Zumbi F-11 - Review

May 14, 2014
by Alasdair MacLennan  


Zumbi might not be the name at the forefront of people’s minds when it comes to choosing a bike. But originating in the Polish town of Myslenice they are on the doorstep of some incredible riding and are brainchild of passionate owner, Pawel Matuszynski. Despite being a small company they have previously fielded a World Cup team, and continue to have a strong presence around the world. Tested here is their F-11, an enduro race-ready frameset custom tuned to our tastes. And when we say custom we do mean custom, for the geometry is all of our own choosing, a service that Zumbi are happy offering to any prospective purchaser. For those interested in the background of Zumbi, Pinkbike had an interview with Pawel late last year which can be found here.
Zumbi F-11 Details
• Intended use: all-mountain / enduro
• Rear wheel travel: 140mm or 165mm
• Wheel size: 26"
• Aluminum frame
• Custom geometry
• FPS suspension design
• Price: Frame only, $1800 USD, custom geometry adds $100


Zumbi F11 images for review
  She's a bright one! Our Zumbi F-11 came painted in this rather attention seeking (and grabbing) fluorescent yellow. Definitely not the colour for you if you're of a shy and retiring disposition. Unfortunately it didn't stay this shiny for long, but it still stands out.

Zumbi F11 images for review
  The mountain goat offers up intentions of sure-footedness and this definitely rang true. Proud of their Polish heritage, Zumbi have a look that is at odds with swooping carbon and hydroformed shapes prevalent on so many bikes, but don't look any the worse for it.

Theory

When it comes to geometry, it can be an incredibly personal thing dependent on your own body shape, strengths and both what and how you ride. Taken to extremes that means an average sized rider in stature may like anything from a small to a large, or maybe even an extra large frame. Where the difficulty lies in this is when you have to compromise in one area to get another right, and this is where the beauty of custom geometry comes in. Obviously it helps if you know what you want to start with, and as a couple of small tweaks in the wrong direction could easily create a monster; this could even be considered crucial. Enough experience on numerous bikes has led us to know exactly what we want, and with this in mind we set out to create the perfect big mountain enduro bike with Zumbi. It’s fairly safe to say that building a bike specifically for a couple of races can be considered a frivolous exercise but with the remit that we were going to be racing the Megavalanche and several big races in Europe that was our game plan. With these races in our sights it was fairly easy to remove the features from a bike that we knew we’d have no need for, and instead introduce those which we knew would be advantageous.

Zumbi F11 images for review
  Ten years ago this would have been considered slack and long for even a downhill race bike. How times have changed - now even trail bikes have 65-degree head angles.

Zumbi F11 images for review
  The area around the bottom bracket is busy, with shock mountings (note that the shock basket on new frames now fits larger shocks such as the CCDB), internal cable routing exiting from the down tube, and forward mounting points for the lower linkage. The ISCG 05 tabs allowed us to fit our preferred eThirteen LG1+ chain device with a taco, although this has now been replaced with a narrow-wide eThirteen chainring. The taco remains for those misjudged moments.

Geometry

So what did we go for in the end? In the months up to the meeting with Zumbi we had come to realise that a large frame was definitely better for our body geometry, with most mediums just beginning to feel a little cramped as trails got faster and bigger with the better ability of trail bikes. In addition to this we’d spent a little time in the company of a Mondraker Dune with its Forward Geometry. Both of these thoughts combined to convince us that an experiment was definitely worth the risk. So with the longer geometry feeling just right, and essentially giving us a bike with the downhill-on-a-diet feel, we set about sketching out our ideal dimensions. First up was head angle, and with 67 beginning to feel all too steep for our riding we settled on 65 degrees with a 160mm Fox 36 fork up front. Top tube was a fairly reachy 635mm, combining with fairly short 430mm chainstays to give us a wheelbase at a fraction over 1203mm. Those figures certainly aren’t going to win any points for low speed agility but then that was never the intention and the reward is better handling at higher speed. Where Mondraker choose to use a super short stem we reduced the top tube to give us a bit more stem choice as well as a lower front, and opted to build the bike up with the then brand new Burgtec 50mm trail stem. It sounds reachy, and it is unavoidably so when pedalling, but the low standover height takes away any of the normal challenges associated with larger frames. This allows you to get really aggressive with the bike, helping to negate some of the reduction in nimbleness at lower speeds while giving plenty of space to shift your weight around for subtle balance changes on rougher and faster ground.

