MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation

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TEAMROBOT
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11/21/2025 3:08pm
davego wrote:
are tehre any new fenders for the podium in the making? i saw a picture somewhere about a fender attached to the carbon guards, maybe someone...

are tehre any new fenders for the podium in the making? i saw a picture somewhere about a fender attached to the carbon guards, maybe someone has a photo?

shape wrote:

VisionVelo

Vision Velo has a video on their Instagram showing where they're at with a prototype Podium Mudguard. So far it's looking good but not great:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DRP1Nt3DK9G/

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dolface
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11/21/2025 4:56pm
davego wrote:
are tehre any new fenders for the podium in the making? i saw a picture somewhere about a fender attached to the carbon guards, maybe someone...

are tehre any new fenders for the podium in the making? i saw a picture somewhere about a fender attached to the carbon guards, maybe someone has a photo?

shape wrote:

VisionVelo

TEAMROBOT wrote:
Vision Velo has a video on their Instagram showing where they're at with a prototype Podium Mudguard. So far it's looking good but not great:https://www.instagram.com/p/DRP1Nt3DK9G/

Vision Velo has a video on their Instagram showing where they're at with a prototype Podium Mudguard. So far it's looking good but not great:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DRP1Nt3DK9G/

FWIW I have a couple of their other mudguards and they're bomber; best ones I've used (my previous top picks were RRP and Mudhugger).

1
peecee
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11/21/2025 8:32pm
Poleczechy wrote:
Peeked the prototype sixfinity Yeti SB160 while on my ride today. Didn’t get the greatest look as they were being sneaky-sneaky with it. I chatted to...

Peeked the prototype sixfinity Yeti SB160 while on my ride today. Didn’t get the greatest look as they were being sneaky-sneaky with it. I chatted to the product manager (who was on SB140) a bit, all he’d divulge was that it was the SB160 and that it’s a “sweet bike”, while the guy on the 160 was hiding in the bushes. But what I saw was a vertical shock orientation, and frame storage door, looked sleek AF and could be close to production ready... 

Screenshot 2025-11-22 at 2.32.17%E2%80%AFPM.jpg?VersionId=aX9GhJ1.i.oDSqqA4dzLvYT
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Zuestman
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11/21/2025 8:51pm
Poleczechy wrote:
Peeked the prototype sixfinity Yeti SB160 while on my ride today. Didn’t get the greatest look as they were being sneaky-sneaky with it. I chatted to...

Peeked the prototype sixfinity Yeti SB160 while on my ride today. Didn’t get the greatest look as they were being sneaky-sneaky with it. I chatted to the product manager (who was on SB140) a bit, all he’d divulge was that it was the SB160 and that it’s a “sweet bike”, while the guy on the 160 was hiding in the bushes. But what I saw was a vertical shock orientation, and frame storage door, looked sleek AF and could be close to production ready... 

peecee wrote:
Screenshot 2025-11-22 at 2.32.17%E2%80%AFPM.jpg?VersionId=aX9GhJ1.i.oDSqqA4dzLvYT

lol. That was a fun bike to build but was def not the favorite of those three prototypes for anyone. Def know the crew learned a bunch from that.


I really enjoyed that toolbox too….

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TEAMROBOT
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11/21/2025 10:19pm
peecee wrote:
Screenshot 2025-11-22 at 2.32.17%E2%80%AFPM.jpg?VersionId=aX9GhJ1.i.oDSqqA4dzLvYT

The problem with that prototype was that it didn't use enough aluminum.

22
11/22/2025 5:41am
peecee wrote:
Screenshot 2025-11-22 at 2.32.17%E2%80%AFPM.jpg?VersionId=aX9GhJ1.i.oDSqqA4dzLvYT
TEAMROBOT wrote:

The problem with that prototype was that it didn't use enough aluminum.

That would have caused an aluminum shortage if it had gone into production...

3
2supple
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Denver, CO, USA
11/22/2025 5:53am
Poleczechy wrote:
Peeked the prototype sixfinity Yeti SB160 while on my ride today. Didn’t get the greatest look as they were being sneaky-sneaky with it. I chatted to...

