Stif Launches New Squatch 29" Steel Hardtail

Nov 3, 2020
by Ed Spratt  


UK based brand Stif has announced its latest steel hardtail. After creating the Morf four years ago, it has now introduced the 130mm and 29" wheeled Squatch.

Stif has spent the last three years designing and developing its first 29" hardtail to have the same feel as its smaller wheeled sibling the Morf. Equipped with a 130mm travel short offset fork, 78° seat tube angle and a pretty slack 64° head angle, they created a bike which they say is "Well Bastard Fast".

bigquotesFor the last 4 years we've watched our original steel hardtail the Morf defy trends and changing stan­dards to remain a rider favourite and cult legend. Today we are delighted to introduce it's 29" wheeled sibling- The Squatch.

Built from the Morf's DNA and refined over 3 years of design and development, the Squatch's poppy and playful origins shine through despite it's bigger wheels and progressive numbers. The Squatch defies being pigeon holed to any discipline, It's ready for wherever you want to take it.— Stif

The Squatch is available in three different options with a £599 frame only choice and two builds to pick from. The lower end build comes in at £1899 and uses SRAM's NX Eagle drivetrain and Rockshox's Pike Select+ forks. The higher-end pro build sells for £2499 and sees upgrades across the spec. The fork is bumped up to the silver Pike Ultimate fork, drivetrain is changed to GX Eagle and the DT Swiss 370 hubs are swapped for Hope Pro 4's




As well as offering the option of frame only and two complete builds Stif has also created three different colour options for the Squatch with a Bone, Teal and Silver options. For sizes, Stif has opted again for three choices with a medium, large and extra-large offerings. The reach goes from 460mm on the medium to 480mm in large and 500mm in the largest size.


Geometry:



Specification:

AM Build Kit - £1899

Fork: Rockshox Pike Select+ (130mm travel and 42mm offset)
Crankset: NX Eagle (170mm and 34t steel ring)
Rear Derailleur: NX Eagle 12spd
Shifter: NX Eagle 12spd
Cassette: NX Eagle 12spd (11-50)
Chain: NX Eagle 12spd
Bottom Bracket: SRAM BSA 73mm
Brakes: SRAM Guide T
Rotors: Avid Centreline (200mm front // 180mm rear)
Bars: Burgtec 2014 Alloy (30mm rise // 800mm wide)
Stem: Burgtec Enduro MK3 (35mm clamp // 35mm reach)
Grips: Burgtec Bartender
Headset: Sealed cartridge with Stif X Burgtec top cap
Seatpost: KS Ragei 170mm
Saddle: Burgtec Cloud (Chromo rail)
Front Tyre: Maxxis Minion DHF EXO TR 3C 2.6
Rear Tyre: Maxxis Rekon EXO+ TR 3C 2.6
Front Hub: DT Swiss 370 (15x110mm // Torque Caps)
Rear Hub: DT Swiss 370 (12x148mm // XD)
Rims: WTB KOM Trail i30
Valves: WTB Tubeless
Sealant: Stans Sealant
Pedals: Burgtec Composite

Pro Build Kit - £2499

Fork: Rockshox Pike Ultimate (130mm travel // 42mm offset)
Crankset: GX Eagle Lunar (170mm // 34t steel ring)
Rear Derailleur: GX Eagle 12spd
Shifter: GX Eagle 12spd
Cassette: GX Eagle 12spd (10-52)
Chain: GX Eagle 12spd
Bottom Bracket: SRAM BSA 73mm
Brakes: SRAM G2 RSC with Matchmaker Clamp
Rotors: Avid Centreline (200mm front // 180mm rear)
Bars: Burgtec Enduro (30mm rise // 800mm wide)
Stem: Burgtec Enduro MK3 (35mm clamp // 35mm reach)
Grips: Burgtec Minnaar Signature
Headset: Hope 2H with Stif x Burgtec Top Cap
Seatpost: KS Lev Integra with Matchmaker Southpaw (choise of 175 or 200mm)
Saddle: Burgtec Cloud (Chromo rail)
Front Tyre: Maxxis Minion DHF EXO TR 3C 2.7
Rear Tyre: Maxxis Rekon EXO+ TR 3C 2.7
Front Hub: Hope Pro 4 (15x110mm // Torque Caps)
Rear Hub: Hope Pro 4 (12x148mm // XD)
Rims: WTB KOM Trail i30
Valves: WTB Tubeless
Sealant: Stans Sealant
Pedals: Burgtec Composite



Bone
Stif Squatch
Silver
Teal

Find out more about Stif's new range of hardtails here.

