Review: YT Capra CF Comp 1 2015

I'm nearing my third month on the YT Capra CF Comp, and I have been riding it alot. So here is my review. This review may not be final, so stay tuned, but here it is;

YT Capra CF Comp 1 2015, size Medium.

(click to enlarge)

(click to enlarge)

Climbing:

Biggest surprise is how well this bike climbs, its annoyingly efficient on the uphills - I get why YT named the bike after a rockclimbing goat.  And I have to admit, that its a even better climber than my Canfield Brothers ONE bike. You push the pedal and the bike just goes up. YT nailed it. The Rockshox Monarch Plus RC3 adds to the climbing efficiency by having its 3 compression settings.

(click to enlarge)

This bike is lightweight, and feels lightweight. After a tubeless setup, with different tires, this is what the scale tip at 13.07kg. (28.75 lbs)

(click to enlarge)

Descend:

I cant stop comparing this bike to my Canfield Brothers ONE bike. And when it comes to descending this bike is a little inferior. But I have to say that the Canfield Brothers ONE bike is freakish good at descending with a strong DH DNA, so its hard to top no matter what AM bike you put against it. But let me be clear, the YT does descends well, its slack low and long - all good cards in the descending game. Its nimble and playfull, and that adds to its descending character.

(click to enlarge)

Frame:

With a low toptube, a BB height that's just right, a slack front, this geometry is spot on imo. The frame is beautifully sculptured, and looks fast. Props to YT for nailing it.

(click to enlarge)

(click to enlarge)

Dropper Post:

The RockShox Reverb has been working without a single issue. Its the stealth version, and I'm happy that it is. This is the 4.th generation of the Reverb, so I imagine RockShox ironed out all the former quirks.

Drive Train:

SRAM 1x has been working without any real issues. It shifts just as well as my former x9 and x10, not better, not worse.

Wheels:

The E13 TRS+ wheels has gotten a lot of heat on the internetss, I however has been very lucky with mine. They are still true, without a single dent, and the spokes are tight. They where actually easy to setup tubeless - to my big surprise. They are loud tho', and that's not for everyone.

Fork:

Ahh the Pike. Hailed as one of the best forks on the market, and pretty much the whole mtb industry went bananas over its performance. Yeah, its a good fork, for beginning to mid travel its VERY good. Its poor in the end stroke tho'. So when you really slam it, the compression curve isn't to my liking, its harsh and has a too fast kickback. This is despite my experiments with the tokens and compression setting. I will write a more in depth review of this fork soon.

The Achilles heel of the YT Capra CF Comp 1 are bigger hits. The suspension components simply  doesn't cater to it out of the box. Its not that its not possible to hit bigger stuff, but it feels harsh and under-damped, catering more to classic trail-stuff.

(click to enlarge)

Rear shock:

Ah, this is a real head scratcher. The RockShox Monarch Plus RC3 feels more like its catering to the XC/trail crowd. For harder hitting stuff its simply under performing. Ugh, I hate to make it sound as if the shock is bad, because its not, its just not as good as my Vivid Air or Cane Creek DBA CS. However! When set to the highest compression setting (Btw, the 3 compression settings are very effective!) this bike feels incredibly playful and snappy, and I use this setting more and more, its really good for climbing as well. I guess I would still prefer the Vivid Air, compared to the Monarch Plus RC3, but the Monarch definitely has its strenghts as well.
I will write a more in depth review of this shock soon.

Cockpit:
After a whole lot more riding, and comparison to my Canfield Brothers One Bike, I've concluded that the front is too low to my linking. You sit a bit to much in a race position, and that makes a  bit awkward riding position when grabbing air, or doing technical stuff. Imo the front should have been about an inch higher.

Summary:
The YT Capra CF Comp is a big-value bike, its a looker and lightweight, with a geo that ticks all the right boxes. Its a great and potentially capable bike, that's a tad hindered by its component choices. I would have preferred a, say, Lyrik up front, and a VIVID air in the back, to really let this bike be versatile. But I'm nit picking now so.. Just to be clear: this is a relly good bike!

The Good:

-Climbs really good.

-Overall frame quality is very good, and looks good.

-Price

-Geometry

-Really fun to ride.

-Lightweight

The Bad:

-Standard spec isn't catering to the bigger hits

-You sit on the bike, not in the bike.
-Cockpit is a bit too low

Score:5/6