Knolly has given their Chilcotin enduro bike a complete redesign for 2021. This yields a 29" wheeled bike with two different suspension travel options. If you're wondering why 29" wheels are noteworthy, the previous Chilcotin used the 26" hoops of yesteryear. The bike's suspension duties are handled by Knolly's Fourby4 suspension platform.
The 6066 aluminum frame is available in a 151mm or 167mm rear suspension version with 12 x 157mm rear hub spacing, a 73mm bottom bracket, and two-position adjustable geometry. There is clearance for up to a 2.6" tire. Internal cable routing and water bottle mounts are standard.
The 6066 aluminum frame is available in a 151mm or 167mm rear suspension version with 12 x 157mm rear hub spacing, a 73mm bottom bracket, and two-position adjustable geometry. There is clearance for up to a 2.6" tire. Internal cable routing and water bottle mounts are standard.
Knolly Chilcotin Details
• Wheelsize: 29"
• Travel: 150/160mm or 167/170mm
• Aluminum frame
• 63.8° head angle
• Chainstay length: 438mm (167mm)
• Adjustable geometry
• Price: $5,300 USD
• knollybikes.com
• Wheelsize: 29"
• Travel: 150/160mm or 167/170mm
• Aluminum frame
• 63.8° head angle
• Chainstay length: 438mm (167mm)
• Adjustable geometry
• Price: $5,300 USD
• knollybikes.com
There are two build options and the frame is available in sizes medium thru extra large, with the medium sporting a 464mm reach. Along with the generous reach, in the slacker geometry position the Chilcotin has a 63.8-degree headtube angle, 76.9-degree effective seat tube angle, and 438mm chainstay length on the 167mm travel bike when paired with a 170mm fork.
Frame Details
The biggest update on the new Chilcotin is the shift from 26" wheels to 29". There's also a move to 157Trail rear hub spacing, which uses a wider flange 157 hub paired with a 73mm bottom bracket shell. Knolly believe this gives them the most options for tire size, easily clearing up to a 2.6 x 29" tread. The 157Trail hub also gives more heel clearance while retaining the ability to run up to a 36T chainring.
The bike is constructed using 6066 series hydroformed aluminum alloy tubing. Knolly chose this aluminum for its combination of high tensile strength along with excellent durability. It allows them to create more complex shapes that maximize torsional stiffness and create what they feel is a 'high performance, predictable ride'. The bike has an open cockpit downtube protector, internal cable routing, and water bottle mounts.
Knolly's Offset Straight Seat Tube Design' (OSD) lets riders to move between a more effective pedaling position to a more aggressive position for harder riding more easily. This allows the saddle to be extra low on steep terrain with full rear-wheel travel. Additionally, it gives clearance for up to a 175mm post on size medium frames and 200mm+ on sizes large and extra-large due to a straight and uninterrupted seat tube.
Suspension
Knolly uses their Fourby4 suspension platform for the Chilcotin. It has a progressive leverage curve designed to manage large hits while still having initial sensitivity along with plenty of mid-stroke support. The back end of the bike is longer than Knolly's trail and freeride bikes in order to increase high-speed stability.
The Fourby4 suspension is designed to reduce the impacts of brake squat which Knolly claim enables the rear wheel to maintain more contact with the ground and carry speed through more technical terrain.
The bike's pedaling traction is designed to ensure consistent pedaling performance, even in rough spots, so riders can more easily pedal whenever they need to get more power in, according to Knolly.
Geometry
The geometry of the Chilcotin is adjustable (slack or neutral). The adjustment for changing the geo is a simple bolt removal where a rider can slide the shock back or forward, and then re-install the bolt. This adjustment changes the effective seat tube angle from 77.6-degrees in the neutral setting to 76.9 in the slack mode. Similarly, the head tube angle changes from 64.5-degrees to 63.8-degrees.
Build Options
The Chilcotin platform has one frame but two suspension travel options. The Chilcotin 150 build kit features 150mm of rear-wheel travel paired to a 160mm fork. The Chilcotin 167 build kit ups the rear-wheel travel to, you guessed it, 167mm, with a 170mm Fox 38 Float or RockShox Zeb.
There are two build kit options, DP and EC along with two color choices, 'Moody Blue' and Raw. The bike will be available in December at dealers and online with prices starting at $5,300 USD.
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216 Comments
So much traction. I switch mine up between 135 rear travel (LT) and 120 for snappier trail riding. Matched with a CC Helm which I can change between 140,150 and 160 up front. But most of the time I leave it in 150 which works with both rear travel modes, giving good dynamic geometry.
Its bigger brother looks bad ass too.
I am still riding a V1 Banshee Prime with a 160mm fork (and -2 degree works headset) and it has a 115mm headtube length which I have to run 75mm of spacers under my stem along with a 40mm riser bar... I definitely won’t be getting the chilcoten now!
@KNOLLYBIKES why such a short headtube???
2020 Titan XL: stack 653, reach 495, eff tt 650
Chilcotin XL: stack 637, reach 516, eff tt 688
Transition sentinel xl: stack 640, reach 501, eff tt 641, headtube length 130
Transition Sentinel xxl: stack 649, reach 521, eff tt 665, headtube length 140
I’d love to demo all of these bikes to see what actually fits best...but I’m still thinking that I’d need a higher stack height than the chilcotin if I don’t want to run 2 handfuls of spacers under my stem...but maybe that insanely long eff tt on the chilcotin will make up for the short headtube length....but more likely it seems like it will just make my back and neck hurt
Hell, I'd probably just put 200mm rotors on a bike this capable.
