Eighteen Bikes
In the shallow end was Matt Downs, showing off a high linkage-driven single-pivot. This steel prototype was welded together in their Sheffield workshop. The frame material for the final production bikes is yet to be decided upon, but Matt is considering a variety of options including aluminum and bonded carbon.
Rear wheel travel is 150mm, and the frame is designed to work with a 160mm travel fork. That gives a 65° head tube angle and a 77° seat tube angle. This linkage delivers a majority rearward axle path, though it does track forwards toward bottom-out. The rear-center length in the unloaded state is 440mm, growing to a maximum length of 455mm at 120mm travel before shortening again. The reach figures will match the reach numbers of the 18 Bikes’ hardtails such as the No9 Hardtail – so there’ll be 450mm, 475mm and 500mm reach options to choose from.
At the moment, 18 Bikes are experimenting with the use of a floating brake arm to allow them to understand how varying the anti-rise can affect the bike’s behavior under braking. You can see on the non-drive side they have three possible mounting locations on the front triangle – Matt tells us that these deliver anti-rise values of 100%, 75% and 50%.
BTR Fabrications
Paul Burford (aka Burf) made the trip from Frome in Somerset with his latest creation; the BTR Gasser. Weight weenies avert your eyes now; the frame that Burf built in 2020 weighed around 6 kgs. He is yet to weigh this exact one. Needless to say, he could hardly care less about it, placing far more value on strength and durability. After all, this is a downhill bike with 190mm of rear wheel travel (shock is 250mm x 75mm) and a 200mm travel EXT Vaia fork. This summer, Burf will fulfil his childhood dream of riding Schladming on a DH bike he made himself. Pretty sick, I say.
The inherent flex in steel tubing and the butting profile necessitated reinforcements. While it may look like overkill to many, Paul leaves nothing to chance understanding well the need for that brace between the top tube and downtube. Mounting the front shock mount to the downtube in this way can place a lot of stress at a point on the butted steel tube where the walls are at their thinnest, so adding this extra member and extending it up to meet the seat tube provides the extra reinforcement for Burf’s peace of mind.
Burf says he opted for a linkage-driven single-pivot for stiffness purposes. The main pivot sees a 20mm solid bar welded through the frame. Around it is a gusset over the top that marries with the seat tube and bottom bracket area, again for reinforcement. Burf has CNC machined a number of the frame parts; the links, the dropouts, the main pivot housing and the seat clamp. Burf also made the bump stops, with bosses in the frame to securely mount them.
Burf will be launching a YouTube series on July 5th, documenting in great detail the fabrication of this very Gasser. Follow his story here.
Craft Bikes
In the deep end, Craft Bikes were showing their very first titanium hardtail mountain bike. Until now, all of their hardtails have been fabricated in steel. That said, it’s not their first time working with the infamously tricky titanium; a number of their road and gravel models are also Ti. Co-proprietor Jim tells us he loves the challenges it presents. He and Chloe Griggs are responsible for the fabrication and delivery of all Craft Bikes, out of the workshop they’ve put together in the old garage out the back of the house.
The bike is home to a number of 3D printed parts produced in New Zealand by RAM3D – the largest metal 3D printing service provider in the Southern Hemisphere. The dropout is a fine example of one of those parts. it’s designed around the UDH standard, and the rear end is Boost spacing to give a 55mm chainline for Transmission drivetrains.
Craft Bikes build bikes to order with a custom geometry specified by the customer, and a build kit advised by Craft Bikes. This one runs 29″ wheels with 435mm chainstays, a 75° seat tube angle, and a 65° head tube angle. As shown, this build retails at £10,700. Craft do not currently offer frame only as they like to have a certain amount of ownership over the final ride quality of the bike – i.e., they spec it with parts that are appropriate to how they intend the frame to be ridden.
