I recently added new stuff in yesterday 28/9 post, make sure you check it out :
Ibis Mojo/Mojo SL 2008/The Best just got Better
Friday, September 28, 2007
The Best just got Better
Okay, if you are a frequent mountain bike magazine reader, they are a few bikes that seem to always get rave reviews from any magazine, regarding the author or the origin of the magazine. One of the bike which seem to always get a perfect or near perfect review is Ibis Mojo.
Ibis Mojo, is by far one of the best multi-purpose XC bike, its light enough to compete and abusive enough for drops.
The only thing that cause it not to get a perfect score sometimes is cause of there ain't any water bottle mount. But at the price they are offering you, its hard not to choose a Mojo if you are looking for a full carbon bike without breaking the bank. Take note that the Mojo is priced at USD1899, that price is cheaper then the all-aluminium and part magnesium bike Ellsworth offers (no offence).
The Mojo is a sub 6lbs 5.5"(140mm) all purpose XC bike. It uses the world renowned bicycle linkage, DW Link.
So from my title, its obvious that the Mojo is getting a improved version for 2008. Introducing the Mojo SL!!!!!
The Mojo SL is definitely a improved version of the current Ibis and its a must have upgrade for weight weenies. This model drops 1lbs from the current Mojo, which makes it as a sub 5lbs 5.5" rear travel frame.
Okay so where did Ibis manage to squeeze out the 1lbs cause I don't want to own a frame that is less durable?
Ibis manage to drop the weight by using ultra high modulus fiber enhanced layup which helped the bike to reduce weight at certain areas. Besides this the seat tube insert, head cup and dropouts have been changed to carbon (the dropout receives a steel sheath so the carbon is not damaged in any way), the pins have been switched to Ti to reduce weight and Ibis uses DT Swiss SSD shock instead of Fox RP23 to reduce weight even more.
To make it more interesting, Ibis will be the first MTB company in the 20th century to use rubber paint instead of the traditional carbon coating/paint for the Ibis SL. The paint purpose is to make the bike easier to clean (which all riders would greatly appreciate) and its more durable.
For those people who likes custom stuffs, the Mojo SL should definitely be in your list cause the links are offered in designer colours. The pic above of the Nude Mojo SL is a excellent example of what I'm talking about. Damn the designer coloured links will totally compliment your hubs (Hope/Chris King/Industry 9).
So how much do all this will costs me?
This sub 5 lbs frame will cost you USD2499. Some of you might think that the price isn't cheap (don't worry, Ibis still offer the normal Mojo) but at what Ibis offer for the Mojo SL, its all worth it and you must agree that its better packaged then some bike frames out there. Anyway, like the Mojo, the Mojo SL is also offered as complete bikes which will make it cheaper. Click the link below to go to the official Mojo SL component specs.
Mojo SL parts picks
The weight of the parts picks have been listed in their site and from the Mojo parts and pricing history, its most likely the parts that the MojoSL complete bike package will make other company be ashamed.
*Pics are taken from the official Ibis site and both the Mojo and Mojo SL paint is clear/matte clear.
*Update #1: Recently I visited MTBR site and I found some cool photos that future Mojo SL owners would greatly appreciate:
Titanium bolts and Designer Colour Anodized links, current Mojo owners will be very happy cause this links are compatible with the current Mojo.
Ibis Mojo, is by far one of the best multi-purpose XC bike, its light enough to compete and abusive enough for drops.
The only thing that cause it not to get a perfect score sometimes is cause of there ain't any water bottle mount. But at the price they are offering you, its hard not to choose a Mojo if you are looking for a full carbon bike without breaking the bank. Take note that the Mojo is priced at USD1899, that price is cheaper then the all-aluminium and part magnesium bike Ellsworth offers (no offence).
The Mojo is a sub 6lbs 5.5"(140mm) all purpose XC bike. It uses the world renowned bicycle linkage, DW Link.
So from my title, its obvious that the Mojo is getting a improved version for 2008. Introducing the Mojo SL!!!!!
The Mojo SL is definitely a improved version of the current Ibis and its a must have upgrade for weight weenies. This model drops 1lbs from the current Mojo, which makes it as a sub 5lbs 5.5" rear travel frame.
Okay so where did Ibis manage to squeeze out the 1lbs cause I don't want to own a frame that is less durable?
