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Anyone have one of these bikes?

syadasti

i heart mac
Apr 15, 2002
12,690
290
VT
From the same guy that makes the Marin bikes. That is an old model.

The new ones are like the new Marins - short link 4-bar bikes with VPP setup. Not sure how they work versus SC/Intense VPP or DW - haven't looked closely at them in a while. I test rode one of them when the first gen came out at Interbike and it wasn't that impressive but they've refined the design a lot. Ugly as hell still though...

http://www.whytebikes.com

Just buy a Marin if you want one:

http://www.marinbikes.com
 

syadasti

i heart mac
Apr 15, 2002
12,690
290
VT
Watch the Marin video with Shaums (the Interbike I rode the first gen 4-bar Marin was when Shaums was on Chumba). I test rode the F4 with Shaums that year. Lisa Sher let me borrow her's and he rode along with me. See 3:10 in the video to see how the current 4bar system works:

http://content.mtbr.com/TRD_14_330crx.aspx
 

CrabJoe StretchPants

Reincarnated Crab Walking Head Spinning Bruce Dick
Nov 30, 2003
14,163
2,484
Groton, MA
Watch the Marin video with Shaums (the Interbike I rode the first gen 4-bar Marin was when Shaums was on Chumba). I test rode the F4 with Shaums that year. Lisa Sher let me borrow her's and he rode along with me. See 3:10 in the video to see how the current 4bar system works:

http://content.mtbr.com/TRD_14_330crx.aspx

Q: How many names can 1 person drop in 4 sentences.

A: 2
 

HAB

Chelsea from Seattle
Apr 28, 2007
11,580
2,006
Seattle
whats the point of a linkage i doubt there is any brake jack
Please come back once you can make a post that is
a. Coherent
b. Contains information that is somehow grounded in reality, rather than being entirely random speculation.
 

syadasti

i heart mac
Apr 15, 2002
12,690
290
VT
So their new models don't have the linkage fork thingy? That was pretty much the only interesting thing about their bikes.
Easier to sell if its not horribly ugly on both ends:D

The old version [non-four bar] was just a single pivot in the rear so really it was only the front end that was interesting other than the over use (well for that time since almost everyone is doing it now) of hydroforming.
 

Reactor

Turbo Monkey
Apr 5, 2005
3,976
1
Chandler, AZ, USA
The front suspension is similar to the BMW motorcycle front suspension. The main advantage on a motorcycle is that under hard braking the entire motorcycle squats, instead of nose diving, it also has less flex. The main disadvantage is weight and most non-BMW mechanics scratching their heads when they see it.

I'm not sure it the weight and complexity would be worth it on a mountain bike.
 

3D.

Monkey
Feb 23, 2006
899
0
Chinafornia USA
Saw this at a time trial this winter...


I'm pretty sure the real advantage to having a linkage system like this up front is to minimize wheel base shortening while going through the travel.

Hard to tell from this picture angle, but it seems like the front wheel path would be perpendicular to the ground (90degrees), rather than on a 68whatever degree angle

edit: disadvantage for DH
 

kev211

Monkey
Jan 22, 2008
320
0
San Diago
FOXROX actually beat me to it, but BMW (I believe) was actually the first company to use that, but only it was on their motorcycles
 

zahgurim

Underwater monkey
Mar 9, 2005
1,100
12
lolAsia
And their suck-ass mountainbikes.
Our shop used to sell them to Asians with more money than sense, and they would always shear/fail at the lower front balljoint connection, just from hitting speedbumps.
 

fluff

Monkey Turbo
Sep 8, 2001
5,673
2
Feeling the lag
Blimey, lots of nearly right info in this thread.

That bike was designed by Jon Whyte who was a designer for Marin before designing that bike, which was nicknamed Preston (after a character in Wallace & Gromit, British animated film characters) during the design stages due to its ugliness. Prior to working for Marin Jon Whyte had worked at the Benetton (now Renault) F1 team.

The front end of the bike is lighter than equivalent (of the time) telescopic forks, and got decent reviews. The type of linkage was originally designed by a British engineer called Norman Hossack for use in motorcyles, it is know as a Hossack or Girder fork. Hossack had worked as an engineer for the McLaren F1 team. BMW picked up the idea for free once his patent had expired.