Zumbi F11 images for review

The Suspension

Move onto the heart of bike and you’ll see the FPS linkages marking the Floating Pivot Suspension system. There will of course be accusations that it looks like a DW link, but the similarity ends with the looks, because as with all of these designs which create a virtual pivot point (different than VPP) the key is in the angles of the linkages relative to each other and the resultant virtual pivot location. Dependent on your chosen emphasis, these linkages can be tuned to give different characteristics without drastically altering the physical design of the bike. On the F-11 the pivot is high and medium forward. With a 36T chainring this gave acceptable pedalling, and a suspension curve that ramped up noticeably, as can be seen in the second image, for both the 140mm and 165mm travel settings. This control was aided by a custom valved Fox CTD courtesy of Mojo, although stock bikes will come with the highly rated BOS Vip’r Air. When it comes to shock choice we were unfortunately somewhat limited to non-piggyback designs which is a shame as we were very keen to use the Float X, but Zumbi have now modified the design to accommodate even shocks as big as the Cane Creek Double Barrel Air. All said and done though, despite the slight disappointment in not using the Float-X, the CTD proved to be more than capable. Although a 165mm travel mode is available, we found that 140mm was perfectly sufficient for us and the advantage of this was that the shock wasn’t being worked so hard thanks to the slightly reduced leverage ratio. This only reinforced our belief in the performance that the rear end offered.

Zumbi F11 images for review
  A plan of best intentions; don't take for granted how difficult it can be to get cable routing just right. We had intended to run the brake hose, dropper line and gear cable down the downtube, out through the shock basket and then along the chainstays. Unfortunately, the last minute nature of this build left us short of a full sized tapered headtube which didn't leave us with sufficient space to run all the lines between the steerer of the fork and the inside of the headtube. Aside from this minor problem the theory seems sound, and by running the hose along the chainstays protected with some auto washer fluid hose, they're both out of harm's way.

Other Features

Being offered a custom build is a great way to introduce features to a bike that you find missing on those mainstream models, or modify things to suit the gear you’re running. In our case that meant deciding on internal cable routing, a tapered head tube, and cables exiting the downtube to run along the chainstays for maximum protection. We also ensured that the frame was compatible for the Reverb Stealth although also included the necessary guides to run the Fox DOSS that we knew we’d initially be building the bike with. We’d initially been keen to go for the 142mm rear axle but the very short notice build meant that only 135mm rear triangles were available, which was a shame, but not a deal breaker by any means. The only slight irritation was having to find all the old 135mm adaptors long since retired to the spares box, but short notice is short notice and if a 142mm back end wasn’t available there wasn’t much we could do about it. ISCG 05 was of course in place instead of any front derailleur mounts or cable routing. This may be a little extreme for some but with an 11-36T cassette and a single 36T ring up front we’ve not found any issues in over two years of riding with this setup. So a chain device in place it is, although with the advent of thick/thin chainrings this will soon be changed to a taco style device with no true chain guide.

Zumbi F11 images for review
Zumbi F11 images for review
Zumbi F11 images for review
Zumbi F11 images for review
  Handmade in Poland and proud. Being small means Zumbi manufacture most of their bikes to order, which makes it the ideal opportunity to give riders the option to personalise their frames with geometry and other little tweaks.