Ibis manage to drop the weight by using ultra high modulus fiber enhanced layup which helped the bike to reduce weight at certain areas. Besides this the seat tube insert, head cup and dropouts have been changed to carbon (the dropout receives a steel sheath so the carbon is not damaged in any way), the pins have been switched to Ti to reduce weight and Ibis uses DT Swiss SSD shock instead of Fox RP23 to reduce weight even more.
To make it more interesting, Ibis will be the first MTB company in the 20th century to use rubber paint instead of the traditional carbon coating/paint for the Ibis SL. The paint purpose is to make the bike easier to clean (which all riders would greatly appreciate) and its more durable.
For those people who likes custom stuffs, the Mojo SL should definitely be in your list cause the links are offered in designer colours. The pic above of the Nude Mojo SL is a excellent example of what I'm talking about. Damn the designer coloured links will totally compliment your hubs (Hope/Chris King/Industry 9).
So how much do all this will costs me?
This sub 5 lbs frame will cost you USD2499. Some of you might think that the price isn't cheap (don't worry, Ibis still offer the normal Mojo) but at what Ibis offer for the Mojo SL, its all worth it and you must agree that its better packaged then some bike frames out there. Anyway, like the Mojo, the Mojo SL is also offered as complete bikes which will make it cheaper. Click the link below to go to the official Mojo SL component specs.
Mojo SL parts picks
The weight of the parts picks have been listed in their site and from the Mojo parts and pricing history, its most likely the parts that the MojoSL complete bike package will make other company be ashamed.
*Pics are taken from the official Ibis site and both the Mojo and Mojo SL paint is clear/matte clear.
*Update #1: Recently I visited MTBR site and I found some cool photos that future Mojo SL owners would greatly appreciate:
Mojo SL : Matte Clear
Mojo SL : Brown
Mojo SL : Gray
Titanium bolts and Designer Colour Anodized links, current Mojo owners will be very happy cause this links are compatible with the current Mojo.
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Updates and first SplitPivot bike?
DW Link spreads it wings article has been recently updated, be sure to check at the bottom of the blog post. Below is a URL Link to the post.
DW Link spread its wings
Anyway, Yeti bicycles is releasing a 7" bike named the Seven and what makes it eyecatching is the absence of the driveside chainstay. By the way, im not going to write about a 7" enduro bike, but what Im trying to point out is that there seem to be a concentric pivot on the non-driveside of the seven, which is similar to what Dave Weagle's SplitPivot is. It is not confirmed if this is Dave's Split Pivot so dont get your hopes up. Below is the pic of Seven non-driveside taken from bikeradar.com.
DW Link spread its wings
Anyway, Yeti bicycles is releasing a 7" bike named the Seven and what makes it eyecatching is the absence of the driveside chainstay. By the way, im not going to write about a 7" enduro bike, but what Im trying to point out is that there seem to be a concentric pivot on the non-driveside of the seven, which is similar to what Dave Weagle's SplitPivot is. It is not confirmed if this is Dave's Split Pivot so dont get your hopes up. Below is the pic of Seven non-driveside taken from bikeradar.com.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Updates @ 25/9
2008 Trek Remedy blog post has recently been updated, be sure to check Update #2. Click the link below to go directly to the post.
2008 Trek Remedy blog post minipage
2008 Trek Remedy blog post minipage
DW Link spread its wings
For years, most of us who are looking for aluminium DW Link bikes can only find it on IronHorseBikes , but fear no more cause for 2008 they will be a new company who will use DW Linkage, some of you might heard of it and some of you might not, but anyway Chris Cocalis (ex-Titus) is launching his own bicycle company named PivotCycles. Okay I know the site havent been updated yet but the bike has been shown at Interbike which is happening now.
So what do PivotCycle will offer us?
First up is the bike as stated in my first paragraph will be made out of aluminium. Secondly is it will be available in both 4" and 5" version. The bikes a named Mach 4 or 5 depending on its travel (it must be fast cause the name says it all). There is still no official weight of the bike yet and riders dont need to worry about the rear linkage because as I said before, its using world renowned DW Link (which can be found in IronHorseBikes or Ibis).
