actually i prefer the design of the blindside over this. What transition is famous for is staying conventional and making it look good. Notice how all their full suspension frames look the same but with different geo for smaller or bigger shocks. This just looks like it's striding too far away from transition's style. Plus if i were to buy a race frame it would be a giant, santacruz, scott, or commencial anyways. Transition is a freeride company and i think they should stick to it
Guys... the e13 reducer cups that a ton of people run use an Orbit IS headset. This headtube uses 1/2 of the reducer cup set (for the bottom) and the SAME bearing drops directly into the headtube at the top, which eliminates that pressed in top cup. When you need to buy new bearings they are the Cane Creek size standard bearing available from FSA or Cane Creek. Not hard, not custom and it does not limit your fork choices....
E2 is Trek's name for their tapered HT stuff... the overal concept has been used in the road bike market MUCH longer than any MTB frames.
Giant Glory 2006 was the first time i saw it. Now Specialized and Trek do it too. Cane Creek and FSA have headsets available and Chris King is developing one.
i bet they sell it with a bottom reducer cup, which by the way, looks like what is used in this picture. Therefor, you only need to buy a 1-1/8 headset
i believe Trek first introduced this technology to increase the welding area.... i think there are some forks with 1.5 - 1 1/8 steering tubes... trek road bikes use tapered steering tubes... and a session 88 has a "Headset Custom Cane Creek; 1 1/8" top, 1.5" bottom w/1 1/8" reducer"
well giant was doing this headtube when they where in the prototype stage of the glory witch had to be before 06 trek started it in 07 i had this argument with the trek rep already
Actually Klein introduced the idea back in the late 90's early 00's, but they are now a part of Trek. Specialized has been doing it for a while now too.