Macneil just wants to cruise

17 11 2015

Even though we’ve already documented that 26″ cruisers were having a moment…and their moment in the sun seemed to have some legs…it was a bit of surprise to see that Macneil Bikes had — in a pretty low-key way — reintroduced a 26″ cruiser into their lineup.

Macneil 26 cruiser blue

Bike nerds (like myself ) might remember that none other than BMX legend Jay Miron used to rock a version of this before he decided to hang up his riding shoes and 540 tailwhips.

To make matters further intriguing, Macneil not only re-introduced their 26″ cruiser but they’ve also brought a 29″ to market as well. Hey now!

https://vimeo.com/85130138

Based on their promo vid, I wouldn’t say they had hard-core shredding in mind with this cruiser but it’s worth noting that it does feature a full cro-mo frame, fork and bars…so it will definitely handle some abuse.

A nice choice for some mellow cruising and curb hopping.

(Click on over to the Macneil site for full specs on the 26″ and 29″ cruisers.)


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26″ Skyway T/A is alright for wheelies

6 11 2015

News and “sneak peek” shots of the 26″ Skyway T/A continue to show up on the various social media feeds.

Here’s a nice shot of it that I spotted earlier today (on Ed Ferri’s feed, I believe).

skyway ta 26inch prototype night

We’ve also got word on what the geometry is (at least for now, in the prototype stages).

At the moment, we’re looking at the following:

  • Top tube: 22.69″
  • Head angle: 71.5°
  • Seat angle: 70.5°
  • Chain stay: 17″
  • Bottom bracket: 11.72″

According to this video (that also just got posted in the last day or so), this geo gives it a “race-y” feel…and also apparently, makes it quite easy to wheelie.


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Encore Bikes is down with the big wheels

28 10 2015

Encore Bikes is a Canadian BMX Brand (available through Brink Distribution) that offers completes that they claim “reflect the most current trends in BMX.”

In taking a look at their lineup, it really does seem like they have a finger on the pulse of what’s going on in BMX, specifically in the big-wheeled part of the sport.

Why do I say that?

Well, not only does Encore offer a new school 24″ in their lineup…but also a 22″ complete!

Let’s take a look at each one.

24″ Coda

Built around a 21.75″ top tube frame, the Coda features sealed front and rear hubs, a double-wall rear wheel, a tri-moly  frame and chromoly tapered forks.

Encore Coda 24

The frame specs are as follows:

  • Head Tube: 74.5°,
  • Seat Tube: 71°
  • Chain Stay: 15.25″
  • Bottom Bracket: 13″

Check out the rest of the parts breakdown/specs here.

22″ Anthem

The 21.75″ top tube and 8.7″ bars and 22″ wheels add up to a nicely-sized riding area on the Anthem.

Like the Coda,  the Anthem features sealed front and rear hubs, a double-wall rear wheel, a tri-moly  frame and chromoly tapered forks.

Encore Anthem 22

The frame specs are as follows:

  • Head Tube: 74.5°,
  • Seat Tube: 71°
  • Chain Stay: 14.25″
  • Bottom Bracket: 12.25″

Check out the rest of the parts breakdown/specs here.

Pretty nice big wheel representation by Encore!*

 

*Now, if they add a 26-inch to the lineup…that would be the icing on the cake!


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Categories : Freestyle, New products, New School

Letting the freak flag fly on the Fat Ripper

26 10 2015

The SE Fat Ripper is a bit of an anomaly in the BMX world.

It has the look of a classic PK Ripper with floval tubing, looptail rear end, and Landing Gear forks…but then mixes it with 26 x 3.5” tires, 65mm wide rims, and disc brakes.

It was a headturner (and probably a headscratcher for some) from the time the first time a sneak peek was released.

But how does it ride?

Todd Lyons seems to have anticipated that question and has been pretty tireless with dropping pictures and clips of him riding this beast.

TL tail tap on FAT Ripper

Now, apparently to silence all critics, Todd and SE have dropped an edit of TL shredding all manner of obstacles and terrain aboard the FAT Ripper. ( And, as a sidenote…can I mention how awesome it is to see a company rep shredding one of their big-wheeled bikes? This doesn’t happen enough.)

https://vimeo.com/143159501

Sure looks like this thing can handle just about anything in its path.