Anyway below are the pics of the new Mach 5 (pics provided by Cyclingnews.com)
From the pics, the linkage supporting the shock is interestingly design, it looks like they are 2 pair of pivots on the upper link and the bike features a top mounted shock position and there is no seatstay bracer which could possibly means that the bike would mostlikely to perform flawlessly in muddy condition (very usefull for UK weather) and will most likely have the feeling of a very flickable bike. None of this is confirmed yet but we will see what the journalist comment on the bike in future bike magazines.
Update #1 : okay, I recently browsed through BikeRadar.com and found a Mach 4 pic. See below:
So what do PivotCycle will offer us?
First up is the bike as stated in my first paragraph will be made out of aluminium. Secondly is it will be available in both 4" and 5" version. The bikes a named Mach 4 or 5 depending on its travel (it must be fast cause the name says it all). There is still no official weight of the bike yet and riders dont need to worry about the rear linkage because as I said before, its using world renowned DW Link (which can be found in IronHorseBikes or Ibis).
Anyway below are the pics of the new Mach 5 (pics provided by Cyclingnews.com)
From the pics, the linkage supporting the shock is interestingly design, it looks like they are 2 pair of pivots on the upper link and the bike features a top mounted shock position and there is no seatstay bracer which could possibly means that the bike would mostlikely to perform flawlessly in muddy condition (very usefull for UK weather) and will most likely have the feeling of a very flickable bike. None of this is confirmed yet but we will see what the journalist comment on the bike in future bike magazines.
Update #1 : okay, I recently browsed through BikeRadar.com and found a Mach 4 pic. See below:
Saturday, September 22, 2007
2008 SRAM updated
Okay, I got another update, SRAM has fully updated its 2008 site, that includes SRAM, Truvativ, RockShox and Avid. SRAM, Truvativ and Avid seem to add another link for their 08 site which is S/T/A Technologies. Its a brief and quick overview of what do they offer and this make it convinient for people who want to know about their technology all on a single page.
Below is the link for each technology page:
Please take note that although all the site have a new makeover, RockShox product line hasnt been fully updated yet. RockShox site
So my thought bout the new site look? Nothing special, but they make it more convinient and its definately a upgrade from 07 site. Enjoyyy.
There is something that I wonder though, listed in the site bout Avid Juicy 3, it states that the three has similar power and geometry feel as its brothers but at a price that makes it perfect for just any bike. So I was wondering, is the Juicy 3 still OEM or its not?
Zipp, now powered by SRAM
Well, its just announced that popular carbon wheel roadbike manufacturer has been acquired by SRAM. Hmm, it seems SRAM is expanding its empire. Anyway basically, Zipp will stay as the Zipp now so owners and dealers shouldnt worry much. Well moving to the interesting side, since SRAM is originally a MountainBike company, they are some rumours speculating that Zipp in the future might produce MTB wheels, whether the material of the wheel is aluminium or carbon remains mystery. So anyway thats all and sorry for this short post, my exam is going to end this Monday and I got some pretty decent article to write about.
So lets see, SRAM basically owned Sachs Derailleur (now SRAM), Rock Shox, Truvativ, Zipp and PitStop (a bike cleaning stuff). Its interesting what company will SRAM own next. And by looking at the company SRAM is getting under their empire, from derailleurs to wheels its obvious that SRAM want to throw Shimano out of its bicycling dominant. Only time will tell.
And just for your interests, HB Group (Hayes disc Brake) has bought over Answer Products Manitou company, I know its old news but it just to make you guys remember and also PaceCycles the company who make carbon forks have been owned by DT Swiss. :D
Monday, September 17, 2007
Oo, did I feel some static?
Its been awhile since I posted and my exam havent finish yet (by next week), so since today I have some free time. Im going to give a quick info bout Scott's Marathon XC bike, Spark.
Hmm, so why do I categorize it as a Marathon XC bike instead of the usual full suspension race bike? Well my reason is because this bike is build for marathon usage, which means that its geometry isnt that stressful for the rider. Dont worry, you can still race on this bike because its one of the lightest 110mm full suspension out there (belive me there are lighter bikes but they can be categorize as not safe cause its build at a certain weight range). Oh did I forget that its also a good trailbike due to its carbon stiffness.
