Fun and comfortable to ride all day but could still be raced occasionally.
With this in mind I have set out on a researching frenzy to find the best four to five inch bike for the buck. What I've found is mind boggling.
Being a 29er single speed hardtail rider for many years now, the last time I looked seriously at a full squishy was when I bought the original Jamis Dakar XLT 1.0 back in highschool. It was great on the descents but a true pedal bobbing power robbing pig on the climbs.
I've been researching suspensions designs for two solid weeks now and the next bike I buy, whether it be a xc racer or an all day trail bike is going to have full suspension. I'm very impressed with the new systems out there.
The holy grail of any full suspension is a vertical axle path. The two biggest obstacles for any bike designer is to have a rear suspension that doesn't bob under pedaling inputs and doesn't stiffen up under braking. Pedal bobbing has to a large degree been alleviated by advanced shocks with special valving built in that counter acts pedaling forces (i.e. Pro Pedal for Fox, SPV for manitou). Braking is a completely different can of worms. I'm not an engineer and this shit get complicated really quickly, but to put in layman's terms, the more vertical the axle path in relation to the bottom bracket, the less changing chain tension affects the suspension, and the more active the suspension will be under braking. Basically there are a bunch of designs out there that are trying to do the same thing. It's too complicated for me to explain so i'm going to let the Mountain Bike Action dual Suspension encyclopedia explain.
http://www.mbaction.com/ME2/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=news&mod=News&mid=9A02E3B96F2A415ABC72CB5F516B4C10&tier=3&nid=64EA566E28D243838F273868DD20362A
They won't let me use the copy/paste function so go to their site and learn for yourself. Here is what any perspective full squishy buyer should focus on.
DW-Link: Pioneered by Dave Weagle, this is my favorite system. Check it out on Dw-link.com
Maestro: Similar to the DW-link and some say it's a patent infringement. It's Giants system and it's really sweet
VPP: Virtual Pivot Point. Used on Santa Cruz and Intense. A really good system as well.
ABP: Active Braking Pivot. Developed by Trek/Fisher and used on both bikes.
Horst Link: This is a Specialized patent with a pivot point below the rear axle and has set the bar for full suspension for many years.
Felt Equlink: I think this is similar to a dual linkage system like DW or VPP but with a fifth bar added. It looks really complicated
4 Bar: Kona uses the four bar system, but many other systems are considered four bar.
Magic Link: Kona's new system, I don't know much about it yet.
ETSX: Rocky Mountain's rendition of the Horst Link with the pivot moved slightly above the rear axle to avoid paying royalties to Specialized
Single pivot: The original and when executed correctly, can be as good as any of the others. Cannondale still uses single pivot, and Trek's design is basically a single pivot with the ABP
As you can see things get confusing quickly. After extensive research I think the best system is the DW-Link but finding a bike with this system at a $2500 dollar price point is proving very difficult. Anyone with any sugestions or personal experience should pipe up. There are very few deals here in Jackson and Jamie wants a bike for Moab in three weeks.
Doug "Full Suspension" Dale
4 comments:
Doug-
I wouldn't sweat the different styles too much, though there definitely are differences, with the Santacruz Superlight being at the pedal-input "hardtail" extreme, and a Specialized FSR (or Maestro/DW-link, depending on whether model is XC or AM) for independent movement (activity) and "plushness", with the Vpp, and 4 bars styles somewhere in the middle. Most are well-executed these days and all require proper set-up first and foremost. Maestro probably scores highest on advanced design + affordability.
I haven't ridden all the designs, and only some of them on trail, but the platform damping of the rear shock really is the most important part. I like my Rockshox fork a lot but have no experience with the Monarch shocks. But for the tried and true, find a bike with a Fox Float RP23. The RP2 has the same platform damping but as "on/off", not 3 different levels of propedal.
Also, the Felt system seems gimmicky. I had the chance to take the shock off of one and watch it through the movement, and all the extra bar does is add resistance to movement toward the ends of the travel, because it is a rigid connection between two linkages moving in different paths. This makes the shock rate more progressive, which can also be done simply by changing the shock mounting location in relation to the rocker link or swingarm. But maybe everything else about the felt equilink is great, I don't know.
Brian Williams
Brian,
Thanks for the input. I agree with you on the differences. I test rode a Pivot Mach 5 with the dw-link today and it's amazing but way out of a working man's price range. It pedals like a hard tail, but is still plush. We're going to find the best "bang for the buck" '09 that needs to get off the shop floor and go with it.
Doug
Doug, there is no suspension system that can handl you.
Levenworth 10,
Joel
RFL
(Rigid for Life)
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