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Anyone recognize any of these design traits that might help narrow down the mystery Orion bike?
*rocker bolts
*seatpost clamp
*flared rear dropouts (maybe SuperBoost?)
My guess: Knolly. Reasons: same/similar spec as their Warden 90 kit (RockShox + SDG saddle + DT wheels). Aluminum + SuperBoost + similar cable ports near headtube. Bolts & seat clamp look similar.
likely a long shot but banshee? probably not as close on some of their design aesthetics (like the gusset on the seat & top tube), but I know they are due for and have been rumored to be working on newer designs.
While it would be a big departure from there current FourBy4 platform, you could be onto something... The bike behind it looks like a Chilcotin. They had a fad colorway in 2024 that looks like a match, and there looks like the "n" from Chilcotin on the toptube on one of the other pics. Plus someone really went out of their way to get rid of the other bike on the rack...
The top/down tubing shapes look similar too.
it is a chilly, i just didnt wanna expose the car it was on.
Could it be Privateer? Can’t imagine their current bike line up is selling well.
Has underside mounting points too.
Banshee uses the KS link. KS as in Keith Scott. The designer of Banshee bikes.
dont think Knolly will just ditch their 4by4 suspension and same with banshee.
I think Brodie or Kove is making a comeback haha
Comparison of bars with rise modeled in. Both have a similar max load. 35 mm bar is on top and 31.8 mm bar is on bottom. Bending moment is at its maximum on the inboard end and zero at the free end so I think it makes sense that the stiffness of the innermost section of bar is quite influential in terms of deflection. It's worth noting that, while the approximate 0.05" difference in deflection is a little more than 10%, we're still only talking about 0.05" difference. Thin vs. thick grips would easily take up that difference. Ultimately you could optimize either bar to be what you want.
Was the photo taken in BC? Does anyone know, all the guesses are NA brands so I think that excludes anything from Europe.
Also that seat tube top tube gusset is farking horrendous, looks like they found a random piece of stock lying around and just slapped it in there
I disagree. Based on the pics, I don't see similarities between the top tube shape, particularly around the junction with the headtube. The cable routing looks different and there is a seat tube gusset, which no Knolly bike currently has.
All of that is beside the fact that it would be a crazy change to go from the suspension design they've used... forever?
I'm most excited to see the limited edition Maven color! Assuming they do it again
Spotted at Mt. Seymour
Maiden
Anyone else notice the "XX" link to the XX SL website under the last picture of Myriam Nicole?
Let's hope they aren't trying to push $700 derailleurs, $700 cassettes and $600 cranks as the only DH option going forward...
Shit snow means more people out on the trails to spot the prototypes 😆
Looks like the wilson proto spotted at highland last fall!!!
This was my thinking when I ran the One Ups with their oval design. Why even bother with 35mm if you’re doing all this to “fix” the stiffness problem. Wanted to go back to alloy bars and my 31.8 Dietys are 80% as comfortable as the OneUps but I’m not worried the carbon is compromised when I crash them into a tree.
If you make bars compliant in all directions they feel rather vague. Just try any XC oriented 31.8 bars. Not exactly confidence inspiring
I have a feeling the new SRAM coming out is the Wireless brakes.
Kona?
Has anyone said Ibis? They already use Weagle suspension.
Rocker link could be a transition? Unlikely but those lines…
Or a Kona? Seems like good alu mfg!
But dang, I’m having doubts folks are going to want to pedal a 2 chain bike around! Seems like a bruiser.
Seems way out of their wheelhouse but maybe that’s the point.
I think 2 Chainz might be more efficient than a high pivot idler setup. The small chain has excellent wrap and chain line so it really wouldn't be much efficiency loss, leaving you with a normal drive train (assuming the chain line isn't much worse because of it).
Privateer have people in BC doing testing/development. The prototypes of the last generation of frames were spotted in Whistler if I recall. So it could be them, they don't seem to have much stock on their site at the moment, so possibly new stuff is coming.
Just ugly enough to be a privateer, good enough looking that it would be a nice upgrade for them!
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