So enough intro and time to talk bout the bike:
Okay from the pic, its clearly that Scott decided to use a very conventional design. No bendy tubes, weird linkages or etc. The Spark uses a conventional faux bar linkage (pivot on the seatstay or Single Pivot Linkage), this simple design doesnt add unnessary weight and its proven by many manufacturers who used faux bar, those that should be noted are Turner Bikes.
But then you realise something, is that a piggy back reservoir shock? Yes you got it right, Scott as usual has designed their own shock with DT Swiss called the Nude shock which weights 240grm.
So whats so special bout the Nude shock? The advantage is, the rider is able to reduce the travel of the bike from 110 to 70 and dont forget that the shock offer a lockout feature. I belive the reason of the reservoir is so that when you reduce the travel (the height will reduce, hence better centre of gravity) the shock dampening wont be affected. Anyway the shock features a remote control called the TracLoc system which weights only 28gram, the rider would be able to change the travel with the use of his thumb .
Scott is famous for its CR1 carbon manufacturing process, but to make the Spark lighter, Scott engineers need a new method to make the bike lighter and yet without taking away important features. IMP is the solution. By using a patented process, Scott Engineers manage to produce the bike's headtube, toptube and downtube in a single process which has able them to reduce the bike weight without compromising the bike's overall strength. If you guys are a frequent reader of cyclingnews, Specialized rider, Christopher Sauser (a racer famous for not having unnessary weight on his bike) has his Epic custom made, his bike doesnt have a cosmetic carbon layer, the Spark has that feature too, its called Naked External Tubeset (NET) which help to save precious grams. So to sum it up about the frame, the whole bike feature Scott's latest IMP carbon manufacturing process except for the seatstay which is made from CR1 and also NET.
Below is a summarize of the difference between the bike frames offered by Scott for 2008:
Spark LTD Frame:
Scott Spark
HMX carbon fiber / NET / Integrated Seatpost
IMP top, head & down tubes
CR1 carbon swingarm / carbon cable stops & dropouts with replaceable hanger
Sealed aircraft bearings / optimised SLS kinematic / 110 mm rear travel
Frame: 3.42 lbs (1550 gr) + Nude TC shock: .53 lb (240 gr) Total : 3.95 lb (1790gr)
Spark 10 Frame:
Scott Spark
HMX carbon fiber / NET
IMP top, head & down tubes
CR1 carbon swingarm / carbon cable stops & dropouts with replaceable hanger
Sealed aircraft bearings / optimised SLS kinematic / 110 mm rear travel
Frame: 3.42 lbs (1550 gr) + Nude TC shock: .53 lb (240 gr) Total : 3.95 lbs (1790 gr)
Spark 15/20/30 frame:
Scott Spark
HMF carbon fiber / NET
IMP top, head & down tubes
CR1 carbon swingarm / carbon cable stops &
dropouts with replaceable hanger
sealed aircraft bearings / optimised SLS kinematic
110mm rear travel
HMF Frame: 3.64 lbs (1650 gr) + Nude TC shock: .53 lb (240 gr) Total : 4.17lbs (1890 gr)
Take note of the following:
Spark LTD lighter then 10 because of the integrated seatpost.
Ritchey carbon seatpost weights 260 gr / 0.57 lbs
The difference between HMF and HMX is its exclusively produced for Scott and offers 20% more stiffness and it has been reinforced to areas that need extra rigidity and at the same time to reduce weight. You save 100gr by buying a HMX frame.
Fork offering:
LTD - DTSwiss XRC 100mm
10 - Fox 32 F100RL (Black)
15 - Fox 32 F100RL (White)
20 - Fox 32 F100RL (White)
30 - Rock Shox Reba SL
So that's all, and take note that 08 models will be available in the US between October to January 2008, Scott is releasing the each model at different time.
So if you are a rider who loves to ride long distance and sometimes race and would love to own a lightweight full sus bike. Make sure the Spark is in your list.
Usefull links:
USA Scott Spark Product Site
Scott Spark minisite
Pic provided by BikeMagic.com
Hmm, so why do I categorize it as a Marathon XC bike instead of the usual full suspension race bike? Well my reason is because this bike is build for marathon usage, which means that its geometry isnt that stressful for the rider. Dont worry, you can still race on this bike because its one of the lightest 110mm full suspension out there (belive me there are lighter bikes but they can be categorize as not safe cause its build at a certain weight range). Oh did I forget that its also a good trailbike due to its carbon stiffness.