Ride Report

This is of course the primary concern above all else, and building it up in a side street of Les Deux Alpes was certainly a lesson in anticipation, matched with a little concern over how everything was going to piece together. We had literally thrown the boxes of new parts into the bike bag back home in Scotland, added a handful of tools, some spare bits we thought might come in handy and chucked it at the British Airways check-in crew at the airport. Nothing beats a lack of organisation for added stress. Luckily things went together reasonably easily, barring a few fruitful hunts for headset parts and hub adaptors which then led to the next concern; how would it ride? Jumping on it in the car park certainly gave us reason to be confident but a horizontal piece of tarmac is not a steep and rocky trail, so it was time to pick up the spare lift pass from the front of the van and go ride.

Zumbi F11 images for review
  We have no shame here in abusing bikes in the name of objective testing. And be in no doubt that turning up and punishing a bike for a week at the Megavalanche is tantamount to abuse. This was day one.

So just how well does the geometry work, and how does the back end deal with the trails we tested the bike on? Well first of all the length and slackness of the bike was immediately noticeable, and although we’ll separate out the suspension performance from the geometry the two are intrinsically linked, especially when it comes to stability. Our first rides were very much on what most riders would call big mountain terrain, with a combination of Les Deux Alpes and Alpe d’Huez trails rolling underneath the wheels. Rocks, braking bumps, narrow ruts, dust, wet grit; you name it and in our first week of riding we had the conditions. All those conditions combined with the amount of riding being done in a compressed space of time gave ample opportunity to get to grips with the bikes handling and set it up properly.

Zumbi F11 images for review
  Enduro racing is where a bike like this really excels, so it was three races in three weeks to put it through some challenges. The Megavalanche came first, followed by the Maxiavalanche in Cervinia before finishing up our European trip with the SRAM Enduro in Kronplatz along with several other mountain towns in between. The terrain might not be any different but racing does help show weaknesses and niggles with bikes; whether that be on the trail, or when wrenching on it in the evenings.

After a little experimentation we settled on 160psi in the rear shock with about 90psi in the fork for our 78kg clothed weight, pressures which were matched by reasonable use of the compression dials to keep control at both ends. In rebound, despite normally favouring a slower than slow setup on the rear shock we actually found that counterproductive on the F-11/CTD combination and settled for it slightly faster. In this way we still retained control in the first third of the travel to prevent any bucking but allowed the wheel to track the ground effectively the rest of the time. The fork was similarly sped up to match, taking them to the point where they were beginning to push wide before dialing back a few clicks to find the sweet spot. The ramp up of the spring curve was good enough to not notice any bottom out, harsh or otherwise, although the o-ring and swept area of the shock shaft indicated that we were using all available travel pretty regularly. The bike also felt consistent no matter what we were hitting with it, and this allowed us to continue pushing as hard as we dared, a great feature when you’re riding relatively unknown trails at speeds well beyond your ability to stop within your view. We’d certainly level some of that stability and consistency at both the wheelbase and head angle, both of which are firmly in downhill territory, but even so the bikes ability to deal with the rough was exemplary. And with mention of the geometry, how was that? On slower parts of the trails, and those who have ridden the Megavalanche before will know these bits, the length was definitely noticeable. Not so much that it was a hindrance, but you knew that you definitely needed to concentrate on your entry to the corner and get a little muscly to keep the bike working through. It definitely didn’t appreciate a t-bone as this lost the tractional advantage of that longer wheelbase and left you fighting to get that lost speed back. Through wheel sized braking bumps there were also noticeable improvements in fore/aft yaw, meaning you really could jump the bike into rough corners without fear of the front end tucking under. The ability of the bike to rail faster corners was also pretty much unhindered by mid-corner changes in surface or rocks, another element that allowed you to really trust what the bike would do in any given situation.

