[wilks]

Yeah great vids. Would love to see you two hammering down Ahab or TWE. The difference in the reach between the Mach 6 and Firebird for a given size is insane. One extreme to the other.

 

[invol2ver]

Yeah great vids. Would love to see you two hammering down Ahab or TWE. The difference in the reach between the Mach 6 and Firebird for a given size is insane. One extreme to the other.

Yeah the firebird is a monster. Biggest gnarliest bike I have ever ridden

 

[carabao]

Just another post on the SB - tested out a large and felt it pedaled a bit worse than my Mach 6 - just didn't have a snappy feel to it - I was hoping it would combine some of the pedaling capability and benefits of a 29'er of my 429 Trail with the extra oomph of the M6 but in reality the bike feels a bit sluggish to me. What I really want is a M6 with a bit more reach.

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I felt it was a little tiring and sluggish with the stock HRIIs, but I felt like it improved a lot when I switched to Hans Dampf rear/Magic Mary front. I now have a Nobby Nic rear and it's even better. My point is some of the sluggishness is because of the stock tires.

This is my first DWlink bike so I can't compare it to the Mach 6. Compared to single pivots like the Kona Process 153 and 134, I can say it's a huge improvement.

 

[Buffalo Soldier]

Mine was sluggish. I added a spacer and have the platform set at 2. Much better.


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[carabao]

Mine was sluggish. I added a spacer and have the platform set at 2. Much better.

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Yeah, following Pivot's setup instructions, I set platform to 3 and run it in the middle setting because I weigh 205lbs. I like how detailed Pivot is with suspension setup.

Here's the guide: http://www.pivotcycles.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Pivot-Suspension-Setup-2016.pdf

 

[dyg2001]

Got me a Switchblade.

I'm 6' tall with short legs and long torso. Went with XL instead of L to try Mondraker-style fit with long front-center. Feels good.

Fork is a Talas 160/130. Nice to be able to drop the front end down for long climbs.

Running the 17mm bottom headset cup to raise the BB and slacken the HTA. Still get lots of pedal strikes even with 170mm crank arms. Eventually may switch to 165mm.

Still adjusting to the Maxxis DHF/Recon 27.5x2.8" tires after riding 3.0" Nobby Nics on my B+ hardtail for the past year. Initial impression after just a few rides is that NN has better traction than Recon but that's not surprising as it's a much bigger tire.

I like this bike!

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[Buffalo Soldier]

Yeah, following Pivot's setup instructions, I set platform to 3 and run it in the middle setting because I weigh 205lbs. I like how detailed Pivot is with suspension setup.

Here's the guide: http://www.pivotcycles.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Pivot-Suspension-Setup-2016.pdf

Suspension has become much more refined. Set up is very sensitive and speaking for myself can be difficult to get just right. 3-5lb air pressure changes and one click rebound adjustments can make a fairly dramatic change. Going from a hard tail to a short travel to a mid travel bike has forced me to change my paradigms regarding suspension feel. The wide temperature swings here during the fall affects performance - this is not new but it seems now I'm unable ignore the change in feel so I check pressure more frequently and tweak rebound.

Ironically my SB now rides like my 1st gen 429. The ride is firm yet it doesn't quite squirt forward like that bike or even my 429T. It does handle rock gardens and the steeps at another level. The 429T has slightly better small bump compliance. I do get peddle strikes with the SB but only but they are not noticeable. My pedals are pretty beat up.

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[invol2ver]

Suspension has become much more refined. Set up is very sensitive and speaking for myself can be difficult to get just right. 3-5lb air pressure changes and one click rebound adjustments can make a fairly dramatic change. Going from a hard tail to a short travel to a mid travel bike has forced me to change my paradigms regarding suspension feel. The wide temperature swings here during the fall affects performance - this is not new but it seems now I'm unable ignore the change in feel so I check pressure more frequently and tweak rebound.

Ironically my SB now rides like my 1st gen 429. The ride is firm yet it doesn't quite squirt forward like that bike or even my 429T. It does handle rock gardens and the steeps at another level. The 429T has slightly better small bump compliance. I do get peddle strikes with the SB but only but they are not noticeable. My pedals are pretty beat up.

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You need to get an x2 man. It's what the switchblade deserves

 

[dyg2001]

I rode up and down Noble Canyon yesterday. Descending the Switchblade felt great but climbing up the pedal strikes were annoying and I was ratcheting like a mofo.

