First Look: BMC Speedfox Trailcrew

Jun 3, 2015
by Paul Aston  


BMC have always been strong proponents of 29ers, and their enduro race team firmly believe that the bigger wheels are faster. However, the public will always have a louder voice than the sport's elite athletes, and the Swiss company's product team have given in to dealer demand, creating a new addition to the Speedfox series - the Trailcrew. The new bike sports 150mm of travel front and rear, and rolls on 27.5" wheels. Initially, the plan had been to tweak the geometry on the existing 29" wheeled Speedfox, but those plans changed, and the new ride has been designed from the ground-up, with the intention of creating a more fun and lively bike than its bigger wheeled sibling.

Trailcrew Details
• Intended use: trail / all-mountain
• Wheel size: 27.5"
• Rear wheel travel: 150mm
• Carbon main frame and alloy rear triangle
• Removable ISCG mounts
• 428mm chain stay length
• 66.5° head angle w/ 150mm fork
• Sizes: XS, S, M, L, XL
• Price: $5899 USD (Trailcrew 02)
bmc-switzerland.com


BMC Trailcrew Launch 2015
The front triangle of the Speedfox Trailcrew 02 is constructed from carbon fiber, while the rear end is aluminum. A full aluminum version is also available.
BMC Trailcrew Launch 2015
BMC makes concessions for a front derailleur by including a S-type mount, but doing away with it would give much a cleaner aesthetic.

Frame Details

The Speedfox Trailcrew 02 is constructed with a carbon fiber front triangle and an aluminum rear end, while the Trailcrew 03 model is a full aluminum affair. The frame maintains the clean look of the 29” version, a mix of curves and angles that give it a very refined appearance. Internal cable routing is in place at the front of the bike, with a generous access port at the bottom of the frame that should make housing swaps a relatively painless experience. The dual-link suspension layout leaves plenty of room for a water bottle inside the front triangle, a design feature that's always nice to see, and one that can be harder to accomplish on longer travel bikes.

BMC Trailcrew Launch 2015

Suspension Design: BMC's Advanced Pivot System is in place on the Trailcrew, a suspension design that uses two short aluminum links to join the rear swingarm to the front triangle and rear shock. According to BMC, the bike's rear suspension is intended to feel plusher than previous iterations, with enough ramp up at the end of the stroke to avoid any harsh bottoming out.


BMC Trailcrew geometry

BMC Trailcrew specs


Geometry: The Speedfox Trailcrew keeps the roomy front center that's the hallmark of the 29” version, and with five sizes available riders of all heights should be able to find a bike that fits their needs. Smaller wheels allow for shorter chainstays, and at 428mm the Trailcrew's fall into the 'relatively short' category. With a 150mm fork the bike's head angle is 66.5°, a number that's intended to preserve a bit of handling quickness without sacrificing stability in the steeps.

Components: Both the alloy and carbon versions of the Speedfox Trailcrew have the same quantity of travel at 150mm front and rear, and come ready to shred with chunky 2.4" Onza Ibex rubber and tubeless ready wheelsets. A house brand BMC carbon bar measures in a 750mm and is paired with a 50mm stem. The proven and capable RockShox Pike RC sits up front on both models, and is balanced out with a Cane Creek Inline on the 02 model, and a Fox Float on the 03. Shimano hydraulic brakes help keep speeds in check, and a 203mm front and 180mm rear rotor ought to ensure there's plenty of stopping power on hand.

Those with a keen eye will notice that the lower model is still equipped with a 2x drivetrain, as opposed to the 02 model's 1x gearing. When questioned as to the reasons for not adopting a 1x setup across the board, BMC said that many of their dealers still prefer to offer this option to their prospective customers.


BMC Trailcrew Launch 2015
A port on the bottom of the downtube makes dealing with the internal cable routing as trouble free as possible.
BMC Trailcrew Launch 2015
The Shimano brake caliper is tucked away from harm.
BMC Trailcrew Launch 2015
The 02 comes fitted with chunky Onza Ibex 2.4 tires as standard equipment.
BMC Trailcrew Launch 2015
A laser etched sag indicator, marked with 'hard' or 'soft' simplifies rear suspension setup.


Pinkbike's Take:

bigquotesWe were able to get a brief ride in on the Trailcrew on the trails within close proximity to the Scotland stop of the Enduro World Series, an ideal place to get a first impression of how the bike would handle some properly steep terrain. The bike was set up with what initially felt like less rebound damping than we'd usually run, combined with a decent handful of low speed compression damping, but BMC engineer Guillame Farin assured everyone that we should not adjust the settings during the ride. As it turned out, the bike remained poised, stable and alert to anything that was thrown its way while weaving through the tightly spaced pines. With 30% sag and the suggested shock settings the rear end feel planted and predictable, but we'll still need to spend more time on the bike to truly get the feel for it. In any case, the addition of a less serious member to the Speedfox family is a welcome one, and it's easy to appreciate a bike that's aimed at the reason the majority of us ride - for fun.


