This report might be a little brief as we’re still trying to pound the show halls for new stuff… There’ll be more updates on Monday when we’re back in the office. But let’s start off with the new magnesium DT Swiss Pace forks… Coming in as an addition to the carbon forks, there’ll be a couple of models that feature a whole new cartridge damping system too. The Cross Mountain will have 32mm stanchions and come in 100, 120 and 140mm travels with 15mm and QR options. The Enduro Cross Mountain will come in 130 and 150mm. The best bit about them is the new lowers (apart from looking great and being stiff) is that they’ll be 25% cheaper than the carbon forks, which’ll still continue, but be aimed more at the XC race world.
Carbon on the left, new DT Swiss magnesium fork on the right
DT is also launching a new ‘Tricon’ wheel system. The hub is made of two flanges and a separate shell. The flanges use straight pull spokes and can be tensioned very tightly – the spokes didn’t move at all on the ones we saw. The centre section can therefore be made lighter, or a different colour, or even from something like carbon, though DT wouldn’t confirm that. The rim features a keyed hole that the spoke bed fits into, leaving the rim wall tubeless-ready.
The key at the rim Super, super stiffly tensioned spokes. Here's just one manufacturer, in 1/100th of one of the 15 halls. It's a big, big show. FSA enjoy leading new technology, so heres a new three-arm, double MTB chainset. We've had our appointment at the Charge Arms and there was much to see. The biggest news is that Charge is now making clothing. Here's top boy Chris Akrigg modeling a jacket and new normal-looking, performance shorts Boys, your bribes have arrived. This is the Charge Press Kit... One-off 'Charge Arms' Vans shoes. Super slim new locking grips that are even thinner than an ODI Ruffian. We look forward to testing these This is a proper technical jacket - using 'aquaphobic wool', water just runs off it, yet you can still wear it to and in the pub without looking all Lycra Technical tees in many custom colours Performance casual? Surface is the brand name, but they're all designed by Nick Larsen and his top clothing chap. There will be a great looking pair of commuting/riding round town trousers coming out. Cut like a nice pair of slim jeans, they look very matt-black, yet stretch loads for cycling comfort, machine wash and dry quickly and water does just run off them. If that shape looks pleasing to the older rider, that's because it's the classic Turbo saddle shape, now being made for Charge and coming in all the colours of a Hoxton rainbow Fixie bars - or perhaps really narrow downhill ones... Charge has a cassette fixie hub. No more wrestling with the chain whip. Just bolt on the sprocket. Your colour coordination worries solved.
And then on to the Independent Fabrication booth where they were showing Joe Ingram’s new 18lb titanium hardtail, a custom carbon bike with Indy Fab ‘crown’ lugs and a very swish cyclocross bike.
Edge Composites' new 'cross fork, carbon tubular wheels and Dugast tubs - that's an expensive front end. Finally, a carbon stem that looks reasonably 'normal' 'Normal' looking carbon post too Complete with a lot of German trickery, this is 18lbs Indy Fab now offer custom carbon lugged frames. Edge make up the lugs to the angles that Independent need and lo, you have a custom frame that's then built back at Independent. Road only though. Boo! Neat crown lugs though... This is what fuels us... Camelbak have lots of bold new colours and the women's range is no exception Yes, it's a wearable Camelbak with a bladder build into a jersey. One for the time-trialists and triathletes out there. It's so lovely and yet so not for the UK winter... The Mule Lightweight features super thin, tent-like fabric for noticeable lighter weight. Adventure race anyone? Limited edition colour Hawg Deluxe Exposure Lights showed us this new Toro light that features on of the new single 'super' LEDs. It's very, very bright. That same P7 LED now comes in the Diabolo helmet light (right) which is also silly bright. There's a new, sub-£100 commuter light on the left which can be helmet or bar mounted. Chunky, but still a manageable size to have on your head. White Industries super-fixie pedals. One sided, with a HUGE flipper for instant 'flip and in' on your fixie. This has to be the smartest looking 'bottom of the range' bike we've seen so far... Super neat Whyte E-120 Thomson's DH dual crown stem The Ibis Hakkaluugi cyclocross frame is now shipping. It comes in 'Flegmish Green' too. Looks a bit burly for an Ibis Mojo doesn't it? That's because it's the new Mojo HD prototype that Lopes has been riding. That's a custom MRP device that uses the main pivot bolt to secure it to the frame. 160mm travel, tapered 67degree head tube, 12mm Maxle rear and 6.25lbs for a frame. With genuine Brian Lopes dust on it. Lezyne's big, bold messenger bag. The ideal three-day bike trip bag? Lots of room, insulated bladder compartment, lots of pockets and a zipped, vented mesh pocket on the bottom for your wet kit to dry in. The inside of the Great Divide bag. Neat. Lezyne's new Portashop toolkit. An ideal road trip, racing or keep in the car kit.
