Manitou's new air sprung McLeod shock comes fresh on the heels of their Mattoc fork (
spot the connection?) and is intended to be used on mid-travel trail bikes - think of it as competition to the Monarch inline models and FOX Float series. In the works for the last two years, the McLeod is the first completely new shock since the company was purchased by Hayes in 2006, and it is also the first shock that will be assembled 100% in-house at Manitou's Taiwanese facility. The shocks were previously put together by a contractor, but having them assembled in-house should allow Manitou to have much greater control over the process. Expect the Mcleod to be available this coming summer.
Coined Incremental Platform Adjust (
IPA) by Manitou, the black anodized aluminum lever controls the amount of compression damping that is put into use, with four different positions to choose from that each apply a different amount of blow-off pressure at the shim stack. While the first two offer a more active ride, the third and fourth settings can be thought of as a pedal assist feature to be used when climbing. Two small pre-drilled and threaded holes allow a remote to be installed easily should you want to control all of the above from your handlebar. The blue dial at the center adjusts rebound speed, and it's interesting to note that Manitou has decided to not use detents to define a certain number of clicks, but rather has left it to be set anywhere between fully open and fully closed.
The all black unit employs an air negative spring that Manitou told us has been designed to provide an incredibly supple feeling at the top of the stroke, something that is often a challenge for diminutive inline air shock, and you can expect different air can sizes to be available that can be teamed up with MCU volume spacers in order to tune the shock's progression.
www.manitoumtb.com
Its "INDIA" Pale Ale....doofus
MCCLOUD