Glad to see Ibex get their own forum. They are very good bikes at a very good price. Some people have to have a big name brand, some a racers brand of ride. I went for value and got it, couldnt be happier with my Apogee Sport
Good job Ibex,
quickKarl

Cool, nice to see the new forum. I bought a Alpine 550 as a present for my Brother in law, he loves the bike. Worked great, shipping was a promised, Jack answered my questions promptly.

Yeah its good to see that Ibex has its own forum now. Someone tell Jack :P

I have had my Ibex Ignition for about 2 months now and love it! Great ride great price!

Sargon2112

Hell Yeah! Glad to see there is a forums for Ibex.

I have had my Alpine 450 for 2 months now and I love it!

ya im very glad that ibex has their own forum now too. i have an 04ignition2 and i am farely happy with it. im actually a freerider on a budget and this bike seemed to be something good to start out with. do any of you know how much travel i can put on as a fork. i want more so i can do some bigger drops. im holding up 5 fts right now with it but i want more very badly. if ibex comes out with a freeride bike i'll buy it in a heart beat. jack is a great manager for the company

Well, you probably could run more than 100mm, but the frame might is not built for a long travel fork, and could just break the frame ecspecialy if your already pushing the limit doing drops like that. Adding a longer travel fork would also screw up the geometry and make it handel funky. Definatly call and ask about the new freeride bike, sometimes you can get discounts when you preorder.

I can't tell you for certain what the effects might be of running a longer fork than 100mm travel, but I can tell you what I do know, and you can make your own estimations as to what that might mean.

A fork that sits two inches higher off of the ground will alter the head and seat tube angles (as well as any other angle on the bike). The head and seat tubes will be aimed back a few degrees more (assume a few degrees). This will cause greater stresses on the welds from all impacts. The other problem this introduces is the altered fork angle. It makes it so that a deeper change on your handlebars results in less of a turn (don't know the exact amount per angle, but as you move the angle closer to 0 degrees, the closer your wheel remains to 'straight' in a turn. This will also alter your seating position. The seat will now be 1-2 inches lower than it was before in opposition to the handlebars. The seat will need to be tilted down slightly in the front, moved forward possibly, etc. due to the new angle.

Overall, I see it as doable, but it may very well not be safe due to the additional stress from the altered head angle. (This post was primarily made to clarify what Vulcan said)

...any of you know how much travel i can put on as a fork.... if ibex comes out with a freeride bike i'll buy it in a heart beat.
First, thanks for the kind words!

You're probably OK going to 120mm fork on your 2004 Ignition, but pay attention to ride height. For example, most Marzocchi 120mm forks are only about 15mm (3/5") taller in ride height than their 100mm and 105mm forks. Other brands may not be so close.

... AND

... YES!

IBEX is introducing a Freeride model for 2005, the IBEX Zone FR-1. We'll have some info up on our website (www.ibexbikes.com (http://www.ibexbikes.com)) in a few days. It's a nicely equipped model with Deore/LX/XT drivetrain, lots of TruVativ Hussefeldt stuff (RG/32/22T crank, H/B, stem, pedals...), and a very rugged long travel frame. It's got 7" rear travel with a Manitou Metel RP shock and 130mm Marzocchi Drop-Off fork... a 170mm dual-crown is optional (FR-1 TC model).
http://www.ibexbikes.com/images/Bikes/2005/ZON-FR-1-RQ-640.jpg
http://www.ibexbikes.com/images/Bikes/2005/ZONE-FR-1-TC-FQ-640.jpg

awesome jack. I think those are going to sell like hot cakes. Its a bit too much bike for the terain around here but it rounds out your lineup very nicely. The one improvement I can think of is a 5x5 trail bike, rather than the 4x4 Apogee. Also, the Ignition looks great too, much sleeker and more atractive. The design looks alot like the Apogee, does it ride similar? What are the main differences going to be between the Ignition series and the Apogee series now other than component spec?

What are the main differences going to be between the Ignition series and the Apogee series now other than component spec?
As delighted as I am with our new IBEX Ignition frame (in Yellow below), our Apogee frame (in Red) is still a little more sophisticated. The Apogee's travel pattern is a bit smoother with special roller bearings in the main pivot (vs ball-bearing cartridges on the Ignition).. We use double-butted tubing on the Apogee to save weight (where we can)... whereas price dictates plain guage tubing all round on the Ignition (though we did upgrade to 6061 from previous Ignition's 7005 aluminum). The Apogee also has a unique one piece "U" shaped seatstay assembly and nicer CNC machining on the swingarm yoke, dropouts and such... all details that add to the cost and put the Apogee in favorable comparison to some much more expensive specilty brands out there. That does not make the new Ignition frame bad. It is excellent for a mid-level FS bike... far beyond what you'd expect in it's price class. Still, the Apogee is just that much better and has nicer details. Let's just say, the new Igntion makes an admirable little brother to the Apogee with a strong family resembalnce and much of the same DNA.
http://www.ibexbikes.com/images/Bikes/2005/IGN-FRM-YL-RQ-640.jpg
http://www.ibexbikes.com/images/Bikes/2004/APG-FRM-RQ-640.jpg
Regards,
Jack

