First Look: Cane Creek's Prototype Coil Inline - Eurobike 2015

Prototype DBcoil Inline CS

Safely stored in a padded Pelican case and hidden underneath their Eurobike display stand was one of just three examples of Cane Creek's DBcoil Inline shock. The handmade prototype features the same damper design used by the DBinline that most of us are already familiar with, including the clever CS switch that adds both LSC and LSR, but the shock is designed around a coil spring rather than the air spring that the production DBinline employs. That means that the shock pictured here is most definitely heavier than the standard DBinline, but Cane Creek says that it's also 149 grams lighter than the standard, piggyback equipped DBcoil CS in a 200mm x 57mm size. It's also close to being on par with the piggyback equipped DBair CS when you factor in Cane Creek's upcoming lightweight steel spring.

Cane Creek hasn't decided if they'll actually offer DBcoil Inline, though, despite what seems to be a growing consumer desire for coil-sprung shocks on mid-travel bikes. Part of the issue is that many contemporary bikes have been designed around air-sprung shocks and simply won't work well when you swap the air for a coil. That doesn't apply to all bikes, though, and there are certainly some riders who would benefit from the extra sensitivity and consistency that a steel spring will always have in hand over a lighter weight air-sprung setup. Cane Creek also did say that the DBcoil Inline, if produced, would cost less than other shocks in their lineup.

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MENTIONS: @CaneCreekCyclingComponents

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