Part two of our final randoms articles from Eurobike 2012
• Prototype Banshee Rune all mountain frame
• Cube's updated Two15, Hanzz and the new lightweight 160mm Stereo
• Fizik's new trail shoes and seatpost
• Hutchinson's new 2.4" Squale downhill tyre
• Yeti SB family featuring carbon and 29" wheels
Banshee Rune All Mountain PrototypeThis new Rune was the most striking bike on show because it's the one that's not quite in production, although with a release date pencilled in for this October it's not far away. It's a 160mm trail and all mountain bike that looks like it will be an absolute ball on the most technical and steep trails. The bike features Banshee owner/designer Keith Scott's proprietary KS Link suspension platform.
The big news is that the new frame is compatible with both 26" and 650B wheels thanks to its replaceable and interchangeable dropout design. Not only available to suit differing wheel sizes they're also available to suit 135mm, 142mm & 150mm hubs while a unique flip chip design enables the head angle to be adjusted between 65 and 66 degrees in half degree increments. Pricing is keen at €1,799 with a Fox CTD shock or €1,880 including the Cane Creek DB Air seen here. All the details are there, will this turn out to be as good as we're hoping? Time will tell.
CubeCube were showing some impressive bikes at Eurobike 2012 with an updated range for their downhill and freeride offerings and a new, and very light, Stereo.
Superlight Stereo HPC frame laid bareStereo full build optionsHanzzTwo15
FizikItalian brand Fizik sits under the Selle Royal umbrella, alongside Crank Brothers. Famous for their saddles in both the road side of the sport and on the mountain, they used Eurobike to launch a new range of shoes for the off road contingent alongside a new carbon seat post
(also available in aluminium) with some unique features.
M1 & M5 MTB Shoes Cyrano Carbon SeatpostArione 00
Hutchinson Gravity TyresThe biggest news is the 2.4" Squale
(top), a smaller and re-profiled version of the 2.5" casing already available, and a tyre which has seen use by Hutchinson United Ride team over the course of the 2012 season. The 2.5" Squale
(left) remains unchanged from 2012 but features deeper tread and larger blocks than the new 2.4" size. It's already a proven all rounder and the additional size now available should open up the possibilities for its use on an even wider range of terrain and race courses.
The Dzo
(right) is an altogether different proposition, moving from all rounder to about as condition specific as you get in the tyre world. A full blown spike for the worst conditions, it comes with pre-moulded cut lines for those who wish to keep the characteristics of a spike but improve rolling resistance. If you're a racer you'll get it, if you aren't then you may not feel the need to cut away unused portions of a brand new tyre! We'd like to see this in a 2.4" version too as the 2.6" is likely to prove just that bit big for anything but the wildest of tracks in the mud.
Double thickness casings feature on all three tyres as well as the rest of the Hutchinson gravity range, and the Race Riposte compound is a super-slow rebounding soft rubber that comes in at 42ShA although feels significantly slower rebounding than other tyres at this grade which should increase grip.[/PI]
YetiYeti are a brand which has always enjoyed stature at the top of the sport. Numerous race victories and some fantastic bikes right back to their inception comes together to ensure that.
SB66SB95 29"SB66 Carbon
I want the Hanzz.
Now.
Hanzzjob time.
All i'm refering to is the frame design, from the begining. And the Two 15 is one ugly sucker!!!
Nevertheless I totaly agree with you on 36x20, I'm actualy surprised Fox haven't made a new axle "standard" on latest 40s, like 22mm axle or something, in cooperation with Shimano who never ever makes hub spacers/adaptors to suit one hub to different axles.
Last time I checked 34 Float in 160 saves barely 100g off 36 160, while 32 saves 500g! That is quite little to sacrifice stiffness. Sure Nico can ride Krankworx Enduro on 32, Fabien Barel sports fkn roadie-narrow Crossmaxes SLR on his 160 bike. However an average Joe like me, requires confidence inspiring stiff equipment, otherwise I do a nice face to a sketchy feeling game screamin - I love lightweeeeeight, but I feel like I'm gonna dieeee!
great work Keith (glad it finally happened), and best of luck to Keith and Jay at Banshee with the new KS bikes, should make plenty of riders very happy especially here in the UK where we love our muddy riding
a slight correction to the PB article, the Rune does not use Dave Weagle's "DW" suspension
its definitely a variation of the short-link virtual pivot design, but quite different to how the DW designs work if you study the suspension system in proper detail
the KS link on the 2nd generation Rune is a re-development of Keith's earlier VF4B short link design used on the first Rune, Spitfire, Rampant, etc.
except the shoes, but I guess they are one of the only things I may can afford
Titanium pivots and silky smooth bearings like their Legend DH bike.
Link placement and shock actuation are similar but different.
DW
a slight correction to the PB article, the Rune does not use Dave Weagle's "DW" suspension
its definitely a variation of the short-link virtual pivot design, but quite different to how the DW designs work if you study the suspension system in proper detail
the KS link (K.S. = Keith Scott) on the 2nd generation Rune is a re-development of Keith's earlier VF4B short link design used on the first Rune, Spitfire, Rampant, etc.
I've spent a lot of time riding with, digging with and talking to Keith over the years, and have seen first hand the huge amount of work he did to get his KS link just right, a very difficult "packaging" challenge to make it work within a frameset