Love the recognition of effective geometry with squat… Something that has a massive impact on fit and feel.
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The Top Fuel is very similar to your old 2018 Fuel. TBH, I think what would make the biggest difference on uphills/any pedally part is the lockout on the Top Fuel. My 2017 Fuel feels a little soft when pedaling, even with the shock “locked” (not a full lock on the Fuel).
Did you consider leaving the Fork at 130mm when you rebuilt the 2021 frame? That would have steepened the seat angle by about 0.5 degrees (among other geometry changes obviously).
I’m getting my 2017 frame replaced with a 2021 frame under warranty, and may leave the fork at 130mm to start with.
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Glad the warranty thing worked out for you! Leaving the fork at 130 would have also lowered the BB slightly and the pedal strikes aren’t appealing. I like the feel of this bike a lot though, I feel much more comfortable throwing it around more aggressively. You’re going to be happy!
I’ll wait until I get the rebuild complete to declare victory!
That’s what I’m most worried about. The math I’ve done tells me with a 130mm fork instead of 140mm and 2.3”/2.4” tires instead of 2.6”, the BB on the 2021 frame will be 1-2mm higher than on the 2017. So basically the same.
The geo chart for my old 2018 shows 344 in high, the 2021 shows 346 so 2mm higher, but based around the larger tires and the longer fork. I think with the 130 on it you’re looking at a slight decrease, maybe negligible, I dunno. I also wanted to try more travel cause I’m not racing so why not be more playful
The bike still climbs efficiently, if anything the downside of the 2018 fork on it is the front wheel is a little further forward so you gotta keep a little more weight forward on steep climbs to keep the wheel down
My 2017 frame has a BB height of 33.7cm per spec sheet (and measured at 33.6cm) - so looks like lower than the 2018.
The 2021 has 34.6cm, so 9mm higher. I’ll lose most of that with shorter fork/smaller tires.
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Hmm didn’t realize the 17/18 were different. The 21 is going to be a good step up for ya though, and presumably you’ll get the 9.9 frame with the Thru Shaft shock
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Is this the new Blur on the shelf behind the CEO? You can see it pretty well around 22:35. The second bike from the left looks like a light-weight prototype with a lower link suspension (similar to all their bigger bikes): CEO of SANTA CRUZ BICYCLES Interview - Where are the Mountain Bikes? - YouTube
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Possible but not probable, I doubt they would be doing any fitment testing with a piggy back shock like that since it is billed as their XC race machine.
Also, I like to think they are smart enough to not leak new product designs in this manner. It does look like they are giving everyone a sneak peak of their 2021 production colors on the rack to the right though!
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I was looking at the second bike from the left with a white rear triangle. I don’t see a shock on it. That third bike (looks like the current Hightower) does have a piggy-back shock.
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I love the way that the new lower link VPP design rides, but I have a really hard time seeing them pulling a rabbit out of their hat on the weight front, while still keeping it reliable.
I’ve ridden a lot of different 100-120mm bikes and while there are noticeable differences between linkages, I don’t think the benefits are so stark to be worth the tradeoff from both a weight and a torsional stiffness perspective.
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I see, they are most likely all prototypes of the same model. The white rear triangle is 3D printed and the upper link is not attached to the frame which is why it looks different. Just my observations though.
Good eye, Jared! That frame does look unique to the others in how slight the tube shapes appear. Who knows what it could be, but if that is the new Blur, you deserve an award and a Sherlock Holmes style hat.
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Gotta concur with this. The Supercaliber is brilliant and to call the geometry outdated is a real disservice. It shreds corners with its low bb and 69deg HA.
The chassis is stiff and super responsive. The Epic is a better trail bike, sure, but the Supercal is unbeatable in corner speed and is a nice alternative to the Brain in how it achieves an efficient pedalling platform. I find the damping spot on and the bike isnt “bouncy” at all.
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Yeah, the upper link and tubes are definitely slimmer. I have decided it is the new blur. I’ll be back to claim my hat as soon as they announce it (hopefully soon).
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Thanks for the input @stevemz . I hadn’t even factored in the water bottle scenario. Fingers crossed Specialized AU get more stock soon. Road bikes are on back order with stock not expected here until October. Given another price increase too, hopefully they last longer on the shelves so I can get a good look at one.
I picked up my Epic Expert a couple of weeks ago (not actually ridden it yet as I had to go away for work), I got the last one Specialized Australia had in their warehouse in my size. My local shop aren’t expecting to get any more 2021 stock so you may end up waiting until 2022 bikes arrive (probably October-ish).
I’m hoping to do the Crocodile Trophy this year if training goes well and they actually run it (if the Euros can’t travel I expect it’ll be canned).
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A little off topic but I picked up my Epic Pro last week and noticed the Brain fade blue knob on the fork has some play. I took it off to have a look and it seemed normal. When putting it back on the fork I forgot the orientation of the Brain fade knob so I tried turning it to find where it would stop. To my surprise there was no stop limit detent. I could turn it clockwise or counterclockwise seemingly forever.
Did I screw something up by turning it some many clicks (maybe 15)?
Is there a reset point so I know where to set the Brain knob fade to?
Lefty Ocho now comes in 120mm but oof that price is steep
I was fortunate to be able to just pay the cost difference between the alloy and carbon when I bought my Scalpel recently, but really can’t stomach the idea of close to 2 grand for a 120mm fork
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