Author Info:
astonmtb avatar

Member since Aug 23, 2009
486 articles

86 Comments
  • 44 1
 awesome bike but the rear triangle looks a bit like a wrought iron garden chair
  • 29 1
 Surely that front derailleur mount is on the wrong tube??
  • 3 0
 Yeah... Got my little brain wondering...
  • 1 0
 can someone please answer how that would actually work?
  • 18 0
 Front derwhat? Whats that for?
  • 7 1
 Why does it even have a front derailleur mount?
  • 8 1
 That's Swiss engineering gone bad...and the rear triangle is pretty ugly on top of that.
  • 6 0
 Swiss engineering you say @EvilGarfield ?

www.redalp.com/EN/index.php
  • 1 0
 @sup3rc0w Are those for real ?? YIKES
  • 9 0
 cable tension provides additional anti-squat.
  • 1 0
 Oh god. I don't want this shock anywhere near my genitals!
  • 4 0
 The derailleur is mounted there so that it follows the chain as the suspension compresses and is able to shift smoother. A lot of full suspension bikes attach a front derailleur to the rear triangle instead of the seat tube, it just depends on how everything moves with the suspension.
  • 3 1
 Swing arm mounted FD isn't news, i.e. Ibis Ripley: onyourleftcycles.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/ibis-ripley-2-600x400.jpg
  • 1 1
 Why even have the RD mount? I mean most of the frames for harder riding have suspension designed around single ring use which leads to less performance with 2/3-by setups.
  • 5 0
 Pretty sure they intended it for opening beer bottles, no need for a front mech now a days. 8D
  • 4 1
 I'm pretty sure most didn't read the actual article... just looked at the pretty pictures...

"Those with a keen eye will notice that the lower model is still equipped with a 2x drivetrain, as opposed to the 02 model's 1x gearing. When questioned as to the reasons for not adopting a 1x setup across the board, BMC said that many of their dealers still prefer to offer this option to their prospective customers. "

As to why mount it to the swingarm... most front derailleur cages are optimized for a specific chainstay angle range, like 66 to 69 degrees... which is fine for hardtails, and not so fine for a suspension bike where the swingarm is and changing the effective chainstay angle by a good ten or fifthteen degrees. Also the fewer intrusions into the carbon lay-up of the main frame the better.
  • 2 0
 I actually did read it guess the sarcasm didnt get picked up
  • 1 0
 @chriskng that link is completely random and made me pause. That used to be my bike shop when I lived in Louisville. Great place.
  • 11 2
 Is it me or have they copied a giant reign?
  • 1 1
 It's more a mix of trance and reign.
  • 21 2
 Who gives a flying *uck? There are only so many ways you can make a bike.
  • 2 0
 The geometry is pretty much identical with a Banshee Spitfire V2 - but with 26" wheels. The reference for a capable, fast and fun shred bike.
  • 3 0
 They do look very similar. At a minimum, the linkage design appears to be basically the same as Giant's Meastro system with a solid rear triangle and two short co-rotating links, which is roughly the same as DW Link, KS Link, and the Kingdom Hex's suspension too for that matter (and probably some others I'm forgetting). But that's not to say it's just a clone. Obviously the different geometry can make a big difference, but also slight tweaks to the size and positioning of the links can have a very significant impact on the ride as well.
  • 5 1
 good looking bike

@paulaston
i agree on
"BMC makes concessions for a front derailleur by including a S-type mount, but doing away with it would give much a cleaner aesthetic."

but i want to run a 2 x 10 set-up on my bike for now and therefore like the given option. as i found out this year - there is not that much choice
and every bike that comes with it is more then welcom.

...and there are nice looking covers as well :-)
  • 4 1
 Industry Insider: You want to manufacture bikes or components that sell? Name it after an industry job! We've seen it already - Guide, Patrol, and now BMC with the Trailcrew.

...stay tuned for the Specialized Bike Mechanic!
  • 4 0
 The 2016 Trek Chairlift Operator.
  • 3 0
 The 2016 Trek Chairlift Operator comes equipped with a modified version of in-frame storage for extra large bongs. I'm pretty certain that moderate to high consumption of the sticky icky is a requirement of the job.
  • 1 0
 I think they're not showing anything exceptionally good, - neighter great technology and looks, nor exceptional package... For this price their 650b bike wont get easy in this market. I would look other options if i'm buying new bike (giant maybe,or mondraker). Although it looks great. So swiss'es will buy it Big Grin
  • 1 0
 Needs the Lindarets bottle opener that fits where front derailleur is mounted. I also don't see how the rear triangle works for a front derailleur. Am I missing the obvious?
  • 1 0
 ......I guess it remains in the same position relative to the chain but seems strange.
  • 3 0
 Cane Creek on a Swiss bike FTW
  • 1 0
 why not?
  • 2 0
 Adjusting for brake rub is a major pain in the ass with that type of caliper mount....at least trailside....
  • 3 0
 Giant Trance?
  • 1 0
 internal routing... until you get to the BB area where they're most vulnerable?! That's facepalmingly stupid.
  • 2 0
 20mm bb drop. I'm out. I want to pedal it off road.
  • 1 1
 Looks like a nice light bike. Although on picture 3, some of the welds look poor. Especially on the Y shaped piece.
  • 6 4
 Man that is sexy!
  • 4 7
 "When questioned as to the reasons for not adopting a 1x setup across the board, BMC said that many of their dealers still prefer to offer this option to their prospective customers."----> bikes designed by roadies, for ROADIES hahhah
  • 2 1
 For people who won't merely ride chairlifts to get to the top...
  • 1 0
 With that travel its more of an Enduro rig... sick tho!
  • 1 1
 missing a water bottle holder. only in enduro world do we read such nonsense
  • 1 0
 sure looks like the maestro suspension...
  • 1 0
 Are they crazy?! This has a lower BB than an Evil Insurgent.
  • 1 0
 Well, a 650B BMC.
  • 5 5
 They copied the Giant Trance !!!!!! They even took the same colors bitches
  • 1 0
 Nice swiss tires
  • 1 0
 soon the version 26 "Smile
  • 1 1
 Looks like a trek session...
  • 3 3
 Very nice.
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