Zumbi F11 images for review
Zumbi F11 images for review
  Fully suspended by Fox. When we were building this bike up we were keen to get our hands on the new Float-X and match it with a pair of the 2014 spec 34 CTD's to confirm the improvements in tune over the previous model year. Unfortunately neither of these were available at the time so we settled for a tuned Float CTD shock on the back, tuned to the bike's suspension curve, and Fox's Factory 36 RC2 fork up front. They've been around a while, and on a bike like this the 34 would fulfill 97% of the same role, but they have still performed faultlessly in an easily tuned and straightforward way. Having now had a chance to ride the 2015 spec 34 CTD we'd have no hesitation in using that in place of the older 36, despite the larger chassis.

Since those alpine rides we’ve also had enough time to get used to it on our home trails of the Tweed Valley in Scotland. Replace rock with roots, dust with mud, and fast with steep and technical. In theory you would expect this to be the Achilles heel of a bike such as our custom F-11 but as with our first rides in the alps, we were shown just how capable a bike it is. We sped the shock up slightly to compensate for the lack of heat fade and felt perfectly comfortable getting aggressive with it from the start. Off camber traction is impressive, those supple initial few inches of travel providing enough give to keep the bike on an even keel even when the trail becomes greasy and interspersed with the white streaks of polished wet roots. Climbing is of course a slight disadvantage, and this was immediately apparent on our return from three weeks of riding with chairlifts. Not for the suspension, which while active seemed to suffer from absolutely minimal pedal input, but because the length of the front centre and head angle just put you in a less efficient place for it, and a place from which you can’t really escape. It’s not horrific by any means, and for us it is a worthwhile trade-off to gain so much more versatility and ability on descents, but it’s definitely a point worth noting if you’re considering the custom geometry route on any bike.

Zumbi F11 images for review
Zumbi F11 images for review
Zumbi F11 images for review

Issues

We’ve already touched on a few things that we would probably do differently given our time again, and we’ve also discussed changes with Pawel at Zumbi. Some of these are already in production. 142mm dropouts are now standard across both the 26” and 650B frames, and the shock baskets are now capable of accepting a Cane Creek DB Air shock which is about as large a shock as you’re ever likely to fit, doing away with the space issue we had when we wanted to fit a Fox Float-X to our bike. Another point we raised was that the taper headtube should also evolve from the external 1 1/8” and 1.5” cups on our frame to use the same ZS44/ZS56 semi-internal type headsets that have fast become almost standard across the industry. This is now standard on all new frames and allows for better internal cable routing as well as easing headset sourcing.

A final point we found was that, while absolutely fine for the original trail bike aims of the F-11, the shock mounting hardware and the lower linkage designs were both at their very limits when used for the bigger courses and we suffered a couple of bent bolts. It’s a point we’ve discussed at length already with Pawel at Zumbi and there are redesigns in course to eradicate these weaknesses. We believe the lower linkage issue to be down to the additional twisting forces brought upon it by the longer front end and the riding that we were therefore able to put it through. As with any small company development is ongoing and we certainly have no hesitation in believing that all these niggles are going to be resolved.


Pinkbike's take:
bigquotesIf you're looking at an enduro bike then you could do a lot worse than look to Poland and Zumbi with their F-11. In standard guise you get a bike with an efficient and highly capable rear end. Add in the option of custom geometry and a whole new world opens up along with a number of aesthetic changes which all combine to really produce an individual bike. Do you want an individual bike though, or would you prefer to go for tried and tested? If it's the former then the Zumbi offers a very credible option that can be tuned to cater for a wide range of riding, whether your focus is on the gravity assisted side of enduro or a more all-round bike that can ride all types of terrain, all day, every day. Given the number of options available, including the introduction of 650B, it's safe to say that there should be plenty of scope for you to get the exact bike you want.- Alasdair MacLennan


Author Info:
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Member since May 26, 2003
178 articles

