Bike Check: Billy Hoyes' Single Speed Banshee Rune Jib Machine

Sep 8, 2020 at 7:55
by James Smurthwaite  

BIlly Hoye s Banshee
BIKE CHECK
Billy Hoyes'
Banshee Rune
Photography by Adam Lievesley

Coming from a BMX background, Billy Hoyes looks at bike set up a bit differently than your average mountain biker. He just signed a new deal with Banshee after previously being a BTR rider and has already totally overhauled this Rune V3 to be a freeride / dirt jump / jib machine.

The focus of this build is maneuverability and playfulness so Billy has downsized to a medium, despite being 5' 11", which he claims gives him more control over the bike in the air. He has also stripped down all the controls apart from a back brake for simplicity and to allow him to throw bar spins without having to worry about cables or levers getting in the way. This also means he has set up the bike single speed for further simplicity and silence. Add in some super stiff suspension and you have a bike that most of us would hate on an average trail ride but is perfect for Billy's intentions. Let's get into the details.
BIlly Hoye s Banshee
Rider Name // Billy Hoyes
Age: 22
Height: 5' 11"
Weight: 140 lbs
Instagram: @billy_hoyes

bigquotesI run one rear brake so it's easier to throw barspins and I don't have to worry about grabbing a handful of front brake every time. I also run single speed mainly because I never ride up hills and I like how silent it is. The bike is a little on the small side for me, but that's because I like it to feel nimble in the air, the bike feels incredible! Exactly how I want it.—Billy Hoyes

BIlly Hoye s Banshee
Banshee Rune V3 Details
Frame: Banshee Rune V3 raw, 160mm travel
Shock: Fox Float X2 Trunnion
Fork: RockShox Pike Ultimate, 160mm travel
Wheels: Hope Enduro, 27.5" front/rear
Front Tire: Maxxis Assegai, 27.5x2.5" , 30psi
Rear Tire: Maxxis Minion DHRII, 27.5x2.3", 35psi
Drivetrain: SB! single speed tensioner, 16t cog, 34t slx chainring
Brakes: Shimano SLX
Cockpit: Renthal Fatbar35 40mm rise 775mm width. Renthal Apex35 33mm length
Size: Medium
More info: bansheebikes.com

BIlly Hoye s Banshee

BIlly Hoye s Banshee
A Fox Float X2 drives the KS2 Link suspension. Billy runs it at 140 psi with no tokens.
BIlly Hoye s Banshee
The Sean Burns "Vibrator" Pivotal seat is a reminder of Billy's BMX roots.

BIlly Hoye s Banshee
160psi and 2 tokens in a super stiff set up for Billy (the maximum suggested pressure is 163psi from RockShox).

BIlly Hoye s Banshee
There is only one brake and no shifters on Billy's super clean cockpit to make it easy for him to throw barspins.

BIlly Hoye s Banshee
Hills aren't a consideration for Billy so the silence and simplicity of a single-speed set up with a chain tensioner do the job.

BIlly Hoye s Banshee

BIlly Hoye s Banshee
BIlly Hoye s Banshee
There are smiling chainlinks everywhere on Billy's bike. It's a nod to The Bike College in Leeds that uses abandoned or unwanted bikes to teach people mechanical skills and also supports upcoming riders. More info on them can be found at thebikescollege.org.

BIlly Hoye s Banshee
The pedals come from another northern English cycling brand, Burgtec.

BIlly Hoye s Banshee
Maxxis rubber on Hope hoops.

