN]

Do you think that Jackson goldstones v10 a year ago is better than this( for racing and downhill)

[@kenai_the_asian8106]

Is it really 400 bucks for new bearing set? Thats fukn insane. I was about to pick some up in Squamish on my way home but if thats the case, hell nah

[@hobmarg]

Are they non standard bearings? Why not just buy from a bearing supplier for way less.

[@jawajacobite7207]

Might be wrong but you get a 6 months frame bearing warranty with the v5

[@ROSE-by5su]

I think the V10 deserve to get reviewed The V10 vs M1 was a debate in the First Look: Santa Cruz V10 Pinkbike post so why not let’s bring it up here

these are very biased *paid* reviews

[@ChefIan73]

😂

[@davidthebiker2955]

There's only so many ways you can say "This is the best dh bike ever". Maybe that's why it was left out

[@PatBK]

There are alot of paid reviews out there, and you can say about pinkbike reviews what you want, but they're definitely not paid for reviews. You'd know that, if you had watched some of their devastating reviews over the last couple of years. I would go as far as to say pinkbike offers some of the best unbiased reviews of mtbs out there...

[@hooyabaaa2]

​@@davidthebiker2955 It´s the GOAT DH bike, but im not sure if it´s the best at this moment... Bikes cant win alone and they had Greg Minnaar (the GOAT, no doubt) for more than a decade. And yes, you still can win a world cup with that bike... Jackson Goldstone wins one WC this year. Greg Minnaar also switch team for Norco and get a podium last race... With 42 years old (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!). That dude is another level and they bring the NORCO to a podium... I dont even remember if Norco win some races in the past... But at this point we have an ''switch era'' (like VPP many years ago) VPP years back was clearly of of the best designs for DH. Intense AND Santa Cruz was using that setup and many other with similar designs at the time (*like the Devinci Wilson), but since the High Pivot got so dominant (trend started by Aaron Gwin in 2012 i think with the Trek Session), most brands are switching their designs and at this point... Norco, Trek, Commencal, Mondraker, Intense, Canyon, Commencal, Forbidden, Crestline and countless others... Since 2019 is Supreme DH V4 and V5 is what the most independet teams / riders are using for basically 2 reasons: You can clearly win world cups (because the brand team is doing exactly that) and you also have a bit better price compared to most brands... Since they got so hyped, the prices are only going up, expect for other brands to get that effect... YT Tues in the Gwin era was one example of cheap and win capable, and now, the new Cannyon Sender (with guess what????) >>>high pivot design

[@puisleuffer621]

I bought my V5 last week and I'm blown away by it. I'm still setting up the suspension but it's already so incredibly stable and balanced. Best Downhill bike out there.

[@stoneenforcer]

V5 is built for speed which means traction!! Outstanding bike!

[@falk.r.h8963]

as someone with a v5 i can say: its the best dh bike i have ever ridden

[@tehalexy]

as everyone says to their DH.

[@PerfectlyNormalHumanBeing]

out of curiosity, what other bikes have you ridden? would you mind giving some quick comparisons?

[@falk.r.h8963]

@@PerfectlyNormalHumanBeing i hae ridden: 2018 trek session, 2020 commencal supreme v4, 2021 norco aurum, 2022 canyon sender, 2024 commencal supreme v5. out of all the bikes the supreme v4 felt like the smoothest over rough terrain. the canyon was the most lightweight and nimble. norco was a bit like the v4 but way stiffer. the v5 is the second best over big holes (after the v4) and it is by far the best for cornering. i also feel like the v5 is very natural to ride but (just like the canyon) but it offers way more support than the canyon. the only downside is that it is quite heavy and sometimes very commited to a line but if you have a fast suspension setup then you can still gap everything easily. just watch my latest video and maybe you can see how it rides a bit

[@DandyHippo]

Great review. If I would want to ruin myself financially I'd get one right away

[@AlexMason-qp1cp]

Ditto with the alloy nipples on DT wheels. Pulled a lot of my spokes clean out the nipples in the alps this year. Switched all my rear nipples to brass and problem solved. Unnecessary cost for an easy fix from factory though.