Peeked the prototype sixfinity Yeti SB160 while on my ride today. Didn’t get the greatest look as they were being sneaky-sneaky with it. I chatted to the product manager (who was on SB140) a bit, all he’d divulge was that it was the SB160 and that it’s a “sweet bike”, while the guy on the 160 was hiding in the bushes. But what I saw was a vertical shock orientation, and frame storage door, looked sleek AF and could be close to production ready... 

Curious what trail were you on? Near Golden? 

1
11/22/2025 6:04am
Poleczechy wrote:
Peeked the prototype sixfinity Yeti SB160 while on my ride today. Didn’t get the greatest look as they were being sneaky-sneaky with it. I chatted to...

Peeked the prototype sixfinity Yeti SB160 while on my ride today. Didn’t get the greatest look as they were being sneaky-sneaky with it. I chatted to the product manager (who was on SB140) a bit, all he’d divulge was that it was the SB160 and that it’s a “sweet bike”, while the guy on the 160 was hiding in the bushes. But what I saw was a vertical shock orientation, and frame storage door, looked sleek AF and could be close to production ready... 

2supple wrote:

Curious what trail were you on? Near Golden? 

I was at Apex Park in Golden, that’s the park where they ride most, home of the famous “Lunch Ride.” 

6
motomike
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Linville, NC, USA
11/22/2025 2:12pm

I stumbled across another firmware update in the Sram app today for transmission rear derailleurs.  It is another step faster now through the gears, and their 2nd improvement in shift speed this year.

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monarchmason
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11/22/2025 2:59pm
motomike wrote:
I stumbled across another firmware update in the Sram app today for transmission rear derailleurs.  It is another step faster now through the gears, and their...

I stumbled across another firmware update in the Sram app today for transmission rear derailleurs.  It is another step faster now through the gears, and their 2nd improvement in shift speed this year.

Interesting. I never would have thought mountain bike tech would evolve around your derailleur collecting data, then your phone sending it to sram to then create a firmware update to better optimize it.

15
11/23/2025 11:47am

I saw this scrolling on Instagram, a friend in the USA, proto of which brand? Trek?


IMG 6212 0

8
Whattheheel
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11/23/2025 12:22pm

Going by the dropouts I would say yes, who else uses split pivot?  Salsa, Devinci, who else did I miss?

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Uncle Cliffy
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11/23/2025 12:25pm
I saw this scrolling on Instagram, a friend in the USA, proto of which brand? Trek?

I saw this scrolling on Instagram, a friend in the USA, proto of which brand? Trek?


IMG 6212 0

A few pages ago, people were hypothesizing this was a new Wilson. Pictures were taken at Highland bike park, which is near eastern Canada… sort of. There’s also an engineering group near there that designs bikes for other brands, so the jury is still out.

I would love it if this were a new Wilson. The last carbon model they made in 27.5 was the best cornering downhill bike I’ve ever ridden IMO.

5
11/23/2025 12:31pm

Not a high pivot looking at the chain... So, I would eliminate Trek..

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monarchmason
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11/23/2025 1:44pm
I saw this scrolling on Instagram, a friend in the USA, proto of which brand? Trek?

I saw this scrolling on Instagram, a friend in the USA, proto of which brand? Trek?


IMG 6212 0

The chainstay of the guy your girlfriend tells you not to worry about. My lord that is a long one.

26
11/23/2025 2:35pm

Orbea also uses a concentric pivot at the rear axle, but considering they've already released their Rallon EN/DH in carbon, it would be surprising to see them testing another alloy prototype so soon. Devinci seems more plausible to me.

7
11/23/2025 8:10pm

Not a high pivot looking at the chain... So, I would eliminate Trek..

This was the trek proto they were testing a year ago.  It’s close but most likely not Trek.

