I had mixed feelings coming to this Stanton Switchback Gen 3. Firstly, I’ve often slavered a little at Stanton frames friends have had, as they always look immaculate. When they do come into Singletrack, they also tend to swoosh straight through the office and right…
David Hayward
David started mountain biking in the 90’s, by which he means “Ineptly jumping a Saracen Kili Racer off anything available in a nearby industrial estate”. After growing up and living in some extremely flat places, David moved to Yorkshire specifically for the mountain biking. This felt like a horrible mistake at first, because the hills are so steep, but you get used to them pretty quickly.
Previously, David trifled with road and BMX, but mountain bikes always won. He’s most at peace battering down a rough trail, quietly fixing everything that does to a bike, or trying to figure out if that one click of compression damping has made things marginally better or worse. The inept jumping continues to this day.
Slicy Products Smooth Tyre Inserts, Sealant and Valves – Reviewed
David extends his tyre insert experience even further, with yet another test. This time, it's banana yellow Smooth Tyre Inserts from Slicy Products. Another foamy contender enters the ring. Hoop? Wheel. Cyclorise do these in two widths, a small one for tyre 2.2in - 2.6in,…
The Stif Squatch – More than just a big wheeled Morf?
Since launching the Morf in 2016, Stif have taken four years to develop and launch this Squatch, their first 29er hardtail. I respect that, because upfront it tells me they haven’t rushed this out the door and have probably taken the time to get things…
Behind The Design: crankbrothers New Shoe Range
crankbrothers have been working on a range of shoes for four years, and almost no one guessed. They’ve even been posting photos and videos of pros riding them for the past year, and this past season, there have been pro racers sat around in pits…
ENVE AM30 Wheelset | An indepth look
ENVE’s Foundation Series of carbon mountain bike wheels, launched earlier this year, is something entirely new for the Utah based company, who design and manufacture all their own carbon fibre rims in the US. They have a reputation for high end wheels, and with that…
Tested: Fasst Flexx Suspension Handlebars
David breaks out the digital calipers to test the effectiveness of the Fasst Flexx suspension handlebar. There's something undeniably nineties-sounding about suspension handlebars, especially given that these work with elastomers. Manufacturer Fasst have tested the concept with ATVs and motocross bikes since at least 2011…
Formula Cura 4 Brakes | Shiny Stoppers With Modulation and Power
David tests out the ever so shiny Formula Cura 4 brakes. Once he’s stopped looking at them, or himself in the reflection, how do they perform? Having tried a lot of high end brakes, I’d never actually got to try Formula’s before in spite of…
10 Mountain Bike Tyre Inserts Tested And Rated
David brings us a round up of the many, many tyre inserts that he has been testing. Which tyre insert might be right for you? Given the first review in here was four years ago, this is about as long as long-term grouptests get. I…
Review | SRAM AXS Eagle – Wireless Shifting That Works
David tests out the flagship SRAM AXS Eagle XX and X01 groupsets – will the wireless drivetrain stun him with its performance? Historically, I’m not a fan of mixing mountain bikes and electronics, but I have ended up riding AXS Eagle more than probably anyone…
Review | EXT Storia V3 – The Last Shock You’ll Ever Need To Buy?
The EXT Storia LOK V3 is a high end, Italian coil shock. I first spoke with EXT at Eurobike in 2017, but at the time they didn’t have a UK distributor. Enter Chris Porter, with Mojo Rising. Before talking about the hardware or the setup,…
Review | Manitou Mara Pro – Do You Like To Party?
Manitou, and parent Hayes Group have spent a while focussed on enduro-type products, from forks, to brakes, wheels and now this new Mara Pro shock. In Sanskrit, the word mara means “death”, which is pretty much the exact opposite of what I’d hope to get…
Sun Ringle Düroc SD37 Pro Wheels | For Rim Dingers
We sent David ‘Dinger’ Hayward out to beat up these Sun Ringle Düroc SD37 Pro wheels, available as both a rim only or complete wheelset option. Will his reputation as a wheel bruiser be dented, or will it be the wheels that take the damage?…
Manitou Mezzer Pro | Just The Right Amount Of Tuning?