I have trouble envisioning someone buying a Knolly and then trying to hang ultra-light parts on it. And that's meant as a compliment.
If there was ever an MTB standard that actually needed updating I would vote for brake bosses and never look back.
But it seems like the bike industry overall has already effectively moved up in size. Even though you say the little rotors are ok for a "light duty" bike like the Fugitive, your very own build kits are 180/180 or 203/180.
It might make more sense for a bigger company that actually makes lightweight XC bike to share a 160mm size forging across their product line. Knolly is a perfect example of a company that *doesn't* need to cater to the lightweight XC crowd.
I seriously doubt anyone considering one of your bikes would take a pass because the rear rotor mount is too big. I just think it would be cool to see some smaller companies set the trend / precedent that we don't need to use silly adapters for our brakes.
Some of my old frames used a 140 rotor mount in the back and that was 2004. We're only up to 160 more than 15 years later. I'm not convinced that 180 is a bad thing to adapt that's all.
Thats why I`m always using adapters of the 4 screws type, two to mount on the frame, two to mount the brake
what size shock does it use? don't see it in the press release or on the site.
For what it is worth, my winter project is a park bike. For that I am contemplating a Mullet delirium, so 175mm rear and 170mm Zeb in the front. That said, this announcement could change my mind.
Exactly my question. The ETT numbers are enormous for their size. Like going a size or so up on other brands. The Large Knolly here is 660mm, where most other brands are ~620-630mm ish.
Unless the actual STA is so slack that at ride height it makes the ETT super large? I don't see what saddle height is used for the ETT number, so that might be it.
Any comment on that @KNOLLYBIKES ?
What we don't do is what a lot of other brands do and that is "dumb down this measurement" by trying to pretend that the axis of the Effective and Actual seat tubes meet in space at a "magically changing saddle height that just happens to correspond also to the stack measurement". Because it doesn't. Unless you are a relatively small person, your saddle height is significantly higher than the stack measurement from the top of your head tube. "
The part that is confusing to me, is that regardless how exactly its measured, this frame has such a different ETT measurement than Knollys own other frames, which should be measured the same way. 30mm longer ETT on the Chilcotin than the same size Fugitive is a pretty large difference.
Wondering if its just a misprint.
Park and shuttle smasher. \m/
More heel clearance than what? More than a 190mm fat bike hub or somehow more than a 148mm?
www.pinkbike.com/news/knolly-moves-entire-lineup-to-157mm-spacing-157trail.html
"heel clearance of our new designs has only moved outward by 1.5mm"
Impressive effort to go wider at the hub without going significantly wider elsewhere but from the article you linked that's despite 157, not because of it.
Don't think I'll ever be convinced that MOAR STIFF is worth it but at least you're not compromising the frame for actually riding to achieve it.
I really don’t understand why so many people are set against 157, it allows for more room and stiffness in frame design as well as options for hub flange spacing, seems much more logical than boost.
"The 157Trail hub also gives more heel clearance"
Because it's a blatant lie and the 157 article @KNOLLYBIKES linked highlights that it's a lie.
Less clearance is an actual downside of wider hubs.
"FRAME CLEARANCE: ... The 157TRAIL spacing increases rear axle width by 15mm (7.5mm per side), and yet heel clearance of our new designs has only moved outward by 1.5mm per side! Our new 157TRAIL rear-end remains the same or in some cases narrower than existing Boost 148 bikes currently on the market."
Correct me if I'm wrong but Pinkbike is still Canadian right?
Knolly bikes is a Canadian company right?
Why are the prices in US dollars?
I've been seeing this trend here lately.
Instead of a 29'er, I would recommend our Warden. You would be PERFECT for a small. The bike is offers progressive geometry with a seat tube short enough to allow you to run a 175mm dropper and a rear wheel that isn't going to burn your backside on every ride down.
At 5’10”, 32” inseam, I still split between your medium and large sizes though. The large sounds really long!
Gave it some new life with a DIY electric motor, earning its new name the "Chil-ectric".
I'm from Chile so it's also got that in there...hehehe.
A couple of pictures:
forums.mtbr.com/knolly/knolly-e-bike-1091779.html#post15010841
I think they look rad. Demoed a FugitiveLT and that bike handles very well. Easy to adapt to. Not uber light but that frame is on par with a banshee prime or ripmo af in terms of weight.
Having said that if it works well I would certainly ride one.
Also folks I am a bit surprised at all the negative props (I don't mind much) I wasn't trying to rain on your parade, and I will give it a go when I find one.
Actually, I'm living here now, and haven't got to the other hand...
Back home you had to beat your way through them with a stick to get to the trailhead.
Don't love the looks either, but I'd still hit it if didn't come with the other baggage!
That’s just cause no one is making them anymore. F$;&in 29”ers ! I personally have 0 interest in owning one.
Yeah who needs actual bike skills when you have huge wheels and flat trails.
I’ve got a 2018 27.5 warden, fantastic bike and even has a threaded bottom bracket. I won’t even get started on press fit bottom brackets. ????