Ragley Marley review. Underrated gem? Trail, pump track, bike park laps. As good as Big Al?

[@EvansMTBSaga]

So rad! The Marley was definitely on my radar and considered switching out the Meta HT frame with the Marley, but I'm going to do a ground up build and leave the Meta HT alone. But man I just wish Ragley's were in stock right now!

[@s14tat]

The whole bike for the 2.0 is cheap and I know you have to keep a budget but you can probably pick up a 1.0 with the better parts and better frame color and just either part it out and sell it to recover some money on the build or keep it for a another build for another video. The complete bikes are available and the 1.0 ( top of the line ) is like $1275 with a bomber z2, either deore 4 piston/ SRAM db8 depending on availability, a dropper and Shimano 11 speed with the gear range of 11-51t. You can't build a bike for less than the asking price. I know you have particular taste now and you know what you like. So as I said, the parts can be sold off to recoup the build cost. The nukeproof scout v3 is sick too. That bike also is lacking in content and is a super popular bike too.

[@kulafachi9571]

I bought both mmmbop and Marley completed from chainreaction. Stuck with the mmmbop because it felt more planted and playful at the same time. The Marley is a very good bike for flowy flatter and street shreds. The mmmbop just felt so much more versatile on the trails. I should of made a video comparing them lol.

[@s14tat]

If I had to buy one, I would take the mmmbop. But if I already had a Marley, I don't think it's worth getting the mmmbop. It's probably not that much better.

[@kulafachi9571]

@s14tat if you own a big AL, then you made the right choice buying the marley. I'm going to build up a marley for urban, trail and jump bike. Waiting to see what new colors they release for 2023.

[@DS-bv1qw]

Very nice to read this, cause I hopefully get the 2021 Marley tonight and I mainly aim to use it for street, stairs, etc.

[@kulafachi9571]

​@DS-bv1qw how's it treating you so far?

[@DS-bv1qw]

I know you recommend the Big Al for the trails, however, I'm mainly looking for a fun bike to hit the streets, so I hope that 2021 version of the Marley suits me well!

[@s14tat]

@@DS-bv1qw the Marley is like a big dirt jumper. It should be fine for the street. I would just run the highest rise bars as you can. Like 50mm would be even better

[@DS-bv1qw]

@@s14tat Thanks a lot for the feedback! That sounds like I made the right decision in buying a used one yesterday :D! I still have a Inspired Arcade high riser in my basement, I think, it has 100mm rise which I hope is not overkill... (My first try was a buddy's old 24 NS Suburban dirt jumper which was just too nimble and too un-pedable for my daily errands. The bar was one of the attempts to make it fit. Hope the Marley suits me better. )

[@bencourter5333]

Love the review! I built up a Marley last year and I def agree with you. I'm trying to still get my build sorted out since I decided to buy a Sr suntour Aion 35 for the fork and it died on me within the month. Any fork recommendations for this bike? I mostly ride XC/trail singletrack.

[@s14tat]

I only have experience with RockShox. Only non RockShox fork I have tried are xct, xcm, xcr, bomber z2, fox 36. Depends on how much you want to spend. I wasn't too impressed with the bomber z2 but I thought the RockShox 35 gold felt like complete garbage. I would say a used pike ultimate. If you have to get new, the bomber z2 but the 2022 pike ultimates are on clearance for like $600 and I would spend the extra money for that over the bomber any day.

[@hatrix11]

What size is Dario’s bike He posted the reach :) which is great I’ll spread the word It’s a great price for it Are we loosing him to the full squish squad ?

[@s14tat]

His bike is a medium. He is still running his San Quinten. I took it off my listing because I was getting bombarded with offers and it's not my bike so I am not putting with all that noise. He posted it up on his own listing but the interested is low because it seems like a scam having two exact listings.

[@PureRiding]

Stuck between a Big Al and Marley, I want a hardtail for local fast xc and super techy downs/ups, but also really playful for jumps/tricks/pumptracks. What would you recommend of the two? I can get either ones top model with $300

[@s14tat]

I know I replied to you on reddit but here is a copy and paste for other viewers that might be interested. To me the big Al is a better overall bike esp for your height. The big Al absolutely rides better than the Marley because of the bigger rear triangle. The big Al is more versatile and jumps more in control vs the Marley where it's easy to over rotate it or negatively affect it's trajectory in the air. The big Al is also faster and more capable. The big Al rides as good as a good steel frame, while the Marley still rides very good, it's a peg below the big Al.