So enough intro and time to talk bout the bike:
Okay from the pic, its clearly that Scott decided to use a very conventional design. No bendy tubes, weird linkages or etc. The Spark uses a conventional faux bar linkage (pivot on the seatstay or Single Pivot Linkage), this simple design doesnt add unnessary weight and its proven by many manufacturers who used faux bar, those that should be noted are Turner Bikes.
But then you realise something, is that a piggy back reservoir shock? Yes you got it right, Scott as usual has designed their own shock with DT Swiss called the Nude shock which weights 240grm.
So whats so special bout the Nude shock? The advantage is, the rider is able to reduce the travel of the bike from 110 to 70 and dont forget that the shock offer a lockout feature. I belive the reason of the reservoir is so that when you reduce the travel (the height will reduce, hence better centre of gravity) the shock dampening wont be affected. Anyway the shock features a remote control called the TracLoc system which weights only 28gram, the rider would be able to change the travel with the use of his thumb .
Scott is famous for its CR1 carbon manufacturing process, but to make the Spark lighter, Scott engineers need a new method to make the bike lighter and yet without taking away important features. IMP is the solution. By using a patented process, Scott Engineers manage to produce the bike's headtube, toptube and downtube in a single process which has able them to reduce the bike weight without compromising the bike's overall strength. If you guys are a frequent reader of cyclingnews, Specialized rider, Christopher Sauser (a racer famous for not having unnessary weight on his bike) has his Epic custom made, his bike doesnt have a cosmetic carbon layer, the Spark has that feature too, its called Naked External Tubeset (NET) which help to save precious grams. So to sum it up about the frame, the whole bike feature Scott's latest IMP carbon manufacturing process except for the seatstay which is made from CR1 and also NET.
Below is a summarize of the difference between the bike frames offered by Scott for 2008:
Spark LTD Frame:
Scott Spark
HMX carbon fiber / NET / Integrated Seatpost
IMP top, head & down tubes
CR1 carbon swingarm / carbon cable stops & dropouts with replaceable hanger
Sealed aircraft bearings / optimised SLS kinematic / 110 mm rear travel
Frame: 3.42 lbs (1550 gr) + Nude TC shock: .53 lb (240 gr) Total : 3.95 lb (1790gr)
Spark 10 Frame:
Scott Spark
HMX carbon fiber / NET
IMP top, head & down tubes
CR1 carbon swingarm / carbon cable stops & dropouts with replaceable hanger
Sealed aircraft bearings / optimised SLS kinematic / 110 mm rear travel
Frame: 3.42 lbs (1550 gr) + Nude TC shock: .53 lb (240 gr) Total : 3.95 lbs (1790 gr)
Spark 15/20/30 frame:
Scott Spark
HMF carbon fiber / NET
IMP top, head & down tubes
CR1 carbon swingarm / carbon cable stops &
dropouts with replaceable hanger
sealed aircraft bearings / optimised SLS kinematic
110mm rear travel
HMF Frame: 3.64 lbs (1650 gr) + Nude TC shock: .53 lb (240 gr) Total : 4.17lbs (1890 gr)
Take note of the following:
Spark LTD lighter then 10 because of the integrated seatpost.
Ritchey carbon seatpost weights 260 gr / 0.57 lbs
The difference between HMF and HMX is its exclusively produced for Scott and offers 20% more stiffness and it has been reinforced to areas that need extra rigidity and at the same time to reduce weight. You save 100gr by buying a HMX frame.
Fork offering:
LTD - DTSwiss XRC 100mm
10 - Fox 32 F100RL (Black)
15 - Fox 32 F100RL (White)
20 - Fox 32 F100RL (White)
30 - Rock Shox Reba SL
So that's all, and take note that 08 models will be available in the US between October to January 2008, Scott is releasing the each model at different time.
So if you are a rider who loves to ride long distance and sometimes race and would love to own a lightweight full sus bike. Make sure the Spark is in your list.
