The Specialized engineers stirred the ingredients for the secret material cocktail like in a witch's kitchen. The frame with the code "M5" was to be stiffer and lighter. Even better than its predecessor "M4". The effort was gigantic. After all, over 20 years of development had already gone into the last Stumpjumper series. Five different additives were sprinkled into the molten aluminium in order to process the refined raw material into artfully butted tubes. The reward for the effort: 50 grams less weight. "The issue of weight has been exhausted, there's almost nothing left," says Stefan Götz from Specialized. The impressive price of 4500 euros for the 9.8-kilogram complete bike seems to be relativised by the effort alone.
The Cube "SC Elite" weighs only 150 grams more, but costs just under half as much. It has the same geometry and similarly high-quality equipment as the Specialized "M5". Cheating parts? You'll look in vain. Tightly calculated price? Not a chance! "We have our frames welded in the USA and have a normal dealer margin. Either others take too much, or we take too little," says company spokesman Klaus Wachs-mann, who has noticed a rapid increase in demand for lightweight hardtails this year. The growing number of marathon riders seems to be one of the main reasons for this. Always in the target group's sights: the magic ten-kilo limit.
Expensive cult status
A few years ago, the formula was simple: the lighter, the more expensive. In the meantime, the top hardtail league has split into a two-class society: on the one hand, there is the elite class of "cult bikes"; bikes that have been perfected down to the last detail and have a high image factor. Bikes with which the pros fight for victory in the World Cup. On the other hand, there is the "bread-and-butter" hardtail segment: bikes that are designed from the outset to offer optimum value for money.
Lower development costs and marketing expenditure are having a huge impact on top-of-the-range hardtails in particular. Although brands such as Cannondale, Specialized and Prinzipia continue to set the trends, maintaining this position costs money. Money that has to be invested in expensive development, racing teams or image advertising. Other manufacturers such as Cube, Soil or KTM benefit indirectly from the technical innovations and at the same time can offer their products at lower prices. A 1600 gram lightweight frame is no longer witchcraft and can even be easily realised by an Asian assembly line welding shop. A clever parts concept - and the ten-kilo hardtail is ready. The advantage for bikers: full riding pleasure for half the money.
The price breakers no longer have anything to do with the image of cheap bar goods. Elaborate tubular construction and good workmanship are standard in the price range up to 2300 euros. Almost every frame features individual details. The elegantly shaped monostay rear triangle of the KTM, for example, could just as easily be part of a 5000 euro bike. Some bikes are even equipped with new XTR parts. "The bikers who buy a hardtail in this price range can usually ride very well. They would immediately recognise any cheat packs. That's why we don't skimp on hidden parts such as bearings or hubs," explains Lorenz Hoser from Hawk. The 9.9-kilo "Pro Team CC" from Berlin costs a fair € 2159 with SID fork, XT parts, Hügi hubs and Tune seatpost.
A matter of the heart
Nevertheless, you should take a good look before buying. Some of our test bikes turned out to be slightly overweight when we weighed them. "Without pedals, preferably under ten kilos" was the test requirement. The € 5299 Cannondale manages to stay under the ten-kilo limit with narrow, 1.75 mm tyres. The Trek 8500 weighed in at a hefty 11.0 kilos. The Nishiki "Accelerator" even disqualified itself from the test at 11.2 kilos. It is the details that set the premium class apart from the price breakers. The electronically lockable carbon fork on the Cannondale, for example; the powerful XTR disc brakes on the Specialized; or the up to 0.6 millimetre thin, in-house superlight tubeset of the Prinzipia. The same, by the way, as on the Danish forge's professional road bikes. "It's really craftsmanship," enthuses developer Boris Sirmanoff: "It's just so, so, so elaborate."
So whether you put 2,000 euros or twice that amount on the counter for your hardtail should be decided not least by your heart. Skoda and Aldi sparkling wine or Mercedes and champagne - a question of credit card and personal philosophy.
All bikes in this test
Cannondale F3000 SL, Chaka Mauna Superlight, Cube Elite Teamline, Hawk Custom Race Hardtail, HiTec XCR 2000, KTM Team Race, Principia MSL E Pro Light, Red Bull Scandium Pro 600, Scott Team Issue, Soil PH2, Specialised S-Works, Trek 8500