114 Comments
  • 108 0
 Excellent review.

To partially quote a dead guy, your writing is "like a woman's skirt: short enough to arouse interest but long enough to cover the essentials."
  • 12 0
 Awesome Review. very thorough without being long winded Need more reviews from Alasdair
  • 16 1
 Thanks for all the good words and its awesome seeing the F11 full review here! Thanks Al! I still have some nice trails to show You around our mountains Wink Thanks Pinkbike! If You are interested in our frames and have any technical questions please contact me at pawel@zumbicycles.com
  • 4 0
 Zumbi - always a brand I overlook and I don't know why!!! I certainly will be checking one out next as the custom geo is very appealing to me , it looks fly also!!
  • 2 0
 The RAW frame looks MAN-SOME!
  • 2 0
 this bike looks awesome, but i m a bit scared by the tire clearance...
  • 18 0
 I've always liked this kind of square-looking aluminum frames with crude welding cords, Nicolai/Banshee style. the bastards look set to last a lifetime as well as having a really agressive geometry and a good suspesion system.
  • 6 73
flag chyu (May 14, 2014 at 4:29) (Below Threshold)
 Still making 26", Go home Zumbi , you are drunk.
  • 10 0
 It's available in 650b version so what are you talking about?
  • 3 0
 What now 26" are bad? Last time I rode my bike it was pretty much the same as before 650B and 29" came out, and please tell me what are your tire options in 650b??? Razz
  • 15 1
 They are old, not marketed and they make you slower when riding on the internet Wink
  • 2 1
 son of iron horse sunday....
  • 7 1
 How fast are the wheels depends on how little you brake, so no mater what size you ride, brakeless is faster Razz
  • 2 0
 @sidor666 most manufacturers are making 650 options for most of their tires.....
  • 3 0
 Yes, but so far you have wider range of 26" tires, not for long probably since it's no longer a standard wheel size.
  • 4 0
 To guataisi, Nothing crude about that welding mate, looks like very good work to me! Hand welded frames will always have little nuances and differences compared to mass produced machine welded frames and you get the added bragging rights of being on a hand built unique bike!
  • 1 0
 Maybe you're right, but as you know the welding cords are polished many times, so "unpolished" might be the right word here.
  • 10 0
 I liked how you added a lot more content about the set up (Psi and playing with HA and travel,) and why you did it. Added much more to the review. Props.
  • 8 0
 I'm the proud owner of the F-44 (DH Bike). I have dealt with Pawel for a number of years now, and I must say that the customer service has been second to none (better than I can imagine with much larger companies). I cannot fault Zumbi as a company or their bikes in anyway, and it's still a pleasure when you arrive at a trail centre/park with an unusual bike.
  • 9 0
 If your are interested in buyin a Zumbi in North America please get in touch with is as we are the North American distributor. Cheers.
  • 2 0
 Awesome good to know. It may be a few years before I feel comfortable customizing my own geo.
  • 3 0
 Bike looks great, just had a look at the website, you can alter effective top tube, head tube, head angle and wheel base.

Unsurprisingly you can't alter the seat tube angle, I presume as this would completely change the pivot location for the rear. That's the one thing I'd love to be able to change as someone taller than 95% of the population. Steep (>75 degrees) seat angle as I typically have 35+ cm's of seat pole showing this would keep me in an ideal pedaling location. Along with a 66 head tube angle, a BB high enough to aviod pedal strikes... that's a frame I would buy!
  • 5 8
 How does how tall you are alter the pedalling position via st angle IF the saet tube goes straight to the BB meaning that effective st angle stays the same regardless of seat height? Steep seat angles are nice for seated pedalling, for standing and cornering, not so much. I mean there is a compromise made. Take note the range of movement of our bodies and the dynamic character of MTB vs very static and very long dostance character of Road racing where "bike fit" plays a significant role. I'm not saying you are wrong, just consider this Wink One thing is sure, having set back seat posts available, designing a bike with 73-74 st angle is a good safe bet.
  • 2 0
 I just like to have a very forward position in the saddle, and pushing the saddle forward is generally not enough - or a reversed set back pole (can't with a dropper).

