Mark compared the Titus El Guapo and the Knolly Delirium-T last fall and here are some of this thoughts of the 2 different bikes.
This comparison is for the two bikes as built with the EG weighing about 34lbs and the DT weighing just over 36 lbs.
Both of these bikes are aimed at the "all mountain" category and both can do it all but you might not want to do it all on a regular basis using just one of these. If you were to draw a line bridging the gap between cross-country and freeride, the EG would lean toward the cross-country side and the DT would lean toward the freeride side. Yet, there would be a good bit of overlap in the centre. If you want a bike that you can ride cross country (for all but racing perhaps) yet still be able to do some occasional light freeride, the EG, as built, is a good contender. It is more versatile with two wheelsets. If you want a bike leaning more toward freeride (as I did) the DT is a better choice. However, these two bikes (again as built) are more alike than they are different.
Although I did not ride the bikes back-to-back, my memory of the EG was that it was heavy but not inordinately so. This is the same feeling I get from the DT. The difference in the weight is where I felt it. My impression of the EG is that the wheels were heavy and slowed the bike down almost as though you were riding through loamy soil - not quite like mud but there was a definite drag. I felt that if the EG had a lighter wheelset, it would run like a dog unleashed. By comparison, the DT just feels generally heavy. The weight feels centered and there is not the feeling of pent up power I got from the EG. Perhaps because of the centered feeling, I didn't always feel the weight of the DT. In fact, the only time I felt like I was paying a price was on gradual inclines - the kind that on a lighter bike you can just spin a bit faster to keep up your speed. On the DT, extra effort was noticeably required. Interestingly, the DT did not feel heavy on flats or declines. The heavy wheels on the EG felt heavy even on flat ground. On stronger climbs, both bikes felt heavy but both pedal so efficiently that there does not seem to be a weight penalty. Further, the suspensions on both keep the rear wheel on the ground which makes both bikes climb well on technical terrain. The DT does get floppy in the front end with the fork in the 6.5" setting and benefits well from an adjustable travel fork.
Both bikes have very stiff rear ends and the suspensions on both give a firm but not harsh feeling. The thing I noticed most about the rear suspension on both bikes was that I was not conscious of it working. I simply felt like the bike rode well. It was only when I thought about the terrain I was riding that I realized that the suspension was indeed active. The closest comparison I can give is of well tuned sports sedan - where the suspension is stiff, there is little body roll in corners, but it is not jarring and just gives a nice ride that still gives good road feel.
Both bikes are built well and seem well suited to the intended purpose. On the EG, the cable routing seemed a bit odd but I noticed that Titus has addressed that in the new version of the frame.
The DT has adjustable chain stay lengths (by moving the dropouts forward or back) and an adjustable head angle. Both adjustments are easy to make with a hex key. I tried climbing on the bike with the chain stays either at full length or in the shortest length position and I felt a small but noticeable difference. At Blue Mountain, I also tried the head angle adjustment which slackens the angle from 68 deg to 67 deg. I did not do comparison runs and left it in the 67 deg setting. With a 6" travel fork, the slack angle and lengthened stays, the bottom bracket lowered enough that I clipped the pedals more than I would have liked. This was no doubt exacerbated by the settings on the fork (more about that below). The main difference between these bikes is in what their builds could be. The EG could easily be a sub 30 lbs bike ideal for aggressive trail riding. Yet, as a mid 30's lbs bike it makes a fun ride suitable for occasional lift served trail use. It did feel like it might not stand up to continuous pounding but it was fun to try for a day. With the DT, building much lighter than its 36 lbs might be missing the point of the bike. However, with a coil shock, 7" coil fork and some beefier wheels, this bike would likely be sub 40 lbs and very suitable as a regular ride at Blue Mountain.Of course, at that weight you might not want to pedal too much but you certainly could.
For the trails I ride at Blue Mountain, I would not add any weight to the bike except that I might put on slightly beefier wheels like a set of DeeTracks (relatively cheap and suitable for abuse).
With the build kit you got me, everything is fine except the fork. I had set the sag to 25% on the fork but found it got to the end of its travel very quickly. There was excessive nose dive during braking. I did try adding 10 lbs air to the fork and found it too stiff in that setting. Marzocchi's instructions for the fork are worse than having none at all. At least with no instructions, you have no hope of receiving guidance. I suspect Marzocchi only includes instructions to help keep the fork from getting scratched during shipping. In any case, I have played with all of the things I can change and have never found a sweet spot - just a setting that is better than the others. I'm not sure what else can be done. Hence my desire to get a Talas. I have liked every Fox suspension product I've tried.
Overall, I found my decision was not an easy one. Both bikes are very nice. In the end, I was swayed by the DT's better performance at Blue and by the fact it is from a Canadian company. The nice thing is that I don't think I could have gone wrong with either bike.
Team Spokewrench
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