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Categories : Freestyle, New products, Old School, street, Trails, Trails/Jumping

Sneak Peek: 26″ Skyway T/A

22 10 2015

Skyway dropped this teaser photo yesterday (on Facebook) of a 26″ Skyway T/A they are working on for 2016.

26inch Skyway TA

The sample was kitted out with parts sourced from Planet BMX.

Noticeably absent from the picture, however, was any sign of a 26″ Tuff Wheel.

The caption did say:

We will have the 26″ and a NEW Street Beat for 2016…and a few other surprises!

Could the 26″ Tuff Wheel be one of the surprises?

It’s hard to say…Skyway seems to be a little cagey about this point (and not responding to comments regarding it).

Skyway did drop this little mockup back in 2013 saying:

Look what we are working on at Skyway…a 26″ Tuff Wheel! In the “engineering stages” right now!

26inch Skyway Tuff Wheel Proto

Sooo….Maybe?

Let’s all cross our fingers, OK?

 


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Six Six race bar: DK goes bigger

21 10 2015

To borrow (yet again) the phraseology of a rapper I hold in high regard, Sir Mix-A-Lot, I like big bars, I cannot lie.

And as a fan of bigger/taller bars, it warms my heart to see bike companies offering, more and more, taller options.

The sub-6″ bar was the standard on race cruisers for far too long (see Traditional cruiser bars: who needs ’em?)

And while some race purists will argue that lower bars are necessary, our  in-field testing with Matty Jo Shelley showed that bigger bars offered advantages to the race gang too.

All that is just prelude to me saying that I’m stoked to see DK is now offering a taller aftermarket race bar for the cruiser rider.

DK Six Six Cruiser Bars

The DK Six Six handlebar are a 6.6″ race bar with minimal sweep.

Available in chrome or black, they are 100% 4130 Multi-butted (11 count) Chromoly with a knurled clamp area. They also feature a hourglass-tapered crossbar.

The rest of the specs:

  • 29”wide
  • 2° upsweep and 7° backsweep
  • 762 g. weight

(And for those riding a new school/freestyle 24″, there is also a 8.6″ version available as well.)


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First look: DK’s 2016 race cruisers

15 10 2015

DK Bikes unveiled their 2016 race cruisers recently, so it’s only fitting we take a look and see what’s up for the new year.

In terms of colorways, these 24s are looking on point.

Especially the Elite Cruiser.

The Elite sports a super cool nickel finish (It’s a silver over black base, so you get a dark silver look).

Copyright DK Bicycles 2015

In terms of components, DK has retained much of the winning elements of the 2015 version but made a couple of tweaks to dial it in for 2016.  Most notable of those tweaks is the new 20mm BOX rear hub (it was a DK hub last year).

The “wallet-friendly” Sprinter cruiser also gets an update to its colorway. It’s now available in a bright flo (neon) green.

Copyright DK Bicycles 2015

The components also got an updating…in two important areas.

The tires get an upgrade to the more modern Arisun XLR8 tires (24 x 1.75) and the rear hub is now cassette.

I’m liking the looks of these two.

Frame Geometry (Elite)

Head Angle 73°

Seat Tube 72°

Top tube: 22”

Chain stay 15.25″

Bottom Bracket: 5mm over axle line, stock it sits around 12.1”

Frame Geometry (Sprinter)

Head Angle: 73°

Seat Tube: 72°

Top tube: 21.75″

Chain stay: 15.25”

Bottom Bracket: 5mm over axle line, stock it sits around 11.8”

Full Specs

Elite

Sprinter


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Bikes like back in the day

24 09 2015

Call it what you will…nostalgia, “retro-inspired” or just a nod to the old school…you could be forgiven if you felt there was a bit of 80s in the air at Interbike.

Over at the Haro booth, the retro fever got started with a teaser photo — released just prior to the opening day of Interbike — of a new re-pop Dennis McCoy Haro Master.

That definitely got the ball rolling!