Usefull links:
USA Scott Spark Product Site
Scott Spark minisite
Pic provided by BikeMagic.com
Saturday, September 8, 2007
MTBN Network going to slow down
Sorry to make this a short notice but MTBN Network posting will be on hold for 2 weeks cause I got a exam coming up and I wont be able to post as usual. Sorry guys. Hope you guys can enjoy reading my posts and keep on riding :D
Friday, September 7, 2007
No updates today
Sorry guys, they wont be any news today considering that I got a very bad flu, writing this post is like hell already. So lets hope I will cure as fast as possible.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
2008 Bianchi
A company that has been very well known in the road industry decides to expand its Mountain lineup. So what has Bianchi offer us for the upcoming year?
First up is the hardtail. Bianchi Oetzi hardtail will receive a redesigned seatstay and BB for 2008. Bianchi has also used their nano tech carbon (the same found on their road bikes) onto the bikes. This made the frame to weight at a respectable 1.2kg.
Oetzi pics (provided by BikeRadar):
Next is Bianchi's XC/Marathon Full Sus, Camos, it features a 80mm of rear travel and the suspension design is rather new and unseen in the market, they used a shock mounted on a bar link to suspend. The front part of the bike is carbon while the back part is alu. This combination made the bike frame to weight at a decent 2.4kg. From the pics, it seems the pivot is located on the chainstay, it is possible that Bianchi managed to escape the HorstLink pattern with the pivot location. So thats all the info bout 08 Bianchi MTB range and now is pics of the new Camos!
Camos pics(provided by BikeRadar)
First up is the hardtail. Bianchi Oetzi hardtail will receive a redesigned seatstay and BB for 2008. Bianchi has also used their nano tech carbon (the same found on their road bikes) onto the bikes. This made the frame to weight at a respectable 1.2kg.
Oetzi pics (provided by BikeRadar):
Next is Bianchi's XC/Marathon Full Sus, Camos, it features a 80mm of rear travel and the suspension design is rather new and unseen in the market, they used a shock mounted on a bar link to suspend. The front part of the bike is carbon while the back part is alu. This combination made the bike frame to weight at a decent 2.4kg. From the pics, it seems the pivot is located on the chainstay, it is possible that Bianchi managed to escape the HorstLink pattern with the pivot location. So thats all the info bout 08 Bianchi MTB range and now is pics of the new Camos!
Camos pics(provided by BikeRadar)
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
2008 Felt MTB's
Hmm, it appears last year as a hyped product, so what happened? Well the Equilink hasnt dead yet and Felt are expanding its range for 2008. Sadly, their first Equilink equipped bike doesnt get as much attention as it should. You rarely will find a online owner owning it. Partly is cause they are better bikes out there, if you compare it with the price range of Felt Virtue bikes.
So anyway, lasts year biggest complaint is that the price of the Virtue is very expansive and Felt answer that the price is kinda pricey is cause of the seatstay carbon and that isnt a good answer. So for 2008, Felt decides to make the whole Virtue rear triangle to carbon, and it does look very stunning indeed. Felt engineers also claimed that the new design increases stiffness. So how bout the price? Sadly, Felt hasnt announce the price of the 08 Virtue or its component, lets hope they make it cheaper.
2008 Felt Virtue rear triangle
Some of you might notice that there in MTBR bike review page that the Felt Redemption is listed in the site but you cant really find any info bout it from Felt's website. Well the Redemption has presented itself in this year Eurobike and it features 165mm of rear travel, that makes it into light freeride MTB range. Anyway pics! and damn the Redemption has one sweet paint theme.
2008 Felt Redemption
Lastly, Felt is releasing their all-mountain bike to complete the lineup, with a rear travel of 145mm, introducing Compulsion!. The bike looks like a Redemption little brother rather then the Virtue. It comes with a full aluminium frame, top to bottom. So here are the pics!!!!
Felt's All-Mountain platform bike, the Compulsion
So thats all the updates that Felt is offering for 2008, lets hope next year they will have better media attention and lowered their bike prices. The weight of their 08 bikes hasnt been confirmed yet, I will update as soon as I found out. Thats all for now
Pics provided from cyclingnews.com
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
A new trend?
Honestly speaking, I totally got nothing to talk about today but after accidently seeing the review of Pace latest full suspension bike, I realise a similarity about its floating shock mount design. The bike is smoother. Thats exactly the same comment as Trek's Full Floater.
