Durango Blackjack 29er/27.5+ - Review

The Blackjack is actually still a bit of a rarity: There aren’t, after all, hordes of Made-in-America, full-suspension bikes roaming the range these days. Durango offers the Blackjack as a frame (w/ Monarch RT3 shock) for $2,495 USD and in a variety of complete-bike kits, ranging in price from $4,800-$7,400.


Frame Details

The Blackjack mates a low-slung, swoopy front triangle with a compact rear end and a downtube-mounted shock that helps center the mass low on the chassis. Though aluminum may seem decidedly retro these days (at least on high-end, full-suspension rigs) there’s plenty of thoughtful hydroforming on display here. The Blackjack is not a nostalgia bike. Not by a long shot. A size Medium frame equipped with a RockShox Monarch RT3 shock tips the scales at an impressive 6.2 pounds. Jeff Estes, the president, designer and guy you’ll find mitering most of the tubes on these bikes, claims that all of Durango Bike Company’s frame materials, fabrication and finishing is done stateside—a decent chunk of it in Durango, Colorado.

Durango is a small-batch company and that means frame and component customization is an option for riders interested in one of his bikes. What kind of havoc does that wreak on the price tag?

“Right now there is no extra charge if we are extending a top tube or head tube or shortening a seat tube,” says Estes. “We build to order, so we just make these simple modifications when we set up….there is typically a six to eight-week build time, depending on where you are in the queue.”


A few points worth noting...readers with keen eyesight might have noticed that the Blackjack we tested lacks both ISCG and water bottle mounts. The good news is that Durango will add those items to a frame as part of the customization process. Though the Durango is configured around a Boost 148 rear end, there isn't much breathing room between the SRAM 30-tooth chainring and the Blackjack's drive-side chainstay. While I never encountered any clearance problems with that 30-tooth ring (which is what I run on 29ers anyway), I imagine riders who'd like to equip the bike with larger chainrings (Eagle anyone?) may have a hard time of it.

Geometry

Estes says he wanted the Blackjack to ride like a longer-legged version of Durango’s 27.5-wheeled Moonshine. He wanted a bike that was capable, but playful. To that end, the Blackjack features notably short (16.7-inch/424-millimeter) chainstays and a tight wheelbase. A size Large frame, for example, runs 45.3 inches (1150 millimeters) from axle to axle.

Interestingly, Durango bucked current trends and went fairly lofty on the bottom bracket height—13.8 inches (350.5 millimeters) in 29er mode. That’s a good half-inch (or more) taller than other bikes in this class, such as the Evil Following, Specialized Stumpjumper 29er and Santa Cruz Hightower. That bottom bracket height drops to 13.5 inches when I slapped on a set of 27.5 wheels shod with Maxxis Rekon 2.8-inch tires. Perhaps Durango was accounting for the extra sag and slightly smaller outer diameter of the plus-size option. By the standards of a few years ago, the Blackjack sports a healthy top tube. By today's standards, it's conservative. A size Large sports a 24.3-inch/617-millimeter effective top tube in stock trim...though, again, you can have the reach lengthened a bit at no charge if you want a roomier cockpit.

Last but not least, while most companies have spent the past few years steepening their seat angles, the Blackjack rocks a fairly slack 70.5-degree seat tube.

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The Big "Why" With Blackjack Designer, Jeff Estes

Vernon Felton: There are people who will look at this bike and think, "Nah, if it's not carbon, I'm not interested." So, why did you choose to stick with aluminum?

Jeff Estes: First, let's look at how the bike rides- I can only speak for my brand and there is no ride quality difference/feel on the trail with this aluminum frame vs any full suspension carbon frame in the 120 to 130-millimeter family. There is no vibration or loss of frame rigidity with our high quality aluminum, so in terms of what the rider is looking for on the trail and the ability to offer a long term warranty, the aluminum exceeds carbon. We build these bikes the way we want to ride...hard, fast, carefree...maybe a little reckless...carbon doesn't fit the bill if I have to worry about what I might hit and the long term investment life cycle.


At the end of the day it is about integrity. Integrity for what we do but also who we are as riders....sending our designs and bikes overseas for strangers to build isn't doing it the right way in our opinion...carbon fiber isn't a play for us because we don't believe it exceeds aluminum's performance, reliability, or durability.

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Setup

For the first few rides, I ran the RockShox Monarch RT3 shock at 25-percent sag—in keeping with the whole trail bike vibe. Up front, I chose to run a bit more sag (30 percent) since Pike forks tend to ride fairly high in their travel and (with the right amount of Bottomless Tokens) don’t get all divey when you hit the front brake. That was the right call on the fork setting, but the Blackjack’s rear end wasn’t feeling the love on small to medium hits. I soon wound up running 30 to 33 percent sag on the Monarch shock as well--a much better match for the bike's strengths.

This was my first go on Maxxis’ relatively new 29er Aggressor tires, which are supposed to be the next-big-thing-in-Enduro or some such thing. Since my first rides were on some of the rockier trails around Hood River, I opted for higher pressures than I normally use on a wide (30-millimeter internal width) rim. Once back home, I wound up airing the tires down to between 23 and 24 psi. The 27.5+ Rekons felt right about 15 psi up front and 16 to 17 psi in the rear. As with all plus-size tires, small changes in the Rekon's air pressure yield crazy-big changes in ride quality…it pays to fiddle.



