Commencal sent teaser images of the Commencal Meta AM 29 a few weeks back, and we’ve since spotted the big wheel bike in action on the Enduro World Series. But it was just this weekend in the Scottish Highlands when we got the chance to finally see the bike in the flesh.
Visually similar to the Meta TR 29 we reported on yesterday, the AM 29 is the bigger and burlier brother with more suspension front and rear to help its pilot batter though gruelling enduro stages.
For the 29er version shown here, Commencal has moved the main pivot to a lower position that’s also further back. Commencal says that this improves suspension action by diminishing kickback and also improves chainring clearance. That makes sense on a bike that’s designed primarily to go very fast downhill.
The suspension itself is designed with progression built into the linkage rather than relying on the shock to offer a playful and poppy feel, so the rider has the option to run either an air shock or a coil shock. The bike shown here comes with the latter option.
The desert camo bike on display is the Team Edition bike and comes with the type of kit that should help it survive the rough and tumble expected of a bike of this travel, without necessarily costing a bomb to repair and service it.
Up front is a 170mm travel Rockshox Lyrik, and out back is a Rockshox Super Deluxe RCT coil shock providing 160mm of supple rock eating rear wheel movement.
SRAM also provides the 12-speed drivetrain, in this case, a collection of GX Eagle components that makes a lot of sense when the chances of your rear mech meeting a large rock are pretty high.
The team replica bike has a custom Fabric saddle with camouflage graphics to match the print on the mainframe, 800mm wide Renthal Fathers and a 40mm Renthal Apex stem too.
When it comes to geometry, Commencal has stayed true to its roots by keeping the bike quite short in comparison to modern trail bikes. Speaking with the guys at Commencal, they say they’ve done this to suit the super steep terrain in Andorra.
The good news is that the seat tube length and standover are very low, allowing you to move up a size if you want more length.
With this in mind, a medium AM 29 has a reach of 435mm, while the large gets a reach of 460mm. Chainstay length is short across the range two at only 432mm.
We understand that there will be at least 3 versions of the Commencal Meta AM 29 when launched later this year. Those models will kick off with the Essential build kit with air suspension front and rear. The camo Team model sits in the middle of the bunch, while a flagship Signature variant will come with Fox Factory 36 and a coil shock.
We’re still waiting on final release date details and pricing, but we’ll bring you that info once we have it.