Thinking about getting a five.
Whist in the alps last year I saw a guy with a five (or alpine not 100% sure) with a rear brake bar and floating calliper arrangement. Unfortunately I didn’t get chance to talk to him or look at the bike properly.

Does anyone have any info on such a kit for a five.
Have looked at brake therapy’s website but they don’t list a kit for a five.

I quite fancy having a go a making one, but I need some more info about how the floating part works.

Cheers
Ben

You sure it was a Five?

Orange did the floating arm (called Independent Brake System, IBS) on their 222 and 223 range. They scrapped it for some reason… (it’s not on the 224 or 322)

The 223 was available in 15″ and 17″.

223.. 15″

223… 17″

You can buy them as kits, can’t remember the company but they weigh at tonne.

Just learn to brake when the bikes stood up, grip doesn’t matter if you’r not leant over.

Well well well, never knew that! Google doesn’t throw up much either. Certainly be interested in a photo if anyone has one?

Thanks for the posts guys.
I’m not 100% sure it was a five, perhaps an alpine.
But the brake bar ran along the top of the swing arm not along the bottom.

Xiphon, nice pics, how does the calliper bracket pivot on the axle?
I’m thinking its a bearing on the non drive side hub.
I’m using a hope pro2 evo, so i could fit a bearing on the adaptor somehow.

Any other comments?

Not wanting to state the obvious, but there’s a million bikes that are a bit like a Five, but not single pivot. So why not get one of them instead of trying to make a Five something it’s not, with extra money and weight,and maybe not great results?

They scrapped it for some reason.

Questions about whether they actually have an effect aside for a minute, for the floating set up to actually have any effect it has follow parallel to an imaginary line drawn from the rear axle through the main pivot…and stay parallel regardless of what the suspension does

you can judge for yourself using those pictures..

Fair points, I just thought it would be an interesting project.
I’ve just bought a 2nd hand 2012 five frame, will build it up next week and see how it rides.

What exactly is the benefit of having a floating caliper?

General feedback seems to be that single pivot bikes such as the five suffer from brake ‘squat’ which reduces rear suspension effectiveness during heavy breaking.
But I’m no expert and as I’ve only ridden a five for 2laps of Cwmcarn xc when I had one as a demo I’m not really best paced to offer any real life feedback, but ‘m sure someone will be along to correct me shortly.

reduces rear suspension effectiveness during heavy breaking.

It’s important to be able to break on the roughest lines (or how else could you make braking bumps?).

Used to have a Santa Cruz Bullit and Santa Cruz offered the floating thingy as an option. Never got one if only for the reason they look bloody awful. Just looked like something waiting to get ripped off the frame. Dunno if they ever did, but highlighted the issue of single pivots and braking. They do brake fine, but always noticed a difference between them and my 5 Spot HL/DW link. Those systems braked, the single pivot was always a more skippy. You always stopped though.