Last year we got an early peek at the Privateer 161, a progressive enduro bike with geometry and durability at the forefront. The aluminum 161 was designed around a Horst-link platform, with durable pivot bearings, and room for a 2.6″ tire in the rear. Privateer also sought to make the bikes as affordable as possible. Today, they finalized the details, and the 161 will ship soon at a killer price.
Since first letting the 161 cat out of the bag, Privateer had to stuff it back in for a few adjustments. After putting miles on their prototypes, they found that the seat post insertion needed to be deeper to accommodate longer and longer dropper posts.
Privateer wanted to readjust the seat tube insertion without moving the linkage position, so they redesigned the bottom bracket and shock mount junction, increasing the insertion depth by 50mm on the P1 and 80mm on sizes P2-P4. With durability and serviceability in mind, Privateer of course went with a threaded bottom bracket, and there are ISCG 05 mounts for bash guards and chain guides.
The frame is still made of 6066-T6 aluminum and there is a one-piece rocker link paired with three bearings in the main pivot for longer-lasting bearings.
Privateer designates their sizing as P1-P4. A P1 looks like it is the brand’s small, and is the only size that will have 27.5″ wheels. The rest of the sizes are 29ers. Privateer is also doing some interesting things with their geometry. Their “small” P1 is very long, modeling the Privateer racing mission. Reach is 445mm and the wheelbase is closer to a medium or even a large, on many other brands at 1221mm.
Reach is long on all sizes and the P2, P3, and P4 measure 470, 490, and 515mm. Privateer also incorporated different chainstay sizes on every size rather than sticking with the same rear triangle for every size. P1-P4 chainstays measure 434, 440, 446, and 452mm.
Finally onto build kits and pricing. Privateer looks like they built an EWS-ready, full-suspension bike at a stellar price. A frameset with a RockShox SuperDeluxe will sell for £1,489 / €1,699 / $1,535 USD.
Right now Hunt has one complete build spec available, and it looks like a good one. The 161 will have a RockShox SuperDeluxe shock and Lyrik Ultimate RC2 fork, Magura MT5 brakes, a Shimano SLX 12-speed drivetrain, OneUp V2 dropper post, Race Face cockpit, Hunt wheels, and Michelin Wild Enduro tires.
Privateer is taking pre-orders right now with certain framesets available by the second week of May, and full availability on complete bikes expected by the end of September. See the Privateer website for more details.