Posted In:
Reviews and Tech Press Releases Hardtails Stif Stif Squatch


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92 Comments

  • 52 8
 Shame about the NX/avid rather than deore on the base model, otherwise it would be perfect.
  • 29 2
 I think it is to do with SRAM bundles with forks or something. Would definitely put me off a bike. I have just ordered a Vitus Sentier for my wife - Marzocchi forks and Deore components, exactly how I would spec such a bike.
  • 3 4
 @lewiscraik: Yup, I wouldn't pay nearly £2K for that spec. It's functional stuff but I personally think it's £500 over priced. Maybe I'm just out of touch though as the market has changed a lot in the past few months and the price of most cycling related products has risen sharply. Thankfully I already have a Ragley Bigwig with a fairly decent spec so I can opt for a frame only and swap most parts over.
  • 12 1
 @Pablo16v: I dunno, it seems like pretty amazing value to me, really nice frame, pikes (youd get 35s on some bikes for similar money?), fancy burgtec bits, a decent 170mm seatpost, big rotors, decent wheels and tyres. When you need to drop 150 on brakes out of the box and then a mech and shifter in 6mths or so, its a bit of a downer.
  • 4 0
 No kidding! I've been on the hunt for a not-so-hardcore hardtail and was looking at the new Specialized Fuse. I'd rather buy this any day, but can't stand the build kits on offer. If Stif were to offer a Deore/Fox build, I'd be placing my order right now.
  • 8 0
 Just get the frame then.... www.stifmtb.com/collections/stif-squatch/products/stif-squatch-frame
  • 1 0
 @asmtb: I might do, but given that its cheaper for companies to sell complete packages, it would be nice for Stif to offer a complete build at a competitive price. For example, look at the price of the Specialized Fuse Expert - pretty hard for consumers to build up a similar quality of build for a comparable price.
  • 1 0
 Sram offers OEM deals that are too good to refuse but part of that deal includes exclusivity over the entire line.
  • 1 0
 @ratedgg13: Also if I bought the complete lower end, i would switch out parts anyways...put parts on old frame and sell old bike.
  • 1 0
 @sriracha: Well I doubt that making a deal with SRAM includes exclusivity over the whole line per se, plenty of bikes out there with SRAM and Shimano models in the line. They probably offer some sort of bulk discount though to encourage it.
  • 16 2
 I would run a100mm fork because I prefer an even lower BB and 90 degree st angle.
  • 16 2
 Oh my good lord the teal
  • 10 1
 Hear them squeal for the teal
  • 20 0
 teal is real
  • 6 0
 @dakuan:
steel teal is even more real.
  • 2 0
 @opetruzel: you win the internet today
  • 15 3
 Fuck that BB is low! That would make for one shitty ride in my neck of the woods.
  • 3 2
 Don't forget it has no sag, in fact no travel at all besides the tire, in the rear. 30% sag on a 150mm bike is 50mm, so add 50 to this BB height, and it's reasonable comparison to the average big trail bike.
  • 3 1
 Just put the pedals on the ground next time and save the hassle.
  • 3 0
 @just6979: Even factoring in the lack of sag, 80mm is crazy low. Even some of the lowest 29er hardtail frames are only around 60-65mm drop. I'm sure it's wicked fast on downhill, but I can't imagine technical climbs with that BB height.
  • 2 0
 @just6979: The BB isn't directly above the rear axle... ~1/3 of the added BB drop from sag comes from the front end.

Assuming the 80mm of BB drop doesn't include sag, you'd have close to 90mm of BB drop at sag. That's super low, even with 2.6" tires.
  • 1 0
 @Buggyr333: I went from a hardtail with a 55mm drop to one with a 65mm drop and hit my pedals the first 4 or 5 rides. Can't imagine it at 80mm, even with a 165mm crank.
  • 1 1
 @Buggyr333: and a 150mm trail bike has a fork as well. 293mm + 50 (no rear sag) - 10 (front sag) = 333mm height, which is low but not end of the world low. In fact it's what I ride in New England where tech climbs are most of the good climbs.
  • 1 0
 The last 10 secs of the video show how low it really is!
  • 1 0
 lol my HT's at 310mm BB Height and I wouldn't want it any lower really.
  • 1 0
 I agree. I am running a Ragley Big Wig that has 65mm of drop and that is absolutely on the edge of what I deal with even with 165mm cranks.
  • 6 0
 Interesting use of double tubes on the chainstay close to the bb. Anyone know why they designed it like that?
  • 9 1
 I think they called it the shotgun yoke or something. Just a nifty way to create tyre/ chainring clearance
  • 5 1
 @ProperPushIrons: Nifty indeed. Looking at it closer everything in the bb to chain stays junction can be saw cut and welded, no machining required, which is especially costly with steel.
  • 3 0
 @kcy4130: The shotgun piece is a machined bit, it filled up with mud on my Morf!
  • 4 0
 They are missing out if theres not some sort of tool/spare to plug in there!
  • 3 0
 Bloody love my Morf. It's great to get back to basics at times, get the HT out and rock through those sections at the same pace as on the full bouncer and get totally out of shape Big Grin

