Ibis Mojo 2010 Review by Sharon Bader Unchanged since 2005, the Carbon Ibis Mojo sports the the DW link suspension in a sleek monocoque design. The smooth lines are the result of the unibody construction which allows the frame to be constructed in one piece with fewer areas of stress in a lighter, stiffer and stylish package. 
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The Bike
The Mojo is constructed as a single carbon monocoque frame and has 5.5inches (140mm) of rear travel. This bike is ideally paired with a 140mm fork to provide a balanced all mountain ride. The Ibis is available in four colours as either a clear coat or polyurethane coating. Ibis offers 5 build kits from Gucci to work horse. The XT kitted Silver demo bike provided by Obsession: Bikes was used in this review. The higher end build kit comes with Stan's Rims and Tubeless tires allowing you to make this bike even lighter. The 31.6mm interior diameter seat post can accommodate the Joplin, Kind Shock and the Gravity Dropper adjustable seat post which is becoming a must for all mountain riding. The 180mm front, 160mm rear rotor provides ample braking power in this XT build kit. The WTB Rocket V saddle and Thompson Elite laid back seat post were easily adjusted and offered a comfortable ride. The 69degree head angle will put this bike in the cross country category. The longer 17.1inch chainstays aids in stability.
Top panels show the DW link on the right, and Lopes link on the left. The DW link is the anti-squat feature of this suspension design. The Lopes link adds to the lateral stiffness of the frame. Also highlighted here are the smooth lines of the bottom bracket area.
Lower panels show the unibody rear triangle and 15mm Fox Float fork. Both adding stiffness to the frame.
Front end
Fox Float RC2 - Weighing in at 3.87lbs this 140mm fork now has the FIT Damper which has been used by the 40 and 36 series since 2005. Fox Isolated Technology - FIT - reduces the fork weight by 71g by replacing the open bath oil damping with a bladder. This addition has increased the low speed compression adjustability of the fork. Also, the compression adjustments are on the top right fork, which necessitated the move of the rebound adjustment to the lower fork leg. The 15mm QR on the fork results in a stiff and solid ride.
Rear end
The DW suspension is complimented by the Fox Float RP2. The bike pedals efficiently in full active or pro pedal mode. While the DW Link does prevent squat, even with the pro-pedal off you can detect movement of the rear suspension. Pro-pedal will stiffen the rear suspension for pedaling efficiency. The smaller links also add to the stiffness of the bike.
Miscellaneous
Drive Train - Shimano XT 44X32X22 Cranks, 11-34 Cassette, Shimano Chain driven by XT 9 speed rear derailleur and Down-Swing Dual-Pull front derailleur.
Stopping power provided by Shimano XT brakes 180mm front rotor, 160mm rear.
Headset - Cane Creek IS3 1-1/8" with an Ibis Stem and Easton Monkey lite XC handlebars.
Rims - Stans Arch rims, with IBIS front hub, XT rear, Kenda Nevegal 2.35 tires were on this bike.
About me:
I am 5'9", weigh 154lbs. I have been riding since 1991. As mentioned above I come from an XC hardtail background but have moved with technology and ride a Titus RacerX for XC, a Turner 6 pack for DH and Shore riding and a Knolly Endorphin set up for more freeriding/shore/technical XC riding. My Bikes!
The Ride: The first thing you notice when you ride this bike is that it is LIGHT. At 27lbs this light bike is easy to climb and maneuver on the trail. It also makes it easy to carry over hike a bike sections. The Medium Mojo tested for this review has a 22.8 theoretical top tube, the cockpit was lengthened with the 90mm stem and laid back Thompson seatpost. The bike did seem small but this did not hamper its performance and added to its nimbleness.
Suspension designs tend to bias towards climbing or descending. The DW link biases the bike to climbing. With pro-pedal on or off the climbing platform was firm. While movement was detected with pro-pedal off it did not hamper climbing performance. The DW link is an anti squat design which reduces energy loss during mass transfer. This ensures all the pedaling energy is directed to moving the bike forward (if you don't believe me read his patent). As the bike moves through the rear travel the amount of anti squat decreases to allow the travel to become more plush, rising again near the end of the suspension to prevent bottoming out. On slower big hits the suspension would soak up the terrain and provided a deep plush feeling, on smaller fast hits and in rough fast terrain the suspension was more firm. This shouldn't be surprising given the compression dampening inherent in the suspension. The frame seemed flexy, but after talking to a few people and actually stepping on the bottom bracket to see how much the frame flexed it actually didn't move much. It could be the carbon itself is the cause of the flex. I'm not sure how to explain the loose rear on some terrain, could be that the bike is so light it gets moved around more. The deflection was not due to low tire pressure or other looseness in the wheel. The movement once expected did not affect performance significantly, in fact it made for a very playfull bike. The Lopes link on this bike was introduced to add lateral stability of the frame and is a welcome addition.