IMG 9109IMG 9108 0
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MauiMax
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11/23/2025 9:35pm

Im not sure about wilson just cause i havnt seen devinci put the chainstay on the outside of the seatstay like that. Could be but also that angle on the side of the seat stay doesnt look very much like and devinci ive seen. Almost more like a canyon but they just came out with a dh bike recently too. The split pivot is very similar to orbea but they just came out with their dh bike. Trek on fox and trp seems weird too. 

1
MauiMax
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11/23/2025 9:38pm

I take back what i said about devinci not putting the chainstay on the outside. Looking at the troy alloy and the chainsaw they definitely do with the alloy bikes. The angles on the seatstay still look off for a devinci to me but could be. 

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Primoz
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11/23/2025 10:46pm

The inside part is the one with the brake caliper mounted to it. On the Wilson that's the chainstay as it has the layout flipped to other models. In this case it's the seatstay so it's mounted there.

The same part mounting the caliper also has the pivot bolt mounted solidly with the bearing on the outer part - you get more space to mount it that way. You need to do it that way because if you had the bearing in the caliper mounting member, under a locked wheel situation, the axle would rotate inside the hub. You don't want that, you need everything fixed. So it makes sense to have the caliper carrying member inside, put the bolt through it and lock it in place and have the (wide-ish) bearing on the outside of it rotating freely.

4
11/24/2025 1:18am

The "old" Devinci HP Proto 

 

p5pb26719895
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Primoz
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11/24/2025 3:15am

Well that's a plot twist to my above rumbling... 

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Uncle Cliffy
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11/24/2025 6:49am

Caliper location is definitely important to the prototype speculation. Wilson‘s of the past have had the caliper mounted to the chainstay, which is what is actually driving the shock. 

Don’t quote me here, but I think one of the key parts of Split Pivot design is caliper location relative to shock linkage. The Wilson has always had the caliper mounted to the chainstay that actuates the lower linkage. “Crab” designs consequently are mounted to the seatstays…


 

1
Primoz
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11/24/2025 7:07am

Not neccessarily - the HP Range (ironically a bike of the day yesterday) and the Horst link Forbiddens have it mounted to the chainstay. If you have a true 4-bar layout, you need to mount the caliper to the axle mounting member/link - the seatstays of a normal horst link, the rear triangle for a dual short link bike or the chainstay for any inverted horst link design (high pivot inverted designs).

With split pivot (and active braking pivot) it's a gray area as these designs are single pivot when it comes to pedalling performance (axle mounted to the front triangle with what is basically a swingarm), but are actually 4-bars when it comes to braking performance. This is precisely because the caliper is mounted to the seatstays in the case of all(?) Treks and in the case of most Devincis, but to hte chainstays of the Wilson. Because the Wilson is, as inverted high pivot horst links, actually an inverted design.

If the Wilson had the caliper mounted to the seatstays, it would be a single pivot through and through. A single pivot with a 'complicated' layout (you have to jump through hoops to make the pivot concentric), but a single pivot nontheless. If you have this freedom of choice, obviously you go for the higher performing option (4-bar).

4
Eae903
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11/24/2025 8:48am

Going by the dropouts I would say yes, who else uses split pivot?  Salsa, Devinci, who else did I miss?

Orbea, and now Canyon on the HP Sender, 

2
Eae903
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11/24/2025 8:53am Edited Date/Time 11/24/2025 8:55am
Caliper location is definitely important to the prototype speculation. Wilson‘s of the past have had the caliper mounted to the chainstay, which is what is actually...

Caliper location is definitely important to the prototype speculation. Wilson‘s of the past have had the caliper mounted to the chainstay, which is what is actually driving the shock. 

Don’t quote me here, but I think one of the key parts of Split Pivot design is caliper location relative to shock linkage. The Wilson has always had the caliper mounted to the chainstay that actuates the lower linkage. “Crab” designs consequently are mounted to the seatstays…


 

Ideally, you want the caliper mount on the floating link to reduce the effect of braking forces on the suspension, lower the anti rise. If it's an inverted system, so that the main pivot is connected to the seat stay and the chainstay is the floating link, then having the brake mount on the seat stay defeats the purpose of having the axle pivot. It's just a LD single pivot with an obnoxious bearing location at that point. Unless they want high anti rise, which is possible. But in regard to the first picture, it doesn't look like a High Pivot, so the brake being mounted to the seat stay is the lower anti rise position. 