BikeRadar states: Pace's patented Free Floater suspension design sandwiches the shock between ultra stiff 3D CNC'd linkages. These combine to bring the back wheel first backwards and then increasingly upwards and round through the 130mm (5in) stroke. They also manipulate leverage on the DT shock for smoother start and end phases but, thankfully, much less mid-stroke 'hammock. The Free Floater rear end is spot on too, making the DT HVR shock feel fantastically supple. It's smooth enough to stop eye blur on washed-out wooden steps, it rolls easily over square-edged hits without taking a momentum kick to the kidneys and it lands proper drops with a very calm catch.
CyclingNews states: According to Trek, the 'Full Floater' design allows for better fine-tuning of shock leverage ratios throughout the travel range, delivering a more supple feel at the top of the stroke and a more 'bottomless' feel at the other end.
BikeRadar states: Pace's patented Free Floater suspension design sandwiches the shock between ultra stiff 3D CNC'd linkages. These combine to bring the back wheel first backwards and then increasingly upwards and round through the 130mm (5in) stroke. They also manipulate leverage on the DT shock for smoother start and end phases but, thankfully, much less mid-stroke 'hammock. The Free Floater rear end is spot on too, making the DT HVR shock feel fantastically supple. It's smooth enough to stop eye blur on washed-out wooden steps, it rolls easily over square-edged hits without taking a momentum kick to the kidneys and it lands proper drops with a very calm catch.
CyclingNews states: According to Trek, the 'Full Floater' design allows for better fine-tuning of shock leverage ratios throughout the travel range, delivering a more supple feel at the top of the stroke and a more 'bottomless' feel at the other end.
As you can see, the comments is pretty much the same, especially commenting about the manipulated leverage ratio. Below are the two pics of a floating shock mount.(Left: Trek Full Floater, Right: Pace Full Floater)
So basically the advantage of this design is it allows the manufacturer to custom tune the leverage ratio of the shock throughout its travel without resorting to complicated design like DW Link
Monday, September 3, 2007
2008 BMC Fourstroke
Hmm, what is BMC? A bike company?. I never heard of it. BMC is a swiss mountain bike company, they are not that popular in MountainBike but roadies should know BMC. So anyway they make some interesting moutain bikes too, the quality of their bikes are superb (considering its built in Swiss), so far their lineup only offers hardtails and full suspension ranging from cross country to all-mountain.
BMC uses VPS which is something like a virtual pivot bike (seems most bike manufacturer are using virtual pivot concept nowadays). Their XC full suspension bike, FourStroke receives some changes for 08, so what do the Swiss company has offered us for 2008?
08 Fourstroke 01 VPS rear linkage and Easton unidirectional CNT
For starters, they did a makeover on their top XC full suspension bike, FourStroke01. Its now offered in full black and it features Easton CNT (thats right, they use the same type of carbon tube that you found on your Eason carbon MTB products). Above is the picture of the rear linkage. It looks beefy and stiff for a XC bike, the weight hasnt been confirmed yet (lets hope its light shall we).
To improve stiffness, the lower link for 08 models have been widened.
Knowing European bikes, the mud clearance for the Fourstroke doesnt disappoint. And the carbon bracer is actually curved upwards for better rigidity and it looks good too.
The Fourstroke 01 also receives a newly redesign head tube bond that increases the front stiffness.
So before we move to the aluminium model, there is a bit of change that will affect both the carbon and aluminium model which is BMC unique toptube/seattube joint. It has been redesign and it looks beautifull.
The newly redesign toptube/seattube joint
The aluminium version of Fourstroke also recieves a new hydroformed head tube joint which elimantes the use of gussets, thus save weight.
So basically those are the changes that 08 BMC Fourstroke will undertake and I must say that the carbon bike aint going to be cheap. But since the carbon is made from Easton which produces one of the strongest carbon fibre parts in Mountain Bikes, EC90 seatpost, MonkeyLite Handlebars, durability should be assured. Below are the pics of the new Fourstrokes and take note that in the second pic, the bike located in the middle is 07 Fourstroke, as you can see the toptube/seattube junction is different.
2008 BMC Fourstroke 01 (carbon) - It aint goint to be cheap
07 and 08 BMC Fourstrokes (Aluminium version - front is 08 and the middle one is 07)
Pics provided from CyclingNews.com
Sunday, September 2, 2007
Carbon Flex
Hmm, so after a couple of days of not posting new stuffs, I decided to find something to talk about and after browsing through some of Eurobike 08 stuffs, I got my self interested into carbon flex.