This just look like the Morf with all those little refinements the Morf needs plus 29" wheels. That said the Morf is my perfect do almost everything utility bike. It's got a Thule trailer bracket on for pulling little one in a trailer and a Mac Ride collar on the steerer tube for the eldest's seat, it does canal towpath rides, nursery dropoffs and then get home, dump the trailer and off up the woods. If the Morf is anything to go by and I were in the market for a wagon wheeler HT I would definitely be considering this. Plus the guys at Stif are great to deal with.

Just a shame about the SRAM build, My Morf came with XT M8000 all round and it's hanging now (it was ex demo too so had seen abuse before I got my hands on it) and needs a refresh but I bet a SRAM NX setup wouldn't have lasted anywhere near this long...
  • 2 0
 Sounds like how I use my Orange Clockwork Evo, I love a “do anything hadtail”.
  • 10 3
 looks stiff
  • 3 1
 The stif bone in particular
  • 3 1
 givin me a stiffy
  • 1 1
 According to Stif it is poppy and playful.
  • 2 1
 Can I squatch here?
  • 2 0
 Beautiful looking bike! Yes to the teal! But I'd be concerned about that steep seat tube angle. Because there is no sag in the rear, a hardtail ST angle when loaded with rider is always going to be steeper than a full squish with an equivalent effective ST angle. Either way, looks really nice!
  • 1 0
 The seat angle rides really good, makes uphills a dream!
  • 5 1
 That looks seriously tidy! Love the compliance they've built into the rear triangle... :-)
  • 8 4
 Now they are just looking to source £678,000 through crowd funding to get this project going
  • 2 0
 Speaking as someone who's actually 6'6" there is no way I would fit on a bike with a 78' seat tube angle and 500mm of reach. My knees would physically hit the bars during seated pedalling.
  • 2 0
 Yep, the long, slack and low trend have made some great bikes for tall people. But now these steep seat tubes are arriving to cramp our style...
  • 1 0
 @Caza1232: 500mm of reach sounds like a lot but when you factor the loss of ETT due to the steep seat angle and we're back where we started. This bike in XL is a standard XL, anyone over 6'3" need not apply.
  • 1 0
 @alexsin: oh yeah I do agree, at 6'8" I'd need a 80mm+ stem haha
Slack head tube doesn't help either, any spacers under the stem shortening the ETT further
  • 5 0
 @alexsin: Hi I have been riding the prototype extensively to decide on geometry etc. As a rider that’s 6ft 5 with longer legs than normal I pushed to have this steep seat angle as most bikes put taller riders in a much further back position than smaller riders. It climbs amazingly for me and my knees are definitely nowhere near the bars.
  • 1 0
 Being as I'm quite old I remember bike companies describing each butted tube and who made the tube set. They we're still manafactured in Asia but we knew exactly what we were getting. Yes the frame would cost more with Reynolds or True temper or Tange tube set. But then it would be just as strong with a six pound frame. I bet this frame weighs eight pounds . Please correct me if I'm wrong.
  • 5 1
 That's definitely my kind of bike!
  • 4 2
 That teal paint reminds me of the color of my family's old 1997 Ford Taurus which is about the only good thing I can remember about that car. Hot damn
  • 2 0
 I get it, aggro hard tails are fun, I have one myself. How does a company pay people full time though when thats all they sell? Its a very niche market.
  • 4 0
 That's not all they sell. They've been around for donkey's years as shops: www.stifmtb.com
  • 4 0
 They're one of the older UK shops, they're also owned by Pon Holdings (of Santa Cruz Bikes & Cervelo), the hardtail is their side gig.
  • 2 1
 The chain stay is pretty cool looking but why don’t we just start using a wider bottom bracket?
I switch between my trail bike and fat bike weekly and have never felt uncomfortable... not sure what the hold up is.
  • 2 0
 Q factor, it would push your pedals further out and be really uncomfortable on your hip and knee joints
  • 3 0
 It is the time of year that a steel hard tail makes way more sense?
Unless it is an e bike?
  • 5 2
 Nina to race this instead of the V10 at the next World Cup...
  • 5 1
 This was awesome.
  • 4 1
 Some good numbers on that geo chart.
  • 4 1
 I bet she absolutely screams out on trail... Nice
  • 4 2
 Wow, this looks fantastic! Finally an aggressive hardtails built around a 130m fork.
  • 1 1