3
Uncle Cliffy
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11/24/2025 11:26am
Eae903 wrote:
Ideally, you want the caliper mount on the floating link to reduce the effect of braking forces on the suspension, lower the anti rise. If it's...

Ideally, you want the caliper mount on the floating link to reduce the effect of braking forces on the suspension, lower the anti rise. If it's an inverted system, so that the main pivot is connected to the seat stay and the chainstay is the floating link, then having the brake mount on the seat stay defeats the purpose of having the axle pivot. It's just a LD single pivot with an obnoxious bearing location at that point. Unless they want high anti rise, which is possible. But in regard to the first picture, it doesn't look like a High Pivot, so the brake being mounted to the seat stay is the lower anti rise position. 

None of the previous Wilson’s were high pivot. They have all had the brake mounted to the chainstay and not the seatstay. Even the prototype HP models were designed this way.

1
1
Uncle Cliffy
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11/24/2025 11:27am
Primoz wrote:
Not neccessarily - the HP Range (ironically a bike of the day yesterday) and the Horst link Forbiddens have it mounted to the chainstay. If you...

Not neccessarily - the HP Range (ironically a bike of the day yesterday) and the Horst link Forbiddens have it mounted to the chainstay. If you have a true 4-bar layout, you need to mount the caliper to the axle mounting member/link - the seatstays of a normal horst link, the rear triangle for a dual short link bike or the chainstay for any inverted horst link design (high pivot inverted designs).

With split pivot (and active braking pivot) it's a gray area as these designs are single pivot when it comes to pedalling performance (axle mounted to the front triangle with what is basically a swingarm), but are actually 4-bars when it comes to braking performance. This is precisely because the caliper is mounted to the seatstays in the case of all(?) Treks and in the case of most Devincis, but to hte chainstays of the Wilson. Because the Wilson is, as inverted high pivot horst links, actually an inverted design.

If the Wilson had the caliper mounted to the seatstays, it would be a single pivot through and through. A single pivot with a 'complicated' layout (you have to jump through hoops to make the pivot concentric), but a single pivot nontheless. If you have this freedom of choice, obviously you go for the higher performing option (4-bar).

I actually have an HP Range. Brilliant bike. 

I’m just pointing out that the previous design language of the Wilson is opposite of this prototype.

1
11/24/2025 12:34pm Edited Date/Time 11/24/2025 12:34pm

The proto has a very similar rear end to the new Devinci Troy and the Chainsaw. So likely a Devinci...I hope!

 

On the other hand...Sram crank, Fox fork, TRP Brakes with Sram rotor...i don't know :D

1
metadave
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11/24/2025 1:28pm
Eae903 wrote:
Ideally, you want the caliper mount on the floating link to reduce the effect of braking forces on the suspension, lower the anti rise. If it's...

Ideally, you want the caliper mount on the floating link to reduce the effect of braking forces on the suspension, lower the anti rise. If it's an inverted system, so that the main pivot is connected to the seat stay and the chainstay is the floating link, then having the brake mount on the seat stay defeats the purpose of having the axle pivot. It's just a LD single pivot with an obnoxious bearing location at that point. Unless they want high anti rise, which is possible. But in regard to the first picture, it doesn't look like a High Pivot, so the brake being mounted to the seat stay is the lower anti rise position. 

None of the previous Wilson’s were high pivot. They have all had the brake mounted to the chainstay and not the seatstay. Even the prototype HP...

None of the previous Wilson’s were high pivot. They have all had the brake mounted to the chainstay and not the seatstay. Even the prototype HP models were designed this way.

I'm pretty sure every Wilson after 2011ish were mid high pivot were they not? The main pivot was half way up the frame and the chain stay pulled a rotating link to actuate the shock

4
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