Most riders buy carbon frame because of the stiffness offered by carbon is uncomparable to aluminium frame. Even Specialized states on their site that thier 08 stumpy carbon frame is stiffer then their alu frame (07 alu frame is stiffer then 08 according to spesh site). Anyway if a carbon frame were to flex, most riders wont like it and that will be their biggest disappointment of the bike. So why am I writing about carbon flex?
Well if you guys notice, they are a few 08 bikes that design their carbon chainstay to flex. A company that has been developing flex carbon stays for quite a while now is Cannondale, most riders doesnt notice this cause Cannondale doesnt really promote about it, but their XC bike, Scalpel stays depends of flex. If you read over MTBR, some riders actually commented the flex as a bad part of the product. Anyway the Scalpel got redesigned and lighter by 200-300g compared to last year model and its travel has been increased by 100mm and the shock is now located below the top tube instead of behind the seatpost like lasts year model. Below is a pic of the 08 Scalpel frame, without shock.
2008 Cannondale Scalpel Frame
Anyway besides Cannondale, another company decide to make the chainstay carbon to flex. The Italian company is called Carraro and for 08 its releasing a full suspension bike called the Rampant.
So, knowing that they are other company that has decided to use Cannondale flex stay concept, I decided to do some research on carbon flexing/bending and surprisingly I found out that some carbon can be bent at 90degrees. Click here for more info about it.
So what else I found out? Because of nano-tech, its possible to design a super stiff and strong seatpost like Easton or to design a bendable carbon nano tube. Click here for the pdf page (only accessable by AdobeReader or formerly known as AcrobatReader, click here to go to the download site), its pretty impressive how they manage to flex the carbon nanotube.
So far thats the usefull sources that I can find about carbon flex. I will try and find out more in time :D. And below are the pics of Cannondale 08 Scalpel chain stay, Cannondale earlier version of chain stay and Carraro Rampant.
08 Cannondale Scalpel chainstay
Earlier versions of Cannondale EPO
08 Carraro Rampant chainstay
My say: I cant confirm the durability of flex chainstay as in jumping or standing up while mashing the pedal cause I myself havent manage to test this kind of design for a period of time, I only ridden a Cannondale full suspension bike a couple of time only and I think its a old model, heard of Sobe? and I used to wonder why the chainstay is oddly shaped and now I found its purpose. If the durability of flex chainstay is getting better year by year, I belive in the future, you can see more company doing flex chainstay and it will appear from XC to Trail bike range. Imagine the possibility of making carbon flexing to absorb small bumps and the shock will only be used once your bike hit bigger obstacles. I remember reading it from a mountain bike magazine where a teenager managed to design a full suspension bike without the shock, just by flexing the carbon. How cool is that, you just dropped 200g from the bike. Anyway thats all for today and toodles. :D
Ride 4 Health
Updates @ 2/9
I recently updated the 2008 Rock Shox SID, be sure to check it out, click the link below to go directly to the post:
2008 RockShox SID
2008 RockShox SID
Sorry for the inactivity
Hey guys, sorry that I havent post things up like I usually do, its just that after a couple of days not enough sleep and having late night party, I've gotten soo sleepy and tired to write something in the blog, but now I am revived and im going to start posting again, sorry.
Anyway Scott has updated its 08 site. Make sure you guys check it out, its easier to navigate and now comes with simple and practical flash animation. It doesnt have a HTML version though, so you guys with 56k connection better be patient while loading the site (hmm, by the looks of it, by 2010, dial up wont be able to access many sites anymore without waiting for a period of time). The link can be found here.
Oh yeah before I forget, the site have the new Gambler listed, click here to go to the product page
Anyway Scott has updated its 08 site. Make sure you guys check it out, its easier to navigate and now comes with simple and practical flash animation. It doesnt have a HTML version though, so you guys with 56k connection better be patient while loading the site (hmm, by the looks of it, by 2010, dial up wont be able to access many sites anymore without waiting for a period of time). The link can be found here.
Oh yeah before I forget, the site have the new Gambler listed, click here to go to the product page
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)