Climbing

Let’s dispense with the obvious—you’re looking at a Horst Link bike. The day Specialized’s patent on that four-bar rear suspension design expired was the day a whole lot of companies breathed a sigh of relief and started cranking out versions of their own. It’s a design that has stood the test of time for a reason: It can be built reasonably light, resists pedal kickback on technical climbs and still feels pretty good when you are simultaneously slamming the rear wheel into crap while deathgripping the rear brake lever.

Having said that, there are plenty of bikes with chainstay pivots in front of and below the rear axle that ride very differently from one another. Anyone, for instance, who’s ridden similar-travel Norco and Specialized bikes can tell you: The back ends of different Horst Link bikes “feel” very different in the rough stuff and they certainly don’t all climb the same. A single pivot placement, in other words, doesn’t define a bike.

I say all this because if you've come to the conclusion that Horst Link bikes don't climb well without you reaching down to flip some levers, a ride on the Blackjack will dispel that notion. Even with the shock in its open mode, the bike motors up climbs. It's no XC bike and there are models out there that boast better traction on rocky pitches, but for a bike with serious descending chops, it climbs surprisingly well. I did find myself riding the nose of the saddle a fair bit on particularly steep pitches (I'm guessing the relatively slack seat angle might have something to do with that), but aside from possessing a sorta grumpy taint on big-climb days, I have no complaints.



Descending

I wasn’t immediately blown away by the Blackjack—I was coming off of rides on lighter 29ers that played in the same slack, aggressive and rowdy corner of the sandbox. Those bikes were lighter, lower, and at slower to medium speeds, they responded easier to both steering inputs and body shifts.

When the speeds picked up, however, the Blackjack truly shone. For starters, the bike’s suspension feels surprisingly deep without being so rampy that you have to beat the hell out of it to get full travel.

The bike also has a solid, take-no-crap feel to it. It’s a stout little package that’s a good choice for heavier or harder-riding types.

So far, it probably sounds like the Blackjack is some kind of gravity barge. It isn’t. That tight wheelbase and short rear center get the credit here. There’s a downhill trail on our local mountain that’s fairly steep, definitely rocky and has a few sections that completely lack flow. Or, at least you think those sections lack flow when you are on other bikes. On the Blackjack, you’re suddenly able to snake through corners that always feel too tight on other bikes. At speed. While cackling. It’s a very good thing. When I outfitted the bike with Industry Nine's BackCountry 450 27.5 wheelset and Maxxis Rekon 2.8s, the bike retained all of its nimble and playful feel, but now also offered ridiculous amounts of traction and a velvety feel in root and baby head sections. Which is the better option? Again, that's entirely dependent on the rider. I have a bias towards the steering feel of the 29-inch wheel, but also enjoyed cleaning some tech sections with the 27.5+ tires that normally frustrate me. While the Blackjack doesn't feel tippy when shod with 29er hoops, I did prefer the slightly lower bottom bracket height achieved by the 27.5+ configuration.





Component Check

• Completely customizable: Everything from the frame's powder-coated finish to the grips on the handlebar can be tweaked to the customer's size, riding style and preference. Durango offers the Blackjack with several build kits, but is open to outfitting each bike with any mix of drivetrain, suspension fork or cockpit component. To that end, our test bike deviated from the norm, via the addition of the SRAM Level brakes.

• GX Drivetrain: We could have shaved some weight from the Blackjack by going with a higher-end drivetrain, but we opted for the more cost conscious SRAM 1X kit. True, you can feel the difference on the upshifts, but if it means lopping several hundred dollars off the sticker price, it's a no-brainer in my book.

• Industry Nine Enduro 305 Wheelset: I9's latest burly 29er wheelset bears checking out. There's the usual quick engagement, but more importantly, the new rim is easy to install and seat tubeless tires on and provides plenty of support for larger tire casings. It's a solid, yet lightweight, package. I'll be holding onto these and their 27+ BackCounty 450 counterpart for a long-term review.





Pinkbike's Take

Does it matter that the Blackjack is made in America? That's a personal call. You might love the fact that the bike flouts convention that way. Then again, you might be all about carbon...maybe an aluminum frame leaves you cold at this price point. Or perhaps you live in Oslo or Osaka and you don't give a damn one way or another if this bike was built by real apple-pie eating cowboys descended from George Washington himself. At the end of the day, the one thing most people want to know is this: Does the bike hold its own? Yeah, the Blackjack does. As with most bikes, it could also be improved with a few tweaks. I would, for instance, like to see the Blackjack equipped with a slightly lower bottom bracket and a steeper seat angle. But did I have fun on the thing? Yes, I did. For the person who is interested in getting a custom, hand built rig that pairs a proven suspension design with progressive geometry, the Blackjack is an intriguing proposition. - Vernon Felton

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Visit the high-res gallery for more images from this review

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About the Reviewer
Stats: Age: 44 • Height: 5'11” • Inseam: 32" • Weight: 175lb • Industry affiliations / sponsors: None
In 1988 Vernon started riding mountain bikes—mainly to avoid the people throwing cans of Budweiser at him during his road rides. At some point, roughly when Ronald Reagan was president and Hüsker Dü was still a band, he began loving mountain bikes on their own terms. Vernon Felton spends most of his time riding bikes, thinking about bikes, thinking about riding bikes and then riding some more on the wet and filthy trails of Bellingham, Washington. If it has a greasy chain and two wheels on it, he’s cool with it. Except for recumbents. Well, okay, maybe those too. Nah, forget it. No recumbents.