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What's the deal with Ragley?

6K views 32 replies 18 participants last post by  Broccoli 
#1 ·
Honest question, no sarcasm meant. I just keep seeing people freaking out like teenage girls at a Justin Bieber concert about names like Blue Pig and mmmBop, and I have no idea why. They seem about like pretty much every other standard boutique hardtail to me. I realize I may have just blasphemed a bit, but nothing bad meant. Enlighten?
 
#3 ·
Well...

They're nice bikes for a start, but more importantly the geometry is different to any other brand I can think of. The handling on a Ragley is pretty much unique and it's developed a lot of fans. There's also a bunch of nice detail touches like 1.5 head tubes, moveable/changable cable guides and tyre clearance, little stuff.

The pricing is good as well, don't know about in the US but over here they under cut similar far eastern hard tail frames (using Pace, Chromag, and Evil as referrence) by £100-300. Only One-Ones come in much cheaper.

Speaking of On-One, Brant Richards already had a bunch of fans because his 456/456SS designs, there's been a lot of carry over from those. Brant's also made himself a few fans by being approachable and open about the what/how/why of the frames.

Lastly, this is the All Mountain forum, should it really be surprising it's user get excited by a brand that mainly sells All Mountain frames?
 
#4 ·


:D

Why do I love Ragley and plan on buying one soon? The ability of being able to communicate with the designer and ask questions on here is a truly unique buying experience for myself, great value for the money, and current owners are extremely happy with the product.
 
#5 ·
I make a big deal about mine because it rides better than a Stiffee, does the same job as a Stiffee, weighs less than a Stiffee, and cost me about 1/3rd as much as a Stiffee. It's a very, very good frame. Geometry is a bit different to the norm, and works brilliantly.
 
#7 ·
charging_rhinos said:
Wasn't hating a bit. Just curious is all.
I was curious as well at first, don't mind my silly graphic, lol. When I started searching for an AM hardtail these past couple of weeks, I've been through all the brands in my search, and always kept returning to Ragley. In terms of price and features nothing comes close to it and they sure have a big following on here.
 
#8 ·
i was waffling between a 456 summer season, orange p7, and a blue pig. i just pulled the trigger on a blue pig from crc since they're running 10% off site-wide plus free shipping to the states, $268 otd. saved about $30 over the 456 ss & p7.
 
#9 ·
kanai said:
i was waffling between a 456 summer season, orange p7, and a blue pig. i just pulled the trigger on a blue pig from crc since they're running 10% off site-wide plus free shipping to the states, $268 otd. saved about $30 over the 456 ss & p7.
So did I a couple of hours ago, 18" Skwosh frame. I was waiting for the 2011 Blue Pig ($430) to drop in January, but looking over the measurements and speaking with Brant today here, the 18" frame has the same reach as the new 20" frame with a shorter TT. I just saved myself over $160 on the build and went with the instant classic. The new features of the Blue Pig are nice (1.5 headtube and ICSG tabs) but I don't see myself using either.

I'm extremely happy with my purchase and can't wait to see it in person and start riding next season. :thumbsup:
 
#11 ·
hitechredneck said:
Im waiting for the 1.5 headtube then i shall order one.
Just curious, why would you want the full 1.5 HT on a trail hardtail? Would you be building it up with something like a Fox Van 1.5" on the front for a dirt jump machine or something?
 
#12 ·
charging_rhinos said:
Just curious, why would you want the full 1.5 HT on a trail hardtail? Would you be building it up with something like a Fox Van 1.5" on the front for a dirt jump machine or something?
It's more so you can use tapered forks, which are always appearing on close-outs at various mail order stores I've noticed. Plus the larger diameter head tube stiffens up the front of the bike nicely.
 
#14 ·
they have to be ridden to be believed.

i went from a 6" reign to the Blue Pig, really worried about buying off the reviews only, and was worried about going back to a HT. Being able to run a long travel fork and the unique GEO makes a huge difference. The feel you get riding a steel frame also helps. The quality to price ratio is great too. There has been alot of thought put into the design of the frame. Just the cable guides alone are great design.

After seeing the Bagger, i am really wishing i had of waited now :rolleyes:

:D

Just get one, you wont be disappointed.
 
#17 ·
Hi Brant,

Strongly considering a steel Ragley frame to replace an 06 SC Chameleon. Currently thinking of a Piglet, but the lighter Blue Pig X could be an option (with a Pike U-turn in front, currently set between 120mm and 140mm on the Chameleon)...

While the geometry is what I'm looking for in terms of seat angle/head angle and TT length, my main concern is in term of comfort : the Chameleon is not really comfortable for those 4H all mountain rides...

Do you have an idea of which would be the most comfortable between the Piglet and the Blue Pig X ? It seems that the seat stays of the Blue Pig X would be more vertically compliant due to their shape, but the tubing section of the Piglet might be smaller? Considering both frames uses different steels, it's really hard to guess!

Any advice?

Cheers.

(The intended use for this frame would be something like my mate Paul in this video that we filmed a couple of months ago : . Except that I ride like crap compared to him :D )
 
#18 ·
charging_rhinos said:
Just curious, why would you want the full 1.5 HT on a trail hardtail? Would you be building it up with something like a Fox Van 1.5" on the front for a dirt jump machine or something?
I've got a 1.5 Revelation sat here taunting me.