The Fox Float 15mmQR15 fork was stiff, plush and well matched to this frame. Once adjusted to my weight it performed predictably and reliably.
The 2.35 Kenda Nevegal tires performed well on the terrain tested which was rocky, rooty, wet and dry hardpack. These are preferred tires for most riding in the North Shore, Squamish and Whistler area.
The Shimano XT brakes provided ample one finger braking and only showed slight fade on a sustained 30 minutes descent. The Shimano XT shifting was very indexed and abrupt.
North Shore, North Vancouver - XC and All mountain
The trails on the North Shore are characterized by rough rocks, roots, abrupt pitches both up and down. This bike shone in technical situations where nimbleness and solid stable climbing bikes have an advantage. Climbs were easily negotiated from almost a dead stop to full on momentum.
Descents on the North Shore also tend to be more technical and require many corrections in direction. This bike was very quick to maneuver and on most of the slower speed drops the suspension was plush. At higher speeds and on rougher terrain the rear of the bike would be easily deflected.
On faster smoother cross country trails the bike was very fast and still quick to maneuver. Again deflection was felt on fast or rough corners but once expecting the movement was easily compensated for. It was incredibly easy to sprint out of corners and stops.
Whistler Cross Country
Whistler cross country trails are also very technical but are more interspersed with rock faces and longer sustained climbs and descents. Again this bike shone on the climbs. The lower bottom bracket was noticable since there are a lot of rock and root obstacles on the trails to negotiate. It was often better to try to go around these then over which you can do on a bike with a higher bottom bracket. The only concern was how easy it the rear was deflected in rough variable terrain.
Summary
The Ibis Mojo is an efficient nimble climber. On descents it is very capable offering a firmer suspension with the frame easily deflected in rough terrain or around high speed corners. This bike would be ideal where climbing efficiencies are preferred over descending capabilities. Interestingly Ibis's new HD will be a bigger travel, slacker and stiffer brother of the Mojo and would undoubtedly be more biased to downhill performance.
Specs:4.5/5
Price: 5/5
Ride:4.5/5
Overall: 4.6/5
Pros: - Light - Efficient, nimble climber
Cons: - Easily deflected in rough terrain
Detailed Specifications
The source for this information can be found here
Specifications are as follows:
Frame Set - Carbon monocoque frame and swing arm
Fork - Fox Float 32 RLC 140mm travel, 15QR
Shock - Fox RP23, 2010
Sizes - Small/Med/Large/XL
Color - Eddy Orange, Nuclear Pesto, Vicious Blue and Guinness Foam
Specs:
| Rear Derailleur | Shimano RD-M772, DEORE XT SGS 9-Speed Top-Normal, Low Profile |
|---|---|
| Front Derailleur | Shimano FD-M771, DEORE XT 34.9 Band Clamp Down-Swing Dual-Pull |
| Headset | Cane Creek IS3 1-1/8" Black |
| Cranks | Shimano FC-M770, DEORE XT 175MM 44X32X22 |
| Brakes | Shimano XT BL-M755 (128g) |
| Shift Levers | Shimano SL-M770 DEORE XT |
| Cassette | Shimano CS-M770 DEORE XT 11-13-15-17-20-23-26-30-34T |
| Chain | Shimano CN-HG93 |
| Handlebar | Easton Monkey Lite XC CNT 26" 660mm 31.8 |
| Grips | Ibis Foam grip with clamp / Ibis laser logo |
| Stem | Ibis 3D Forged 31.8 Bar/28.6 Steerer 7075 (90mm) 120g |
| Saddle | WTB Rocket-V |
| Seat Post | Thompson Elite Laid Back |
| Wheels | Stan's Arch Rims, Ibis front hub (15QR or 20mm), Shimano XT rear hub |
Geometry for a M Ibis Mojo is as follows:
| NOMINAL SIZE | Medium |
|---|---|
| SEAT TUBE LENGTH (A) | 17" |
| HEAD TUBE ANGLE (B) | 69° |
| SEAT TUBE ANGLE C | 73° |
| EFFECTIVE TOP TUBE (D) | 580 (22.8") |
| HEAD TUBE LENGTH (E) | 115 |
| CHAIN STAY LENGTH (F) | 429mm / 17.2" |
| WHEELBASE | 1084.5 (42.7") |
| BB HEIGHT | 336mm-13.2in / 314mm-12.4in |
Ibis Mojo in Whistler
Ibis Mojo on the Sunshine Coast