We put the Manitou Mezzer Pro fork through a winter of hard use – did the testers come back smiling? There’s a particular place online where some bike mechanics share photos, and one of the perennial posts is bikes that have been built with the…
Giro 100 Proof Winter Gloves Review | Mittens For MTB?
Giro 100 Proof Winter Gloves Review. Are these winter riding mittens a contender for best extreme weather riding wear? Mittens are not something I’d typically use for mountain biking, mainly because of braking. Perhaps mittens are how we can all get faster and stop comfort…
Radon Slide Trail 8.0 Review | There’s A Lot To Like
David checks out the value packed Radon Slide Trail – a full suspension 29er – and finds there’s plenty to like. This Radon Slide Trail 8.0 arrived early in the summer, and after getting on well with Radon’s Cragger hardtail earlier in the year, I’d…
Review | Tannus Armour – Inner Tubes Ain’t Dead
If you’re still running tubes, this Tannus Armour will give you a little more protection on the trail. Tubes. The thing I always carry on rides, but haven’t had to use in years. I never bothered with tubeless when I lived somewhere flat, with trails…
Review | Formula Selva R – The most adjustable fork there is?
David rides the highly adjustable Formula Selva R fork. Will he get tweak fatigue, or find his perfect setting for every trail? A little under three years ago, I first rode Formula’s 35 fork. At the time, it was the best fork I’d ever ridden,…
Pepi’s Rokkline Tire Noodles
Pepi’s Tire Noodle is another foam sausage designed to fit betwixt rim and tyre, protecting both from those nasty pinch flats and dings. Due to their colour, which is much more fluorescent than my camera or screen can reproduce, these are probably the most Enduro…
Motion Ride E18 Linkage Fork | Anti-dive That Works
It might look unusual, but how will it ride? David checks out the Motion Ride E18 Linkage Fork. Around 2011, there was a conversation I kept on having over and over again. It concerned an object I carried and used a lot, about which everyone…
RockStop Tubeless Insert | Review
Can’t Stop The Rock. We’ve been warned repeatedly. It’s been received wisdom for decades, but now, thanks to Rockstop, could Apollo 440 be wrong? There’s a chance. The rock might be stoppable. Rockstop is made by a UK company, based in Cumbria and named Urofoam.…
Goodyear Newton EN Premium Tyres | Review
David checks out this pair of Goodyear Newton tyres, the latest MTB rubber from Goodyear. Despite starting out making bicycle tyres at the end of the 19th Century, from the mid-seventies, Goodyear took a 40 year break from bike tyres. That was, until they signed a…
Deaneasy ABS Fork Tune | Foam Inserts Reviewed
Foam! Truly this is mountain biking’s era of foam. No longer confined to the bit we sit on, there are now foam tyre inserts, vibration dampening foam-filled bars, rims filled with foam, and more recently foam fork volume spacers. Like this, the Deaneasy ABS Fork…
Review | Hellkat Pro AEC Tyre – For When The Going Gets Steep
David tests out the Hellkat Pro AEC, an enduro tyre from Kenda. Way back in the day, Kenda had a solid reputation in mountain biking and seemed to dominate. By a decade or so ago, that seemed to have fallen to competitors, who’d quickly made…
Review | Upcycle your SRAM 1×11 drivetrain with the e*thirteen TRS Plus 12-Speed Upgrade Kit
This clever e*thirteen TRS Plus 12 Speed Upgrade Kit is designed to upgrade your SRAM 1×11 drivetrain to 1×12 Five or so years back, 1x drivetrains were fairly new, and making cheaper ones by converting existing cassettes with expander cogs was all the rage for…
Review | The Rimpact tubeless tyre inserts are some of the best value rim protection you can get
Tubeless tyre inserts claim to offer additional protection for your mountain bike rim, so you can run lower tyre pressures for improved traction. The Rimpact Tyre Inserts are a relatively new option, so we got our local rim-dinger, David Hayward, to put them through the…
Review | The 2019 Radon Cragger 8.0 is a whole lotta hardtail for less than €2K
David gives us his review of the 2019 Radon Cragger 8.0 hardtail Radon isn’t a name that tends to come up much in discussions I have about bikes. One of the lesser known brands in the UK perhaps, and though not unheard of, never reputed…
