Went to Filip Sport to pick up a Merlin Works 4.0 testbike kindly provided by ABG .
There
were two things I did not like from the start but would have to live
with. The (excellent) Rock Shox Reba Worldcup fork was set to 85mm and
not to 100mm - which would match beautifully with the bike's 100mm (4
inches) of rear suspension . Why they left it at 85 is therefore a bit
of a mystery to me. Furthermore the shifters were SRAM X0 thumbies
mounted on a carbon handlebar. That handlebar was a cm or two too
narrow for my liking. I am an XTR dude but I was secretly looking
forward to try the much-acclaimed and over-expensive X.0 combo.
The
rest of the bike was obviously top-notch to match its pedigree. Filip
mounted some DT Swiss wheels with DT340 hubs and the braking was with
my favorite Hope Mono Mini disc brakes, 160mm in front and rear . Rear
derailleur was a SRAM X.0 and the front derailleur was XTR. Cranks and
BB were Shimano XTR 2005, an excellent choice although I felt the
chainline was a bit off, being to the outside more than was good for
it, causing the chain to drop from the front big and middle chainrings
when shifting all the way up the cassette in the back. The headset was
a Chris King, a golden one , someone obviously knows my preferences.
Tyres were Schwalbes excellent allrounders Nobby Nic in 2.1 inch.
The
saddlepost was a very beautiful Ringle Moby Deuce , made from Easton
aluminum. As I already mentioned the handlebar was an Easton carbon
thingie. Stem was alu and it looked light and stiff. I put on a Flite
saddle and my Xpedo Ti/Ti pedals and weighted the bike at 11kg - give
or take a few grams . Not bad for a titanium full susser with 10cm of
suspension.
The
titanium front trangle oozed craftmanship, and that is to be expected
from a firm like Merlin, who have over 20 years of experience with the
expensive grey metal . Made with their proprietory MTS 3/2.5 tubing the
welds are smooth and even. Very simply put a work of art and a joy to
look at.
The
rear triangle is made by Ellsworth and features their much-appraised
ICT (Instant Center Tracking I believe) suspension, which is basically
a 4-bar linkage job coupled to a Fox Float R pump. I put some 105psi in
it and put the red rebound knob midway. That way I had about 1cm of
sag. On the Reba front fork I put the rebound knob in the middle
position and pumped it up to 105Psi both in the upper and lower air
chamber. I haven't got a clue what the compression knob on the remote
lockout does so I also left it in its middle position. Before getting
it dirty I had a little photo session trying to capture the details of
the bike. Check the link below for the results.
The
ride then. I decided to take it on an easy ride to start out with, to
see if everything worked as it should and also to check if my position
on the bike was right. The bike is a 17.5" frame and I got my position
dialled in perfectly, save for the slightly narrow bars and the front
end which felt a bit low.
I started out on the Blue Meerdael BLOSO
loop and from the start I felt the comfort when the rear suspension
took the stones, cobbles and roots, effectively mellowing out the ride.
I could see the suspension work when I pedalled and I also could feel
it ever so slightly. But it did not bother me. I took some of the
meaner downhills in Meerdael forest and the bike just went where I
pointed it, with fast speed and in perfect control. The narrow bars
bothered me a bit, and I could do with a titanium stem/bar combo in
front instead of the harsh alu/carbon combination that was mounted.
I
did not like the X.0 shifters, they had me wriggling my fingers in all
kinds of positions, taking my concentration away from the ride.
Furthermore I did not like the way the X.0 rear derailleur shifted, it
didn't work as precise as my XTR does, although later into the ride I
learned that instead of caressing the shifters as you do with XTR, you
needed to hammer the X.0 and then they do shift crisply and correct.
On
the uphills I noticed immediately the bike climbed very well , even the
steepest I could find it made without any trouble. Of course since it
only weighs 11kg that was to be expected. It was well balanced and the
suspension did not work against me when pedalling up the slopes. On the
contrary, it nicely followed the terrain and let me concentrate on
powering up the hill. The Nobby Nics - being what they are, an
excellent and grippy tyre - helped as well to track precisely and offer
good traction.
I rode over to Sint Agatha Rode to connect to the
Overijse Red trail, and had a blast on the tricky step downhill. Pity
another biker bailed out in front of me, which caused me to brake , but
the bike handled the dropoffs beautifully, giving me lots of
confidence. The Hope brakes, which I'm quite used to from the Moots,
are very powerful. Even with 'only' 160mm in front I had no need for
more braking power today. When I got home I noticed I used about 5/6th
of the available travel on the Float R, which I think is good. Tomorrow
or monday I plan to take the bike to the Ardennes for some 'real'
downhills and climbs.
So
far so good. I was pleased with the bike's handling, the meticulous
craftmanship, comfortable ride and yet very stiff rear end. I could not
fault it into twisting and turning. Even when standing on the pedals
and powering up a hill I felt no noticeable flex in the bracket or rear
suspension. A very good design it seems. I had some trouble with the
shifting , as I already mentioned the X.0 shifters are not my thing and
the chainline was not optimal causing the chain to drop a couple of
times when I was crossing it too much. I would have loved 100mm in
front but even with 85mm, the Reba performed flawlessly, stiff and
precise steering are a given with this fork. Some more dialling-in is
needed to make it perform a little less harsh on the small stuff. Or I
could opt for a titanium stem/handlebar to mellow out the little
vibrations. That is the setup I use on my bikes. Gave the bike a quick
once-over when I got home , brushed off a few specks of mud and it's
ready to go for another ride.
I want to kindly thank M. Van Doorn at American Bicycle Group for lending me this bike.
Also thanks to Filip at Filip Sport for providing me with the missing parts.
Some pictures can be found here (CLICK) .
Ride Stats : 43.5K and 525 heightmeters in 2h11mins
7490/70055 |
