Two Ride

The Specialized SX Trail came out in 2005, with a revamp in 2006 it has mostly stayed the same with the only modifications being to the swingarm. It was closely related to the Enduro cross country/trail bike but recent changes now see it stand alone as a 'aggressive trail bike', to quote Specialized. The bike has had a lot of press under Specialized's freeride star Darren Berrelcoth, who has used it in many video roles and slopestype competitions.

My requirement for the bike was to replace an aging Santa Cruz Bullit and it fitted right in with Specialized's idea of a 'aggressive trail bike'. The bike can be built up at a decent weight for a bike that excels at going down, but can also be pedalled up. The bike can be ridden in the bike park with no problems, but a season of it wouldn't be it's forte. It doesn't take a lot of research to find stories of broken swingarms on SX trails. Over the years Specialized have redesigned the swingarm to deal with this issue. As I don't intend to spend all day in bike park and won't be dropping in on any large hucks I don't worry about it. If it can handle to the 'Claw' then I'm not likely to bother it.

My main aim was to build a 160mm (6") bike that was lighter and performed better than the Buillit on a wide variety of terrain. As I ride only one bike it really has to be 'all mountain' - dealing with UK trail centres and their climbing, as wel as full on big mountain riding in the Alps.

The Build

The build comes in at around 15.6kg. The Bullit was +17.5kg and the original SX Trail 1 bike at least that. I rode a lot of cross country on the Bullit and as time went on got fed up of the weight. You could get down to 15kg by fitting smaller brake discs, a lighter stem and upgrading the gear set.

The first task was to strip the original SX Trail 1 bike and get it painted. I didn't really like the colour schemes other than the all blue one, which we can't get in the UK, so I had the main frame resprayed and added the custom Two Ride font stickers. I had 1cm taken off the top of the seat tube and fitted a Thompson post that fits flush to the QR to get the seat as low as I wanted.

Taking the frame apart is a lot more complicated than a single pivot bike. The swingarm is joined to the frame in the two places but has a third connection on the top link to the shock. Each connection has a selection of nuts, bolts and bearings and is a tight fit. Refitting the swingarm is a little tricky unless you have a third hand. The shock is also a tight squeeze through the seat tube. Considering the complexity it all went back together ok.

The original build was little basic and way too heavy. Thankfully with Fox Racing Shox and WTB on board the heavy old Marzocchi fork and Mavic wheels were soon replaced.

Rear suspension is a DHX 4. I ran a Vanilla RC on the Bullit from day one and never had any problems so the stock DHX should be a step up. Up front is the VAN 36R, a fork I long wanted to put on the Bullit to replace the unpredictable Marzocchi 66RC. I chose the 36R over the 36RC as I didn't want the extra adjustment or slight weight increase. I like spring based suspension as I plan on a lot of downhill on hot days when air can be less predictable.

WTB have supplied the wheels, tyres, grips and saddle. I have used WTB since the beginning and look forward to a choice of tyres. The saddle is the same I have used for the last couple of seasons and now matches the paint work . . .

The WTB Laserdisc trail wheelset has a 20mm front hub and comes in a a good weight for all mountain wheels. The wheelset and tyres are the single biggest weight saving on the bike and as everyone knows this is the place you notice it. The hubs are very quiet.

I'm using the same stem as before even though the top tube is shorter. I was tempted to go with a slightly longer stem but we will see how it pans out. The bars are carbon oversize to save a few grams. Most components are SRAM and came with the bike. The Juicy 5's look a little basic and feel a little heavy so they maybe on the upgrade list in the future. As the X7, X9 stuff wears out I may try to shed a few grams with X0 depending on how they perform. Having been used to Shimano shifting for many years it will be interesting only pushing forward to change gear.

The crankset is Shimano Hone purely because it's fairly light, not flashy looking and Julia has run it for the past two seasons with no problem. Hone and LX have been merged into SLX this year but as they look a bit like a cheap XTR with the graphics and all, I gave them a miss. The other choice was Raceface Atlas which is twice as expensive and no lighter. The original Truativs where again on the heavy side.

The original bike didn't have a front mech but did have a big heavy chain guide. I first tried a SRAM X7 front mech but it didn't go high enough. Same with other SRAM front mechs. They are all pretty big and the welds on the tube are just in the wrong place. Shimano being the only choice, I settled on a Hone. Took a little setting up and on the stand it always rubs the chain guide in the granny ring.

First impressions

When I first got the original SX Trail 1 bike I was surprised at how quick it accelerated for such a weighty beast. Seemed much faster than the Bullit. I attributed this to the horst link and DHX shock. It also had lot less bob in the rear end and braking was more stable.

The built bike feels light and flickable. The proportions are different to the Bullit, a slightly higher and shorter top tube take a little getting used to. The bars feel a bit close perhaps. The bike doesn't wheelie like the Bullit but takes off better over little jumps.

I had 1cm taken of the seat tube as with the seat post all the way down I wasn't happy with clearance, but once riding I have the seat up a bit even for steep downs. I guess it's something you get used to.

The bike is really quiet. The hubs make next to no noise and the chainset and gears are also smooth. The shifters are a little clunky and take a big thumb movement to work. They feel a little agricultural. The brakes are a bit wooden but work fine. Perhaps a few miles will improve matters but I don't think they are ever going to be great, as expected.

