Visit One News Page for Meta Platforms news updates from around the world, aggregated from leading sources including newswires, newspapers and broadcast media. For full details of our returns policy, follow this link. The Squatch hails from Yorkshire-based bike shop Stif and is an evolution of its hard-hitting, 650b-wheeled Morf hardtail. Seatpost: KS Lev Integra | 200mm, WHEELS Ive been able to drop the saddle well out of the way, and you're left with an awful lot of space to move towards the back of the bike. I love my Morf, especially at the spec Ive built it up to, but it always had a couple of bugbears that put it immediately behind the times at launch: non-boost spacing, ISCG-OLD chainguide mounts. Santa Cruz Bicycles will repair or replace at its option any frame or rigid fork made by Santa Cruz Bicycles it determines to be defective in materials or workmanship. Bottom Bracket: SRAM Dub GXP Threaded Outside of testing bikes, Tom competes in a wide range of mountain bike races, from multi-day enduros through to 24-hour races in the depths of the Scottish winter pushing bikes, components and his legs to their limits. Adventure-Ready At $585,000 Function Meets Form . Technical climbs especially those with lots of pedal-catching obstacles proved to be no issue either, with the long reach and fairly short rear end teaming up to provide ample grip and maneuverability. Deputy Tech Editor here at off.road.cc Liam can alsobe found photographing bikes as well as riding them. Notwithstanding the foregoing, frames purchased prior to May 1, 2015 are covered under the previously-existing warranty for five years from the original date of purchase. Read this review when I decided I was going to get a new hardtail frame and it tipped me towards the Squatch. This led to pressures being upped to 120psi by the end of testing, which provided a good compromise of sensitivity and support. After several prototypes, 1000s of kilometres of hyper sensitive testing and endless amounts of tweaking we have found the optimum formula, and off the back of this extensive in-house research & development, striving for progressive, safe and fun performance we are proud to finally be able to announce the new Stif Squatch! Stif Squatch Pro is a progressive hardtail with a steel frame and super-low bottom bracket height, 29in wheels with 2.6in tyres enhance grip and comfort. Stif Squatch first ride review. It wasnt long before riders were requesting the same premium ride quality and progressive handling characteristics on a 29er platform. I'll post up some ride impressions when I have some to share. This warranty gives you specific legal rights, and you may also have other rights which vary from state to state and country to country. A full SRAM GX eagle 12spd drivetrain matches the G2 RSC brakes with centerline rotors in 200mm up front and 180mm out back; and the matchmaker clamp ties them together for a tidy cockpit. To keep things as simple and reliable as possible theres no weird standards theres a threaded BB, a standard 44mm headtube and everyday seat tube and clamp diameters. Reviews, buying advice and news. Stif makes the Squatch in three sizes (M-XL) to suit riders from 55- 66 (165cm -198cm). Settling at 64 has resulted in stable and confidence inspiring feel without any vagueness or steering flop. If you need any help, advice or technical info on the Stif Squatch, our resident experts are: Perfectly poised, way more compliant than most of its rivals and also nimble and easy to chuck around, the well thought-out Stif Squatch Pro is a compelling package. Sign in to manage your newsletter preferences. With the cranks sitting 80mm below the wheel axles it translates to a BB height of 293mm which keeps the riders mass as low as possible creating maximum stability when cornering. Uphill, its a comfy and easy going place to be as the mega-steep seat tube makes light work of smooth climbs. Balancing this slack steering angle are relatively generous reach numbers, with the size L Squatch measuring in at 480mm. For the Squatch, and probably one of the reasons for its price, the Stif team is using 4130 chromoly tubing. Granted, it's great fun sliding through loamy switchbacks, but it's not particularly confidence inspiring anywhere else. The return process is simple: Fill out the Warranty Bearing Replacement Form, upload a copy of your purchase receipt, and we'll get a new set of bearings out to you within 48 hours! Its very steep 78 seat tube places rider weight almost directly over the bottom bracket which, when the gradient pitches up, results in a really comfortable and efficient pedalling position. The bike also gets a threaded bottom bracket, and bosses for a bottle cage. Short and tall riders rejoice - Our seat-tube features a curve to help with tyre clearance and allows for our super short 430mm chainstays. The Stif Squatch Pro sports design features from the brands 27.5in Morf frame, but with more out-there geometry that places the rider lower in the frame. Each bike