Every day I walk past it and it goes 'ner nee ner nee nyer nyer nooobody bought me!'
So I'm getting a 2011 Pig and it's going to go on my bike, then it will pay, dear God it will pay...

Although, not sure about having to get a 20in frame, I hate tall frames.
 
#20 ·
Georges Abitbol said:
Do you have an idea of which would be the most comfortable between the Piglet and the Blue Pig X ? It seems that the seat stays of the Blue Pig X would be more vertically compliant due to their shape, but the tubing section of the Piglet might be smaller? Considering both frames uses different steels, it's really hard to guess!
In theory the Blue Pig(X) rear stays are more compliant. In practice? Only princesses who worry about peas under their mattresses could tell the difference I suspect.
 
#21 ·
brant said:
In theory the Blue Pig(X) rear stays are more compliant. In practice? Only princesses who worry about peas under their mattresses could tell the difference I suspect.
You mean Ragley frames are as comfortable as mattresses :D ?

Anyway, Piglet or Blue pig X, it won't be as harsh as the Chameleon with his massive rear triangle :thumbsup: !

Thanks for your input.

Cheers.
 
#22 ·
charging_rhinos said:
Honest question, no sarcasm meant. I just keep seeing people freaking out like teenage girls at a Justin Bieber concert about names like Blue Pig and mmmBop, and I have no idea why. They seem about like pretty much every other standard boutique hardtail to me. I realize I may have just blasphemed a bit, but nothing bad meant. Enlighten?
pay more attention. ;) starting with On One, Brant has made slacker HA's than most of the competition. chainstay-mounted rear disc brake -- hardly standard in the industry. plate CS yoke for short CS length with clearance for 2.5 inch tires -- hardly standard in the industry, especially at the low prices of Ragley frames. I paid around $300 for the mmmbop i owned until recently. by blunderingly using the word 'boutique' to describe the non-Ti Ragley frames, you accidentally put your finger on another reason: Brant manages to provide frames that are different than most other frames out there, with some interesting features, but at non-boutique prices.

riders tend to be more enthusiastic about brands with owner(s) that are clearly very involved in the design and testing of the bikes, especially if those owners are directly involved in much of the communication with customers.. canfield, chromag, transition, etc etc. Not hard to figure out why that is....
 
#23 ·
frorider said:
pay more attention. ;) starting with On One, Brant has made slacker HA's than most of the competition. chainstay-mounted rear disc brake -- hardly standard in the industry. plate CS yoke for short CS length with clearance for 2.5 inch tires -- hardly standard in the industry, especially at the low prices of Ragley frames. I paid around $300 for the mmmbop i owned until recently. by blunderingly using the word 'boutique' to describe the non-Ti Ragley frames, you accidentally put your finger on another reason: Brant manages to provide frames that are different than most other frames out there, with some interesting features, but at non-boutique prices.

riders tend to be more enthusiastic about brands with owner(s) that are clearly very involved in the design and testing of the bikes, especially if those owners are directly involved in much of the communication with customers.. canfield, chromag, transition, etc etc. Not hard to figure out why that is....
Seems like you might have taken minor offense to my use of the word boutique to describe Ragley. No reason to freak out, I wasn't insulting them at all. They just aren't made in Asia at the huge workhouses, so that's a term that is commonly used to distinguish them. No need to get defensive, nothing bad meant. I've just been genuinely curious, since the AM forum has had three or four Ragley post consistently on the front page for so long. I just wanted to gain some perspective. I'm not one for the hardtails personally, so I usually don't frequent those manufacturers' sites. But I am glad to see that there are small guys out there making good products and selling them at really good prices. Admittedly, I had spent all of about 2 minutes max at the Ragley site because the site's graphics were freaking my eyes out, so I didn't go to their geometry pages or look at the specifics. Who knows, maybe I'll get one myself sometime in the future as a dirt commuter for getting to work the fun way or something.

As far as involvement in bikes' design process, that's really good that they listen. I live about 35 minutes away from the Canfield bros, and from what I've seen, they are a great company on all fronts, with a great product. Definitely a bit more pricey than a Ragley though, unfortunately. I'd wet my pants twice for a Jedi at the price of a Blue Pig.
 
#24 ·
charging_rhinos said:
They just aren't made in Asia at the huge workhouses, so that's a term that is commonly used to distinguish them.
I'm pretty sure they are made in Taiwan.

My suggestion is to ask around and see if you can get a ride on a Ragley bike and check one out in person. They have an interesting fit and ride as well as some nice features at a reasonable price point. As with any frame, the true test is in riding it.

Also, the fact that the guy who designed the frame is posting in your thread is a good reason why they have built such a following.
 
#26 ·
bad news said:
I'm pretty sure they are made in Taiwan.
I'm pretty sure they are made by hand in England. That's what the sticker on my Blue Pig says. I thought I read somewhere that Ragley was started by a couple of framebuilders from the Carlton factory after Raleigh was sold off. That is why the first generation Blue Pig chainstays used leftover Super Course downtubes.
 
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