Took me a while to get the brake/shifter to feel right on the bar. First I tried the shifter closer to the grip but it kept getting in the way and I could only 1 finger brake. Luckily it just sits in the gap in the brake lever/cylinder and although it's not 100% perfect for me it's close enough. Initially the bars felt high but after a few miles they don't. Perhaps you just adjust to these things.

The suspension is still bedding in. The DHX is fine from the off and I'll keep tweaking it to suit the terrain. I haven't messed with the Pro pedal much yet but as the hills beckon I will be looking forward to better climbing. The 36VAN is a lot different to the Marzocchi's I have had. They were soft and buttery from the off. Of course they feel a bit worn after a season and mine fell apart. The VAN's are firmer and have a little stiction. They get better with every ride though. They remind me a little of the old Rockshox Boxxers in that way.

The Next Chapter

Well, the quiet ride certainly went away. I did a few road rides and then some testing on a local trail and noticed a creak or two. The cranks and saddle where both a little loose so I stripped and refitted them. Quiet again. When I got onto the Chamonix trails the creak returned so I stripped and refitted the swingarm. Annoyingly the creak returned whilst on a long ride, so I leapt off every drop to try and break it or fix it, and strangely it feel silent until an hour later. I again stripped and refitted the swingarm and cranks but it made no difference and the bolt on the top linkage was starting to round off. I couldn't loosen it, so it went off to local bike shop and Specialized dealer Zero G.

They did the same stripping and refitting and it was quiet for an hour or so before I returned it. After much scratching of heads and looking at the seatpost, the shock spring and everything else a bearing was replaced and the quiet ride returned. The peace prevailed for a week or so but I was noticing the headset getting tighter. I would loosen it and it would get looser. An evil spiral existed. The front brake was next to useless and became grabby so I swapped pads to a part used set of the same sintered type. Towards to the end of every ride the front brake started to stick on and the headset was either too tight or too loose. And then the creak returned. At this point I was tempted to drop it off a cliff and give up.

It went back to Zero G who bled the front brake and fitted EBC pads. It turned out the headset was fitted incorrectly. Both the bearings and headset were fitted by the paint company, Argos Cycles. They probably want to stick to painting. The shock pivot on the swingarm were again inspected and they seemed ok. Unfortunately the creak had different ideas. (Watch the video)

Ignoring these niggling issues the ride is entirely different to the Bullit. At slow speeds and over flatter terrain the bike feels a lot more like a hardtail than I'm used to. The suspension is less active and while this is a good thing for making progress, it's feels odd when compared to the active ride of the Bullit. Once you hit a downhill and get some speed up the suspension steps up and feels good, not chattering like the Bullit.

The bike feels planted over the steep rocky and rooty trails around Chamonix and easy to steer. All the parts are performing well and I am no longer changing gear accidently. The tyre combination has proven to be good. The Prowler XT on the rear hooks up on the climbs and holds it own on the downs. The Stout on the front works without you noticing it. In the extreme wet and on wet roots neither tyre is ideal as expected, but on mud the are better than expected. I have the Prowler MX's ready to go for more extreme riding to come.

The WTB wheelset is working out fine. For such a light, fairly thin rim I was expecting a bit of spoke tightening, especially as one got a good banging, but no adjustment required so far.

The only thing that hasn't been good are the Avid Juicy 5 brakes. They have the power but feel wooden, grabby and lack subtlety. The EBS pads are better so far and I have organic pads waiting in the wings.

As the lifts open and more trails become accessible the riding will get tougher and more challenging for the SX Trail. I'm not sure the build of the bike is up to that of the Bullit, the complex nature of the Horst link maybe it's downfall. The top linkage attracts every type of debris and is impossible to clean without stripping off the already rounded nut. The front mech is also difficult to get at and clean. The cable tied cables on the downtube are a nice idea but get covered in gunk and rub it into the frame.

Have some ideas about he creak? Drop us an email or visit the forum article.

All years

• A1 premium aluminum frame with patented FSR technology
• Forged HT
• Sealed cartridge bearings
• ISCG mount
• Adjustable geometry
• Replaceable derailleur hanger
• Derailleur guard

2005

• 150mm (6") travel
• Custom Progressive 5th Element coil-over shock with remote reservoir, CV-T position- sensitive damping, adjustable CV-T air pressure for pedal platform and progressivity, adjustable rebound

2006

• 167mm (6.6") travel
• Custom Fox DHX 5.0 or 4.0 Coil, 9.0 x 2.75"

2007

• 170mm (6.7") travel
• Custom Fox DHX 5.0 or 4.0 Coil 9.0 x 2.75"
• Modified swingarm

2008

• 170mm (6.7") travel
• Custom Fox DHX 5.0 or 4.0 Coil 9.0 x 2.75"
• Modified swingarm

More photos on Flickr

Shake down runs on Wino's retreat, Chamonix.

The creak in full flow

• WTB manuals (Website)
• Fox Racing Shox Tech Support (Website)
• Specialized Manuals (Website)
• Shimano Hone setup (PDF 288kb)
• TF Tuned Fox tuning and servicing (Website)

Many thanks to Viktor at WTB Europe for providing great products.

Wilderness Trail Bikes

Thanks goes to Elayna at Fox Racing Shox for a pro deal.

Fox Racing Shox

The guys at TF Tuned for answering lots of questions and Specialized UK's Customer service for pointing out things I didn't know.