Unlike most idler-equipped bikes, the Norco Optic doesn’t have that much travel and its main pivot location isn’t all that high.
- Brand: Norco
- Product: Optic C1
- Price: £8,499
- From: Silverfish UK
Pros
- Fun on a stick
- Quirky
- Will get you into trouble
Cons
- This C1 model is way too expensive
- Some iffy spec choices
- Will get you into trouble
NB: Try to ignore the £8.5k price tag of this flagship ‘hero’ Optic build. It is entirely OTT. There is a Norco Optic C3 with decent build for £4,599. Yes, that’s almost half the price of this one.
Higher pivot idler designs are more typically associated with long travel mountain bikes. Downhill bikes specifically. So does putting an idler on a bike with a modest (125mm) amount of travel make sense? Or more accurately, does it make less sense or possibly more sense?
Before riding the Norco Optic I would have said “less sense”. But now I’ve tried it, I’ve switched my stance 180°. The Optic is by far the best shorter travel mountain bike I’ve yet to experience. It exhibits the very thing that I think most short-travel bike purchasers are looking for. Namely, midstroke support and propulsion.
The Norco Optic offers hods loads of support but – crucially for a 125mm travel bike – it doesn’t sacrifice traction and comfort. The idler may typically be explained as a solution for dealing with chain growth of long travel bikes but that’s not all it does. The oher things that a well-implemented idler can do is signifcantly reduce the amount of trail chatter that passes through to the rider.
Basically the Optic gives you all of the supple but little of the vague.
What about the extra drivetrain drag from the idler? Well, there must be some (fizziks init) but I couldn’t detect any. No could I hear any extra tinkling. Or feel any extra rumble through the system. I would caveat this by saying that I wouldn’t be surprised if the idler was less tolerant of slack maintenance, especially in foul weather. But if you keep an eye on your jockey/idler teeth as you chould do anyway, I can’t foresee there being any signifcant drag issue.
Time for a bit of geometry chat. There’s one measurement that has by far the biggest effect on the ride experience and that is standover. The super short seat tube and low slung top tube make for a bike that never feels like it’s (going to be) in the way when things turn hairy. This S4 size easily acceopts a 210mm dropper. Some longer legged folk may even squeeze an even longer travel dropper in.
Despite the super low slung top tube and the rear suspension layout gubbins, there’s still space in the front triangle for a water bottle on the down tube and accessory botls under the top tube.
A quick note about the spec. The suspension fork and rear shock are excellent. The wheels are great. The handlebars lacked rise for a larger size frame bike. The rear tyre isn’t great (Maxxis Dissector) and while I’m fond of a classic Maxxis Minion DHF, there are better all-rounder front tyres available these days. A simple pair of Maxxis Minion DHR II tyres would be great.
As mentioned, perhaps the surprise/bonus of the Optic’s design is its climbing performance. You may suspect the idler introduces drag (and it does to an insignificant degree) and thus makes the bike better suited to gravity-assisted behaviour. But no, the super grippy rear end combined with the typically sorted Norco geometry makes for a bike that’s a fabulous technical climber. Mountain goat cliché stylee.
Although the geometry chart says the chain stays are 433mm, due to the rearward axle path the stays do extend as the rear shock compresses so are efferctively a bit longer than that. To further aid ascending, the seat angles get steeper as frame sizes go up. This is a real boon for taller riders who often end up rather stranded hanging over the rear axle when seated clmbing.
In terms of descending, while I’d like to see a slacker than 65° head angle leading the charge, the immense standover and healthy reach and wheelbase of the Optic do really help to keep things rubber side down. The head angle and the not-long 433mm chainstays are best suited to riders who are willing/able to loft and hop their way out of trouble. This is not me. If it sounds like you, then take an Optic for a spin. Preferably one of the less expensive builds.
Whilst the Optic definitely feels more capable than similar travel rival bikes. There are occasions when its magic runs out, the frame can’t bend the laws of physics any more, the shock bottoms out and your feet may blow off the pedals. And you may have a deflated rear tyre to repair. I would strongly recommend running a rear tyre insert.
Such is the way of the Optic. It is what it is. Which is a bike that out-accelerates, out-hustles and out-grips its ‘down-country’ mates but it will occasionally remind you that you aren’t on a 160mm+ travel enduro bike. But all in all, the Norco Optic will very probably be the fastest bike in the pack all-round averaged out.
Overall
The Norco Optic is a heck of a unique mountain bike. It’s a high-pivot idler, with the idler on the swingarm hence the ‘I-Track’ patent sticker and has ‘only’ 125mm of rear travel (the fork is 140mm travel by the way). How does this translate to the trail? Ultimately the Optic has incredible levels of traction paired with a high level of pedal response (the anti-squat is pretty high) and trail-pumping hustle. And it frequently gets you into a lot of trouble that the modest amount of suspension can’t cash the cheques for. There have been a whole load of “Woah Nelly!” moments on this bike. But, tellingly, no actual crashes. Which is both a positive and a negative trait. In my opinion, anyone buying this bike will see it as a positive. The Optic is one adrenaline-packed package. It’s bananas and I love it. I’m not sure I’d have one but I sure am glad fascinating and thrilling bikes like this still exist in a market dominated by homogenisation.
Norco Optic C1 specification
- Frame // Carbon, UDH, 125mm
- Shock // Fox Float X Factory, 185 x 50mm
- Fork // Fox 34 Float Factory GRIPX, 140mm
- Wheels // WeAreOne Faction Carbon rims on Industry NIne 1/1 hubs
- Front Tyre // Maxxis Minin DHF 29×2.5in, 3C MaxxTerra, EXO
- Rear Tyre // Maxxis Dissector 29×2.4in, 3C MaxxTerra, EXO
- Chainset // SRAM Eagle XO, 165mm, 30T
- Brakes // SRAM Code Silver Stealth, 180/180mm
- Drivetrain // SRAM AXS Eagle XO T-Type, 12 Speed, 10-52T
- Stem // One Up 35, 42mm
- Handlebar // One Up Carbon 35, 800x20mm
- Grips // Ergon GE1 Lock-on
- Seat Post // OneUp V3, 210mm
- Saddle // Ergon SM1 Enduro
Geometry of our size S4
- Head angle // 65°
- Effective seat angle // 77.25°
- Seat tube length // 430mm
- Head tube length // 130mm
- Chainstay // 433mm
- Wheelbase // 1,259mm
- Effective top tube // 641mm
- BB height // 346mm / 32mm BB drop
- Reach // 497.5mm
- Weight // 15.1kg
Review Info
| Brand: | Norco |
| Product: | Optic C1 |
| From: | Silverfish UK |
| Price: | £8,499 |
| Tested: | by Benji for 2 months |
Replies (3)
Comments Closed
Good review and a really interesting bike, but are you sure it doesn’t have a motor and battery somewhere? Can’t understand what they were thinking with that price otherwise.
Sounds like its in the same category of bike as the current “Downhiller’s XC Bike” – SC Tallboy 5. Way more capable or getting you into and out of trouble than the modest amount of suspension suggests.
I’m curious about this one having (briefly) owned a Deviate Highlander with 140mm travel and an idler and enjoying how it rode – apart from it feeling too small for me even in XL. Similar characteristics with shorter travel, the rearward axle path and idler are definitely interesting to me.
And yeah, price of that is ridiculous. Haven’t bothered to look at what the C spec is like for the sub-£5k price tag.
Someone has to pay for Minnarr’s wages. Didn’t hear anyone crying about the price of Santa Cruz in the Syndicate glory days. They were bloody everywhere.