[@AndreasJacobson]

Yes! More dh and freeride bike reviews please :D

[@lucian1021]

A forbidden supernought should also be reviewed

[@Tragicravioli]

Another V5 owner here, best bike I've ever ridden.... It's worth mentioning that bleeding the rear brake is the worst of any bike I've ever had. The routing on it after it comes out of the downtube and then up the seat then down the upper chain stay and I had to put the front wheel all the way up in the air over night, flatten the master (of course), and let the rear caliper dangle and bleed the hell out of it a couple of times. Aside from that it's the best DH bike I've ever ridden and I couldn't believe a DH bike could feel so planted, have so much grip, and be so unbelievably fast.

[@ashkonsenaati8530]

How tall are you and what size did you go with?

[@Tragicravioli]

6’4” and I ride an XL.

[@JMurcc]

Would love to see the FRS not a lot of videos on it

[@johnssmith4005]

Same goes with the Summum not too many reviews on it

[@achilledupey1081]

I think it’s because it’s not a race bike whereas all the bikes reviewed in this serie are. I have a frs, it’s really a jump bike and even though it’s quite stable compared to older geometries, when it comes to roots and tech you’ll find the limits pretty quickly… It’s a very fun bike made for jumps that can handle bike park speeds but not when you’re riding roots and rocks. If you are more of a racer don’t pick this bike. And I think if you don’t have another bike to ride fast or if you don’t spend most of your time on jumps then you may want to find something else… Hope this helps!

[@sheahorsak3557]

@@achilledupey1081I’m stuck between buying the yt Tues or the frs, I’m looking into riding steep tech and big jumps what do you think would be best??

[@AndreasJacobson]

@@achilledupey1081 I'm torn on buying a clash or frs. Do you happen to have tried both? It'll be a single speed bike park/big jump bike.

[@achilledupey1081]

@@AndreasJacobson no I just have my FRS, I couldn’t tell you. But I guess the clash is more playful and maybe less stable and the frs will be stronger if you like to send sketchy stuff. Remember that the frs doesn’t pedal at all and is still way less stable than an actual downhill bike.

[@piast99]

Ha! Yes, those aluminium spoke nipples DT Swiss puts in their wheels are rubbish! The wheels are excellent and for my riding I use them for years without any need for tensioning. But if that big hit happens or the spoke fails you need to replace all nipples to brass ones. It is impossible to turn aluminium nipples with traditional spoke key without damaging them. Even using dedicated squorx key doesn't always work, perhaps due to the corrosion of the aluminium. DT Swiss please, stop using them and give brass ones from the factory!

[@bearjewmtb4827]

I’d be interested in a mullet furious

[@hazza788]

why would you mullet a bike meant for jumps and flow? Unless you mean a 27.5/26 mullet furious

[@jimfrandsen2863]

On the X2 the High speed rebound is unreachable. You have to remove the shock to access it. Just thought id mention it. Sick DH rig though!

[@angelarutherford4918]

Yeah it's shit hey!

[@LaurentiusTriarius]

I didn't count a thousand bolts. Now I know what to expect when you say you're fast guys 🙃😂🤘

[@guitardog7414]

Hear it's a solid DHer. Don't forget to buy a spare derailleur hanger. Had to give some poor racer kid the bad news that his weekend was over on Friday because of a broken hanger.

[@jokermtb]

Does it have enough stack for Dak?

[@jacob_wilson_236]

V10 next and then demo please and thank you!

[@k04-p6u]

Can you review the Canyon Sender ?

[@angelarutherford4918]

I had a canyon sender before I got the V5, I actually liked the sender much better

[@AJ_Brimson]

@@angelarutherford4918 why is that? Im choosing these two as my personal rig? was the sender just more poppier?

[@Jake-wb8wd]

The commencal value comes with maintenance time.

[@DCochRider]

Review the new alpine trail

[@laukoenigsegg]

can you reveiw the propain rage cf 3

[@belagas9520]

Were did you get those pedals?

[@marksampson5522]

Wheels...pulling in all directions... Genius.

[@1speedbrian]

The V4 was one of the highest failure rate DH bikes around, the v5 is more complex what are the chances it lasts a whole season.

