The Bike Buyer’s Bible No.154 November 2013

top 20 must-have products

AmericAn BeAuties

Five hot frames born in the usA

bike test

investigated

Do dropper postsactually make

you slower?

november 2013 PrInTeD In THe UK £4.50

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No.154 Novem

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range’s race-ready Five RS ibis mojo H

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mencal M

eta AM goes 650b r

ockshox Pike reviewed

OF THE

PLUS The Malvern Hills pocket ride guide, how to update your geometry & lots more

104 November

unWrappeDSTRoNG ANd STuRdy

Pivot has gone for strength over subtlety with the mach 6. The thick toptube and chunky maintubes dig into an equally sturdy rear subframe, while forged and machined h-linkages sit into pockets and cutouts on the seat tube. The belly of the bent downtube and the inside edges of the swingarm are cunningly (fetishistically?) protected with ‘leather’ armour.

“We found ourselves pulling the brakes later each time we sessioned the drops and rocks”

November 105

While some companies have taken the lightweight trail approach to their 150mm, 27.5in-wheeled bikes, Pivot has gone for the

no-compromise, fl at-out fast approach with its new Mach 6.

Practical not pretty The slightly crowded spliced toptube and dislocated linkage junction of the Mach 6 might not make for the neatest looks, but it creates a seriously stiff chassis. The longer we had it the harder we rode it, and by the end of our test we were smashing through savage braking bumps on near-freefall descents and into blownout berms, but we never felt it fl exing or twisting out of line.

That same tracking stiffness is obvious when you send it obliquely across ruts – even over the ledges of volcanic rock and baked washboard ruts of this hard American desert. The combination of 650b wheels and the well-controlled Fox Float X damper (see p80 for the review), which presides over 155mm of rear travel, shrinks impacts impressively. We found ourselves pulling the brakes later and later each time we sessioned the drops and rock gardens of our test trails – then heading right back up for more.

Grower not a growlerThe fact that our trust and belief in the bike was progressive is signifi cant. Like other DW Link bikes we’ve ridden, the Mach 6 naturally sits high in its travel, and Pivot has given it a relatively high bottom bracket for pedalling clearance. That means despite the ample travel and slack 66-degree head angle it feels more trail bike than a gravity enduro machine at fi rst.

You also have to push it that bit harder and lower into turns than a bike that’s nearer the ground already, but that’s something that becomes second nature when you’re riding this bike all the time, rather than swapping between machines like lucky, lucky bike testers…

Changing the overlong and lurch-prone 80mm stem for a 60mm and fi tting larger tyres would also make the aggressive potential of the bike much more obvious.

Not everyone wants their trail bike to feel like a mini downhiller though, even if it is long travel, and at 6.2lb with the Float X this frame will appeal. It could be built to climb and accelerate as well as much shorter-legged bikes – the DW Link pedals very well in the middle and larger chainrings, giving just enough chain tension under power to

feel positive when you’re giving it full gas. Its smooth suspension movement also

means consistent traction and roll over even when you’re pushing the pedals hard, making it a great bike for blasting along contouring trails at serious speed. You do need to make use of the Trail setting of the CTD lever to stop obvious pedal bob in the smaller ring, however, but it is at least easy to reach.

Summary If you’re looking for a low-slung, highly aggressive gravity-focused machine the Mach 6 isn’t right for you. But if you want a pedal-friendly frame for impressively easy trail speed, allied to seriously capable suspension and speed-secure handling, the Mach 6 should defi nitely be on your superbike shortlist.

Pivot’s entering the enduro frame game, and the mach 6 is worth the wait

pIvot maCh 6 £2500 (frame & shock)

“Trail-honed speed with major confi dence and stiffness make the Mach 6 a gravity ready all-rounder.”

£1350-£5000 us FuLL susseRs

at a GlanCe

travel 155mm

hIGhS extremely stiff and surefootedly slack steering, it’s a long-travel but light all-rounder.

loWS Tall ride can mask gravity potential; soft pedalling in smaller gears and slightly heavy.

buy If… You want trail bike feel with big bike capability when it counts.