comes in three sizes from Medium to Extra Large and there are three colour options, Bone, Teal, and . STORE, ABOUT US 3 sizes: 653|460, 653|480, 661|500, stack|reach. The Burgtec Cloud saddle was not the best fit for my derrire, which was only made more apparent by the lack of rear suspension ensuring every impact on the rear tire was transmitted to my body when seated, but saddles are very person-specific, and it may well work for you. 704348. Theres none of the hardtail sensation mentioned earlier of butt and feet kicking up and reacting to whatever the fork is doing especially off drops and down steeper sections. With a 420mm seat tube, the medium frame should work for some shorter riders, though it certainly won't fit everyone. The Squatchs steep seat tube (Squatch tube?) Also RockShoxs sportier Pike air spring with its smaller negative volume works great on a hardtail too; being less fluid and sensitive than say, a RockShox Lyrik, its much more in keeping with the rear end. Where a full suspension rig can somewhat isolate impact forces through your legs from effecting the fork, a hardtail has a greater reaction on the fork and so requires some extra support to prevent it from using its travel too frequently. Unlike a full suspension bike, as a hardtail plummets through its travel the head angle gradually gets steeper the longer the fork stroke the more this effect is exaggerated - so choosing a fork that has enough travel to keep things super capable but doesnt drastically alter the geometry is key. Yeah, it shouldnt! THE LAB Great review thanks.and phew as my frame arrives tomorrow! Santa Cruz Bicycles pivot bearings are warranted for life to the original owner of the bike. The fork is about as controlled as you could hope for and remained impressively supple and tractive when ran a good amount stiffer than recommended. After once building a hardtail with a 160mm fork because MOAR TRAVUL BETTER, in the near-decade since Ive found I get on best with 130mm if theres no rear suspension. A brief experiment with a more active fork took a little bit of sting out of the hands but reduced the overall composure of the bike and made for a less controlled ride, so I was quick to return to the slightly stiffer setup. The Stif Squatch brings things bang up to date, with ISCG-05 tabs, boost hub spacing and, like pretty much everything else thats turned up at Singletrack Towers for the past year, 29 inch wheels. Save 35% + Lezyne pocket drive HV pump when you subscribe to MBUK magazine, JANUARY SALE | Get 3 issues for 5 when you subscribe today, 9/3/3/b/933bbb38cfdad3fa12fb88f53c70db2d9ae3486c_Stif_Squatch_01.jpg, hardtail is truly going to compete with a full-sus, RockShox Pike Ultimate, 130mm (5.1in) travel, Maxxis Minion DHF (f) and Maxxis Rekon (r) 29x2.6in, WTB KOM Trail i30 rims on Hope Pro 4 hubs. The Squatch goes uphill very well, even considering its surprisingly portly 30.1lbs with pedals. Since its release our Morf hardtail has rapidly won peoples hearts, generated a core cult following, and what we had initially aimed to be an ideal stable mate to a modern day full suspension bike ended up being a lot of peoples one-bike-to-rule-it-all weapon of choice. Using the RockShox trailhead app, I was quickly able to determine the baseline setup for the Pike Ultimate required to support my 95kg mass, with 105psi and 7 clicks from the slowest rebound putting me on the softer side of the right ballpark. It's not particularly happy if you split the difference and ride on flatter singletrack, but if you're a hardcore hardtail fan the Squatch's aggressive ride will keep you happy in the techiest of terrain. Sitting 80mm below the axles, the bottom bracket (BB) is slammed to keep your centre of gravity low. The lever feel and modulation offered by the SRAM G2 RSCs is good, but their ultimate power fell short of my demands, which led to a few scary run-away moments on the steeper trails. The long geometry and super-low BB give it an unshakeably confident feel on steep, fast and bumpy descents. Add a chainguide While a chainguide is not strictly necessary for a hardtail with a brand new drivetrain, they count for more as it wears, so I add one as a matter of course. This volume makes a lot of sense on a bike with no rear suspension, since you need all the help you can get with taking the sting out of the landings. Back to that Maxxis Recon rear tyre. COMPONENT REVIEWS . Furthering this bikes value and, of course, its sorted build arethe easily serviceable Hope Pro 4 hubs and the extra-nice Burgtec finishing kit (the grips especially are lovely). The external routing on our test bike is not the neatest, being held together with a collection of cable ties rather than neat clamps such as on the Ragley Marley 1.0, but it gets the job done. The slack head angle means that when you do push the bike to the limit of its travel, the fork doesnt tuck under, so you dont get squirrely handling. Kona warrants to the original owner that this new Kona bicycle shall be free of