Jack, just commenting on a few things about the new IGN. (curiosities, and complements, no worries! :))

1. I can't tell for certain, but the downtube looks like it's gone to straight tube instead of the bi-oval. Is that just the picture?
2. There appear to be rear V-brake bosses now. Is this implying an "Ignition-1 V", or is it just something to give the frame another selling point?
3. The new cable routing (under the top tube) looks much sexier than the over-tube routing did on the '04.
4. Water bottle mounting locations: Is there still only one like on the '04 frame? I see holes on the top of the downtube, which is a much better location (this doesn't affect me directly, since I tend to use my camelbak, but curious for others)
5. The virtual lockout: about how much play does it have when engaged?

Thanks - the new bikes all look great, and I look forward to hearing more about the other projects for late next year or early 2006 ;)

1. ...downtube looks like it's gone to straight tube instead of the bi-oval. Is that just the picture?
2. There appear to be rear V-brake bosses now. Is this implying an "Ignition-1 V", or is it just something to give the frame another selling point?
3. The new cable routing (under the top tube) looks much sexier than the over-tube routing did on the '04.
4. Water bottle mounting locations: Is there still only one like on the '04 frame? ...
5. The virtual lockout: about how much play does it have when engaged?

Thanks - the new bikes all look great, and I look forward to hearing more about the other projects for late next year or early 2006 ;)
Hi Alikkon,

Thanks for your kind words and keen interest in IBEX. As always, we appreciate your support!

1) Downtube on the new Ignition frame is still a bi-oval, but does not flare as much as the previous design.
2) V-brake bosses are superfluous as far as our complete bike models, but they do give you options on a build-out from the frame alone. The 2005 Ignition-1 will continue to feature disc brakes (as do the IGN-2 & IGN-3) and has, in fact, been up-spec'd a good bit from 2004. We've dropped the EZ-Fire shifters and Acera F/D in favor of Alivio Rapidfire shifters and Alivio derailleurs (front and rear). We've also selected a better rear shock for the IGN-1 and new RST Gila Plus T5 fork... the "Plus" indicates 30mm stanchions and 100mm travel... actually very nice for it's price range.
3) Cable guides are now much the same as on our Apogee frame. Cable routing on a complete bike (see below) has a very nice flow this way.
4) There is only one set of cage bosses, but thankfully, there was room to put them on top of the downtube on this frame.
5) "Virtual Lock-out" on the Vector Axis shock (Ignition-3 and Team frame) stiffens the shock with a flick of the adjustment lever to the point that it is all but locked solid. You can still get the suspension to move if you were to put enough force on it. This protects the shock, frame, wheels and rider should you chuck the bike off a big drop-off without remembering to disengage the lock-out.

I'm not really ready to talk about 2006 too much yet except to say that there were several projects that we wanted to do for '05 that had to be temporarily shelved. In some cases we were just too late getting them going, but in others it was a matter of having to make hard decisions on what to do with limited production time. Frankly, with sales increasing almost geometrically, we were concerned about being able to produce enough of our established models before committing to new ones. We'll sort it out, though, and we do plan to expand our production capacity for 2006.
http://www.ibexbikes.com/images/Bikes/2005/IGN-2-RD-720.jpg
Best regards,
Jack

Sweeett!! Cant wait 'till mine arrives!!

Would that perhaps include a steel single speed? I think I saw you posting in the SS forum a few months ago about it.

Would that perhaps include a steel single speed? I think I saw you posting in the SS forum a few months ago about it.

Any SS would be nice ;)

Thanks for the info Jack

1) Quite true - not nearly as noticable... looks good on the new frame though
2) Sounds like the Ignition-1 will be exciting - I have a few friends who are looking at the current IGN1 who I'm sure will go nuts over the new one.
3) Agreed on the flow - looks very clean, and very nice.
4) Agreed - I had the nastiest water bottle on the planet the first couple rides on my '04 IGN2 (prior to the camelbak)
5) Good to know.

Thanks for all of the information - as has been the result so far, I'm impressed with Ibex's responses.

Nice bikes Jack .I have a question about your frames .will you be offering the zone fr 1 as a frameset. for 05 as well as complete bikes . I enjoy building up my own bikes .being a mechanic .

Nice bikes Jack .I have a question about your frames .will you be offering the zone fr 1 as a frameset. for 05 as well as complete bikes . I enjoy building up my own bikes .being a mechanic .
We usually do offer framesets, but I don't think we'll have the Zone frame separately this first year out. We were hard-pressed to build enough for the complete bike production, so it may be 2006 before we have the frames available by themselves. I think you'll find that the component set on the FR-1 is hard to beat, though!

Regards,
Jack