A Sneak Peek at The New Eminent Onset MT - Pond Beaver 2020
Eminent first emerged at the tail end of 2017, when they launched the Haste, which had 27.5" wheels and 160mm of travel. That was followed up by the 29" Onset LT, ST, and soon, the Onset MT.
The Onset MT is a 155mm travel 29er and will actually take the place of the Haste. That 155mm of rear travel is being paired with a 160mm fork, and it's entirely possible to run a 170mm if you want some more party up front.
The geometry was also matched to the harder charging nature that the increased travel defined. Eminent increased the headset recess in the frame allowing them to run a -1 degree headset which brings the head angle to 64.5-degrees. There's an addition of an XL size with 488mm reach, and all the Onset MTs benefit from internal dropper post routing.
Eminent use their AFS, or Active Float System for the bike's suspension, which some people might recognise as similar to the old Yetis and Rotecs. Some examples of this layout suffered greatly with stiffness issues, but Eminent report that this wasn't the case with the Onset bikes. Nevertheless, they say they've upped the rear end lateral stiffness on the Onset MT by 11% by altering the layup in the chain stay.
The AFS system also uses a floating shock, connected to only the long upper rocker link and chain stay with a shock extender to help bridge the gap. There's a floating brake bracket too, which slides back and forth as the suspension cycles.
All bikes in the MT line come specced with Shimano four-piston brakes and 12-speed drivetrains, KS dropper posts, and e*thirteen wheels clad in Vittoria tyres. Depending on model there will be options with the Fox 36 Rhythm or the 38 Grip 2 fork and either the new DPX2 or X2 shocks.
There's also the addition of a limited edition blue and gold colourway, as well as the currently available grey and orange one.
Full details, specs and pricing will be released on the Eminent website on the 30th April.
Photography by Alex Ingram & Jake Vanheel
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83 Comments
They are running headset angle reducers to make the bike seem modern because they can't redo the molds.
An 11% increase in stiffness? Why didn't you do that to begin with.
A design that other brands have found 'too flexy' is OK because 'trust us - OK'.
Alright, i appreciate everyone's replies, and this is what i draw from it.
-Traditionally lawwill link bikes had the front pivots more 'opened up' than the pivots near the dropouts, leading to braking weirdness and a negative association when they were available. This isn't an inherent lawwill problem, but a problem with old models that's difficult to get away from and retain good stiffness.
-Since the 'rear triangle' is basically just the dropouts, you can't connect the two sides of the rear triangle. Either you have to seriously over-build the links/stays, or you have a flexy rear end.
-Ultimately, execution is more important than which linkage is used, so a well-executed single pivot or short-link bike can offer a better ride experience and is much easier to design and market.
forums.mtbr.com/frame-building/what-happened-lawwill-link-988034.html
'Back in the day' I owned a Yeti DH6. It was flogged out and rode like a noodle but OMG the suspension worked so well.
As for this thing......if they mounted the shock more traditionally I'd consider it. As it stands aesthetically its not working for me although I understand they ride really well.
1) climbing ease & efficiency vs other similar bikes in this travel range (plus it will goto 180mm front); 2) supreme ground tracking while still allowing for nimble feel & easy jumping; 3) capability to change to lesser travel (120/140 "ST" or 130/150 "LT") by changing the shock strut & shock.
Coming from a YT Capra I can easily say the tank-towing-a-schoolbus feel of a Capra uphill will never be missed (Capra is awesome going down) and I suppose its the floating shock-strut connected to the chainstay that makes climbing easier & makes the bike feel more planted - a deeper feeling I've not even had w/ coil shocks yet. The floating brake system is pretty badass too - hard to even describe what that feels like.
The in-the-ground feel is something else, easily the best I've felt yet (decades riding) but the ability to change the travel from 155/160 and even up to 180mm (I emailed the owner/engineer & he confirmed this) down to 120/130 (ST) or 140/150 (LT) is pretty baller and makes this bike feel even lighter & livelier - ya just have to buy the shorter travel shock.
Anyway - I ain't tryin' to sell ya, but am saying 1) whining above w/o riding this (or any) bike is junk and 2) this thing is a shredder at all travel lengths and far more fun in short travel than any other shorter travel bike I've ridden.
I'm already there.
My knees: "Ouch"