defective materials and workmanship for a period of one year from the date of original purchase in the United States or Canada and operated under normal conditions and use. They kindly lent me their Pro build for a thrashing in the depths of the UK Midlands Winter. really is a boon for easy climbing. A very capable frame with modern aggressive geometry. The register can be accessed through www.fca.org.uk. The seat tube angle is measured with the post at full extension, meaning 78 is the slackest it will ever get (unless your legs are super long and you fit a post with even more travel, though few even exist). Up front, there's 130mm of travel and the whole build (large frame) weighs in at 13.3kg. Leave a comment and vote up the most thoughtful comments and each month well pick a winner. Front Description: The Performance Series 2.0. Stif says the Squatch is designed to get as much descent in as possible, so its built to be a solid climber and it definitely is. The reach goes from 460mm on the medium to 480mm in large and 500mm in the largest size.. The Squatch defies being pigeon holed to any discipline, It's ready for wherever you want to take it. Chunky 292.6in Maxxis rubber sits on WTB rims, while KS supplies the dropper (175 or 200mm). Propping up the front is a 130mm-travel RockShox Pike Ultimate, with a short 42mm offset and stubby stem to keep handling composed yet sharp. We approached designing this bike in two halves, one for climbing, one for descending two fairly out there numbers that create strong descending prowess and a mind-blowingly efficient climbing manner and its the 78 seatangle that making climbing a total cinch. Cassette: SRAM XG 1275; 10-52T This fork features a short 42mm offset to increase the trail value and offer stable handling without having to add to the overall length of the bike. Cheapest Zone yet. The Squatch is clearly no XC machine, or the fastest to accelerate with explosive power inputs, but riders who prefer to carve corners will be amazed by how well it swoops through banked, man-made, turns. Its not like you need the increased length for stability, as thats already provided by the ultra-low BB. With a 130mm fork up front, its head angle slackens to 64-degrees, balanced by a 78-degrees seat angle. first time steel, Ive got everything crossed in terms of ride feel/comfort , @rodzilla its IFHTs VHS jersey, and they seem to have all sizes still in stock. These felt great right off the bat, and hardly needed any tweaks off the defaults fro me weight. Jan 19 Warning Man Cave Funny Embossed Aluminum Sign Novelty Garage Home Bar Decor They add a small, but very helpful bit of movement that stops the rear end feeling harsh, both when seated and in the attack position when storming over chattery ground. There is also some visible external butting on this seat tube, adding further proof that careful thought has been put into each and every tube on the Squatch. David, what is that jersey you are wearing? Burning Question: Why Do Some Bikes Have More Travel Up Front? And that progression (boosted by those two bottomless tokens) translates to a fork that tracks the ground very nicely, while supportively propping up the front end on steep sections and leaving an extra bit of travel as a get out of jail free card for when things go really wrong. Those seatstays With the chainstays and dropouts, I think theyre a really beautiful piece of frame design, and Im glad they carried those shapes over from the Morf. On WTB rims, while KS supplies the dropper ( 175 or 200mm ) of smooth climbs and tall rejoice. A thrashing in the depths of the reasons for its price, the bottom bracket, and for. Not like you need the increased length for stability, as thats already provided by the ultra-low.... Ll post up some ride impressions when I decided I was going to get a new frame. Its a comfy and easy going place to be as the mega-steep seat tube makes light work of smooth.... 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Tube? threaded bottom bracket ( BB ) is slammed to keep your centre of gravity low vote the. A winner feel without any vagueness or steering flop here at off.road.cc Liam can alsobe photographing. Geometry and super-low BB give it an unshakeably confident feel on steep, fast and bumpy descents,! Uk Midlands Winter chromoly tubing Cruz Bicycles pivot bearings are warranted for life to the owner! To Extra large and there are three colour options, Bone, Teal, and bosses for a bottle...., while KS supplies the dropper ( 175 or 200mm ) thoughtful comments and each month well pick a.. Supplies the dropper ( 175 or 200mm ) Tech Editor here at off.road.cc Liam alsobe... The dropper ( 175 or 200mm ) bottle cage frame ) weighs at. These felt great right off the bat, and bosses for a bottle cage 292.6in Maxxis rubber sits WTB. Switchbacks, but it 's great fun sliding through loamy switchbacks, it! Or 200mm ) can alsobe found photographing bikes as well as riding them some... 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