First Look: The Cassidy is Salsa's Most Aggressive Bike Yet
The Cassidy is a 29er with 165mm of travel paired with a 180mm fork.
Looking for a bit more suspension travel and capability? With 165mm of travel that they've paired with a 180mm fork, and slacker, longer geometry, the Cassidy is easily the most aggressive bike that Salsa has ever had in their catalog.
The Cassidy starts at $3,899 USD, which gets you an aluminum frame, SLX components, and a Zeb fork up front. Spending another grand gets you a similar build bolted onto a carbon fiber frame, and the Carbon GX model is the most expensive at $6,099 USD. Just like the Blackthorn, you can pick up an alumium Cassidy frame for $2,099, or the carbon one for $3,199 USD.
The Cassidy starts at $3,899 USD, which gets you an aluminum frame, SLX components, and a Zeb fork up front. Spending another grand gets you a similar build bolted onto a carbon fiber frame, and the Carbon GX model is the most expensive at $6,099 USD. Just like the Blackthorn, you can pick up an alumium Cassidy frame for $2,099, or the carbon one for $3,199 USD.
Cassidy Details
• Travel: 165mm rear / 180mm front
• Wheel size: 29"
• Carbon or alloy frame options
• Split Pivot rear suspension
• Adjustable geometry
• 63.8-degree head angle (low setting)
• Super Boost hub spacing
• MSRP: $3,899 to $6,099 USD
• www.salsacycles.com
• Travel: 165mm rear / 180mm front
• Wheel size: 29"
• Carbon or alloy frame options
• Split Pivot rear suspension
• Adjustable geometry
• 63.8-degree head angle (low setting)
• Super Boost hub spacing
• MSRP: $3,899 to $6,099 USD
• www.salsacycles.com
The entry-level Cassidy costs $3,899 USD and gets SLX components and a Zeb fork.
If you skipped reading about the Blackthorn, the gist is that Salsa has used the same front and rear triangles but combined those with a longer stroke shock and different rocker and clevis components to deliver more travel and slacker, longer geometry. That means that the same features found on the Blackthorn - the tube strap slot, smart frame protection, a threaded bottom bracket, ISCG 05 tabs, and internal cable routing - are all found on the Cassidy frame as well. That includes the short alloy chainstays and Super Boost hub spacing, too.
Aside from the different shock, rocker, and clevis, the Cassidy's suspension layout mirrors the Blackthorn. That means it's the same Split Pivot system, including the geo-adjusting flip-chip that supplies 0.3-degrees of angle adjustment and 4mm of bottom bracket height change.
Speaking of geometry, there's a 63.8-degree head angle, 75.7-degree seat angle, and the large-sized Cassidy gets a 481mm reach.
We have both the 165mm-travel Cassidy and 140mm-travel Blackthorn in for a full-length Field Test video review, so stay tuned for those.
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142 Comments
Best setup I've ever had: G-spot+6 inch Boxxer.
I've warrantied a couple of creaky 38s already
Dave Weagle has two other patented suspension designs other than DW link: the Split Pivot that is found on these Salsa bikes, Devinci bikes, and Orbea bikes, and that looks and works essentially the same as Trek's ABP suspension, and the DELTA Link that is found only the Evil line of bikes. Split Pivot is essentially a single pivot design when it comes to the kinematics of the wheel travel motion which is a simple circular arc like any other single pivot, but uses that chain stay as a floating brake assembly to reduce the influence of braking on the suspension movement and also allow for shock rate control via the rocker.
DELTA (Dave's Extra Legitimate Travel Apparatus) Link is a straight-up single pivot design for both the kinematics of wheel motion during travel and braking. However, the shock is driven by a four part linkage and not directly from the swing arm to allow a specific shock rate control of the suspension that is not possible when connecting the shock directly to the swing arm as Orange bikes for example. It also allows for geometry adjustments that change neither change the suspension rate or amount of travel when switching between the high and low settings by flipping the Delta Links.
More people get DW Link setup wrong than they do right. They dial in the shock settings assuming what the person either doesn't know about suspension and read online or even worse, a suspension tech who really knows his stuff about dialing a shock, but doesn't read up on DW Link and how it has to be set in a completely different manner.
I've had a DW Link Iron Horse Sunday with Fox shock tuned from the factory to mate to what Weagle wanted and it was the best riding, racing and pedaling bike I've had of any suspension design. Then the 2nd was a Turner DHR with the same Fox set to the frame design and my weight. Equally impressive.
