Readers’ Rides: Rick’s Custom Marino

Whether you’ve got a special new bike or just a bike that’s special to you, this is where you get to tell us about it! You send us your submissions, and then we cast our judgemental expert lustful eyes over them and bring them to the world to ooh and ahh over. We’re picking the prettiest, the most curious, and the ones with a good story for you to appraise, praise, and maybe look wistfully at.

For this edition, Rick shares his custom Marino full susser. He hasn’t given it a name, but since there’s a bonus dog in one of the pictures, shall we call it the Red Rover?

Bike brand and model:

Marino, custom full suspension

Why this bike?:

I came across Marino a few years ago and as a geometry geek I was always toying with the idea of getting a frame built to my own design. Always loved an Orange and have had a few over the years, but they were always too long in the top tube for me to get truly comfortable. Trawling over geometry charts for all sorts of bikes they always had something not quite right – too long top tube, too low stack, too high bottom bracket, too slack actual seat tube, etc. With long legs for my height I always had to stuff the saddle as far forward as possible and raise the bars to try and get comfortable, but there was always some compromise. So, one evening in February I filled in the online form on Marino’s website for the 27th time, but this time I clicked submit.

It’s 27.5 both ends. I’ve gone full circle with 29 and mullet, but you can’t beat a 27.5 for a bit of dicking about fun. The geo is pretty standard, but it’s got a low BB, a high stack and steep seat tube to give a shortish top tube to make the fit for me. 65deg head angle, 455mm reach and 435mm chainstays.

• Fork: RockShox Lyrik 2017 – upgraded C1 air spring, 160mm travel
• Shock: Cane Creek Inline Coil – 210×55
• Suspension Set Up: Fork – 69psi, 2 tokens, rebound 6 clicks in and compression 9 clicks in, Shock – 450-550 progressive spring, HSR 1/2 turn, LSR 7 clicks in, HSC 3 in, LSC 2 in.
• Wheels: Syncros Revelstoke 2.0 (just some Scott OEM wheels I bought 2nd hand)
• Tyres: Front – Magic Mary 2.4; Rear – Minion DHR 2.4
• Tyre Inserts: None! I still use tubes…
• Chainset: Some old SRAM GX
• Rear Mech: Shimano SLX 11 speed
• Shifters: Shimano XT 11 speed (for the double downshift ability)
• Cassette: SRAM GX XG1175 11 speed – 9-42
• Brakes: Shimano Deore twin pot
• Bars & Stem: 50mm Spank Oozy stem; 38mm rise Nukeproof Horizon cut to 760mm
• Grips: ODI Longneck Pro (push on)
• Seatpost: Trans X RAD – 170-200mm drop, set at 200mm
• Saddle: Charge Spoon
• Accessories: 76 Projects Litte Piggy + bag for tube and tools, RRP mudguard, Fidlock bottle
• Size and Weight: Custom size, but a sort of Medium-ish with tall front and probably 17kg at a guess

“I ride the singletrack around the Forest of Dean and for me the bike is brilliant. It’s the most comfortable and balanced bike I’ve ridden for a long time, at least since my 2015 Meta V4. I’ll try my RS Deluxe air shock soon enough just to see, but I do like the coil shock action. I thought the weight would be an issue, but because the bike fits me and is comfortable to ride I don’t really notice it, which is quite a revelation (probably cliche to a lot of you).“

“It took about 15 weeks from clicking submit to having the frame in my hands. Marino were easy to deal with too, so for me it’s all been a very good experience.”

We quite like that this bike is custom, but sort of normal – not tricked out with fancy bits, it’s just a bike that works, built for functional reasons. Have you ever felt like you can’t quite get the perfectly proportioned bike for you? And would you know what dimensions would actually work?

While you’re here, we’d like to draw your attention to our World Bicycle Relief fundraiser. If you’ve experienced the joy of a new bike day, you’ll know how great it is. Now imagine you get given a bike, and it changes your life, giving you and your family access to education, employment or healthcare. Through World Bicycle Relief, you’ve got the power to make that happen, and if you can spare a little, we invite you to make your donation here.

Hannah Dobson

Managing Editor

I came to Singletrack having decided there must be more to life than meetings. I like all bikes, but especially unusual ones. More than bikes, I like what bikes do. I think that they link people and places; that cycling creates a connection between us and our environment; bikes create communities; deliver freedom; bring joy; and improve fitness. They're environmentally friendly and create friendly environments. I try to write about all these things in the hope that others might discover the joy of bikes too.

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