[@nevets5920]

It would be interesting to throw your buddy's 27.5 wheels on your Big Al. I bet that would account for ride difference. Personally, i will never run my 27.5 bike with any less than 2.8 tires. 2.5s are harsh and don't carry momentum over stuff like 2.8s. I haven't tried 29x2.6 but im guessing its a similar phenomenom with the better efficiency and attack angle.

[@s14tat]

My big Al was a mullet once. So it had a 27.5 x 2.6 for about a season. My nukeproof scout vs big Al video, the big Al was in it's mullet configuration. Feels about the same except the full 29er is faster.

[@holliedekraai4137]

Do you think the Marley 1.0 would be good for a beginner to mountain biking?

[@s14tat]

It is an excellent beginner bike. It's geometry isn't that extreme where it can be ridden in a more traditional riding style by steering with the handle bars but can still leaned hard into a corner when pushed hard, and the bike is so capable that you will most likely not outgrow it's capabilities.

[@holliedekraai4137]

One other question for you. Do you think the bike runs big or small? According to chart I fit a small. I’m 5’4.

[@s14tat]

@@holliedekraai4137 bike is definitely on the small side but it's not something that can't you can't easily adjust to. at 5'4 you probably should get a small so the seat tube will be shorter and you can get the seat more out of the way

[@holliedekraai4137]

@@s14tat thanks so much for answering my questions, appreciate it!

[@selwynperry7459]

Hey Hollie,I had a medium marley a while back and I'm 5ft8..and it was a good fit ..so I think small for you ,and a great little bike ,you can't go wrong with that choice!!

[@shamsta21]

if i already have a trek slash 8 2016 (feel overbiked on a lot of trails) and want something with less travel that would be more playful on flow and jump trails and also better at climbing is the ragley marley a good buy as a 2nd bike?

[@s14tat]

It would make a great second bike. It will probably make your remedy collect dust

[@richibierk3680]

Тяжело его использовать как ежедневный велосипед?

[@KeoOutdoors]

I had a Big Al but sold it before I built it, wish I got a couple of rides in before. the Marley is a little dated, that geo is the same as the 2019,

[@s14tat]

Yeah, you can't get away from that seat tube angle and short reach but it still works very well as a complete package. This is just a fun bike that punches above it's weight.

[@shamsta21]

ragely marley vs san quentin 3?

[@s14tat]

San Quentin 3 all day everyday. The only thing letting the sq3 down is the parts aren't all that great, I would put it below what the Marley 1.0 offers but the frame on the sq3 2023 is way better for a high speed Enduro type bike that can also climb even better than the Marley.

[@mikeburgh3956]

Mmmbop or SQ3?

[@shamsta21]

@@s14tat ended going with the nukeproof scout 275 comp

[@s14tat]

@@shamsta21 great choice. The scout is definitely a better bike in my opinion.

[@TDF2004]

​@@s14tatI'm deciding between the Nukeproof scout, ragley marley, ragley big al, ragley mmmbop and the commencal meta. I ride pretty bumpy stuff offroad but probably wouldn't need too much travel as there are a lot of really steep hills, so I need a bike that's good at climbing but my main priority is that it's fun on trails and all mountain aswell. Which one would you suggest?

[@just_Dario]

Man kind of glad i went with the Marley…

[@s14tat]

The comments are always the same. Super compact, agile, playful and poppy. It's a damn good bike. I don't think there was one part of the video where I said anything bad about the bike.

[@just_Dario]

@@s14tat if I originally went for the roscoe 5 i would’ve definitely missed out on the marley to be honest…

[@s14tat]

@@just_Dario didn't know what your budget was or how committed you were because this Marley costed you a pretty penny as an initial investment for your very first bike. But as I said get the Marley and this will be a forever bike.

[@just_Dario]

@@s14tat lol true but i think if i would of gotten the Roscoe i wouldnt be riding MTB after the first months lol

[@s14tat]

@@just_Dario don't sleep on the old Roscoe. Still very fun bike for local trails. You don't ride much park anyway so it wouldn't hold you back in your general use case.