Haro DMC Master Interbike

Not to leave out the cruiser folks, Haro also showcased this bad boy…so you can get that retro rush while rolling comfortably on a 24″.

Haro 24in Master Interbike

Over at GT, Haro’s main rival back in the 80s glory days, their booth was adorned with a mint GT Pro Performer (paging Martin Aparijo!).

GT Pro Performer Interbike

I don’t think this bike is going to be a re-pop…or what it was even doing there exactly…aside from making me drool a bit and making me reminisce about my own Pro Performer from back in the day.

SE, of course has had its retro game on lock for years now. This PK Ripper, for example, is like candy to an old schooler.

SE PK Ripper Retro Interbike

And of course, SE had the big wheels covered too.

SE Creature 24 Interbike

Redline had their PL-26 on display.

And We The People had the Avenger.

Heck, if even the new school components are going a little retro these days.

Over at the Sparky’s booth, I mentioned to Sean Burns that the new Bone Deth bars reminded me of the old Redline Forklifter bars…he replied that he thought they were more reminiscent of the Hoffman Low-drag bars.

Old school or mid-school…you decide.

Bone Deth Bars Interbike

Word has it that Haro is also updating and re-releasing their Group-One cranks from back in the day.

It’s an interesting turn of events. Back in the 90s/early 2000s it seemed everyone wanted to distance themselves a bit from the 80s era.

Now, it seems people are looking back at it a little more fondly and reinserting some of that style back into the marketplace (albeit with the necessary tech upgrades).


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BMX Race cruisers at Interbike

24 09 2015

While not as big a showing as previous years, Interbike did have its share of BMX race cruisers on display this year.

Probably the most eye-catching was the Free Agent Limo. Featuring a bright colorway (compared to more recent years) and a new fork (I think) this is FA’s flagship race cruiser and it looks every bit the part.

Free Agent Limo 24 Interbike

Over at Redline, the workhouse of the race lineup, the Redline Proline 24 was on display. Solid, bang-for-your-buck race machinery right there.

Redline Proline 24 Interbike

At Hyper, it looks like the oil-slick colorway lives on (I kinda think it might be past its due date tho) with a 24″ kitted out with Snafu components.

Hyper 24 Interbike

At GT, the entry-level 24″ Mach One was on display. I was kinda hoping to see the Speed Series Pro 24 in the booth…but alas, they only had the 20″ version. I do dig that copper on white colorway on the Speed Series Pro 24.

GT Mach One 24 Interbike


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The not so usual suspects

23 09 2015

There were a couple of noteworthy things I spotted on the periphery of my “cruiser-oriented lens” at Interbike this year.

One was The Dash from Bombtrack Bicycle Company (an outfit connected with We The People).

It’s billed as a “fixed freestyle street weapon” but can be converted into an “urban 26″ single-speed machine”.

In other words, a cruiser then?

This is a real nice-looking machine.

Bombtrack Dash Interbike

Full cro-mo frame, fork and bars with a liberal sprinkling of Salt components. The tan tires, remininscent of the new, limited edition tan Stolen Joint tires are the icing on the cake.

You can definitely see the BMX influence on this bike and it might be an option to consider if you swap out the fixed driver with a cassette (I think it comes with a removable brakes, even though they’re not on the display).

On the smaller end of things, GT had a race bike built up with then new OS20 wheels they’ve been experimenting with for some time (see this previous Mike Day post for more details).

GT OS20 Interbike

While it seems a bit odd that the racing side of things can’t fully embrace the current wave of enthusiasm for 22″ bikes (in the freestyle/trails side of BMX) due to an arbritary…and dare I say it…archaic mandatory wheel size standard. It was definitely cool to see this bike built up with the new wheel size just skirting 22″.

On a side note, I have heard that you might be able to get the OS20 wheels to work on some of the mid school-era trails frames — with the longer dropouts —  so I’m curious to see if people might start experimenting with these new wheels on old frames sitting around. It would be a neat thing to try out.

So, a couple things outside of the “cruiser mileu”…but two things that definitely have some cross-over elements into this part of riding.


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Categories : Freestyle, New products, New School, Racing

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