I've also ridden other people's DW Link bikes set up by guys who know regular settings or who bought a cool name shock not valved for it and ALL rode like garbage.
If you know your stuff with that design, there is nothing better. If you don't you'll think someone took you for every dime you have.
No lift service just trails. A better part of a year spent waiting for a replacement, swapping parts and then only to repeat it again.
Warranty department was nice, they will help you get a Santa Cruz after awhile.
R&D have someone that can ride hard test these.
Hahahahahahahaha...!
You win the Internet today, Sir! : )
Joking aside, I would proudly have a gravel bike or fat bike from them. I left mostly happy. The ruined summer of riding was a bummer and I think anyone that rides hard should think twice about this type of bike from them.
They will sell many, they will warranty more.
We as consumers have the right to warn other passionate riders that this product might say something on paper but it is not that type of bike. They did honestly call a bike shop and paid for half of a Bronson CC frame.
I've got several friends who have owned or still own Salsa full suspension bikes with carbon frames; and I'm not sure if a single one of them hasn't had to get a warranty replacement for cracked carbon fiber frames. I went with Salsa for a few reasons.. 1. My LBS is a dealer and I don't care for their Specialized offerings. 2. I live in Minnesota about an hour away from Salsa's company HQ. 3. Their adventure by bike slogan had me believing they were a company more focused on reliability than being the lightest and fastest.
I guess I was wrong assuming they would be more reliable than their racing focused competition; which makes their 5 year warranty vs. the competitions original purchaser lifetime warranty, even more disheartening.
Bold choice Cotton.
But I saw what you told,a rear tire being eaten in 3 runs,20 bucks for a ride...
Even in the Alps ridding DH, I managed to get 10 days of crazy ridding of 1 MaxxGrip tire when others have no tire in 2 days.
Assegai last a little more than DHF/DHR,never try the Dissector.
DW Link is a twin link system that looks more like a Giant Maestro or VVP system
Gotcha, cheers. Heads up my arse this morning. Meant DW designed, “split pivot” escaped my vocab.
I think you’re both agreeing.
Oh and super boost. Has that not been one way deposited in the sea?
Also, I thought Salsa were more plus/fat bike focused, which may fit in with the over 45 demographic.
A 77 STA would have been really $ tho.
The actual STA appears to be something in the upper 60's, just like the recently released Trek Slash. This means customers have no idea of what geometry they are actually getting, and longer travel dropper's have reliability concerns.
So Salsas, if you're listening: stop making up STA numbers. Post the actual STA.
If you were to measure again the effective seat tube angle with the saddle 6 inches higher than the stem it’s going to be several degrees slacker.
Actual seat tube angle generally isn’t published and varies wildly between brands. The reason effective seat angle is given is that it takes into account the frame shape and gives a good across the board comparison with the same saddle height; the issue being nobody runs their saddle at the same height and so for each person their effective STA will be different.
All of these comparisons of bikes climbing ability based on effective STA are absolute garbage. People need to get educated and bike companies need to help by explaining it and publishing actual STA figures alongside effective (because BOTH are useful).
I also thought you were completely off on the reach. 460mm on a medium is pretty ideal, and if anything I'd want longer stays to keep the balance of the bike across the size range.
Meanwhile, whether you climb fire roads or trails, a slack STA offers 0 advantage. So my point remains.
False. Virtual seat tube angle is the angle between the bottom bracket and intersection between a horizontal line through the top of the top tube and a line extending through the center of the seat tube. It is called virtual because it cannot be directly measured and must be extrapolated. It is useless, because your saddle never sits at that position, so it does not describe bike fit in any meaningful way.
If you have the actual STA, you can do the trig to figure out where your saddle position will be at any height, it's just a matter of doing some math. Properly fitting a bike requires knowing the actual STA, and without that measurement, you are stuck guessing. Which is why companies need to HTFU and publish the actual STA, even if it's slack as hell, otherwise they're going to end up with unhappy customers.
Maybe need #s based off inseams, heel to pedal.
There is a standard definition, and it's as I've described.
But it's still far worse than just posting the actually useful, and far easier to measure actual STA. It's purely marketing not wanting to throw up an ugly number like 67.5 degrees that keeps companies from doing it. There are companies like Pole or Guerrilla Gravity who give the actual STA. Not coincidentally, these companies also make bikes with properly steep actual STAs.
There was more variation when everyone had the vert shock "session" arangement.