Inner strength Pivot uses hard internal formersrather than infl atable bladders during manufacture – getting allthe layers evenly compacted iscrucial to the strength of carbon.

big is better Dave Weagle has licensed hissmooth-fl oating DW Link to several manufacturers. Itdefi nitely works better in bigger chainrings than thesmaller ones.

Spec choice Pivot offers a range of build kits,

but the long stem and skinny reartyre of our sample bike are options

to avoid – they fail to make themost of this aggressive frame

WMB154.bt_1.indd 105 10/7/13 10:18 AM

108 November

Intense tracer 275 Pro IbIs rIPley santa cruz bantam PIvot mach 6

verdIct

PrIce £2349 (frame & shock) £2650 (frame & shock) £1350 (frame & shock) £2500 (frame & shock)

contact www.extrauk.co.uk www.ibiscycles.co.uk www.santacruzbikes.co.uk www.upgradebikes.co.uk

sIze tested M L M M

sIzes avaIlable S, M, L S, M, L, XL S, M, L, XL XS, S, M, L, XL

weIght tested 13.7kg (30.25lb) 12.9kg (28.5lb) 13.4kg (29.6lb) 13.3kg (29.4lb)

frame Custom semi monocoque alloy Carbon fibre DW Link Custom 6066 alloy Hollow Box carbon, 155mm travel

fork RockShox Pike RCT3, 27.5in, 160mm X-Fusion Trace RL2, 140mm Fox 32 275 CTD TA, 130mm Fox 34 275 CTD TA, 160mm

shock Fox Float Factory CTD TA X-Fusion Microlite Fox Float Evolution CTD Fox Float X Factory CTD TA

max tyre sIze 650bx2.4in 29x2.35in 650bx2.4in 650bx2.3in

transmIssIon

chaInset SRAM X01, 32T eThirteen TRS+, 24/34T Shimano XT, 42/32/24T Shimano XT, 38/24T

shIfters SRAM X01 SRAM X0 Shimano XT Shimano XT

deraIlleurs SRAM X01 (F), SRAM XX1 (R) SRAM X0 Shimano XT Shimano XT

chaIn SRAM X01 SRAM X0 Shimano XT Shimano XT

bottom bracket

SRAM X01 SRAM X0 Shimano XT Shimano XT

cassette SRAM X01, 10-42T SRAM XG1080, 11-36T Shimano XT, 11-36T Shimano XT, 11-36T

wheels

front Novatec Diablo 275 rim, Novatec 15mm hub

Stan’s ZTR Arch 29er rim, Ibis 15mm hub

WTB Frequency i23 650b rim, 15mm hub

DT Swiss XM27.5 rim, DT Swiss 15mm hub

rear Novatec Diablo 275 rim, Novatec 142x12mm hub

Stan’s ZTR Arch 29er rim, 142x12mm hub

WTB Frequency i23 650b rim, 142x12mm hub

DT Swiss XM27.5 rim, DT Swiss 142x12mm hub

tyres Vee Rubber Trail Taker, 650bx2.4in Specialized Ground Control, 29x2.1in Maxxis High Roller II, 650bx2.3in Kenda Nevegal DTC, 650bx2.35 (F), Honey Badger DTC, 650bx2.2in (R)

fInIshIng kIt

brakes Avid Elixir 9 Trail, 180/160mm rotors Formula T1s, 180/160mm rotors Shimano XT, 180/160mm rotors Shimano XT, 180/160mm rotors

bar FSA SL-K carbon, 750mm Ibis Hi Fi carbon, 740mm Easton Havoc, alloy, 750mm Pivot, carbon, 750mm

stem FSA Afterburner, 60mm Ibis 3D forged Truvativ AKA, 70mm FSA SL-K, 80mm

grIPs Intense ODI, lock-on Ibis, lock-on Santa Cruz, locked Pivot, locked

seatPost RockShox Reverb Stealth X-Fusion HiLo SL RockShox Reverb Stealth KS Lev Integra

saddle Intense Ibis WTB Silverado Team WTB Silverado Team

headset Cane Creek 40 Cane Creek 40 Cane Creek 40 Pivot

Pedals n/a n/a n/a n/a

geometry

dImensIons

at a glance hIGhS Super-stiff handmade mainframe with aggressive drive feel and outstanding freewheeling impact appetite.