There is about 104cm / 40 inches between my saddle and top of pedal the its in the 6 o'clock position. Frames like the Rune V2 (current bike) new Nomad (on order) rocky mountain (75 STA)... are getting towards were I want to be, although effective STA tend to be quite slack once you stick a 450mm pole on them.

On most frames, even XL frames this puts my saddle position well back towards the rear axle, terrible place for climbing. With the advent of the dropper post, a steep STA has no negative for someone with excessively long legs to get a good climbing, cornering and descending position.

Hopefully my mumblings make some sense.
  • 3 3
 mhm... yes they do. I haven't thought of relation seat - back axle. But I am also a weird guy, I like short stays and have no probs climbing on them. In technicla terrain I actualy find them helpful as it is easier to get on top of a step. Thanks anyways Wink
  • 2 0
 Waki if in the seated position you are too close to the rear axle your front end will lift during steep uphill pedaling. It's not preference it's simple phisics. Weight distribution is very important for climbing.
  • 1 0
 "spaced", I think its a little of both.
  • 2 1
 No spaced, my ht has 405mm stays and 72 angle and I climbed the steepest sht there can be. Gearing maybe? Od have to try with a front mech and granny.
  • 3 1
 I even have it on film, but as you know, steepness is impossible to show on movies or pictures. I may put an edit on PB soon
  • 1 1
 1. If something is possible it doesn't mean it's the best solution. 2. In hardtail you don't have the back end sagging down and becoming slacker so 72 in a hardtail is probably way over 75 in a fully.
  • 2 2
 72 on my HT with 140 fork will be 73.5-74 yes. Good point. As I wrote in PM. As soon as we have 160mm fork up front, we can stop talking climbing efficiency. We are talking damage-control. Not saying you are not right, it was a good discussion, thank you for disagreeing with me.
  • 1 1
 Front travel is not a problem, Bar height from the ground is. If you have a low cockpit because for example you prefer good climbing than 160mm is not a problem Wink
  • 3 0
 Hey Waki, if your HT is the Hardtrail then I don't believe the measurement from the centre of the bb to the centre of the rear axle is 405mm, you have far too much tyre clearance for that! Anyway, for us tall freaks short stays work fine, but you need to make a steep seat angle and then extend the top tube/reach to compensate and give us a nice long wheelbase and keep everything stable, especially on those steep climbs.
  • 1 0
 ^ and descents(Im tall too).
  • 2 1
 I have far too little tyre clearance, while having far too much chainring clearance at the moment. I will exchange that. I think that chainstay length should be adjusted to frame size just as top tube is. So far I barely have time to take a sht. If you want to pursuityour dreams and follow your passion - Do not get kids!
  • 1 0
 It would seem to me that you have plenty of time - you are just spending it on Pinkbike. Don't blame your kids for the way you spend your time.
  • 6 0
 What's wrong with the looks?? Hydro forming isn't the only way to make bikes.
  • 3 1
 To all fellow riders DO NOT BUY A ZUMBI BIKE!!! it was the biggest mistake I have ever made! The quality of the bike was on par with a supermarket special (to be polite) and the customer service is a joke. I ordered a custom f11 based on this review and one other as a bit of a punt for a cheapish custom geo bike, ideal right??? Wrong!!!! Frame took 10 weeks to arrive despite being told 4, they charged me the paypal fees they should incur after a resolution for this (shock bushings and mech hangers to be supplied with frame) did they come did they f...! Frame was bent and welded bent despite their best effort to argue it was damaged in transit. Now I have 10 years experience in the bike industry and a frame laterally twisted with no stress marks or paint damage (unlike the attempted internal routing holes, that's another story..) with a bit of damage to the top of the box does not happen and if it does that frame is not fit for purpose! They informed me that the frame was fine and insisted me to build I got about a 1/4 of the way through to find that the mech hanger simply doesn't work with a shimano mech not unless you want more than 10,9,8 gears from your cassette! The shock didn't sit in the frame straight as I suggested to them and finally they admitted it was bent after trying to fob me off to get it built and find out the consequences down the line.. Despite the frame being so bad I couldn't complete the build I was not risking a brand new ccdb cs shock! After this they argued against a refund and luckily I was given favour in dispute by paypal however still hasn't refunded me the £70 (I'm legally owed) it cost to ship the piece of junk back. So after months of a promised refund I thought I would let the industry know about the risk of dealing with these cowboys. I will be doing a blog post with photos of the bicycle shaped object in my profile soon so all can see how horrific these frames are.
  • 5 3
 Yea! Sweet to see Zumbi on the first page in a great review. These days it is hard to see someone appreciate a product even if something's gone a bit wrong with it, like bent bolts. As long as the manufacturer is willing to improve that, it's great. The paradigm of a customer is for everything to be perfect and people expect the company like SPec or SC lick their balls for even considering buying their frame. How many people feel that the customer carries some responsibility as well?

