Singletracks is preparing a massive mid-travel mountain bike mashup for this fall, and we’ll be sharing previews of each test bike as they come in this summer ahead of the full video and written reviews. If there’s something you want to know about any of these bikes, ask us in the comments and we’ll find an answer before the leaves begin to tumble. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to get notified as soon as each video review drops.
The Stumpjumper is a bike that many mountain bikers have a personal story with, whether they owned the steel 26″ version years ago or they purchase a new model every time the brand redesigns the frame. We’re excited to have the top-shelf S-Works offering in for testing, with its Fox Factory suspension, a wireless SRAM AXS drivetrain, and Roval carbon rims spinning the price tag up to $9,800. While there are carbon fiber Stumpjumper builds at less than half this price, it’s sweet to check out what the neighbors are riding once in a while.
Unlike the mini-enduro platform that the Stumpjumper EVO offers, this bike is truly built to do it all, with 130mm of squish at the rear axle and 140mm up front. The carbon bikes cut weight by replacing the rear suspension pivot with a set of flexing seat-stays for a clean linkage-driven, single-pivot setup, whereas the alloy Stumpy frames use the same Horst-link platform as the larger EVO model. There’s a cool sandwich-holster in the down tube, and loads of slap-protection to keep the bike quiet on rocky singletrack.
This frame has a far more descent-focused collection of angles than most lightweight bikes of its ilk. The head tube leans to 65° in the low setting, and the seat tube is an average 76° with the flip-chip in the same spot. The reach on our size S3 is 450mm in low and 455mm in high, and there are two smaller frame sizes and three larger ones to choose from. Chain stays on the S1 – S4 sizes are 432mm long, while the larger S5 and S6 size frames are balanced by 442mm stays. Seat tube lengths are super short across the size run to allow riders to size up as they wish, and still run maximum dropper post travel.
The rear brake caliper is attached to the chain and seat stay, and we’re stoked to learn if that affects the suspension performance at all. The chain stay mount is below where the tube flexes, so theoretically it shouldn’t matter. So far the bike is feeling responsive no matter the brake load, but we’ll need more time to really get a feel for it.
Stay tuned for a full written and video review of this sick ride in early autumn.