BIlly Hoye s Banshee
BIlly Hoye s Banshee


Photo Credit: @adamlievesleybmx
Billy's Instagram: @billy_hoyes

Must Read This Week
Colorado-Based Myth Cycles Releases the Zodiac: A US Made Steel, Single-Pivot, Full Suspension 29er
65546 views
Emily Batty Signs With Canyon
53902 views
Throwback Thursday: 8 Old School Rides from Pinkbike Staff
52464 views
First Ride: 2021 Devinci Marshall - Aluminum, Affordable, & Made in Canada
47546 views
First Look: Fuji's Rakan LT Adds Travel, Keeps Weird Suspension
47176 views
Video: Ibis's New Aluminum Ripley is More Metal, More Slacker
46331 views
Propain Acknowledges Long Lead Times and Price Increases
42418 views
Round Up: 26 EWS Cockpit Setups Past & Present
41329 views

103 Comments

  • 67 0
 Hi, a lot of people have noted the front tyre being backwards. This is for high speed half cabs, Thanks.
  • 43 0
 " I also run single speed mainly because I never ride up hills", ahhhhhh..............Billy,Billy,Billy...................I have 12 speed and still push
  • 5 0
 Get on the band waggon!
  • 1 0
 @gasserdiaries: if only the world just went downhill. Literally anyway, it already does figuratively.
  • 34 0
 Is that ye reverse Assegai?
  • 87 4
 gaiAsse is what the bois are callin it
  • 5 0
 OMG this is bad
  • 2 0
 @borisimobike: agreed.Check the poor guy s pants
  • 1 0
 @jean-germain: done f*cked up
  • 28 0
 FACK I love Banshee’s
  • 9 0
 Same...
  • 4 0
 Same. I own the V2 version and it has been the best bike a have ever own.
  • 1 0
 @danielgarcia: same
  • 27 1
 Pinkbike's 4th Rune article since 2008! Sick looking raw frame.
  • 8 5
 I wonder if it has anything to do with how much money the other companies pay to Pinkbike for advertising?
  • 23 2
 i wonder why he didn’t go with a spitfire instead of the rune?
  • 1 0
 Exactly my question
  • 4 8
flag tobiusmaximum (Sep 8, 2020 at 22:03) (Below Threshold)
 Tell me the different characteristics and I’ll tell you the answer..
  • 5 1
 @tobiusmaximum: rune is 160 spitty is 140. I had a spitty. Loved it. There's no way I'd ever hit jumps as big as this dude tho.
  • 6 0
 The Rune is the strongest of trail bikes!
  • 5 12
flag tobiusmaximum (Sep 9, 2020 at 3:19) (Below Threshold)
 Lol... downvoted for suggesting a pro knows what bike he’s choosing and why! Well done!
  • 3 0
 @tobiusmaximum: spitty is pretty much the same bike but with 135 in the rear and can be run with a 160 fork up front making the geo pretty much the same. with how stiff he runs his setup is seems weird he wouldn’t go that route but maybe he just wanted a more stout feeling bike.
  • 1 0
 @frigofff: The Rune is a much burlier bike. It isn't just a different shock and rear travel.
  • 1 1
 @jlawie: ORRRRR.... Is it the same frame components, some tubes mitered a bit and put in a slightly different jig to make a spotty instead of a rune? Kinda looks like it??
  • 2 0
 @stiingya:

Nope. Not that at all.

Check the frameset weights. That'll tell you enough.
  • 3 0
 I had a good laugh at this thread. Any banshee is over built. Don’t tell me that 140lb Peter Pan flying through the sky is going to crack a banshee, he could ride any of their bikes. Less we forget the banshee scream?

The banshee that breaks is one being piloted by Fred “JRA” Average weighing in at 240lbs and staring in Fail Friday on a weekly basis.
  • 15 1
 This bike would be perfect to fill the slopeduro hole in my quiver.
  • 9 0
 Is the front tire situation just a simple oops or is there a reason for running it wackbards?
  • 7 0
 Surprised to see 775mm for a barspinner.
  • 7 1
 Love these builds. Seeing plenty of "Dad Jumpers" being built up....
  • 3 0
 The hell?
  • 2 0
 As a 43 y.o. dad who just built up a single speed hard tail with aggressive geometry and skinwall tires I feel attacked.
  • 2 0
 @TyroneShoelaces: \m/ Whilst one can, do.
  • 4 1
 It's a tensioned single speed as opposed to dropout or eccentric tensioned... So why would it be any more silent than a good clutch mech? Still 2 extra pulleys to go through, and does the tensioner have a clutch?
  • 2 0
 Because shifting is noisy, and crosschaining?