Review | For £450, the X-Fusion Sweep RL2 is a big-hitting fork for those on a budget
Alongside the plethora of high-end mountain bike suspension forks out there from Fox, RockShox, Öhlins, MRP and Cane Creek, the £450 X-Fusion Sweep RL2 is pretty darn cheap in comparison. Is it cheap on performance too? We gave a set to local Calderdale skipping stone,…
Review | Vibration-Killing Pro Series RevGrips
£99 for a pair of mountain bike grips? You read that correctly. But as David Hayward found out, the RevGrips ain’t no ordinary lock-on grips Vibration is a well known cause of nerve injuries. I’ve personally suffered from the effects of a bad handlebar combined…
Review | Nukeproof ARD Tubeless Inserts
Tubeless tyre inserts claim to offer additional protection for your mountain bike rim, so you can run lower tyre pressures for improved traction. Nukeproof’s Advanced Rim Defence (ARD) system is one of the newer inserts on the market, so we got our local rim-dinger, David…
Review | Judgement Day For The Trust Message Multi-Link Suspension Fork
The Trust Message is undeniably strange compared to anything we’re used to seeing on the front of a mountain bike. Its originators are three bike industry heavyweights: Dave Weagle, rear suspension designer extraordinaire; Jason Schiers, founder of EDGE (now ENVE) Composites, and Hap Seliga, co-founder…
Review | The Panaracer PanDura is a fast-rolling tyre with some surprises on the trail
Though many mountain bikers will know Panaracer for the classic Smoke & Dart tyres (which are still in production!), the Japanese tyre manufacturer has been busy adding a load of newer tread offerings, including the PanDura shown here. To find out how this enduro/all mountain…
Trust Performance Message: Testing This Bonkers Carbon Linkage Fork
We take the latest carbon fibre linkage fork on the market and test it in the U.K grit and mud. Keep reading for our Trust Performance Message linkage fork review. Trust Performance surprised everyone when it released the bonkers Message linkage fork back in October.…
Review | Flat Tire Defender tubeless inserts are easy on your rims, but hard on your hands
Tubeless tyre inserts claim to offer additional protection for your mountain bike rim, so you can run lower tyre pressures for improved traction. The Flat Tire Defender is a US-made foam insert that is used by none other than a Mr Aaron Gwin. To find…
Review: The ShredMate Computer lets you know how rad (or not) you really are…
ShredMate recently introduced a GPS sensor designed for your mountain bike, but as it turns out, this ain’t no ordinary trip computer. As well as recording your riding speed, distance and route, the ShredMate will also tell you how hard you were railing a berm,…
Review: The Magura HC 1 – Finger Brake Levers Change The Way Your Brakes Feel
A lever blade may seem like an odd thing to review, but as one of the contact points for your bike, it’s important. Magura started offering these single finger HC levers as an upgrade a few years ago, over the (at the time) stock two-finger…
Review | Panzer Rim Protection takes on the big guns of the tubeless tyre insert world
Tubeless tyre inserts claim to offer additional protection for your mountain bike rim, so you can run lower tyre pressures for improved traction. The Panzer insert is one of the latest to arrive on the market, so we got our local rim-dinger, David Hayward, to…
Review: The Cane Creek Helm Coil Fork – Is it better than the Helm Air?
Shortly after releasing its very first mountain bike suspension fork, the Helm, US brand Cane Creek brought out a coil-sprung version. And having amassed no fewer than 7 months of test time aboard this long travel, coil-sprung fork, David Hayward is ready to deliver his…
Review: Hayes’ new Dominion A4 may just be some of the best 4-piston disc brakes we’ve tested
Hayes recently debuted a brand new hydraulic disc brake called the Dominion A4. Designed as a powerful 4-piston disc brake for trail, enduro, downhill and e-MTB use, the Dominion A4 is an absolutely crucial product for the Hayes Components group. To see whether the Dominion…
Review: Is the Liteville 301 MK14 the most German mountain bike on the market?