Poc has gone coloured A bike for the Etonians? We know traditionalists who'll cry when they see this
Very, very colourful... Troy Lee
More colour...
New uppy-downy post with trigger built into the grip and an I-beam head
The OTHER Santa Cruz Tallboy Crank Bros Joplin 4 - with - four inches of travel and way better sealing and double the brass keys to keep it running true. Blurry spy shot for Benji - Rubber Queen now in 2.2in and Black Chili!
With 23 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.)
Like the look of Lopes’ Ibis. It’s an extension of where I was going with the original Mojo. Except for the “Elsworth had a baby with Ted Nugent” paint job.
Those big Lezyne packs look like a good option for the bike guide.
The I-Beam uppy-downy seatpost is a good idea, but as I’ve had 2 KS/Pure posts develop scratches on their shafts now I’m a little wary of trying one of theirs again. I wonder if the Joplin 4 will have ironed out the kinks in earlier Joplins?
“FSA enjoy leading new technology” is that sarcasm? looks very smilar to middleburn duo (and when are middleburn gonna do external bearing cranks?). Is that POC stand using dummies or really ugly kids to model their helmets?
Was that really Tufo tubulars for mountain bikes. Nice tread but way to go for pointless invention of the year.
I’ll take a Charge (Surface) Urban Jacket and shorts and seatpost. One of them KS dropper seatposts and an Expossure commuter light please.
Oh bugger, no job!
Tufo have been making tubs for mtbs for a few years now, not alot of choice for rims or tyres though.
even more bling……keep it coming 😀
any idea of when we can get our hands on a set of magnesium QR15 DT forks? 🙂
Like the look of Lopes’ Ibis. It’s an extension of where I was going with the original Mojo. Except for the “Elsworth had a baby with Ted Nugent” paint job.
Those big Lezyne packs look like a good option for the bike guide.
…but how come his Mojo’s got Fox rather than Marzocchi on it?
…and does it not have a rear Maxle?
about time a dropper post with i beam, seems a logical way to keep the weight down
Like the FSA cranks would go great on my Taurine frame – any idea when us mere mortals are likely to be able to get some?
Any hope of those 2.2 Rubber Queens being available before winter sets in?
“One for the time-trialists and triathletes out there.”
Except neither of those would wear a jersey like that. Exactly who is it aimed at?
Jeeze, look at all that anodised parts – it’s like being back in the mid 90s!
Yes the Rubber Queen 2.2 should be available at the end of September.
The I-Beam uppy-downy seatpost is a good idea, but as I’ve had 2 KS/Pure posts develop scratches on their shafts now I’m a little wary of trying one of theirs again. I wonder if the Joplin 4 will have ironed out the kinks in earlier Joplins?
“FSA enjoy leading new technology” is that sarcasm? looks very smilar to middleburn duo (and when are middleburn gonna do external bearing cranks?). Is that POC stand using dummies or really ugly kids to model their helmets?