I want to switch to 165mm cranks. I already have 165mm RaceFace SixC cranks on my other bike. Anybody know, will this work on the Switchblade with the RF136DH (136.5mm) spindle and a flipped 30 tooth chainring?

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[Buffalo Soldier]

You need to get an x2 man. It's what the switchblade deserves

I'm working on it. They're on back order. Hopefully in a week or two.

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[Buffalo Soldier]

I rode up and down Noble Canyon yesterday. Descending the Switchblade felt great but climbing up the pedal strikes were annoying and I was ratcheting like a mofo.

I want to switch to 165mm cranks. I already have 165mm RaceFace SixC cranks on my other bike. Anybody know, will this work on the Switchblade with the RF136DH (136.5mm) spindle and a flipped 30 tooth chainring?

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I'm walking up that stuff[emoji12]

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[vikb]

I rode up and down Noble Canyon yesterday. Descending the Switchblade felt great but climbing up the pedal strikes were annoying and I was ratcheting like a mofo.

I want to switch to 165mm cranks. I already have 165mm RaceFace SixC cranks on my other bike. Anybody know, will this work on the Switchblade with the RF136DH (136.5mm) spindle and a flipped 30 tooth chainring?

Nice trail. Long live chunkiness.

How do you find the shorter cranks feel on your bikes vs. 175?

 

[Salespunk]

I rode up and down Noble Canyon yesterday. Descending the Switchblade felt great but climbing up the pedal strikes were annoying and I was ratcheting like a mofo.

I want to switch to 165mm cranks. I already have 165mm RaceFace SixC cranks on my other bike. Anybody know, will this work on the Switchblade with the RF136DH (136.5mm) spindle and a flipped 30 tooth chainring?

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Don't have an answer to your question, but I have to say respect for riding up the Noble singletrack. We used to do it back in the day when there was still dirt on the trail, but I can't imagine it now. I would imagine you would be ratcheting with any bike.

 

[NoahColorado]

Running the 17mm bottom headset cup to raise the BB and slacken the HTA. Still get lots of pedal strikes even with 170mm crank arms. Eventually may switch to 165mm.

Have you considered that one reason you might be getting pedal strikes is that you're throwing the weight balance of the bike off by slackening it out so much with the cup and a 160mm fork?

 

[Snowsed341]

Have you considered that one reason you might be getting pedal strikes is that you're throwing the weight balance of the bike off by slackening it out so much with the cup and a 160mm fork?

I love it when the voice of reason chimes in.

Guys the bike was developed around 135x150 travel. Pivot who did extensive testing through shop workers, engineers, pros etc know better than anyone on the forum.
Why do people always have to mess with geo? You mess with geo you get problems.
I understand its preference and ride style and all that, but dont you think the designers of the bike know what works the best. Do you really think you use the extra 10mm of fork travel?

With that said:

I test rode the switchblade yesterday in the 27.5+ setting for 4 hrs. It was a demo so take from this what you like.

A few things.

The handlebars at 740 are not long enough for my personal preference of 800mm. This is all personal choice but i feel the bike could benefit from wider bars.

With exception to that one thing this bike blew me away. I currently ride a Yeti 5.5c to give an idea of what i personally ride. I have also owned an evil insurgent, Intense spider 275, transition bandit 29, Santa Cruz Bronson, and specialized stumpjumpers.

The bike is the best climbing bike i have ever ridden. It felt effortless and the climbing traction was unreal. I climbed all climbs that i have ridden many times and had a grin climbing all teh way up. The DW is the real deal, i rate it better than the SI on the Yetis for climbing.

I live in Socal and we have to climb alot here.

I really enjoyed the descending also and felt the bike was stable and planted. Leaning the bike was easy. The biggest thing to take away from this is that the Bike is really fun. I dont care about strava times, i dont race enduro events. I ride a bike because I love it and it keeps me in shape. The bike put a grin on my face all day.

If i had not just sunk 7k+ into a 5.5c i would be buying a SB. I wish i could own 2 bikes to be honest but my wife would probably divorce me.

Take from this what you want, but this bike is the real deal.

 

[Buffalo Soldier]

Have you considered that one reason you might be getting pedal strikes is that you're throwing the weight balance of the bike off by slackening it out so much with the cup and a 160mm fork?

