Santa Cruz Hightower 27.5" Plus Extended Travel Test Bike

2017 finds BikeCo.com developing setups and tunes on extended travel Santa Cruz Hightower 27.5" Plus Setups.


This Santa Cruz Hightower is a test bed for a variety of 27.5” Plus technology while fine tuning the ideal suspension setups for different riding styles.

There are many riders utilizing longer stroke shocks with the 27.5” Plus Hightower to unlock a bit more travel – however there are some performance accommodations that need to be addressed. BikeCo.com’s owner Joe Binatena has been exhaustively testing this chassis in both bottom bracket settings, with three different rear shock stroke lengths, three fork lengths, and a variety of internal tunes to accommodate performance in each mode.

The first step in these test projects is defining basic mechanical setups and determining what type of rider, in what specific terrain will appreciate and benefit from the on trail personality. If a setup shows potential The Bike Company’s expert suspension developers work to fine tune shim, compression, air volume, viscosity, porting, etc to produce no compromise suspension performance.

150 vs. 160mm fork? We can help you define where the cross over point in performance is. Looking for the best suspension to compensate for the ultra low tire pressures (which essentially creates a secondary suspension through tire movement) our BikeCo Pro Tune Suspension setups will fine tune performance for your setup, ground speeds, size, riding style and aspirations. Fighting with tire squirm or rim strikes when running low pressure? We are testing some outside of application components that so far have reset our opinions on how hard you can corner and how poppy you can expect a 27.5” Plus bike to ride!

If you’re in the market for a Santa Cruz Hightower 27.5” Plus or want to upgrade your suspension for the ultimate performance reach out to the experts at BikeCo.com for unmatched spec, setup, tune, service and pricing. Sales@BikeCo.com 949-470-1099



The critical aspect to 27.5" Plus setups is pairing an ideal tire and rim combo for your riding style.


The wider rim internals that allow us to work in "Plus" or "Near Plus" capacity often benefit from carbon fiber manufacturing to minimize weight.


The 2017 Onza lineup features awesome technology in sidewalls, compounds and tread patterns.


This Onza Canis 2.85" tire has a great profile shown here mounted to a 35mm internal Factor Rim. The cornering side lugs are perky - not too vertical (won't corner at high lean angles) or rolled over the edge (will only corner at high lean angles!).


The latest OneUp Chain Guide and Bash is light, clean, and most importantly effective at retaining you chain while protecting your chain ring.


The OneUp Chain Guide and Bash comes with three sized bash assemblies so you can quickly setup your bike to a variety of chain ring sizes. This is a great option if you race and use a variety of rings.


The WTB Padloc grips are a great addition to our 2017 race bike spec. The real magic here is the soft outer triangle which allows you to load your bars aggressively when cornering.


Magura's MT Trail Carbon brakes provide riders access to great heat capacity AND modulation by utilizing 4 piston front and 2 piston rear calipers.


The new Magura Storm HC rotor is designed with more heat capacity for riders pushing harder in more demanding terrain.


4 piston powered front brake provides plenty of stopping power and heat capacity.


2 piston rear caliper allows riders to utilize larger rotor sizes for more heat capacity (compared to standard 4 piston rears) without creating the brake jack associated with larger leverage on taller rotors.