Kudos to you Alasdair, you are the man Wink

Cheers!
  • 2 0
 The most interesting part of that entire story is that you've had trail time on a 2015 Fox 34! Well....come on....what's it like?!?
I've heard rumours that the 2015 damper is a HUGE improvement from the 2014 but no "official" review as yet!
  • 2 0
 Great looking bike. I probably like it because there are so many similarities with my Banshee Spitfire V2; very similar geometry as my XL, with the same fork, and rear-suspension is basically the same design. Same long/low/slack, almost to a T, and it sounds like it rides very similar which is not a surprise.
2 thumbs up for long/low/slack trail bikes!
  • 4 0
 Truly a work of art, and not that expensive for a handmade bike (thanks to it being made in poland I guess).
  • 4 0
 Tight. I wish more companies could do custom stuff, or make more XL bikes i'm happy either way
  • 2 0
 Good article and nice pics. But, why don't you have a full non-drive side picture of the bike? I hate it when I can't see the full suspension system that is being showcased.
  • 1 0
 So basically a Balfa two step, total copy if it really check it out, dam, just when you think we are evolving and yet back to the same old same old, but i ll give them +10 on the machining, its very clean and nicely done
  • 1 1
 It is so great to se a frame made in it's country of origin. I really like Zumbi frames. They have a soul !! In this particular model I would like to see some kind of gusset there, but that's just me. I like gussets, it makes the area stronger and adds some beauty (according to my tastes). :-)
  • 7 3
 If you like gussets then I bet you love Nicolai, however they got calmer with that lately. Their frames used to have more welds than HMS Prince of Wales
  • 1 0
 You bet right! I actually own 2 of their frames. Their M-pire frame is my all time favourite. ;-)
  • 3 0
 I thought it was a steel front end at first, which is a good thing, looks-wise. Steel or round-tube-with-gussets alu frames look a lot more elegant to me than those hydroformed monsters.
  • 1 1
 I was hoping for a gusset near the bottom bracket. the 2 plates dont inspire confidence.
  • 2 2
 All I'll say is, be prepared for Dave Weagle to come knocking. I'm not normally one to get into these debates, but that is identical to a DW link system. It's essentially a Turner 5 Spot. Remember how much he flipped his shit with Trek's ABP system, which was only partially the same as split pivot?
  • 4 1
 Dave can knock but no one will answer. every dual mini link "looks" the same but thats it.
  • 1 0
 If anyone would like to purchase an F11 Or any zumbi frames or full bikes please get in touch! We are the main uk dealer for zumbi in the uk! Smile
  • 1 0
 only by having that name! I've bought on time! style shut up and take my money! funny! more of the same in that color. it seems that is the color of the moment! wtf!
  • 5 2
 Burgtec Carbon Handlebar? tahts more intersting
  • 1 0
 Review will be up shortly!
  • 3 0
 No carbon? No 650b? How did you even make it down the mountain?
  • 2 0
 We need more reviews like this one. It covered lots of details and a wide range of positives and negatives of the bike.
  • 2 0
 Hey!! Wtf!? It's got wheels and a frame! It must be a rip off of.... A bike!
  • 1 0