 That BB would be annoying in Sedona.
  • 3 4
 There’s a balance between seat tube angle, reach and the end result of your seated cockpit size. I really hope tall people don’t think this XL is going to be anywhere near roomy. It’s really S, M and L. The lack of top tube measurement and 20mm reach between sizes is all you need to know to not buy this unless one of the sizes happened to fall in your sweet spot, regardless of what size they call it.
  • 3 0
 Ya, sta at 78* with a reach of 500 means an ETT of like 640 or so. That is one cramped cockpit when seated for taller riders. Kinda defeats the purpose of the steep sta for me since at 6’4 I would need to slam the seat back all the way on the rails slackening the sta a lot and it would still be too short when seated.
  • 3 0
 Yes, a 78 degree STA is rough for a hard tail. Mine is 76 degrees and its almost too steep. You don't have any sag so your weight is really, really forward and it puts a lot of pressure on your hands.
  • 3 1
 I agree, 78° seems a little ott. But there is a slight offset, it may not be quite that steep and the ETT may be more reasonable. Strange that they left some key info out of the geo table though...
  • 2 2
 @hamncheez: bingo. Steep seat tube angles change your seated balance and will put more pressure on your hands. That can be alleviated by raising the bars so you’re more upright but that’s less efficient for actual pedalling. Steep seat tube angles on a hardtail are stupid.
  • 8 7
 "well bastard fast" sounds like something directly from the wanna be alternative cool hardcore sales pitch play book.
  • 13 0
 It's a 36 year old play book....
  • 3 0
 When your 80s hip branding's looped from new to old to ironic to retro to current to old again without ever changing.
  • 1 0
 Wow the geo looks very similar to the Bird Zero 29. Makes me want to give it a test ride as the Zero rips
  • 2 3
 Whats wrong with smaller wheels with wider tyres in the rear? Whats the point of going through the hassle of fitting a 29» into the bum of a moder trail HT?
  • 4 1
 I'll be sticking with 27.5" for a good while yet but I can see the value of having the back wheel truck over bumps better - riding a hardtail over the winter, the first thing I have to get to grips with is the sudden decelerations from the back wheel hanging up on stuff I'd usually cruise over.
  • 2 1
 I've been loving my Fuse set up with 27.5x3.0 in the rear and a 29x2.5 Minion up front. The 3.0 WTB Ranger is so much more comfy and rolls a hell of a lot faster than the 29x2.5 Aggressor I've had back there, though it doesn't grip quite as well on loose climbs.
  • 2 0
 looks yummy.
  • 2 0
 Joomping? Joomping.
  • 1 0
 Class acting. The Morph is a cool hardtail. I am sure this will be too.
  • 1 0
 Get that furry dude some larger pedals... Nice vid!!
  • 1 0
 But but but...it's not carbon!
  • 1 0
 Infringing on the long running Norco Sasquatch?
  • 2 0
 Take my money
  • 2 2
 The 'Mort' aye is this one actually the Scratch?
  • 3 2
 whet whistle...
  • 3 3
 Is that short for Sasquatch because that's a Yeti.
  • 1 0
 Hardtails slap.
  • 2 5
 Easy with a front between earth and leaves, take it on stones and on trails like in Fianle, then we'll talk about it ........
  • 3 2
 In september I spent one week in Finale. Made supergroppo, crestino, x-men and others on a 100mm XC hardtail. On the last day I rented a 170mm enduro bike and managed to broke three ribs on the revenant.
  • 1 0
 @HCnoodle: Are you one of those who need a front ...
  • 3 0
 @HCnoodle: and you rode the 170 bike the same way as the 100 bike?

I don't think the other guy is saying you _can't_ ride this bike on rocky trails like finale, but that he wouldn't want to.

You didn't get hurt just because you were on an enduro bike; you got hurt because the enduro bike let you go a lot faster than the xc bike, and you went that fast even though you weren't used to it.
  • 1 0
 @just6979: of course not. They just were two different kinds of fun.
My point was that one can for sure ride a hardtail like the Stif in places like Finale and still enjoy it.

And by the way I got hurt because on my bikes I have the brakes set up moto style (front brake right) and the rental bike was the other way round... My brain short-circuited and I grabbed an handful of the much more powerful Guide front brake (I have Level) in the wrong spot.
  • 1 2
 Why no size small?
  • 10 0
 ever seen a small squatch ?





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