Dawley Bikes
In a neighboring bath was Thom Dawley, with the 115mm travel Dawley T16. This Nottingham-made steel frame delivers its rear wheel travel through a flex pivot. The deflection is quite minimal, however. Thom says the rear end only flexes by around 4mm throughout the full travel, and most of that occurs in the thinnest section of the chainstay close to the drop out.
Thom is selling the T16 as a frame only, for £1,800 plus VAT, with a three year warranty.
The bike is designed around a 120-140mm fork – as seen here, it is built with a 130mm fork. As such, it has a 65° head angle and a 77° seat tube angle. The one you see here is a size small with a 438mm reach. From there, the reach figures go up in ~12mm increments, so the longest will be around 510mm. Across that size range, chainstay length is consistent at 440mm.
CDuro
The most unusual frame construction on display was over at the CDuro stand. Humphrey Carter, Head of Business Development at the parent company CompoTech, was on hand to tell us a little more about it.
This carbon fiber frame is made using a unique process developed by CompoTech called Integrated Loop Technology (ILT). It allows the joining of the structural composite component, i.e. the tubes, with a carbon fiber joint that is integral to the structure. Those joints are seen most clearly at the headtube as they loop around it, and again at the top tube-seat tube interface, too. Humphrey tells us the process makes very efficient use of materials, with reduced overall production and labor time required. However, one of the main benefits is that the ILT method results in stronger joint, specifically in areas that are subject to tension and high stress.
The frame, without shock, weighs a claimed 2.2 kg.
The bike is called the Epona. It runs a single-pivot suspension platform and is available in sizes S-XL. Rear wheel travel is dependent on stroke length; as a complete 29er with a 230mm x 60mm shock, the rear wheel travel is 150mm. The frame is designed to take a 160-170mm fork. As pictured, the Epona has a 64° head angle and a 78° seat tube angle. Reach spans a 450mm-535mm range across the S-XL sizes, with chainstay length consistent at 450mm.
CDuro are taking orders for the Epona now. The frame alone will set you back €3,860.
Atherton Bikes
Atherton Bikes made the trip from Machynlleth with the S.170 and the A.170. Both run a Dave Weagle suspension design; the lugged aluminum S.170 delivers its rear wheel travel through a dual-link DW4 linkage, while the original carbon-tubed titanium-lugged A.170 delivers its rear wheel travel through the DW6 platform.
The S.170 is available in just twelve sizes, as compared to the A.170 which is available in 22 sizes. The starting price is $5,119 USD.
About the S.170, Mike Kazimer said the following:
“Smashy” is a good way to sum up how the S170 feels – it’s the sort of bike that encourages letting off the brakes and plowing through whatever’s in the way. That 180mm Zeb up front is there to absorb the initial blow, and then the SuperDeluxe Coil takes care of the rest. The weight that slows it down on the climbs translates into a solid, planted feel for the descents – the mini-DH term really is appropriate here. Even though crushing everything feels like its main modus operandi, hitting jumps and natural doubles doesn’t feel like a chore – the overall wheelbase is long without being outlandish, and the suspension design provides a good platform to push off of from any part of the travel”.
Sour Bicycles
Jorgen from Sour Bicycles made the trip over from Dresden. The Pasta Party you see here is fabricated in Dresden, though many of the parts are cast or machined in Taiwan. This is a steel frame in a size large, and it weighs just under 2,400 grams.
The Pasta Party is a XC hardtail, designed to be efficient, light, and stable. It can take a 110mm travel fork, though is shown with a 100mm travel fork. It can also be set up as a fully rigid affair with a Sour’s steel party fork, or their lighter carbon option. The BB is eccentric allowing 8mm of adjustment; that also allows the bike to be set up as a single-speed.
With a 506mm axle-to-crown, the Pasta Party has a 68° head tube angle as a 75° seat tube angle. It is available in four sizes; S-XL, with reach spanning a 410-489m range, with 435mm stays across the board. The powder coated frame retails at 1,099 €, and the lead time is currently at 75 days. Warranty is three years.