Most brands that lugged crates of product to Eurobike had something new to show off for their 2019 offerings, and a few others made drastic improvements to their existing lineup. The German mountain bike engineers at Alutech confidently brought just one of their six models, to highlight what they knew was a blue-ribbon bike. The fully revised Fanes 6.0 27.5″ all-mountain/enduro bike puts a spotlight on the possibilities of alloy frame construction and creativity.
The engineers wanted to hide the cables and brake hoses as much as possible, and have created some unique ways to make the bike look neat and tidy. The rear brake hose and shift cable pass between the BB and the lower pivot, not visible from a side view of the bike, while the dropper cable is run entirely internally. The handlebar organizer, pictured above, is included on top-tier builds and will be available separately on the Alutech website.
With a team comprised entirely of mountain bikers, the company spent the last three years testing, scrapping, prototyping, and re-testing different geometry and tube shapes for the Fanes, to come up with a bike that they would all love to ride. Tube shape and integrity testing were as important as geometry updates for the new model. Squint your eyes and the precise welding beads disappear, making the bike look as if it came from a carbon fiber mold.
The seat tube angle grew 1° steeper and the BB drop carried over from the previous model, while the headtube angle opened only slightly, from 65.4° to 65°. Reach on the size large frames lengthened from 457mm to 470mm. The biggest geometry shift for the Fanes 6.0 lies in the newly adjustable dropouts that vary the bike’s chainstay length from 428.5-441mm.
Overall, these numbers are on par with most long-travel bikes and should put the Fanes 6.0 atop the list of considerations when shopping for a sturdy descender. The new iteration will not include an extra-small option, but Alutech does have other bikes suited for shorter riders.
Microchip with all the goods
The new Fanes 6.0 will come with an integrated microchip to track service intervals, record tire pressures and shock tunes, note component replacement dates, and a host of other features that the company is currently working on. Customers can download an application on their smartphones that pairs with the chip, displaying all of the information they have entered for the bike. This might be particularly useful for remembering suspension tuning if a buyer owns multiple bikes, with varying suspension settings. It could also prove helpful when selling the bike to have a complete list of documented services and dates.
The updated Fanes will be available to order soon. Availability and updates are on Alutech’s social media channels.