@rideforjohn: ye s

@frigoff: because he likes the steering characteristics yielded by hta, bar, stem and fork lengths, and fork offset?

According to Banshee sizing guide, Hoyes hasn't downsized. Too bad Jenson doesn't appear to be stocking a few.
  • 4 0
 yeah that model has a clutch but, I have the non clutch version on my FR/DH bike an, the spring is VERY high tension... and yeah, SILENT
  • 2 0
 @ceecee: Oh man i bought a spitfire off jenson years back and it was such a good deal.
  • 6 0
 The SB1 tensioners are another level, also a shorter chain for less movement when compares to just being in a low gear
  • 2 0
 A singlespeed with a chain tensioner is completely silent. It's that big, drooping loop of chain bouncing around that makes all the noise on multi-speed bikes. The tensioner also has a much stiffer spring than a derailleur. Try it and you'll be surprised how much you love it!
  • 1 0
 Where can I got one of those tensioners?! @gasserdiaries:
  • 1 0
 @enduroNZ: @thebikescollege man!
  • 1 0
 Inspiration. Got a semi-retired Spitfire frame and an Alfine 2 jockey wheel tensioner - mmmm? Might run the fork a LITTLE softer and can’t match that seat from stock in my garage! My park hardtail is single speed and almost the same gearing - 34/15 though, which means I must be faster and see more air time than Billy.....really!
  • 2 0
 Why such a soft rear setup? The front is literally maxed out, but the back is mega-soft, there must be a reason, but you guys didn't feel like asking it seems...
  • 2 0
 He prolly just runs the clicker on lockout
  • 1 0
 But they took all those photos, and edited them, and wrote captions, and uploaded them. Rider is 140 lbs. Recommended shock pressure is 140 lbs--I had to look it up--how is that so soft? I've noticed that when pushing into and off a steep lip, it's critical that the shock not drive the rear wheel up too much....
  • 8 0
 is a typo, meant to be 240psi.
  • 2 0
 @ceecee: that rear end buck is generally because rebound is set too fast for the pressure and compression settings. with all the resources and guides on suspension setup available it blows my mind how few people actually understand basic suspension principles.
  • 2 5
 @BansheeRiders: Says who?
  • 9 0
 @just6979: me... after talking with Billy. Smile
  • 1 1
 Ha ha you got told @just6979:
  • 1 0
 @enduroNZ: I got told information I didn't know before, yes.

What the f*ck is wrong with everyone? We all know PB comments are full of people just spouting bullshit. When someone comes in an just says "that thing in the article is wrong, this is the right answer" with out providing any credentials, why the hell would anyone accept that as truth? If bansheeriders had said, "article has a typo, should be 240, I ride with Billy all the time" then it's done and closed, but "article is wrong" all by itself means less than nothing on here. I mean, just saying "I ride with him" isn't actually credentials, but it means more than just "wrong!" all by itself.
  • 1 0
 @just6979: Yeah man its a Typo, it happens hey! Smile
  • 1 0
 @just6979: we're just here to kowtow to brands, brand-name riders and digital image processing. How about this: Billy Hoyes has a new sponsor! He runs his suspension at 8% sag because Banshee doesn't expect to sell many Amps, and hard landings on smooth dirt still hurt less. Want to learn about Caballerials?--try Wikipedia. Yay!
  • 1 0
 @ceecee: Chill...
  • 1 0
 That escalated so fast...
  • 1 0
 @tworldsmine: well, this place is f*cked. A question gets negged, and the answer gets propped. If the answer was that good, how can the question be bad?
  • 3 0
 Such a sick rider, should definitely check out his YouTube & insta @gasserdiariesofficial
  • 6 0
 Love you
  • 4 0
 runs front tyre backwards..... still better then all of us
  • 3 0
 I never thought about grabbing the wrong brake in a bar spin wow! Saying that, I've never thought I'd doing a bar spin
  • 4 0
 wow full suspension bmx bike. not a mountain bike.
  • 1 0
 Such a beautiful bike. All these 140-150mm 27.5 bikes are also being repurposed as jib bikes now, they rip all mountain in such a playful manor so I can see why
  • 1 0
 random question, why does every dj/slope/etc. bike with only one brake, always have the brake cable wrapped around the headtube for photos?
  • 3 0
 The cable is always wrapped around so the bars can do a full rotation for barspins. It unravels when I spin a cheeky B.
  • 2 0
 I like the silver headset spacers
  • 2 0
 This is what one would call a "because I can" bike
  • 1 0
 i don't know what is this chained logo sticker but it's looks like a pubis steel plate Smile
  • 2 0
 The Bike College, in Leeds
  • 1 0
 @militantmandy @Clem-mk


