Day 3 Randoms: Bespoked Show 2023

The European Bike Project is one of our favorite Instagram accounts because the feed is constantly updated with everything from tiny manufacturers to inside looks at European manufacturing. During Bespoked 2023, Alex is tracking down the most interesting mountain bikes for you.

SQlab


SQlab had a Starling Murmur at their booth that was built by one of their employees. He spent a ton of time polishing the cranks, chainring, brake levers, trigger paddle and even the dropper post.

It's hard to believe, but he used a lot of used parts for this bike. The extremely classy colour concept really made this bike stand out from the crowd, which is no easy task when you're at Bespoked.

"Never ever" he said when I asked him whether he'd build such a bike again - too much elbow grease was needed to polish all the parts.







Scar Cycles


Stefan from Scar Cycles says that this LFS (Light Full Suspension) Pinion build comes in at around 15 kg (33 lbs), which is a very respectable weight for a steel fully with a Pinion gearbox.

Thanks to the adjustable shock mount, the frame can be used with 190 x 40 (pictured), 190 x 45 and 210 x 50 shocks, resulting in 115, 125 and 130 mm rear travel. This build comes with a burly Bright Racing Shocks xCO fork in the front, which is set to 110 mm (remember Bright forks use a no-sag concept).

A few years ago Stefan built a 140 mm bike based on the same platform, but with a regular drivetrain. He says the owner was able to bring the weight down to 12 kg (26.5 lbs), even though he's running a 140 mm Pike.








Zoceli


Martin from Zoceli managed to strike a chord with his first creations such as the "Dobordelu" frame, which he designed two years ago. In the meantime, he added more frames to his lineup, such as the new "Narum".

Many frame builders at Bespoked only build full custom frames, so it can be difficult to find some information on their websites. Martin's website is different, as he offers most frames in four sizes and has all the info you might want online.


The "Dorbordelu" frame can be used with 250 x 70 shocks (180 mm rear travel) or 250 x 67.5 shocks (175 mm rear travel), making it the bike with the longest travel at this year's Bespoked show. Martin recommends to run forks with 180 - 200 mm travel. You can run the bike as full 27.5" bike, full 29" or mullet.








Huhn Cycles


A few days before the show, Ralf from Huhn Cycles told me that he'd bring a "bikepacking hardtail" to Bespoked. I was prepared to see a wild bike, but I wasn't ready for this wild creation.

More than any other build, this bike blurs the lines between hardtails and gravel bikes. Is it a gravelbike with mtb brakes, dropper remote and SRAM trigger? Or is it a hardtail with a dropbar?

The 212 mm Vecnum Nivo dropper, big Leonardi Racing Cassette and Astral Serpentine X rims with 30 mm inner width as well as the long(ish) travel Intend fork certainly put it in the mtb category, but then again the Beast handlebar changes everything.





Cyber Cycles


Cyber Cycles is the new kid on the block that's already causing a stir in the singlespeed and gravel community. With their new "For Enduro Racing Only" cranks, they now offer a steel crankset that will look great on any long-travel steel frame.

The cranks are welded by frame building legend Stefano Agresti and are currently available in four different versions: OR (offroad), ST (square taper), GR (gravel) and EN (Enduro).

At 470 g (OR; including compression ring, spring and screws) / 520 g (EN), the cranks are surprisingly light. They come with a 24 mm spindle and use the wide-spread SRAM 3-hole direct mount. You can choose from four different finish options: raw, black, matte chrome and nickel.






Sour Cycles


Local company Sour Cycles brought this "Bad Granny" build to the show. Decked out with Cyber Cycles cranks, Qvist hubs and a self-made steel dropper remote, it looked absolutely ready for some fun times on the local trails.

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Reviews and Tech Randoms Bespoked 2023