loWS Relatively heavy with very obvious power and impact kickback through the pedals.

buy If... You want a US made, surefooted frame that rolls with the biggest punches.

hIGhS Sculptural looks, smoothly flowing, self propelling ride feel, low weight.

loWS Small ring pedalling squish, tall ride feel, high cost.

buy If... You want an exclusive fast trail/cross-country bike that flows as smoothly as it looks.

hIGhS Tough, totally honest, interactive suspension, stiff and low slung cornering confidence.

loWS Heavy for its travel and pedal/brake reactive suspension won’t suit some.

buy If... You’re a hardcore rider who wants a sawn-off shotgun for blasting technical trails to pieces.

hIGhS Extremely stiff and surefootedly slack steering long travel but light enough all-rounder

loWS Tall ride can mask gravity potential, soft pedalling in smaller gears and desperate for a shorter stem.

buy If... You want trail bike feel with big bike capability when it counts.

howtheycompaRe

23in

Standover 28.9in

73°

68°

13.1in44.1in

17in

17.1in

23.6in

Standover 28.8in

71.5°

66°

13.6in44.9in

17.5in

16.9in

24in

Standover 29.5in

71.5°

68.5°

13.25in44.5in

19in

17.5in

23in

Standover 29.9in

71°

67.5°

13.3in45in

18in

17in

November 109

marIn mount vIsIon c-xm Pro

★★★★★£5000

www.atb-sales.co.uk, www.marinbikes.co.uk

M

S, M, L, XL

11.7kg (25.8lb)

CXR 60T carbon fibre, IsoTrac, 140mm

Fox 32 Float Factory CTD, 140mm

Fox Float X Factory CTD TA

650bx2.4in

SRAM XX1, 34T

SRAM XX1

eThirteen XCX single ring guide, XX1 (R)

SRAM XX1

SRAM PC XX1

SRAM XG1199, 10-42T

Formula/Marin carbon 650b rim, Formula 15mm hub

Formula/Marin carbon 650b rim, 142x12mm hub

Schwalbe Nobby Nic, 650bx2.25in

Avid X0 Trail, 180/160mm rotors

Easton Haven, carbon, 711mm

Easton Haven, 70mm

Marin, locked

RockShox Reverb Stealth

Fizik Tundra Kium

FSA Orbit ZS

n/a

hIGhS Seriously stiff, smooth and surefooted frame with superbike spec at a great price.

loWS The flex stay suspension can get bouncy under power.

buy If... You want a seriously entertaining aggro trail bike with wish list spec for bargain money.

1 right hand-only shifting frees up your brain (and the left side of your bars) – plus single rings work better

than multiples on every suspension system we’ve tried.

2 Whatever the capability of the bike it’s connected to, a long stemmed or narrow barred

cockpit will always make it feel like an uptight cross-country machine.

5 We didn’t see a single 26er in the desert – bar some fat bikes and Dh bikes – and industry

commitment to the 650b diameter looks serious. Lucky they work well…

4 That said, there are so many good bikes there’s just no need to settle for anything that isn’t

absolutely spot-on for the way you like to ride.

3 some bikes want to show you a good time straight away, while others take a while to

reveal their potential – be prepared to fettle to get the best from them.

FIVe ThIngs We Learned FroM ThIs TesT

WINNER

Turn oVer For The TraIL TesT ConCLusIon...

23.5in

Standover 30.3in

74°

67.5°

13in44.9in

17.5in

17.1in

£1350-£5000 us full susseRs

2nd

“by the end of our test time we were smashing it through every braking bump”

pIvot maCh 6 £2500 (frame & shock)

3rd

“heavy for its category, but still a load of fun”

Santa Cruz bantam £1350 (frame & shock)