First Look: Banshee's Prototype Phantom 29er - Sea Otter 2013
This is Not a XC Race Whippet Well designed short travel bikes have long held a special place in our heart, and we often ramble on about how much more fun a lot of trails can be on the right 'little bike'. It has become apparent that we aren't the only ones who think like this, though, with more and more companies offering shorter legged bikes that are truly intended to be ridden hard not just up a climb, but also on some serious terrain back down. Judging by the look of their new 100mm travel Phantom 29er, Banshee is one of those companies who also see the light. While the bike's travel isn't set in stone quite yet - it may be upped to 110 or 115mm - it is pretty clear to see that the crew at Banshee is not aiming to produce your typical 29''-wheeled race bike... relatively slack geometry, ISCG-05 tabs and Reverb Stealth routing, as well as Banshee's usual approach of favouring reliability and rigidity over maximum weight savings, all point to a machine that has been designed for riders who like to whoop it up on the downhills. | Phantom Details • Short travel trail bike • Rear wheel travel: 100mm (production could be 110 - 115mm) • Utilizes Banshee's KS Link suspension • 69° head angle w/ 120mm fork (1° adjustment via dropout positions) • Reverb Stealth routing • 12 x 142mm or 135mm QR dropouts • ISCG-05 chain guide tabs • Possible 2015 model year production • MSRP: $2,000 USD apprx (frame w/ FOX Float CTD shock) |
The KS Link design employs two small forged links, shorter than those required of the older VF4B system that Banshee used to use. These stout links make for a very solid chassis, a fact that we can attest to after spending time aboard their 160mm travel Rune platform, and it also means that there should be less stress on each pivot bearing, thereby helping durability. Keith Scott, the man who pens each and every Banshee, and from where the KS Link takes its name from, has tweaked the pivot locations and suspension kinematics to meet the requirements of the short travel Phantom, but three of the four pivot locations are still captured within the frame, just as found on their long travel designs. While the Phantom likely isn't going to be the first choice for a true cross-country racer (and that's not the bike's intentions anyway), our experience on the Rune showed that the KS Link layout offers one of the more energetic rides out there right now - the Phantom will very likely provide the same performance.
Frame Details
There was a time when bikes with 100mm of travel had head angles that felt like they were close to 90° on anything
wwww.bansheebikes.com
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I'd love pick up a banshee rented a scythe a while back and that was a blast... too bad the bank account says thats the only scythe i'll be riding for a while
looks like a Rampant 29'er with longer seat tube for pedalling duties
talking of the Rampant, when are going to see the Banshee Rampant migrate to the K.S. suspension / ball bearing platform?
m.vitalmtb.com/videos/features/Race-Face-2013-Sea-Otter-Classic,20564/faultlinetv,5726
But 1) they wouldn't try it out on a Shimano 10-speed system and 2) LOOK AT THE f*ckING BIKE. If you still don't see what I'm saying, look at their website: the ring is a standard 9/10 speed single ring. raceface.com/components/rings/rings/single-ring
Then look at the first, no guide. Do you think they would risk having a dropped chain on a demo bike?