Let's start with this fine tool from Park Tools: The HMR-4. This kind of precision tool is a must for all home mechanics.
The Hayes Group is the umbrella names for Manitou, Hayes and Sun/Ringlé and, after a quiet year or two, it seems to be cranking some more new stuff out.
Let’s start with a nice controversial number…
Yep, it's a Dorado. Manitou's DH fork. Only this one is a 29er Dorado. Wagon wheel downhilling is here to stay it seems.
Answer's new direct mount stem offers a 1in drop over regular direct stems for riders looking to lower their front end. There's a regular stem too.
Comes in all the lengths: 50mm and 55mm
One of the most venerable names in mountain biking, the Answer ProTaper bar is now going to come in carbon, along with the new snazzy graphic ally version.
Flat pedals with removeable pins. Get them here too.
Answer also has a new All Mountain stem. 60-100mm lengths.
The new Manitou Marvel fork is very deconstructed in looks.
I-beam crown and a tapered-only steerer, it'll come in 100-120mm lengths and QR15 or 9mm.
This is an exclusive peek at the prototype QR15 Manitou dropout that it had hidden out the back of the booth. It'll use Manitou's signature hex axle, but in a QR form. This prototype is using and older DH style 20mm dropout, but you get the idea.
Ignore the pinch-bolts, this'll be a true QR setup using a bayonet style engagement and a smaller, 15mm hex axle.
Expect to see more Sun/Ringlé wheelsets like this Black Flag XC set
...and the Charger Pro All Mountain set
Straight pull spokes and those two white spokes.
Two white spokes. How else can you differentiate wheels?
Here's the new Hayes Prime Pro brake. It's new doncha know?385g a brake with a split clamp and reach and stroke adjust.
Another prototype - this time a new finish Answer is trying on its ProTaper bar. It's a way of anodising graphics onto a handlebar. Initial results look great.
With 22 years as Editor of Singletrack World Magazine, Chipps is the longest-running mountain bike magazine editor in the world. He started in the bike trade in 1990 and became a full time mountain bike journalist at the start of 1994. Over the last 30 years as a bike writer and photographer, he has seen mountain bike culture flourish, strengthen and diversify and bike technology go from rigid steel frames to fully suspended carbon fibre (and sometimes back to rigid steel as well.)
It’s good to see Answer making a comeback… I’ve been watching their website as the new bars have trickled out over the year… nice!
Azonic make the Skulls look cheap but somehow Answer make it classy?
I wish Manitou would address the 36/Lyrik market again. The Sherman/Nixon/Travis forks were mostly good; just ditch all the bells and whistles which nobody uses and give us great performance.
“this’ll be a true QR setup using a bayonet style engagement and a smaller, 15mm hex axle”
Is this licensed from Charlie (forget his last name, met him @ switchbacks, nice bloke) who patented a bayonet design yonks ago and had some manitou protos setup? Looks a bit similar.
aren’t the white spokes so you can identify the valve location more quickly when you’ve got a puncture in a race?
I hadn’t thought of that (and obviously you’d have lined up your tyre logo with the valve as in the picture) but that’s a very good point.
Next year they’ll have pink spokes instead.
BTW lovely Answer bars, can I have the gold ones please?
Skull bars!
oh look another company are using rebranding the kona wah wah/ superstar pedals
Any idea of the weight of the Marvel?
Want those scull bars!
Great name from Park
Whats a HMR-4? Hitting things with…
What pjt21 said – the American Classic’s have a red spoke for the very same reason 🙂
Mmmm, Pro Taper
Those new manitous look good. If it gets the TPC+ damper that could be a very competitive fork.
The skull bars are amazing 😀
I never thought I’d ever ever want bars with skulls on
now I’m not so sure
maybe custom bars instead of the skulls have your own face etched on….or simonbarnes or somfink
It’s good to see Answer making a comeback… I’ve been watching their website as the new bars have trickled out over the year… nice!
Azonic make the Skulls look cheap but somehow Answer make it classy?
I wish Manitou would address the 36/Lyrik market again. The Sherman/Nixon/Travis forks were mostly good; just ditch all the bells and whistles which nobody uses and give us great performance.
what the messiah says… Most forget Manitou were making long travel single crowns before anyone else.
And 29″ DH. I’ll eat my helmet if…
Mavic crossmax’s have a patterned spoke next to the valve
Nice stuff. Contemplating a Answer/Hayes/Manitou build for my next bike.
“this’ll be a true QR setup using a bayonet style engagement and a smaller, 15mm hex axle”
Is this licensed from Charlie (forget his last name, met him @ switchbacks, nice bloke) who patented a bayonet design yonks ago and had some manitou protos setup? Looks a bit similar.