2017 Diamondback Option Bike

(discontinued)

I have owned this bike and ridden as my primary in southern new england (where technical rock gardens and punchy climbs/decents abound) for less than three seasons. Unfortunately the lifetime was cut short when the frame broke along a weld close to the single pivot point. That is the biggest disappointment I have - an embarrassingly short lifetime for a frame.

With that out of the way, aside from the cheap bottom-tier novatec alloy hubs (which were destined to fail within about a year of routine riding by a 6'0' ~190 lb dude in NE), there is actually a lot to like about this bike - the 1x11 drivetrain with a little tuning works great and gives plenty of torque on the climbs. The 180 mm rotors and shimano brakes give plenty of confidence when stopping, and the rockshox suspension components held up very well and make for a comfortable ride. The handling/geometry of the bike is great on rocky descents while maintaining stability and traction when pedaling through more flat and rolling singletrack.

It's hard to beat the out-of-box value for this bike, and with a few investments (higher quality wheels, tires, and add a dropper post) I was feeling confident that this would continue to be my go-to for the next few years. The dream was shattered yesterday when the frame broke at the weld. All in all - if you are a lighter rider looking for something to bomb around on dirt tracks or groomed trails, the value here could be appealing, but for something marketed as an XC trail bike and an "option" for more aggressive trails, this bike falls way short - I could overlook the hubs (easily replaced) but the frame design appears fundamentally flawed with too many welds around a stress concentration point to ever hold up to moderate punishment over an acceptable lifetime.