German brand Liteville sent us the 14th iteration of its 301 full suspension trail bike, which is quite possibly the most over-engineered mountain bike we’ve ever laid our hands on. Naturally, we put it in the hands of our local lover of all things German…
Love running really low pressures? We review the CushCore Inner-Tyre Suspension System
When it comes to protecting your rim from damage while running low tyre pressures, CushCore is one of the best-known options on the market. To see just how tough it is, we got our local rim-dinger, David Hayward, to put them through the grinder as…
Review | Vittoria Air-Liner Tubeless Tyre Inserts provide maximum fit-and-forget protection
Tubeless tyre inserts claim to offer additional protection for your mountain bike rim, so you can run lower tyre pressures for improved traction. The Vittoria Air-Liner is one of the newest on the market, so we got our local rim-dinger, David Hayward, to put them…
Review: Brake Force One’s 2nd generation H20 disc brakes are filled with…water?
This isn’t the first time we’ve tested the H2O from Brake Force One. We first reviewed them in our disc brake group test last year, but they weren’t exactly quirk-free. BFO then sent us out a revised version of the H2O brakes, so we put…
Review: Shimano GR7 vs GR9 Flat Pedal Shoes
Shimano unveiled a brand new line of gravity-oriented flat and SPD shoes last year, and since then we’ve been testing a whole swag of them. Two such shoes are the latest GR7 and GR9 models (GR = flat pedal specific), which we decided to give…
Review: This 185mm long Revive dropper post from BikeYoke is better than the original
Shortly after the original BikeYoke Revive dropper post was introduced, we tested and reviewed one. Full of promise with its super-slick action and clever IFP-free hydraulic internals, it wasn’t without fault however. BikeYoke has since updated the Revive dropper, adding a huge 185mm travel version…
After 8 months of foul-weather testing, here’s our review of the OneUp Components Aluminum Flat Pedals
Having tested no fewer than 17 flat pedals in last year’s epic group test, David Hayward has developed a keen eye (or is that foot?) for detail when it comes to assessing a flat pedal’s feel and performance. So when OneUp Components decided to enter…
6 Carbon Wheels Under £1500 Abused & Reviewed
Carbon wheels are creeping down in price, but are they worth the outlay? David Hayward and the team have been testing six sets under £1500 to see how they compare. It’s often said that wheels are the best place on a bike to shed weight,…
Sixth Element combines tough Asian-made carbon rims with bulletproof UK-made hubs for the Race SE 34.28 wheelset
In Issue #116 of Singletrack Magazine, David and the crew tested six sets of sub-£1500 carbon mountain bike wheels. We subjected all of these wheels to the same bikes, the same tyres, same air pressures, riders, trails, weather conditions and abuse, all the while keeping and…
Review: The silky smooth Mavic XA Pro Carbon wheelset will have you dancing on the trail
In Issue #116 of Singletrack Magazine, David and the crew tested six sets of sub-£1500 carbon mountain bike wheels. We subjected all of these wheels to the same bikes, the same tyres, same air pressures, riders, trails, weather conditions and abuse, all the while keeping and…
Review: At less than a grand, the Bontrager Line Pro 30 is one of the best value carbon wheelsets we’ve tested
In Issue #116 of Singletrack Magazine, David and the crew tested six sets of sub-£1500 carbon mountain bike wheels. We subjected all of these wheels to the same bikes, the same tyres, same air pressures, riders, trails, weather conditions and abuse, all the while keeping and…
Review: Merida One-Sixty 7000
The One-Sixty is Merida’s longest travel full suspension bike, with 160mm of rear travel and a 170mm travel fork. Designed as a big, burly all-mountain rig made for going down steep and rough things very fast, we put the One-Sixty test bike into the paws…
Review: The Mavic XA Elite Wheelset Is Less Than £500 And Is Tough As Nails
We gave a set of Mavic XA Elite wheels to our resident wheel destroyer to see just how durable they are