[@ROSE-by5su]

The V4 was one of the fastest bike IMO I wish it wasn't breaking. It could have been one of the best HP Bikes it's a race machine. The V5 has more on Mid pivot I think it corners better but slugish. I would still take a SC over this tho that thing looks fun to ride

[@antrace92]

The v4 was the best supreme ever That thing was fast

[@davidthebiker2955]

At least it's only $8k

[@bikesnblades6737]

Judging by the absolutely horrendous guarantee duration Commencal gives you, which was shortened not too long ago, they seem to not have too much confidence in their own product either. It's a shame really. This thing appears to be the real deal and Commencal always had the performance absolutely nailed, but their quality sadly takes them out of contention for me 😢

[@Leo_Inclan]

But how well does it bumble?😜😜

[@olgakots5184]

Please review commencal frs

[@ryansmith7974]

And you can rent one for only 260 CAD per day in Whistler. Dam...

[@Tom-15]

Wtf 😂

[@N1ALL85]

Much rather have my carbon TR11 or cf Propain or YT. These things are just tanks that were driven by the fastest riders. That in turn set the trend for other brands to go back to metal. Same riders on a cf and you’ll get the same results.

[@rpiian]

Agreed, you never hear about a broken Tues... Yet every Commencal Supreme you hear about has a cracked this or that, or will crack.

[@andrew8200m]

The bot game is strong.. Pinkbike paying for interactions? All the comments bar 1 so far are from accounts created 4 hours ago. OMEGALULZ!

[@TeddyParker]

This is a youtube problem. It's all the popular channels now. But they're usually better at moderating them because they know they have to delete them for the first hour or so of an upload. The bots tend to stop after that. Their goal is to get the first comment since they can't compete long term and get removed/downvoted.

[@boogiedownbronx73]

7K uffff im broke

[@pezholda5935]

will it creak?

[@DandyHippo]

Nah. Might creak though

[@antrace92]

5:33 the wat This is completely brand new I can feel the stiffness from one bike to another but on the same... I don't know 🤷🏿‍♂️

[@pawebogusz8753]

Commencal is the fastest, in cracking. They are using hydroforming and even with that, they have stubid shapes in weld areas. All Commencals which i saw in my life got crack after short time. In my oponinon all frames should be tested under big force. Suported on the axles in bottomed posytion and 4000-5000N on the support. If frame isn't able tu survive it it will crack if someoneo will go to hard.

[@nicks8026]

“All the Commencals…”? I’m gonna go ahead and call bullshit on that statement.

[@vrwgq3q]

@@nicks8026 I don't disagree in saying that I've seen my fair share of broken commencals oddly... many alloy bikes out there, but seen issues on the rear triangles

[@pawebogusz8753]

​@@nicks8026 Make 3D model and use FEM to see what are the tensions. I am mechanical designer, sometimes I repair people frames. Repairing the commencal is the most difficult because the design is so poor that it needs to be reshaped to prevent it from cracking. All my friends who had commencal, broke it after short time. Round pipe near the welds and all forces transferred by one point of weld. Huge force in damper area without strengthening this place. Very stupid frame shape which increases tensions in weld areas. You can design aluminum frame which has about 70MPa udner 4000N landing force. But under that load tensions in commencal are about 200MPa or even more. Which means, one bad landing and frame can get some cracks. Thats why all comenncal gets crack so fast. Frame on the video has better shape than most commencals but still tubing shape and weld areas are stupid which is typical for that companie.

[@joaoesdevao461]

Racers Dream- Mechanicals Nightmare

[@Paul-ru3xj]

Best working bike atm is the new Demo

[@jokermtb]

Why don't you guys ever wear elbow pads (aside from the bandages on the elbows)?

[@Henry-Quinney]

I always wear elbow pads, and was very grateful to them. It would have been a lot worse.

[@sendyboiii7]

I personally don't wear ellbow pads because I find that they firstly hinder me more than the safety they provide and secondly with all the ellbow pads I've tried they either didn't fit properly or when I crashed they protected me from rashes from the ground however burnt and scratched my skin almost worse than the ground

[@jokermtb]

@@Henry-Quinney good to know! I was just watching Charlie Murray's enduro vlog, and he (and Ed Masters) always seems to have a plaster on his elbows!

[@lewishong1765]

Eh

[@andrew8200m]

The bots lul.

[@LaurentiusTriarius]

Uh

[@DandyHippo]

Oh

[@simonvadura8998]

Will it break? @astonmtb