Possibly. When I mistakenly ran a setback post on my Following and when I put a setback post on my SB I had to alter the shock settings because the bikes would sag more on climbs. Maybe slamming the seat forward and stiffening the mid stroke to see what happens?

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[kenwood72]

I love it when the voice of reason chimes in.

Guys the bike was developed around 135x150 travel. Pivot who did extensive testing through shop workers, engineers, pros etc know better than anyone on the forum.
Why do people always have to mess with geo? You mess with geo you get problems.
I understand its preference and ride style and all that, but dont you think the designers of the bike know what works the best. Do you really think you use the extra 10mm of fork travel?

With that said:

I test rode the switchblade yesterday in the 27.5+ setting for 4 hrs. It was a demo so take from this what you like.

A few things.

The handlebars at 740 are not long enough for my personal preference of 800mm. This is all personal choice but i feel the bike could benefit from wider bars.

With exception to that one thing this bike blew me away. I currently ride a Yeti 5.5c to give an idea of what i personally ride. I have also owned an evil insurgent, Intense spider 275, transition bandit 29, Santa Cruz Bronson, and specialized stumpjumpers.

The bike is the best climbing bike i have ever ridden. It felt effortless and the climbing traction was unreal. I climbed all climbs that i have ridden many times and had a grin climbing all teh way up. The DW is the real deal, i rate it better than the SI on the Yetis for climbing.

I live in Socal and we have to climb alot here.

I really enjoyed the descending also and felt the bike was stable and planted. Leaning the bike was easy. The biggest thing to take away from this is that the Bike is really fun. I dont care about strava times, i dont race enduro events. I ride a bike because I love it and it keeps me in shape. The bike put a grin on my face all day.

If i had not just sunk 7k+ into a 5.5c i would be buying a SB. I wish i could own 2 bikes to be honest but my wife would probably divorce me.

Take from this what you want, but this bike is the real deal.

dude that is a great summary, i have a wreckoning and the sb and they compliment each other well. when i get back on the wreck it feels so plush as i have the sb set up pretty stiff but it is just fun to ride the different types of bike. you should buy one wife will get over it!!

 

[Picard]

Has anyone ridden the sb in the snow? Can it handle snow?

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[vikb]

Has anyone ridden the sb in the snow? Can it handle snow?

I've ridden 2.4" and 3" tires in snow and I have owned a proper fatbike. First off just because it snows doesn't mean you need big tires to ride. These days I ride most of my local trails when it snows on 2.4" tires. As long as the snow doesn't get crazy deep and it doesn't get super cold/icy that works fine. In the PNWet light heavy wet snow is the norm.

For ice you need studded tires. Wide tires don't solve that problem.

For deep snow you need wider tires. How wide depends on how deep/soft the snow is and how much you weigh. My GF might be just fine on 3" tires in a situation where I need a 4" tire to ride because I weigh 60lbs+ more than her.

All that to say there is no simple one size fits all answer for snow riding. If you own a SB and it snows I'd try and go riding and see what happens.

 

[dyg2001]

Nice trail. Long live chunkiness.

How do you find the shorter cranks feel on your bikes vs. 175?

Yeah I love steep and chunky trails. New-school smooth flow trails are not my cup of tea. The desire to go faster on steep loose technical gnarly descents was my prime motivator in getting the Switchblade.

I don't perceive any drawbacks to shorter cranks. Benefits include fewer pedal strikes and less strain on the knees when riding with a low saddle. I have 165mm cranks on my Waltworks B+ hardtail which has a low BB (around 300mm):

Don't have an answer to your question, but I have to say respect for riding up the Noble singletrack. We used to do it back in the day when there was still dirt on the trail, but I can't imagine it now. I would imagine you would be ratcheting with any bike.

I definitely do not have the skills to clean Noble Canyon going up. But it was a nice change from the road climb which as you know is a grind. For sure the rocky sections of Noble Canyon would be hard to climb on any bike. But the low BB of the Switchblade was also noticeable the previous day when climbing up and then descending Ramona Trail on Thomas Mountain. By no means do I think the low BB is a fatal flaw of the bike. Folks running 29er wheels or fatter B+ tires will undoubtedly notice this less.

I'm walking up that stuff[emoji12]

I was doing plenty of walking, too!