 Sweet looking bike an props to the guys behind this for having balls to take on a project such as!!!
  • 3 1
 every good bike is based off an ironhorse sunday!
  • 1 0
 and balfa 2step, schwinn rocket 88...
  • 1 0
 Absolutely beautiful bike, would love to have a thrash on it and one of the better reviews I've read on pinkbike.
  • 2 0
 I like it, good old school look with modern geo
  • 2 1
 Also the italian brand MDE offers a custom geometry since a lot of time,and their price tag is very reasonable Smile
  • 2 0
 Too bad pinkbike banned us Americans from riding enduro bikes :/
  • 1 0
 We can still ride em, but what we learned is that they are called mt bikes until your actually ridng one in an enduwoe race...then your enduwooring
  • 2 0
 I want more TIG pictures
  • 2 0
 And are those Vernier calipers in the second photo? It's not every day you see a set of those.
  • 3 0
 Yeap, proper ones to that take a real engineer to use not like the easy digital ones Smile
  • 4 0
 Ha, more like he can never find a little watch battery every time the digital callipers go flat (that's why I use Verniers).
  • 1 0
 I like to keep it oldschool Wink
  • 1 0
 I prefer dial calipers myself. No hysteresis like digital (or battery), and I can set my zero anywhere. I do like seeing people fight their way through vernier micrometers though.n
  • 1 0
 Looks Slack on the first photo
  • 1 0
 So... They're sticking with the name then ?!
  • 2 0
 Weight?
  • 1 0
 3.15kg/6.94lbs... from their site
  • 2 0
 Zip ties FTW!
  • 1 0
 Simple. Purpose built. Function over form. I say, well done.
  • 1 0
 Hi!!!! My name is Angelo Castro From Chile, Send to Chile?
  • 1 0
 Nice rear suspension design. DW must look at this...
  • 1 1
 I just hope u can choose black or raw... kona kinda got caught w/3yr old colors too.
  • 1 0
 The RAW frame looks MAN-SOME! Will a DBBC Air w/ CS fit this frame?
  • 1 0
 yes, the Cane Creek DB Air fits in the frames made now. and this is the 650B with CC DB CS Air version www.pinkbike.com/photo/10823183
  • 1 0
 The frame looks like a unreleased proto. I like it!
  • 1 0
 Glad to see a 26' on PB. Great job Zumbi
  • 1 3
 Jared Graves bike is not even 45" long and is at the top on the enduro circuit .
This 1203mm long limousine will never win races.
  • 2 1
 Yes but at the same time the bike is a custom geometry for the pilot... I think he knows what he wanted!!! Maybe Jared Graves would have done it differently but that is the beauty of CUSTOM geometry And by the way Jerome Clementz is at the top of the enduro circuit...
  • 1 1
 Jared uses the same frame anybody can buy ,no custom crap. Im sure this zumbi is good as long you don't do switchbacks.
  • 2 0
 You can get whatever wheelbase you want with this bike.
  • 1 1
 Haha, in the intervening 7 years since I spec'd the geometry on this bike, how's this comment working out for you @endurocat ? Wink 1205mm wheelbase is short these days, guess I was a bit ahead of the curve! Only reason I came back to this was I couldn't remember the geometry of this bike for another project and thought I'd put a geo table in here. Turns out not. Anyway, Zumbi's Large is now exactly the same geometry as this bike, and most now are longer, lower and slacker.
  • 2 3
 is there an enduro specific model??
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