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Really? Superboost definitely plateaued over the past few years but I would venture to guess it is possibly declining at this point. Only recent addition I can think of is WAO. I don't see Trek, Yeti, SC, RM, Commencal or Specialized switching to stupid boost and they are the majority. Those brands know most enthusiasts regard stupid boost as a con so I doubt they would switch unless something changes.
I've heard that the new sram mineral oil DH brakes will be announced on the 18th of Feb and will be available on the 20th of Feb
You're correct. 157 Superboost is dying. Mondraker and Pivot, arguably the only big mainstream brands in favor of SuperBoost, have both switched back to using Boost 148 on their latest models. All the while Boost 148 is even showing up on some DH bikes.
For the forseeable future, we're stuck with Boost 148. Not because it's particularly good or makes sense, but because it's the de-facto standard. Brands won't change to anything new for the fear of customers being put off by the idea of yet another rear hub standard change. Even if a potential new standard was a genuine improvement.
My guy at Specialized tells me that weary customers are the reason why we won't see widespread adoption of any innovation that majorly disrupts the status quo anytime soon - except for e-bike stuff.
I actually saw a pair of Mavens in the flesh a week or so ago on the gondy at Thredbo while I was in the line. Went past me too quick to snap them but the bike was a raw alloy DH frame that I’ve never seen before, with full compliment sram/rs (new boxxer, Vivid, xo dh etc). The text looked slightly different to the exposed pic from earlier but was very clearly laser etched maven. And it was just the perimeter of each letter rather than a fill which stood out to me. Looked quite finished and production ready.
Dude is definitely a little kooky
companies are catching on, photo enhance doesn't reveal much in this case.
I dunno, for me it reveals enough that I can see teeth on the top of the chainring that would be hidden by the chain if it didn't have an idler.
I’m pretty sure it’s whatever is scribbled out in the picture for Aston’s competition this month. Looks gold:
https://astonmtb.com/product/rulezman-surprise/
but then again, that instagram post has a vertical shock, so maybe not. Could just be two things coming out on the same day by the same person.
that and a dinner plate cassette. it's not as revealing as it has been, that's for sure.
The double-crown enduro from Rulezman indeed looks like it has the additional idler Rulezman came out with - he even stated it’s only compatible with the Titan! As for the 29.02. reveal by Aston - it’s obviously a Legend which even doesn’t have the MX-treatment by Rulezman. Probably another custom build of the Legend. If Keith from Banshee is reading: please dude, the Legend needs a new iteration already, as is the Darkside!
Which bike company is doing a press camp in Portugal? I’m seeing a few media people all in Portugal at the moment.
I hope you're right. But again, 55mm chainlines aren't ideal on 148, and very few consumers even know what a chainline is or how to optimize it. Brand managers are now incentivized to go to 157 in order to have better OEM SRAM Transmission shifting on regular bikes. E-bikes are mostly fine on 55 and boost 148 since they'll spend less time in the pie plate... except when they do use the 52t, ugh.
I'm sure SRAM went 55 as a standard to reduce SKU count for chainrings and a focus on e-bikes. I prefer boost and 52mm chainlines even on Transmission, but that requires non-SRAM chainrings. Not a problem if you're a wrench dork like us, but a problem for OEMs and a riddle even most above average riders.
I agree that for mortals a 52mm chain line on boost is superior to 55mm.
Because of the cassette moving outwards 2.5mm with transmission, a 55mm chain line is roughly equivalent to a 52mm chain line on a non transmission drivetrain on a boost hub.
Why an awfully long seat post just for a triple clamp bike? With 240mm droppers there's no need for seatposts longer the 450mm.
By kooky you mean visionary?
have you talked to the guy? especially, have you asked what exactly he does in his rrt treatment? also his the best or nothing claim while hyping tiny kenda tires…
updated switchblade launched last night at midnight cali time - https://www.vitalmtb.com/features/review-pivot-switchblade-v3-first-ride
Quite boring, aint it?
Not much innovation at all
Still super boost. Doesn't bother me, but it'll bother others.
The fact that, special edition pink aside, it's almost the same colors, baffles me... For the consumer that doesn't live on Internet forums like I do, going to be hard to spot the differences that make a new one worth the spend vs. last years NOS or a nice used one. I feel bad for their dealers.
Wayyyy back in 2013 my Specialized Enduro 29er had:
430mm chainstays
Ample tire clearance
29 inch rear wheel
front-derailleur support
142 (technically 142+) rear hub
There is no performance justification for 148 or 157 to exist.
Now that 148 is the defacto standard for everything from XC to DH, I will never own a bike that is 157 since it makes it that much harder to find the appropriate hub. I don't see 157 growing in marketshare.
Bikes are really freaking good these days. It is not going to be a revelation each time a brand launches or updates a bike.
The tagline Vital put to it was: "Subtle but significant changes keep the all-mountain ripper alive and well." Meaning it is an update, not a whole new bike or platform. Were you hoping for 200mm travel, 90 degree STA, 45 degree HA, and 23 pounds?
For the last decade it seems that every bike is lower, longer, and slacker. That only works to a point. Bikes have settled into pretty great categories. At this point the average trail bike is more capable than DH bikes used to be.
While I do agree with you, I do agree with IceIceBaby more. Only from the standpoint of comparing this bike to the rest of the market. If people want to buy this new gen frame, then good for them. But it kind of blows my mind that Pivot decided to stay so conservative with its changes, especially in comparison to the rest of the market. It just looks meh.
Yea definitely not the worst as it allows for a longer stroke shock in a smaller package but even with perfect alignment, the triangle pattern of the eyelets transmits significantly more frame/linkage flex into shock verses a standard eyelet. Shocks really shouldn’t be a structural element in a perfect design imo.
Not only that, but in the event of the shock hardware coming loose and being ridden, a standard eyelet shock is much less likely to suffer damage over a trunnion shock.
They sure could use built in dropper posts however.
That's a worthwhile upgrade who's time has arrived.
I remember saying, almost word for word : "I will never own a bike that has 29" wheels. I don't see 29" growing in marketshare anyway".
Today I've got some 29" wheeled bikes (and like them) and it's coming really difficult to find cheap and good 27,5" wheels.
Same for Boost.
And the exact opposite for Shimano Rapid Rise (yes, I'm beginning to get old).
So we'll see for SuperBoost. Not to mention 29ers came. Then it went. Then it came to stay.
There is a measureable performance difference (not all positive, not all negative) when you change the diameter of a wheel. In the context of lightweight, human powered bicycles with a 29 inch wheel, changin the hub standard from 142 to 148 to 157 will not create a perceptible difference in ride characteristics.
Maybe a wider standard makes manufacturing easier. Maybe trunion shocks are a bad idea because the cost of a near-perfect linkage alignment creates bikes that are too expensive. These are not performance considerations, like a 26 vs 29 wheel size.
I dont really care much about ebs but since its tech news, in the latest vlog Brendog said they are filming a video for the release of new scott ebike which is coming out on 22nd of February. From a friend working in lbs which sells Scotts I've heard it will be apparently called Voltage
it's pretty much a ransom with internal batterys and additional batterypack somewhere 18kg.
other than the "purist reason" to not get any help from a motor, there s no reason to have a ransom over the new voltage.
it's gonna be a piece of junk 100%