#smilingchainlink
  • 1 0
 A founder of the project had his pelvis put together after a bad crash using them... coincidence?
  • 2 0
 That is one sweet looking bike!
  • 2 0
 Dang, this is a sweet bike. I've always wanted to try a Banshee.
  • 1 0
 Hey, nice bike! Love the content being produces by his insta channel! BTR tho was looking more sick with Vibrator seat
  • 1 0
 at first i read billy hoyle...because i loved woody harrelson in white men cant jump
  • 1 0
 He should get together with rob welch and make a bmx style video on mountain bikes!
  • 2 1
 Awesome build, looks like a fun machine
  • 1 0
 Curious about the weight?
  • 9 0
 5'11", 140 lbs and is rumored to have a penchant for oysters.
  • 1 0
 RAD (can I have your old BTR plez¿)
  • 3 0
 Billy has passed it onto a local guy supported by The Bikes College. They all came up with this idea of a 13yo having an opportunity to ride one before passing it onto someone else...
  • 1 0
 @tworldsmine: Nice! My friend has a BTR for sale but, it's too big. Soon as I win the lotto I'm gettin meself BTR built
  • 1 0
 Savagery. Chain tensioner is cool looking.
  • 1 0
 Anyone know what grips those are?
  • 1 1
 looks like Renthal to me, any of those pushons... probably supertacky
  • 4 0
 Eclat bmx bro
  • 1 0
 @gasserdiaries: Thanks!
  • 1 0
 Fuck, this is near identical to my OG Reign.
  • 2 0
 Except in no other way except the tunneled rear shock.
  • 2 0
 @Maestroman87: tish!
  • 1 0
 No surprise that the rear rim is not Hope!
  • 1 0
 longer reach isn't always the answer! THIS IS RAD!
  • 1 1
 Pedals appear to have the old spindle with narrow q-factor?
  • 3 1
 they are the new mk5 we supplied them to him
  • 2 0
 All Burgtecs sit really close to crank arm.
  • 2 0
 @Molesdigmyjumps: I know, that’s why I was curious. I remember seeing em up at fortbill before the new ones had been released and they told me they’d put a longer spindle on em. Did they go back to the old spindle or did I just make the whole thing up? There was a fair bit of gin involved
  • 2 0
 @ProperPushIrons: haha hope the gin wasn’t up at The Fort , that’s sacrilege round there!!
I only know that the reviews from the Mk 5 still all say they sit close to the crank and the guy from Burgtec said it was intentional to allow for clearance for riding in ruts - seems quite a specific feature!
  • 1 0
 @Molesdigmyjumps: we had it cleverly disguised in a water bottle lol I wouldn’t risk openly drinking gin around there.
I might have been getting mixed up with the composite ones, I probably couldn’t tell the difference between plastic and metal at the time.
  • 1 1
 What brand is this chain tensioner?
  • 1 0
 found it.. SB one G3C
  • 1 0
 Looks like "SB ONE BIKEPARTS"
www.sbonebikeparts.com/sb-one-chain-tensioner
  • 2 0
 @mtbblamtb: IG @thebikescollege and they'll get you one. They're UK distributor...
  • 1 0
 i want one
Below threshold threads are hidden

Post a Comment



You must login to Pinkbike.
Don't have an account? Sign up

Join Pinkbike  Login
Copyright © 2000 - 2021. Pinkbike.com. All rights reserved.
dv42 0.014591
Mobile Version of Website