One of the good things I retained from the Covid time period, is a good buddy I often ride technical trails with. The guy bought a Commencal Meta TR 29 'Ride' 2021, and it has been a fantastic machine for a big guy like him (220lbs). The frame (size XL) is heavy, very solid with overbuilt hardware making it very durable. The SRAM SX/NX drivetrain died first, and I have been his personal mechanic ever since replacing those parts for him.
One thing he keeps complaining about, is bottoming his shock practically every ride. The Deluxe Select+ shock seemed fine to me, it has shimed compression&rebound, but I figured the aircan could be a bit more progressive, so we mounted a MegNeg aircan, and a gnardog volume spacer which helped a lot.
But this weekend I volunteered to service his suspension for him, and when I took apart the shock, I was actually surprised to find a L/L1 compression tune in there. This sounds to me like a horrible idea for an aggressive & heavy trailbike for a heavy rider, so I retuned it to M/M with some Motorex 7.5W oil in there.
But what were they thinking at Commencal? Did they let the ladies marathon team choose the most comfortable setup for this productline? Or did they pin the options to a dartboard in order to 'optimize' their build? Maybe they are trying to compete with Ibis in the category 'best pedalling xc/trailbike' and are copying their tuning policies?
A long time ago I used to think that developing suspension tunes was a very difficult process done by real engineers, but now that I've seen that most suspension layouts have converged to very similar designs, and through the banishment of the front derailleur and consequently the multiple chainlines that double and triple cranks caused, I think it won't be long until practically every bike will be offered with a M/M tune...
So yes... moar shimz.
One thing he keeps complaining about, is bottoming his shock practically every ride. The Deluxe Select+ shock seemed fine to me, it has shimed compression&rebound, but I figured the aircan could be a bit more progressive, so we mounted a MegNeg aircan, and a gnardog volume spacer which helped a lot.
But this weekend I volunteered to service his suspension for him, and when I took apart the shock, I was actually surprised to find a L/L1 compression tune in there. This sounds to me like a horrible idea for an aggressive & heavy trailbike for a heavy rider, so I retuned it to M/M with some Motorex 7.5W oil in there.
But what were they thinking at Commencal? Did they let the ladies marathon team choose the most comfortable setup for this productline? Or did they pin the options to a dartboard in order to 'optimize' their build? Maybe they are trying to compete with Ibis in the category 'best pedalling xc/trailbike' and are copying their tuning policies?
A long time ago I used to think that developing suspension tunes was a very difficult process done by real engineers, but now that I've seen that most suspension layouts have converged to very similar designs, and through the banishment of the front derailleur and consequently the multiple chainlines that double and triple cranks caused, I think it won't be long until practically every bike will be offered with a M/M tune...
So yes... moar shimz.
